Moments in Dirt and Ink

Kings Canyon National Park Inyo National Forest Click for map. DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6  |  DAY 7 Two more days in the plan, but probably only one more day for the execution. I expect to stare at one more mountain that would be a perfectly reasonable climb, and then not go up it. The climb would make it late for getting out, so staying one more night would be nice, and the extra day would make time to go up one more little peak on the way out. Or I can just hike out today. I have minor, but unfounded, worries about leaving the cats with a first time carer for a week. The one needing pills can be a nuisance. So I may bail on the plan. Meanwhile, out in the Dusy Basin, it is looking like a very nice morning indeed. Surrounded by mountains, it is time to find the pass. I guess the bit at the left. Climbing higher, but still a few trees. There are lots of lakes, creeks, po...

Sierra National Forest Kings Canyon National Park Click for map. DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6  |  DAY 7 Today is a travel day without any mountains to climb. Well, a get down to the trail and then travel day. My plan to get back on trail is to go over the low spot west of the outlet and work my way down tending left to get to less steep areas of the canyon. Just getting to the low spot needs a round-about route as the direct way seems to have a bit of water topped by a wall of snow. The view back up to Pilot Knob from nearby camp. Climbing up and around for a low spot. Heading down among the rocks that make a lovely terraced flower garden requires some rather careful stepping. Halfway down, my stepping is not quite careful enough. Trust in one particular rock is rewarded with it slipping down a chimney it was sitting in the top of for a couple feet. It could be worse, th...

Sierra National Forest Click for map. DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6  |  DAY 7 Another poor sleep, but that is what it is. Today is a day to grab a peak. First up is getting back down to the main trail. Packed up, I follow the trail I found beside my camp back to the snow field and then make my way downward toward where I know the rest of the trail is. Staying on trail does not last long. As it climbs, I head down, aiming at the outlet of Summit Lake. These lakes often have a rather rocky outlet that can allow for an easy crossing. There is more snow, and then the slushy area of melt water below, to navigate to get there. The rest of Humphreys Basin stretched out below. Today is easy, just cross it and pop up the bump at the end, Pilot Knob, a bit toward the right. I can see the trail just up from some rocks on the other side, so it is not far to go to get there once on the correc...

Inyo National Forest Sierra National Forest Click for map. DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6  |  DAY 7 A poor sleep, nothing to do with the moment and everything to do with being in a cycle of poor sleep, showed that all my little roof blocked was the very bright moon as it crossed the sky and then the view of the stars. A few clouds played, but mostly it was clear. Home seems to like to cloud up and rain at night, but these mountains like a good afternoon clamber with clearing at night. Still, the late evening activity hinted that there might be a little more to the current weather than just what the mountains generate. Morning is clear and George is shaded by the mountains with plenty of fish jumping. George Lake and a pothole beside it sit in shadows reflecting a morning sky. The trail along the side of the lake has a tree, still green, fallen across where it is difficult to get...

Inyo National Forest Click for map. DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6  |  DAY 7 In planning the loop through Evolution Basin, a location commonly claimed to be a favorite along the Pacific Crest Trail through the Sierra Nevada Mountains, most will get a shuttle or plan to hitchhike between the North Lake and South Lake. Not me. I planned to connect the two by the Tyee Lakes Trail and the George Lake Trail and the short up and over seems like a good start day for the trip. It needs to be short because there is also the matter of the long drive up and grabbing a permit on the way. This year, walk-in permits are being released at 11 AM the day before, but they are still free for Inyo National Forest. Arriving at the Interagency Visitor Center a mere 23.5 hours after the day's permits were released, I easily got one of the 10 total, 6 that may be reserved, that are offered. This is also a nice t...

August 1991 Inyo National Forest Sequoia National Park I was the ripe old age of 14 in 1991, so my first trip up to Mount Whitney was not my own plan or execution. Instead, it was part of the intermediate backpacking unit at Camp Mountain Meadows. Or at least slightly higher than beginner. It may well have been my third backpacking trip ever and the previous one did not go entirely to plan . The first one was when I was 9. This one also did not go as planned, but in two ways inconsequential to getting to the goal. First, permits had not been reserved for our group, so the original plan to go in at Onion Valley and proceed south had to be scrapped when walk-in permits could not be obtained for a group the size of a Girl Scout Camp unit. Instead, we camped out at the Cottonwood Lakes backpacker camp at the trailhead (which I remember being quite crowded) and Klikitat got up at 4AM to sit next to the ranger station to be first in line when they opened. I think she said the s...

