Dan's Outside

Plans Change

I was planning to join some friends for a final short Sierra pack trip this weekend, but weather forecasts like the following make us thing twice about this sort of thing:

“UPPER TROF MOVING IN TONIGHT WILL BE ACCOMPANED BY STRONG GUSTY WINDS THIS EVENING AND RIDGE TOP GUSTS OF 100MPH AFTER MIDNIGHT….. WX TURNING MUCH COOLER SATURDAY WITH A COUPLE OF INCHES OF SNOW OVER THE CREST AND A DUSTING POSSIBLE IN [Mammoth] BY SATURDAY EVENING.”

We’re not going…
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October 14, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on Plans Change

Aspens

It looks like I’ll be off very early tomorrow for a one-day loop through parts of the eastern Sierra – carrying a camera and looking for aspens and other fall colors!
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October 7, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on Aspens

A Bit More About My Tuolumne Weekend

I mentioned earlier that I was in Tuolumne Meadows last Friday through Sunday. September weather in Tuolumne (and the rest of the Sierra) can go just about any direction you can imagine. I’ve seen it snow and I’ve seen it warm and sunny.

This weekend was mostly sunny – with the addition of a few photogenic clouds – but it was also unusually cold. It was in the mid-20s at night at Tuolumne, which seemed to surprise a few late season campers. It was even getting cold before the sun went down, which made it seem almost winter-like.

On Sunday I was out at Parker Pass at 11,100′ on Yosemite’s eastern border and right on the Sierra crest. It was cold! I was wearing three layers and should have worn another. Other people out near the pass were wearing gloves – except for a few hardy backpackers I saw who were hiking in shorts! Not only was it cold that afternoon, but the wind was howling as well.

This is the time of year when everyone begins to anticipate the fall colors, especially on the east side of the crest where the aspens can turn astonishing shades of yellow and gold. So far, not much has happened. I saw just a few trees that were barely starting to turn colors.

On the other hand, most of the meadow plants and grasses – except in very moist areas – have gone dormant and turned golden brown. A few plants are beginning to turn yellow or red. (See this photo near Spillway Lake.)
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September 20, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on A Bit More About My Tuolumne Weekend

September in Tuolumne

I’m back from a long weekend in Tuolumne Meadows. I had planned on backpacking, but plans change. I ended up camping at Tuolumne and taking a couple of good day hikes on Saturday and Sunday.

On Friday I drove over Tioga Pass in time to catch sunset near Conway Summit and then watch the full moon come up over Mono Lake. Saturday’s hike took me up Budd Creek to the high point on the Saddle next to Cathedral Peak. On Sunday I hiked past Spillway Lake and then cross-country up to Parker Pass.
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September 19, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on September in Tuolumne

Back to Quicksilver

After hiking only in the Sierra Nevada last month, I finally made it back to Almaden Quicksilver yesterday for a quick hike up Mine Hill trail and then back down via Castillero and Deep Gulch.

There are some trees on Mine Hill that I watch every August, as they seem to act as a first early sign of the coming autumn season. They often begin to turn colors in mid-August. Indeed, they were starting to turn yellow when I passed them yesterday.
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September 3, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on Back to Quicksilver

Fletcher and Ireland Lakes Loop

Last night I returned from a quick pack trip out of Tuolumne Meadows. This trip visited very familiar terrain, encompassing a loop that I have traveled many times over the years.

Permits for my first choice entry up Rafferty Creek were gone when I arrived on Friday, so I got a permit for entry via Lyell Canyon. The most sensible place to camp when doing the loop in this direction is the junction of the John Muir Trail and the Ireland Lake Trail. This is a nearly flat six-mile walk out of Tuolumne, so I opted to spend some time in the Tioga/Tuolumne area before starting up the trail at about 2:00 in the afternoon.

