#trail journal

[adventuresoffinder]

JMT Day 8

9/11/17 Marie Lake to South Fork San Joaquin River The night on Marie Lake was ridiculously windy. It seemed like I rarely got more than 5 minutes of sleep at a time with how vigorously the tent was flapping. We had a long (really long) descent to Muir Trail Ranch to grab our resupply buckets. I was chanting to Craig about the bag of Terra Chips we had waiting for us. We definitely underestimated our cravings for salty snacks on this trip. We gorged on the chips and Oreos we had sent ourselves as we sorted through the resupply. We left a few things in the "hiker box" - actually an assortment of very well organized buckets - and took a few things as well. We noted that the sky had begun to darken, but decided to move on nevertheless. The rain started after about 10 minutes on trail, and lasted less than an hour. It was enough to get us soaked, but luckily the sun returned and we were at least able to dry out our clothing. After entering Kings Canyon National Park, we climbed up with the San Joaquin River on our right. It was a punishing climb with our newly reloaded packs, but the river gorge, with its countless cascades and waterfalls, proved a welcome distraction. We found a couple small campsites, set up, and cooked dinner. Craig and I each ate about two bites of our couscous before the rain started again, in big juicy drops. We covered our dinner and ran back into the tent. When the rain died down we ventured back out. We each got about four more bites of couscous before the big juicy drops returned. We ran for cover yet again! The next respite from the rain allowed us to finish dinner and clean up before calling it a night with more dark clouds on the horizon.

[illbedancingwithmyself]

Tahoe to Tuolumne days 4 to 6

Digitizing my trail journal

8/1 Asa Lake to South Fork of the Carson River

Super long day. Soaking my feet at a creek (next to a millstone) and wearing two pairs of socks helped me get through the 15 miles. I was cruising through the beautiful high Sierra landscapes until the last 4 miles of steep inclines. The cliff side campsite I had been hoping to snag was occupied and daylight was waning, but I managed to zip down the beautiful and sketchy canyon wall and make camp on the skeetery canyon floor. Getting a strong signal from a hilariously bad alternative rock station on the radio tonight.

8/2 Carson river to 1 Mile from Highway 108

Today my physical state was finally bad enough that my mood followed. I was extremely in my head the entire 2000' climb out of the canyon. It's hard to articulate how painful walking is. My current hope is that my bones and tendons are okay. Luckily the rim of the canyon gave way to beautiful high alpine meadows and open skies. Saw flowers I'd never seen before like the adorable mountain heather. Communed with a fat marmot eating Lupine beans. After the beauty injection I was in much better spirits as I crested and descended the gorgeous and eerie mountain. Excited for some civilization and rest for my feet tomorrow

8/3 Hwy 108 to Kennedy Meadows

Some sort of rodent came into my tent vestibule and chewed off the shoelaces of my cursed boots last night. That’s okay because it’s less than a mile to the shuttle pick up area, and these shoes are going straight to hell or the hiker box once I’m at Kennedy meadows.

I arrived at the rest area early, and was eventually scooped up by the shuttle. The driver pointed out bits of the old wagon trail, and told me about the skateboarders that like to zip down the extremely smooth pavement of the pass.

The lady at the front desk of the resort was awesome, and I never had to share my dorm with anybody else. Laundry took forever because people weren't taking their shit out, but eventually I got all of my chores done and made it to the restaurant before they closed for the afternoon. Had a burg and fries - all the beef they serve is raised by them. I went to my room and caught up with everyone while letting my feet breathe in blessed stillness. Went back to the restaurant around 8:30 and tried to cram a huge prime rib dinner down my gullet. I failed despite my hiker hunger. I waddled back to my room for an uneasy sleep. The generator that roars all day slams off around 11, but the wifi keeps trucking.

[illbedancingwithmyself]

Tahoe to Tuolumne days 1-3

Digitizing my trail journal

7/29 Carson Pass to Tamarack Lake outlet

Once past the tourist melee, I was in high spirits. The landscape was beautiful and new. I lunched at Lost Lake in front of the ghostly dead trees, then continued on to circle The Nipple's treacherous ledges. On the way down I started to feel not so hot. First my feet started to ache horribly, then came the tunnel vision of dehydration. Hobbled to a campsite by the weirdly smelly Tamarack Lake outlet with a bag of stinky water, then started to feel better after sandals and water. Actually felt sleepy and had to fight to do the most basic night chores.

7/30 Tamarack to Eagle Creek

My feet are in a bad way - probably worse than they were at the start of the Tahoe Rim trail. Nevertheless I hobbled along many beautiful volcanic mountainsides today. Hopefully if I keep taking breaks and making camp early my feet will start healing on trail. I feel great mentally and physically except for my damn feet.

7/31 Eagle Creek to Asa Lake

It's astonishing how all my displeasure is concentrated in my feet, and oh the displeasure! I'm determined to outlast the blisters, so my main goal is to avoid infection. Had a glorious morning. The landscape seemed wide open (in contrast to the claustrophobic mountain hugging of yesterday) . Ebbet's Pass was a long bitch of a climb, but luckily going up hurts my feet less. I actually got a little altitude sick near the top. So many glorious meadows today, and I have Asa lake and its ice cold spring to myself tonight. I read an interesting comment on farout about a backpacker who encountered a cult at this campground lol.

My mantra is that I'm the happiest woman on earth from the ankles up.

The Readywise kimchi fried rice rules

[lakestral]

Old Santee Canal Park

Rating: 4

Difficulty: Easy to moderate

Type: Dirt (possibly wet and muddy at times) and boardwalk.