Inyo National Forest Manzanar National Historic Site DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6 The sun gets up appropriately early when camped out around The Pothole. My bear canister seems inappropriately empty. Apparently I did not quite figure out that I needed one more breakfast than supper. There is no breakfast for me in there. Ralph has about a pound of oatmeal he has not eaten yet, so there is plenty to eat. But where are the raisins? Where is the cinnamon? Oh, are beggars not supposed to be choosers? I dump the last of my blueberry juice infused cranberries (surprisingly yummy) into the mix and it is good, but it really needs a mass of cinnamon. Allspice can be nice, too. We pack up for the last time and head down passing a couple groups coming up from Anvil Camp. Add to them the trail crew staying there and it must have been a little crowded there last night. There are indeed a lot m...

Inyo National Forest Sequoia National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6 Another morning by the lake and still no fish are jumping, but we are going fishing. Just not here. We pack it all up only to drop it again just the other side of the rocks. Dave has decided that it will be easier to get to Big Sur for a family weekend if he walks out today and Devon likes that hike a little better than the one over the trailless rocks, so they are both bailing on us again. We wave them off while we unload our packs, the start the first navigational challenge. Looking down on the lake at the next level below. Williamson Creek gets its start here. We are heading down to it and over the lip to the next one. Photo by Dave from above us. This is where I want to grab my camera and thumb to a photograph of the area we will be hiking down to remind me of the route. Reconnaissance photos are really...

Inyo National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6 This morning, I pack up most my stuff into various bags to leave at camp. We will be coming right back here in the afternoon, so no need to carry it. My worries about the weather coming later cannot hurry anyone else and the bright blue sky overhead does nothing to help my case. Climbing back out of the bowl of the lake to what is a bit like a ridge running through Williamson Bowl is just as hard as coming down. There are some things that look like trails, but they finish as soon as they start. At the top with many miles of Owens Valley visible, some realize they can call their spouses to say that they can stop worrying about what might have happened yesterday and start worrying about what might happen today. I realize that we want to go down to the lakes below tomorrow and take the time to scrutinize the route. It seems like all routes cli...

Inyo National Forest Sequoia National Park DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6 The morning sun comes up directly down the canyon and I go for the camera to take a picture. The camera promptly does nothing at all. I check the settings and it is on and everything looks right, but there is not even a complaint of a low battery when I press the shutter. I left it on when I tucked it into my pack last night and it probably spent the night trying to focus on the inside of the pack. The action was to protect it from dew I knew would not manifest and indeed did not. Battery failure number two. I did that once before with dire consequences for any chance at picture taking, so at least I am not in a panic that my expensive camera is now broken, but I should have learned. Of course since the battery will last for weeks, short of egregious operator error, I do not have a spare. With the telephoto and trip...

Inyo National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5  |  DAY 6 The White Mountains throw a long shadow, so the peaks above get light a lot sooner than we do. The others are not in much of a hurry to get out and have a bit more to take down anyway. I looked at the weather and then looked around at various nearby and far areas and eventually decided to believe the National Weather Service although I am usually reluctant to do so for more than three days out. According to it, there will not be the slightest chance of rain, so I left out tent or shelter or even bivy sack. I grabbed the wind breaker and left the rain gear. It is a very nice weight savings. Not as much as expected versus what I carried in Colorado, though. Got to figure that out, that did include rain gear and shelter. Meanwhile, everyone else has and is using a tent. I guess it helps tone down the moon brightness. Morning has broken u...

Inyo National Forest I suggested a snowshoe up to the Ashram to Bernard and now we have collected a group to do it, although the snow is not cooperating. That is okay, this jagged valley is probably not a place one would want to be in heavy snow. We park in a turnout a little before the road starts to flirt heavily with a cliff and start our hike along it. The creek that is a dry wash where we crossed to get here is noisy and invisible in its deep groove below us. The gash of this valley and the flat of Owens behind us is quite a contrast. Starting off somewhere above Tuttle Creek which slices the bottom of a large glacial valley. Looking back on Owens Valley. I see faces in the rocks, or at least a head on the ridge.

Sierra National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5 There was some smoke in the night, but not much. There still is not much in the air as the morning comes. My procrastination about getting up is interrupted by a double bladed helicopter heading south from Florence Lake somewhere. Twice as loud as the average helicopter. I figure it is something to do with the firefighting effort, but it is actually picking up some of the last Search and Rescue teams after finding their missing hiker battered and hungry, but otherwise in good shape. I thought I would just make my own way last night, but now I want to find the junction. Before starting, there are a couple points it seems prudent to put into the GPS to help navigate. One is for a big bend in the trail and one for the lake itself. Heading downward, there is a blaze and another and behind me another one. Blazes were rare yesterday. I saw about three and one wa...