On Saturday I headed up the Ireland Lake trail. This trail begins with a fairly stiff climb up the canyon below Potter Point. I was surprised that there was still quite a bit of green vegetation and even blooming flowers on this late-August weekend. Even with a late start I made it to the turnoff to Ireland Lake at noon. At this point the main trail goes straight ahead to Fletcher Lake via Evelyn Lake and the Ireland Lake trail climbs gradually to the left.

The surprising late-season greenery continued as I followed the trail toward Ireland Lake. Above the lake the hillside was covered with grasses and many wildflowers. I stopped above the lake to eat lunch and take some pictures before heading back and up over the ridge back to the northwest. From the ridge a cross-country route took me down to the plateau above Townsley Lake and then down to Fletcher Lake and my campsite.

I hiked on Sunday morning, following the usual Rafferty Creek route down to Tuolumne Meadows, arriving in time for lunch and the Meadows Grill.
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August 29, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on Fletcher and Ireland Lakes Loop

August Pack Trip(s)

My planned 14-day Agnew Meadow to South Lake pack trip (with my Talusdancers friends) turned into two shorter trips with a bit of interesting non-backpacking stuff in between.

The original plan called for a 100+ mile trip down the John Muir Trail between Agnew Meadow (near Mammoth Lakes and Devils Postpile) and South Lake (above Bishop). But, as plans sometimes do, mine changed.

Our group of 11 started on at Agnew Meadow on August 1, heading up past Shadow Lake to Rosemarie lake. The first portion of this trail was familiar territory to me, having walked it a number of times on the way to Ediza Lake, Thousand Island Lake, and so on. However, once we turned south after Shadow Lake we were on a section of trail whose main virtue is that it is part of the JMT. For my taste, it was rather non-alpine. Basically, we wanted to do this section of the JMT so that we could all say we had hiked the whole thing. (All of this is my way of saying, “Eh. Not a bad section of trail, but would not have been my first choice for a pack trip.” ;-)

On day two we continued on this southbound section of the JMT to reach Devils Postpile and Reds Meadow, with its store, cafe, and campgrounds. This section of trail included some pretty spots early on, but then descended through low-altitude hot and dusty sections to reach the valley. Following a roundabout route we eventually arrived at Reds Meadow where we hung out on the lawn outside the store before getting dinner at the cafe and then hiking to the campground to set up camp and take showers. Strange.

On day three one member of the group left us, suffering from a bad knee. The rest of the group began with breakfast at the cafe and then hit the trail late in the morning. Again the trail was rather hot, passing through relatively low-elevation terrain and a burned out area before steadlily ascending to our camp site at Deer Creek, a true haven for mosquitos.

On day four we finally began to enter the kind to terrain that I love – open vistas of high ridges and snow fields – as the trail gradually climbed to the outlet stream of Duck Lake. From here it was a short walk to beautiful Purple Lake where the flowers were at their peak.

Unfortunately, that night and the next morning I did not feel well. Nothing really bad but a combination of symptoms which, while not trip-stoppers at home or on a shorter trip, worried me a bit on a day when we were entering a section of the trail where we would be somewhat isolated for nearly a week. I went back and forth: should I do the prudent thing and back out or should I hang in there and hope that I would feel better? In the end, I reluctantly made the cautious decision – but not without misgivings – and headed back out over Duck Pass. (One of my trail companions asked me, “Dan, are you 100% sure you want to hike out?” I answered, “If I were 100% sure, you would be calling for the rescue helicopter.” I think I was about 55% sure…)

Duck Pass, which I had not previously known about, turned out to be quite scenic. Duck Lake (before the pass) is largely rockbound, and I hit some rain as I approached the pass. The rain abated once I crossed the pass, but it was still cloudy with rain in the distance. I finally reached the trailhead near Cold Canyon/Lake Mary and began trying to hitch a ride back to the Mammoth Ski Area and a car. I must have looked pretty scary since it took forever to get a ride. I had pretty much given up and was walking down to Mammoth (nearly 4 miles) when a couple kindly picked me up and took me all the way to the ski area.

