Moments in Dirt and Ink

McKay Community Forest Click for map I've been waiting for things to dry out to make another foray into the southern reaches of the McKay Community Forest, this time all the way to the southern edge of the property. On the previous excursion , I only got a little way along the creek and a couple small climbs. It's not end of the summer dry, but there's a distinct containment of the wet areas these days. I decided I have waited long enough and headed to the Northridge parking area beside what is still the only officially open trails in the forest. Those trails that are officially open and signed are mapped at the kiosk next to the area rules. My first goal of the day was to cross Henderson Gulch and get high on the plateau between it and Ryan Creek. I headed for the Perimeter Trail and Triple C Trail as the most efficient way to get there. That it isn't yet dry showed up early on the road section of the Perimeter Trail as there are several spots of mud, with d...

Headwaters Forest Reserve Click for map I decided it was time for a pilgrimage to the spot of old growth coastal redwood trees they'll let the public visit regularly, at least if they're on foot and without a dog after the bridge at mile 3. They do give the bikes parking just before the curve down to that bridge, so one can bike most the way. I wouldn't, but one could. I hoped the South Side Trail would be open. The BLM website suggests it could be in May if the water is low enough. The docent led hikes on the Salmon Creek side of the Reserve (plus an extra birding walk by Ken Burton to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the creation of the Reserve ) have started. (I should finally do one of those, but I would have to rely on a fellow hiker and likely stranger get from the meet point to the trailhead.) Paved big trail at the start of the Elk River Trail. The South Side Trail was still marked as closed as I passed. I wanted to take it on the way back, so I held ou...

Knowing the temperature certainly rates among the nice to have, but not a necessity. When I first really took off with the cat and the trailer (winter solstice 2018), I didn't have any means to measure it. Wondering what the cat was subjecting himself to while I tried to make him understand that under the blankets may be restrictive, but it's warm , got me wanting a way. Knowing the real temperature, not just if it feels a bit chill, helps a little for planning. It would be really nice to know the outside temperature without having to experience it first. Somewhere around Lake Havasu (mid January 2019), I stopped into an Ace and picked up a Taylor indoor/outdoor thermometer. One month. That didn't take long. Much later, I picked up a cheap hygrometer (which is technically a humidity reader, but it needs to know the temperature to get relative humidity, or at least they did historically, so they do both) to tuck away in my backpack too. I didn't have the same feeling...