Kings Canyon National Park Sierra National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5 Sipping a bit of water helped deal with the effects of smoke in the night and the morning is clearer again. I have decided to poll the hikers I meet as to if they are through hiking or not. The two that were already at the site are JMT sobo hikers (John Muir Trail south bound) and the two who came later are the same, but hit the greater smoke to the south and are now bailing out at Muir Ranch. Crossing the bridge over the low South Fork San Joaquin River. The sign at the junction says it is 16 miles down to Florence Lake, probably meaning the trailhead, and that is essentially all downhill. I thought yesterday afternoon was a long time going downhill, this will be longer. The lost elevation is much less. A piece of the trail. It is still a little smoky out, but not so bad. The deer in the park can be very relaxed.

Sierra National Forest Kings Canyon National Park DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5 It is 2 AM and I have woken up not comfortable at all. The smoke is making my nose run which is just enough to dribble down my throat and my stomach is reacting with heart burn. Maybe I should bail. Smoke is not a healthy thing. Pulling out the map, it looks like I could get back to the car in a day. It would be even easier to do so if I get the part I already know done now. I am not sleeping or even feeling sleepy. Packing is easy and quick. Under the moon, I do not even need my head lamp. It is curious how the trail stands out in the low light as a lighter line, even as it passes over the rocks. Very small particles ground out by the passage of many shoes scatter the light a little better? It seems plausible. Whatever it is, it makes the trail easier to follow than it was in the daylight. Of course, knowing where it goes hel...

Sierra National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5 The new day dawns fairly clear of smoke. I had an inflatable mat that would have been more comfortable, but it turned two and decided to develop more pin holes every day. For a night on a basic blue mat embellished by marmot, this was pretty good. A bit of breakfast and gathering up my temporary home making and I am ready for a little more climbing through the trees. It does not take long for these to open up into meadow and then get decidedly wetter. A little meadow through the trees in the morning sunlight. Meadow Brook as a brook through a meadow. An expansive meadow including a large pond and a couple smaller ones further up.

Sierra National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3  |  DAY 4  |  DAY 5 I was dithering greatly about where to go backpacking next as it is a brilliant time to be backpacking, especially in the Sierras. I am still looking at Blackcap, but a new variable has come into the equation: the Rough Fire. The Forest Service has closed the area south of Crown Valley, which is just 2.5 miles south of Woodchuck where I would enter for that. I decided to move a little bit north to Maxson and I would go to Hell For Sure. (You know someone named it just so they could say that was where they were going.) I am looking froward to having a trip where the trails are fairly easy to follow. Getting my permit the day before, I was told that Woodchuck was closed for air quality concerns. That is worrying. The air did not look all that good yesterday, but it is better this morning. The lot is practically empty. There are three or four other private cars...

Inyo National Forest (map link) DAY 1  |  DAY 2 It seems like it should be colder than this in October at 10,000 feet. There is not the slightest sign of frost anywhere. Today, we can day hike up the last of the mountain, then grab the rest of our stuff on the way down and coast the rest of the way out. First, we have to get started and it is quite a late start. Ah, but the sun is upon us as we do. The night warmer than expected does not translate into a very warm day. Red and White Mountain with sun long before it gets to us on the other side of Big McGee Lake. Starting out in the still cool, but now sunny, fall air.

Inyo National Forest Locate the trailhead. DAY 1  |  DAY 2 I have been hearing a vicious rumor that this time of year, one should be heading out to look for fall color, perhaps around Bishop and a few other areas. Then I noticed Red Slate Mountain. Who could resist that? Quite a few people by the summitpost entry which claims many prefer to go for the one peak higher in the Mammoth area, Mt. Ritter. We get a late start thanks to planning around jury duty and hike in a little way under the bright moon for a little dispersed camping before the John Muir Wilderness boundary. There is no sign, so we may not have managed to stop before the boundary, but as it is after midnight, we definitely enter the wilderness on the permit designated day. We can see just enough under the great streetlamp in the sky to be excited about what the morning sun will show. The suggestion of tree tops among light and dark striped mountains. The morning does not disappoint. Bright...

Inyo National Forest Map link. DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 The downright pleasant night at Thunder and Lightning Lake turns into an even more pleasant morning as the sun crests over, from our perspective, low hills. We are slow to get up because while we have decided how we will go after the mountain again, we have not decided if. We got close to it and saw it and saw views like what it should have, maybe there is something else interesting around. But really, what else are we going to do? It is just too nice a day not to and we are so close. Once settled, it is not long before we are packed up and starting up the inlet area of the lake to reach the flat above. It looks like there are a couple tough spots, but we do not find them as we climb. Bernard, Linda, Menzo, and Bhagwan climbing up and out of Thunder and Lightning Lake near the inlet. Bhagwan still leads us heading up to the flat above the lake. The climb was a lot easier than expecte...