After a bit of car shuttling I got a hotel in Bishop, visited the White Mountains the next day (see previous posts), and then headed home.

Oh, yeah. Once I got out I felt just fine… But now it was too late to go back in and rejoin my party, since they were now two full days ahead of me.

I spent about 4 days back home before heading back up to Bishop, with a plan of meeting the rest of the party as they ended their trip in Dusy Basin. So last Thursday I camped at Four Jeffrey campground above Bishop and the next day I headed up the trail.

I crossed over Bishop Pass and descended to the first decent lakes in Upper Dusy Basin, where I camped (more or less) by myself. The next day I headed down towards Le Conte Canyon, carefully stopping at the last spot before the precipitous descent into the canyon begins and waiting there for my party to arrive. They arrived within and hour and were clearly fairly surprised to see me.

I hiked back up into Dusy Basin with them where we camped an nearly the same spot where I had stayed the night before. The next morning we got up before dawn and headed out early – the rest of the party was now on day 14 of their trip and they were very ready for good food and a shower!
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August 17, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on August Pack Trip(s)

Thank You!

Special thanks to “Mike” for a ride back to Mammoth Ski Area and my car this past weekend.

I was on the fifth day of a planned fourteen day pack trip between Agnew Meadow and South Lake when I felt a bit under the weather. I wasn’t sure if I was getting sick or not, but I made the cautious decision and left the trip, exiting from Purple Lake over Duck Pass rather than continuing on into the more isolated area around Silver and Selden Passes.

Fortunately (or unfortunately?) I was absolutely fine by the time I got out, hiking over Duck Pass in light rain with no problems at all. But by this time it was too late to turn around and catch up with my friends who had gone on and would now be two full days ahead of me.

In any case, I arrived at the Duck Pass trailhead and hiked through the campgrounds toward Lake Mary, trying to hitch a ride back to my car as I walked – and having no luck at all. I made it down to the paved road around the lake where there was more traffic, hopeful that someone would pick me up here. Still no luck. When I got to the main Lake Mary Road into Mammoth I was sure someone would give me a lift. Wrong.

Soon it began to rain. Ironically, I thought this might increase my chances of getting a ride. Who could let a solitary backpacker walk down the roadside in the rain. Lots of people, it turns out… ;-)

Shortly after I had resigned myself to simply walking the 3 1/2 miles into town where I could pick up a shuttle to the ski area, a familiar looking vehicle came back up the road and pulled over. Mike said that they had passed and felt bad, and had come back even though there was barely any room in the back under their camper shell. I was very happy to squeeze into the back of their truck, and I was even happier when they took me all the way up to my car!

So, thanks again, Mike!

(One funny – to me at least – note. As I was being passed up by all of those cars I had an odd realization. I must have looked scary to these people! Sort of funny to me, a 50+ year-old college music teacher, to think of myself that way.)
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August 9, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on Thank You!

July 19, 2005 Hike

Today’s hike was a simple little climb up the Mine Hill trail at Almaden Quicksilver Park, followed by a traverse of the ridge to the Reduction Works site and then back down via the English Camp trail.

(Experimental audio content)
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July 19, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on July 19, 2005 Hike

A Day at Tuolumne Meadows (July 8, 2005)

I wanted to do some photography and to see the Tuolumne area before all of the snow melts, so yesterday I drove to the Tuolumne Meadows/Tioga Pass area and back. Yes, a long day of about 21 hours on the road and the trail.

I left around 4:30 a.m. and got to Yosemite fairly early. After turning onto Tioga Pass Road, I stopped a few times to take pictures, finally arriving at Tuolumne Meadows between 9:45 and 10:00. It seems that things are finally starting up open up. The store and grill were open and a crew was repainting the parking lot. Most campgrounds were closed on the way up, but by the time I left in the evening several had opened, including Tuolumne Meadows. It also appearred that Tuolumne Lodge opened yesterday – on the way up there was a big sign stating that the Lodge was closed, but on the way down in the evening I actually saw that they had hung out a ‘vacancy’ sign. (Imagine that – a vacancy on a summer Friday evening!)

