Moments in Dirt and Ink

Shasta-Trinity National Forest Click for interactive map We hit the Swift Creek trailhead for a day hike up to the snow survey cabin. Daniil wanted to do a survey of the terrain, but the fact of the cabin suggests it's pretty safe hiking in winter. We only hit snow on the road shortly before the trailhead around 4000 feet, although the trailhead parking was totally covered in white. We started out with the snowshoes on our backs. Snow exists, as we see at the trailhead. Into the wilderness that started a quarter mile back down the road according to the map. Soggy trail with a little running water at the second sign for the Trinity Alps Wilderness. The morning wasn't freezing and the trail ran with water. We passed several very seasonal streams and the ones marked on the map tended to need a well placed rock to keep the feet out of the water. When we hit snow, it was neither hard nor particularly soft. Swift Creek churning below. Closer to Swift Creek. Bei...

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Purple lines for day 3. Click for interactive map We didn't have much to do for the third day except head on out. Daniil decided he wanted to go up the mountain for the early morning rays on Mount Shasta. Shasta was a no-show, but he stayed up there a while. He was bundled up well. I decided to take a larger tour around the upper lake to visit all the little ponds of the area. No new ice on the lake this morning. There's a nice rock ramp heading up the hill from our camp, so I took that to start the big loop. It takes energy quickly, but the rocky slope is pretty stable. The curlleaf mountain mahogany 's view. Once up on the shelf I had seen above the camp, I found an unexpected bonus pond, frozen solid. A tidy little depression.

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Warm color lines for day 2. Click for interactive map We got up a little bit early. The peak of Mount Eddy isn't so far from the upper Deadfall Lake, but we had a lot more planned. There's a loop of trails south of the mountain we were going to explore and, if there was time, might go out to see Toad Lake. The ice grew in the night. But it was retreating again before the sun got there. We left the snowshoes in camp with the overnight gear. The microspikes still came along. We headed out before the sun had arrived, but it was up. The outflow is still flowing. There's lots of wet spots in the meadow below the mountain. Maybe not too bad a way up the lesser sloped scree, too. There was one spot with snow halfway to our knees that presented a little extra effort to walk through. Mostly it was thin and solid enough to supply a good grip for our boots.

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Blue line for day 1. Click for interactive map As the tallest mountain in all of the Coastal Ranges in not just California, but Oregon and Washington too, Mount Eddy boasts some impressive statistics. The summit sits at 9033 feet (2753 m) with 5153 feet (1571 m) of prominence! That makes it both high point and prominence point for Trinity County. It's a chunky mountain with a trail up to the top that once served a fire lookout, so you know the view is outstanding. With the rather dismal winter, it wasn't under all that much snow. Someone went up in October, saying they used their snowshoes not because they needed them, but because they had them and don't get to use them much. There was less snow on it in December than there had been in October. We also took our snowshoes and microspikes, although after looking around on the drive up, I was ready to leave them in the car. Daniil was bringing his, and ...

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Brown line for day 3. Click for interactive map We had nothing to do on the final day but retrace our steps back down to the trailhead. We had plenty of time to do it, so I could record, on this final day of summer, the few flowers we had passed on the way up. It must be said that the canyon looked a bit better under the morning sun, too. Mount Shasta is hiding again. Thin clouds over the very pointy bear teeth of the ridge around Big Bear Lake. Folks weren't ready as fast as I was and I was deeply aware that I hadn't gotten the likely most common photo of Big Bear Lake from near the end of the trail, so I headed up the short way to the lake. The group that had arrived after us to camp there was still packing up and would start down just barely before us. At the edge of Big Bear Lake. The whole of Big Bear Lake in poorly executed panorama. Everyone was already moving down the trail wh...

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Yellow and orange lines for day 2. Click for interactive map After finding that we had selected a camp site with a view of Mount Shasta, we got ourselves fed for the morning explorations. Dawn light on the clouds around Mount Shasta. We got ourselves together for a little day hiking and headed out. Judging we were already to the point of starting the cross country required to get to Little Bear Lake, we headed out into the somewhat trackless, but cairn rich, granite. Up on the granite on the far side of the creek from Bear Lake Trail. We generally followed along ledges. A lot of uphill on granite with a lot of views of Mount Shasta. There are a lot of possible trails, all a little hard, but most not too hard. We didn't all follow the same trail sections, cairns, or ledges, but we stayed pretty close. We could all see each other. After a lot of maneuvering along granite rocks, I found ...

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Blue line for day 1. Click for interactive map Daniil decided to go up Bear Creek for a couple nights, allowing a hike about on the middle day. Bear Lake Trail is just south of Tangle Blue and is surrounded by sufficient contour lines to make it look interesting. Indeed, I got interested in going there when looking over the Tangle Blue route, so I went for it. We had a big group along this time, 6 of us and 2 dogs! The plan was an afternoon hike up to find a camp, a day probably devoted to hiking up to Little Bear Lake and around the area, then back down after another night's rest. Signed Bear Lakes Trailhead. The trail starts at a washed out bridge for Bear Creek. The sign beside the trail has been edited by sharpie just because it quite randomly points at a spot halfway up a mountain from the nearest trail and states "you are here". While they had the marker out, they added that the trailhead ...

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Brown lines for day 3. Click for interactive map Seeing the Grand National Mine had been a thought for the previous day, but since we hadn't got to it, we decided to stop by on the way out. There was plenty of time. It did mean we wouldn't get to see what the lower trail was like, but sometimes you just have to make sacrifices. First, I took a little longer exploring the lake, this time looking for "better" water. Mist plays across the water once more. Watching the mists cross the lake. Watching the mists from another angle. There's a few well used camps along the west side of the lake with a couple well trod trails getting among them. Some were more elaborately situated than others.

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Blue lines for day 2. Click for interactive map With morning came potential to see the lake. I toured the camping area on the way to grab some water. I watched the mist flow across the lake from the mushy area of some swamp alders toward the distant cliffs. Eventually, I even managed to get some breakfast. One of the built camps with a concrete base for an ice can stove, now one side for a rock fire ring. Mist wafting delicately across Tangle Blue Lake from the swamp alders to the far side. Western yellow pond-lilies grow in a few spots at the edges. Then to decide what to do with the day. One wanted to stick around and fish and look after the tiny dog. One initially wanted to go to Little Marshy Lake, but since that is private property was persuaded to set the better Big Marshy Lake as a goal instead. And the rest were out for East Boulder Lake, but as near as I could remember anywhere f...