Moments in Dirt and Ink

Mendocino National Forest DAY 1  |  WORK DAYS 2-3  |  DAY 4  |  WORK DAYS 5-6  |  DAY 7 Yellow line for day 7. Click for interactive map The last day and we were heading back to Green Springs, then drive on out. It was hot. We figured we'd be wishing for that cold that we had on Monday. I don't think we were quite there, though. We were relishing shade once the day got into afternoon. Leaving Last Camp. Some gear left (far left) is for the mules to pick up and some for the next group to use. Over the ridge to the next valley south, Hammerhorn Mountain at the right. Further around to see Solomon Peak from the other side, or at least the ridge to it. Hammerhorn Mountain up ahead. There's a dip between it and the nearby ridge. I looked at the north side of Hammerhorn Mountain and wasn't sure where there might be a trail although we were told there had been one. It just looked like one would get to wandering in some rough st...

Mendocino National Forest DAY 1  |  WORK DAYS 2-3  |  DAY 4  |  WORK DAYS 5-6  |  DAY 7 Green lines for days 5 and 6. Click for interactive map I might have overdone it on the Two Peak Extravaganza on the nominal rest day. I still found myself up a bit earlier than the rest and decided to see if I could capture some of the area birds and a few flowers in the meadow. Distant Mount Shasta feels much closer in the sunrise. The sun hits the Pacific bleeding heart a few yards from my tent. The robins were keeping the little ones safe and finding food. The western bluebirds were popping in and out of their nest high up.

Mendocino National Forest DAY 1  |  WORK DAYS 2-3  |  DAY 4  |  WORK DAYS 5-6  |  DAY 7 Orange line for day 4. Click for interactive map Wednesday is a free day, and while one chose to simply rest, there evolved two excursions among the small group. The more relaxed characters who still wanted to do something planned to head over to a small swimming hole tucked away above camp just out of sight of our trail in, then off to Solomon Peak for the views and memories. Unfortunately the swimming hole was dry this year, but the peak hadn't lost its views. I dreamed up the "Double Peak Extravaganza". First we would continue along the Summit Trail to where the Bigfoot Trail joins it coming out of Ides Cove. I mean, here we were on a BFTA trip and we weren't even expecting to touch the Bigfoot Trail? So we would tag it. Then we would continue a short way further on Summit Trail to where someone has marked (on OpenStreetMap) the "Sugarloaf Tra...

Mendocino National Forest DAY 1  |  WORK DAYS 2-3  |  DAY 4  |  WORK DAYS 5-6  |  DAY 7 Red line for day 1. Click for interactive map A few years ago when looking at the access for Yolla Bolly-Middle Eel Wilderness from Covelo, I found the major roads hadn't even been opened. Many are only kept up to standards for high clearance vehicles. When I saw the Bigfoot Trail Alliance trip out of Green Springs Trailhead , I wanted to go, but the last desperate email to find a ride only got a usable offer some 2 days prior, after food had been purchased. I sent out one more email to Petr (the leader of this trip) to see if there would be vegetarian fare with the surprising response that there would be plenty. At the very last minute, it all worked out! I could go! While packing, I popped my camera on a bin lid, then decided to go looking through said bin. Something balancing on the lid made a great crash, and when I looked, my wonderful-as-th...

Shasta-Trinity National Forest Klamath National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Tan line for day 3. Click for interactive map With morning it was time to deal with whatever exactly it was we had gotten ourselves into. Since I had splashed through the very last tributary crossing, I left my grungy socks on from the prior day so they could be the ones getting wet, then I found a way across without getting my feet wet and so didn't have to drag all that extra water uphill. I had a good look at the sign still mounted on a tree and couldn't make it mean anything other than the old ditch for the trail up. Animals are short cutting a way to the ditch next to the sign and that remains the only trail-like thing to see. Then there was the challenge of the log. There was suggestion of passing packs underneath, but the ground was soft and smooth and there was enough room to just wiggle along, pack and all. From there, it was clear. Well, there's a tributary to ...

Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Blue line for day 2. Click for interactive map My muscles felt abused from the day before, or perhaps from the insufficient activity over the week or two before that. Or maybe there's a little age creeping in. I've passed another 100th birthday! This one was base 7. Preemptive naproxin sodium seemed to have helped it not all be so bad and this day would be comparatively relaxing. Depending on trail state. A little bit of sunrise on Cabin Peak. New River (East Fork) over the local trash pile. We packed all of ours out because we know better. We didn't see the closer connection to the Morrison Gulch Trail the day before and while looking closely, we only saw a candidate for where it used to be. We continued on to the obvious further junction instead. Unsigned but distinct quicky became difficult to find as it passes along the bowl of land between the two ridges. Following gently upward gets aro...

Klamath National Forest Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Brown and yellow lines for day 1. Click for interactive map I kept getting worried about this loop plan. Starting off at the eastern end of the Salmon Summit Trail, the far end of the trail that was a pushing, pulling, turn and press with the pack, swim through oaks until I got tired, and then turn south for some ridge walking and to visit an old fire lookout. From there, down to North Fork Trinity River and Grizzly Creek to visit a selection of old cabins. Once done with that, much climbing and then some ridge walking back. The trouble was we had no idea what shape the trails are in. In the elevation profile, I thought the one along the river looked iffy. Climbing up mysteriously alternates between good and bad. Getting out to the peak was recorded on Peakbagger in 2023, so that seemed safer. I chose counterclockwise because if we had to turn back, I wanted to have the peak ...

Six Rivers National Forest Shasta-Trinity National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2 Brown line for day 2. Click for interactive map (Note that a free permit is required for backpacking in Trinity Alps Wilderness. They are available at Lower Trinity Ranger Station in Willow Creek.) We had the coldest night of the winter with the temperature hitting -3°C on Daniil's thermometer. Mine only got down to 27.5°F just after I started breakfast. He also complained that there was moisture in the early night coming down the mountain and settling on his tent. I had my tarp up against the wind (which didn't gust or even blow much more a little after sunset) leaving my gear vulnerable to wet air from above, but noticed none. I was maybe a foot higher in the meadow, but I guess it made all the difference. The tent was dry by morning anyway. Farewell to the meadow camp surrounded by severe burn. Full of lovely water before the presumably dry section of trail to be followed for most th...

Mendocino National Forest Shasta-Trinity National Forest Six Rivers National Forest DAY 1  |  DAY 2  |  DAY 3 Purple line for day 3. Click for interactive map Being up on the ridge, we did get something like a sunrise. There were no clouds for the coming sunlight to decorate, so it was quite plain for a sunrise. As soon as I was vertical, I headed down the hill to see if the water I expected really was there. At the bottom of the very slanted meadow, it started running. A few more feet and it was easy to gather. It was maybe 100 feet vertical down, certainly not more than 200 feet. It didn't feel like too much at all. A little orange tint to the sky as the sun rises. The view of Shell Mountain from the top of our meadow, now with a lot more light. We packed up and got moving along the ridge. We saw some spots that looked a bit like a length of trail tread, but it was hard to claim there was a trail in the area where Chicago Camp Trail travels tha...