Moments in Dirt and Ink

Klamath National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Green line for day 3. Click for interactive map Daniil decided to head up Kings Castle before heading down, but didn't get a very early start. I think he was expecting me to want to go up, but I didn't want to add the 1.5k feet of descent from it to the 4k feet already waiting for me. I got to watch the newts and read from Teddy Roosevelt about his trip through South America . The snow around us, at least that which was left, now had a very distinct crust to it as I plowed through it to the lake. Morning by the lake when the light is still colored. I can confirm that Daniil made it to the top of Kings Castle. Rough skinned newt minding its own business. Away it goes.

Klamath National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Red and orange lines for day 2. Click for interactive map I had a selection of possible day hikes for our middle day. We could go south to tag Box Camp Mountain that I have become fixated on (probably because its smack in the middle of everything) and maybe tag Black Marble Mountain once more. We could try hiking a loop with the old trail that passed on the west side of Kings Castle and down to Bear Lake, probably tagging the peak on the way. It's an easy up from that trail. Morning comes to the bumps near Kings Castle. Remembering the terrain to the south and seeing how covered with snow that sort of terrain was, anything going that way wasn't very attractive. There's similar terrain to the north, but then it opens up to a ridge, or so the map says. North to Big Ridge (or even Buckhorn Mountain, which sounds more like a "real name" but is a lower point) looked like the most pleasant use of the day....

Klamath National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Purple line for day 1. Click for interactive map In the continuing saga of going to high places because "it's like June out there", Daniil and I headed to the upper trailhead of the Kelsey Creek Trail. For this episode, however, there was a spring storm through on Wednesday, so we weren't quite sure what travel would be like in the high elevations. Copernicus sailed by after, but took pictures of clouds. Just a little mystery to keep us on our toes. Regulations and map on the left, a little history in the middle, at the trailhead. This is the easternmost portion of the Kelsey National Recreation Trail, which will take you at least as far as the west side of Siskiyou Wilderness, admittedly with a big chunk of road walking and a name change in between. The historic Kelsey Trail was a major supply route from Crescent City to Fort Jones in the 1850s. This day's travel would complete my travel along the ...

Klamath National Forest Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Yellow lines for day 2. Click for interactive map Neither of us had quite got our boots open wide enough the night before and the frozen shapes were hard to put on in the morning in spite of preparing for it. I had elected not to bring along my waterproof socks and I was sorry for it as soon as my boots thawed out. The cold also left my camera battery devoid of sufficient energy to take sunrise pictures. The extra battery, which admittedly only registered 2 of 3 bars when I grabbed it, was also dead. I decided to leave the camera and be stuck with substandard photography equipment for the day. I was also sorry for being lazy about battery maintenance. Leaving Kangaroo Springs, just one pool visible from here. Shasta almost hides in the low clouds in the nearby valleys. Upper and Middle Devils Peaks where the Pacific Crest Trail goes. Our goal for the day was ...

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4 Blue line for day 4. Click for interactive map The lake didn't brighten up so much as the day before as weather was coming in. Bits of clouds passing over Alpine Lake. And just up the hill, there's a valley covered over by clouds to see, too. But this was all a preview of things to come and passed over. Still, it wasn't quite as hot as it had been, which was nice.

Mendocino National Forest Work DAY 1-2  |  Move/Rest/Play DAY 3  |  Work DAY 4-5  |  Work DAY 6-7 Purples for day 6, black finish: interactive map link The crew were tired of walking down that hill, where "that hill" is the Burnt Camp Connector, so we headed off to the split of the Ides Cove Loop way back near the start (which isn't that much further and is definitely easier trail to walk). Did you know, there is a spot called Ides Cove, but to get to it, you have to go along the vanished South Yolla Bolly Trail? Thursday: 19 Jun 2025 Today's view out over Cottonwood Creek to the central valley. We headed down the lower loop of Ides Cove National Recreation Trail looking for a bit of work at first. The severe burn of the area left it needing just a little light tread work here and there, small wood clearing, and some trimming of the elderberry that was growing about frequently. That growth does suggest there's water down there, on this hi...

Mendocino National Forest Work DAY 1-2  |  Move/Rest/Play DAY 3  |  Work DAY 4-5  |  Work DAY 6-7 Greens for day 4, blues for day 5: interactive map link I was comfortable and warm in my hammock overnight. I did wake up with the mat pushed up a third or so, but it was still doing its job. I don't have the double layer hammock style that is needed to lock a mat in place. It felt like my muscles never really relaxed while I was sleeping. That's a problem, so I popped everything into the tent for the day and the rest of the time. Play day was over, time to work again. Tuesday: 17 Jun 2025 We headed down the steep connector once more, grabbing up our tools and protective gear on the way to the work at the bottom. The goal was Cedar Basin, a spot on the map beside the trail and rumored to be a memorable one. Not like the Cedar Basin we visited at the north end of this Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness. Part of a patch of grey mule ears just b...

Mendocino National Forest Work DAY 1-2  |  Move/Rest/Play DAY 3  |  Work DAY 4-5  |  Work DAY 6-7 Yellow and brown for day 3: interactive map link Moving day! Also there is usually a do your own thing day on these week long trips and it was determined that if we were going to, this would be the day to do it. First up, moving ourselves and gear to Square Lake. Group gear had to be packed up in time for the packers to load it up as they liked. Packing our own gear was a little more relaxed. With bear canister and chair and hammock and tent and and and, it was a little heavy, but the hike isn't bad. Our new home for the rest of the week: Square Lake. The weekend campers had taken off mid-Sunday, so the lake was otherwise deserted when we arrived. Most the volunteers were gone again by the time the stock showed up. The packers were ready to drop everything in the same meadow the campers occupied until it was mentioned the crew all wanted the ge...

Mendocino National Forest Work DAY 1-2  |  Move/Rest/Play DAY 3  |  Work DAY 4-5  |  Work DAY 6-7 Reds for day 1, oranges for day 2: interactive map link I signed up for the first week of Bigfoot Trail Alliance trail work in the Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness at South Yolla Bolly. Traditionally, these week long trips start with getting packed out to a remote area, but the trail out of Ides Cove Trailhead wasn't quite ready for that yet. We would be two days at the trailhead, which even has an official camp site with a metal fire ring, then we would move to Long Lake and the next week would be at Cedar Basin. This plan soon crumbled, but only slightly, as it was determined that Square Lake would be the better headquarters for both. First we had to have the trail cleared to Square Lake so that stock could get there. Saturday: 14 Jun 2025 The view to Tomhead Mountain, middle left, and Elkhorn Peak, right. Behind are some Trinity Alps and w...