Distance: 2.7 miles (depending on the trail you pick).

Route: Loop

I went on a nature walk Sunday, 24 February 2019. I was supposed to be joining a group, but no one (not even the guide) showed up. Of course, I could have been in the wrong location, but I don’t think so. I waited for a little bit, then left on my own. I took many pics, and will add a few good ones here.

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  There were quite a few rough and wet spots. The lower/outer trail would be under water in the wet season because it is only 1-2 feet above the river level. In a few places the trail wasn’t marked well. I ran into a few people with dogs and two guys that were off-roading their remote control monster trucks.

Related Links:

Trail Journal: Rosebrock

Fall Back Hang on Chimney Island, SC

Trail Journal: Old Santee Canal Park #trailjournal #naturewalk #oldsanteecanalpark #berkelycountyparks #scstatepark #hiking Old Santee Canal Park Rating: 4 Difficulty: Easy to moderate Type: Dirt (possibly wet and muddy at times) and boardwalk. 154 more words

[solomonmaxx]

The Falls at Tremont

Hiking the Appalachian Trail - June 21, 2015

Easy hike today, AND I have done it before. Today my mom and I are taking one of my friends on a quick 3 mile trails to a waterfall, starting at Tremont. Since it is such a quick hike, there is little need for extensive prep - just a few waters should do the trick.

We are starting our hike from the parking lot at Tremont and luckily the weather is not too hot.

Our pace is relaxed and the bugs are annoying. In fact, two have already flown into my eyes...I had to have my mom help me get them out.

We have arrived at the waterfalls, and we have it all to ourselves. Usually, this trail is packed with families, but we lucked out again and get to enjoy the uninterrupted peace of the forest and the waterfall.

Nothing crazy to report about our walk back...no bugs in my eyes and the up and down hill grades were moderate. All in all, a great quick hike at Tremont.

Until the next hike,

Lo Main

[adventuresoffinder]

JMT Day 16

9/20/17 Crabtree Ranger Station to Whitney Portal I woke up a bit earlier today and made coffee with Rodrigo while we watched the sun rise from behind Mount Whitney. When we started hiking it was actually warmer than usual. But as we climbed two thousand feet above Guitar Lake, the wind really picked up and it got pretty chilly. We dropped a few things off at the tail junction to the top of Mount Whitney. With a light pack and two and a half weeks of acclimating to altitude behind me, I felt like a rocket shooting to the top of the tallest mountain in the Lower 48. It was an amazingly bright and clear day from the top of Whitney, with 360 degree views of mountain peaks surrounding us. Brian, who had only three days to acclimate, rocketed up the mountain right behind us. It was quite the victory!! We found a bivy site to hide out of the wind and had lunch while we shared one of Brian's cellared beers. What a treat. We had planned to camp on the south side of Whitney, but it was incredibly windy and cold even at 4 pm. We decided to dip a bit lower in elevation for some warmth. By the time we got to the next lower camp, we were only 4 miles from the trailhead and we were all feeling the effects from 45 miles of hiking in 3 days. Although it required some night hiking, we decided to head back to civilization and made it to Whitney Portal around 7 pm.

This has been an amazingly beautiful, invigorating, fun, and challenging 16 days in the mountains and I would do it again in a heartbeat! JMT 2017 - Done!

[adventuresoffinder]

JMT Day 15

9/19/17 Bubbs Creek to Crabtree Ranger Station We actually got started at a reasonable time this morning, trying to catch up to the rest of the crew. We were climbing quickly to try to shake off the cold and met them en route to Forrester Pass. We also saw a couple southbounders we've been leapfrogging with since MTR, two retired physicians from Winthrop. We gave them all the information we had about upcoming weather on the trail as well as wildfires happening in Washington. They hope to summit Whitney on Thursday, so we said goodbye for probably the last time. One of my favorite parts of backpacking is watching for subtle changes in the landscape, and today didn't disappoint. It had a lot of the features we've come to expect - shrubby desert, craggy mountains, alpine ponds, and looming pine trees - but assorted in a way that felt new and unexpected. We also got our first glimpse of Whitney! We completed the rest of our long, winding day at the Crabtree Ranger Station. We asked the ranger about the updated weather forecast and he said it will be cold and windy tomorrow, but precipitation should hold off until the evening. Sounds like it's a go! We stuffed our faces at dinner and enjoyed the glow of sunset over Mount Whitney, with Whitney Creek cutting through the meadow below.

[adventuresoffinder]

JMT Day 14

9/18/17 Independence, CA to Bubbs Creek We had a zero in Independence yesterday and picked up two stragglers - Brian and Rodrigo! They helped us with our car shuttle and are going to finish up the hike with us. I didn't sleep so well last night so I spent the whole first half of the day with tunnel vision, focused on the two feet of trail in front of me and missing a lot of the magnificent scenery. It was unusual for me but luckily I snapped out of it as we reached new territory on the Bullfrog Creek Trail. We spent a long lunch at Bullfrog Creek and Craig and Brian both caught trout which made them happy. As a group we got our wires crossed a bit as far as camping and food storage plans, so Craig and I spent the night at a campsite about 2 miles back from the rest. The others wanted to cover more ground but we only had enough bear canisters for four, so Craig and I stopped at this Bubbs Creek site which has a bear locker. For all this hoopla, none of us has seen a bear or even bear scat. I spent a couple hours reading until it got too chilly and then tucked in for another 11 hours without daylight.