Tuolumne Meadows. Yosemite National Park. July 8, 2005. © Photo copyright Dan Mitchell.

After taking some pictures in the Meadow and making a quick stop at the store I headed up the road and made a brief visit to the meadow and lakes near the pass. Then I drove back down to the Mono Pass trail (perhaps a miles or so) and loaded up the pack for a trip out towards Mono Pass.

Everything is still very wet and parts of the trail were flooded at the start. A few minutes into the hike I managed to get my socks a bit wet during a stream crossing. There was another crossing a short distance later, so this time I took off my boots and socks and waded, stopping on the other side to dry out.

The trail heads off in the general direction of the pass, crossing a couple of moraines near the beginning and then ascending gradually and steadily. It turns left at a junction with the Spillway Lake trail and then climbs more steeply for awhile, eventually starting to level out near a junction with the trail to Parker Pass.

I took the Parker Pass trail, having never been there – though I had previously looked that way from a low ridge near Mono Pass. This trail crossed a meadow and ascended a sandy section (very wet this year) and then more or less disappeared under the snow as it approached a low ridge. I could have followed the trail through the snow, but it seemed just as easy to make my own route in the sand and rocks along this ridge until the trail again emerged from the snow.

Suncups and Clouds Near Parker Pass. Yosemite National Park. July 8, 2005. © Photo copyright Dan Mitchell.

From here the route to the pass was quite obvious. The little ridge eventually merged into a broad sloping valley that headed right up to the pass. It was an easy walk, though I had to detour cross-country a few times to avoid large snow fields and/or very wet and muddy sections where the meltwater was flowing heavily.

I soon arrived at the windy pass and stopped to put on a windbreaker, eat a snack, and take some pictures. Unlike Mono Pass (from which you can look down to Mono Lake) there is no view of Owens Valley from this pass, but the view of snow-covered peaks made up for that. Below was a good sized lake; I suspect it was Spillway lake, but I didn’t have a map so I could not check. If it is Spillway, it looks like one could make a pretty easy loop back past the lake and pick up the return trail to Tioga Pass Road.

Parker Pass. Yosemite National Park. July 8, 2005. © Photo copyright Dan Mitchell.

After leaving the pass I backtracked to the small ridge and instead of following the trail back, I decided to cut up to the top of the ridge and see if I could make it over to Mono Pass. On a previous walk to Mono Pass I had climbed a ridge from which I thought I could see Parker Pass, and this low ridge seemed to be that very same ridge.

Floating Ice in Alpine Tarn. Yosemite National Park. July 8, 2005. © Photo copyright Dan Mitchell.

I quicky got to the top and crossed the relatively flat upper section to where I could see down the other side. There was good news and bad news. The good news was that I could see the old cabins at Mono Pass. The bad news was that the drop off below where I stood was steep and snow covered. I traversed to the right on the ridge and finally managed to work my way down to the old cabins and then across to Mono Pass.

From here it was just a matter of backtracking to the parking lot. I was a bit smarter about the creek crossing where I had waded earlier in the day. This time I followed the creek upstream a ways and found a good size log to cross on, and then I found a shallow spot where I could more easily cross the second creek.

Soon I was back at the car and heading over the pass to get some dinner at the Tioga Pass Resort. I finished dinner about 45 minutes before sunset, and used the remaining daylight to get pictures at Ellery Lake and then at the pass before starting the long drive back home.

Sunset, Tioga Pass. Yosemite National Park. July 8, 2005. © Photo copyright Dan Mitchell.

I was very surprised at the small number of people in the high country. It felt more like mid-September than July. Perhaps that news reports about snow and high water have scared them away. In any case, lots of people are missing some absolutely stunning conditions in the high country this season.
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July 9, 2005 Posted by gdanmitchell | Trips | Comments Off on A Day at Tuolumne Meadows (July 8, 2005)