Old Almaden buildings
There are lots of old buildings in varying states of decay at Almaden Quicksilver County Park. This one sits on a ridge above New Almaden – one can only imagine the cost of a lot with this view today!
Looking into and through an old outbuilding at Almaden Quicksilver Park. March 30, 2004.
East-facing window in old building at Almaden Quicksilver Park. March 30, 2004.
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Early summer in the high country?
If my trip to Yosemite yesterday is any indication, summer is going to arrive early in the Sierra this year. As I wrote, there were already extensive snow-free sections on the Glacier Point Road and little snow below 7000′ or so. Barring any late-season storms it will all be over soon…
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Quick update on today's trip
I did take my one-day cross-country ski trip to Yosemite today. I managed to arrive at Badger Pass at about 9:30 – could have been earlier but I didn’t get away quite as fast as I hoped.
As I drove up to Badger Pass (which is where the unplowed portion of Glacier Point Road begins) I was worried that there wouldn’t be enough snow. There was actually dirt showing at the trailhead but I figured I had driven all the way up to ski so I decided to give in a go. There was enough snow to do my trip – but just barely. The snow was thin and old – icy in the morning going to slush later on. The first part of the route wasn’t bad, but about halfway out (near a great view of the Clark Range to the east) the snow was almost completely melted off of the road. So I walked… for perhaps a quarter mile or so all told.
I was thinking I might make it to Glacier Point, but I ran out of time at the top of the hill after the parking lot for Sentinel Dome. After a snack break I headed back, arriving at Badger Pass at 5:58 – two minutes earlier than my deadline.
Pictures? Not one. While it was a good skiing day, the air was hazy and I was just too busy skiiing to stop and take pictures.
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Skiing tomorrow
I’m going to try a quick one-day run up to Yosemite tomorrow. I’m planning to ski out the Glacier Point Road as far as I can manage. Pictures? We’ll see…
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Mockingbird Hill Hike
Today’s hike was one of what might be termed the “grand loops” at Almaden Quicksilver County Park, being nearly 13 miles long. I started early at the Mockingbird Hill entrance and headed toward the McAbee entrance on the New Almaden Trail, following it all the way to the junction with the trail to Bull Run. There was lots of spring greenery, but in some places it unfortunately contained a lot of poison oak.
From this junction I headed back up the ridge via the Mine Hill Trail, topping out near Catherine Tunnel and then descending toward Capehorn Pass, from which I followed the Hacienda Trail back to my car.
The weather was truly spring-like today. I was starting to clear when I began my hike, but an hour later it rained lightly. Within a half hour it stopped and quickly cleared, leaving a sky full of bright puffy clouds.
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Dan's Outside 
I met Tractor Guy
Actually, it would be more accurate to call him “Grader Guy” since that is what he was driving.
A couple of springs ago I was dismayed to find that big sections of the trails at Almaden Quicksilver County Park had been heavily graded. The process tears up a lot of vegetation and breaks up rocks and generally makes things look run over.
Last year I realized that the damage pretty much disappeared within a few months and that the “trails” really are dirt roads, and I wasn’t so upset.
Today as I arrived at the parking lot at 7:30 am a guy was starting up his grader and unchaining the gate to the Mine Hill Trail. We talked for a few minutes and he seemed like a nice enough guy. He even promised not to run me over “more than twice.” I told him there probably wouldn’t be much left to run over a third time, and I headed up Deep Gulch Trail.
Soon I arrived at English Camp and spent some time photographing some old buildings there. A few minutes later I heard the grader lumbering up the track from the Mine Hill Trail. He pulled up and stopped. (I learned that the blade makes a great “parking brake.”) We got to talking and he turned out to be a pretty friendly guy. He even apologized for disturbing my solitude. I told that was no problem since I knew of some routes that he wasn’t likely to follow – at least without cutting a brand new road. It sounds like he runs cattle for a living and apparently runs the grader as well. He was planning on driving down to the far end of the park to straighten out a few sections of a trail near the Senador Mine.
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April 2, 2004 Posted by gdanmitchell | Commentary | Comments Off on I met Tractor Guy