Moments in Dirt and Ink

Lassen National Forest location Well, I decided to go see the annular eclipse. Is it worth it to drive out to an eclipse that won't be total for anyone because the moon is currently too far from the earth? There will be no shadow to watch rush toward one (as there was on Strawberry Peak in 2017) and no stark drop in temperature (only the people who already had their jacket weren't reaching for one) and no rush away again as the sun starts to reappear. On the other hand, there will be a transit. The moon will just touch one edge and then there will be a ring of light until the moon touches the other edge and drifts off again. It is best seen via a pinhole or filter. Once I saw a partial eclipse in Kings Canyon National Park and the best bit were the pinhole like shadows dancing through the leafy trees. (The pines didn't do it, just the maples and oaks.) The cut out sun was repeated all through the shadows of these trees. To find a space of dappled shade and watch the a...

Lassen National Forest ( map link ) I had a hike planned with more miles than hours of daylight, which requires getting an early start. I know, some people just walk fast, but that's incompatible with taking way too many photographs, checking out all the flowers, trying to catch all the birds and lizards and everyone else out on the trail. So I got up in the dark and got moving before the sunrise. I had second thoughts about getting going quite so early, and ultimately started exactly 5 minutes late to get out to the edge of Hat Creek Rim for the best of the dawning light. Trailhead on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) a quarter mile north of the Hat Creek Overlook The area burned in the Hat Creek Complex in 2009 and there's hints that there was once a much larger forest here. There's a lot less burn and a bit more recovery to look at than on the last hike along the Bizz Johnson . It's still a bit, well, scrubby. Leaves the view clearer. Trail through the old ...

Lassen National Forest ( map link ) I enjoyed my time on the Bizz Johnson National Recreation Trail yesterday so much, that I decided to try the other direction. It's the same easy railroad grade until it gets to the crossing of CA-36. The train went right across this highway that didn't even exist when the tracks were built, but the people get the only piece of this trail that is not considered accessible as it drops down to cross under the bridge, then climb back up to the railroad grade above, both at greater than 3% grade. Gate upon arriving at the CA-36 right-of-way. Trail drops downward to the left. The actual old grade has already gone to the right. Looking up to the CA-36 bridge over Susan River (and the moon below it) The railroad bridge and the old Lassen Highway bridge Trail gets back on grade just before the biggest bridge over the Susan River. It comes with a lovely interpretive sign about the bridge that includes a lot of pictures. The railroad b...

Lassen National Forest (map link) I had seen the Spattercone Trail on the map and instantly wanted to do that. Disappointedly, I found the gate closed on the parking lot, but could just fit off the road. Disappointment came again when I saw a sign saying it was closed by a forest order. Strangely, there wasn't an actual copy of the order, which there usually is. A number means little to me. I looked it up, and found it to be an expired order for the Dixie Fire. Then, for my due diligence, I checked the Alerts and Notices of Lassen National Forest and found nothing replacing it. Well, say no more. I was off, but first I had to put on my microspikes again having been sufficiently alert to notice the area was not dissimilar to an ice skating rink. The trailhead on the other side of the ice. It includes information signs related to the local area. I didn't need the spikes for the trail, which starts off as an accessible route on compacted granite. There are information ...

Lassen National Forest Lassen National Park (map link) Having had such a dry January and with a dry February predicted, I decided I could travel along highways that should be demanding I carry chains. (I do have chains, but fear that they wouldn't help my rig all that much if they were needed.) I had still passed up making any plans for Lassen National Forest due to its elevation. Then it took more than 5 hours to drive CA-299 because of all the construction and I found myself tired and in the dark in Lassen. A sign said there was a viewpoint in half a mile and I thought that at least I could stop and eat and see if it would let me sleep. Had it been light, or perhaps just with some brighter headlights, I'd have seen the sign pointing where to turn for the viewpoint. Instead, I turned 0.1 mile short onto the unsigned road for West Prospect Peak (which has a lookout). It was dry with humps of snow down the middle, which made me nervous. I saw an area others had pulled ove...