Big Pine

We are the only campers at the Big Pine Creek National Forest campground, nine miles west of the small town of Big Pine on Rt. 395, in a stand of large of Ponderosa Pines, right at tree line at 7,700 feet along the willow lined banks of Big Pine Creek, which is brimming with spring runoff snowmelt. The sandy soil all around is dry, but barely, and it looks like this year's massive snow pack has just recently retreated to higher elevations. The willows around the creek are just beginning to stand tall and bud. The aspens are just beginning to leaf, but it seems even too early for the first blooming snow flowers to emerge from the pine duff, and crushed granite. The large mature fir trees that surround this idylic spot are widely spaced, and the forest floor is a jumble of medium to large sized pieces of granite separated by a pine duff and small sage plants.

Only a portion of the campground is open, as the larger loop was virtually destroyed by a late spring avalanche. Trees of up to 18" in diameter were snapped at head height, picnic tables, crushed into match sticks, and heavy metal bear boxes, torn from their bolted foundations and tossed down the slope and into the creek. Amazingly, the concrete outhouses seem unscathed. Needless to say, there is a lot of clean up required before these sites will be habitable.

Today we hiked up the canyon, but were stopped by the snow line at around 8,500 feet after just over an hour of travel. Here on the east side of the Sierras, the elevation climbs quickly, and the 11,000 to 13,000 foot peaks of the crest beckon around every turn of the trail. This would be a great trailhead for spring skiing expeditions, as the road gets cleared early, usually mid April, and the trail head at the end of the road is quite high. There is a small family run summer only resort at the end of the road - Glacier Lodge for those needing an ice cream fix, a quick trout from the stocked trout pond, or some rustic cabin accommodations. The phone number is 760-938-2837, and they are on the web at Www.jewelofthesierra.com. There is also Glacier Pack Station near the end of the road 760-938-2538 where you can arrange a fully catered horse supported hiking or pack trip, or drop camp support to the high alpine lakes within one day's hike of the station. From this trail head, there are two primary hiking routes into the John Muir Wilderness, one following the north fork of Big Pine Creek, and the other following the south fork. Both trails rise above treelike quickly, following their respective watersheds through the broken granite terrain, and lead within a few miles to chains of pristine mountain lakes. The north fork has two waterfalls. Returning to camp for some quiet time, we dig out the sweaters and put away the shorts, because as the sun sinks below the ridge line, the temperature plummets back to the 50's. We are glad to have the camper and a comfortable place to get out of the elements.

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

Red Rocks State Park and Goodall Creek - Eastern Sierra

The cool katabatic winds are flowing down off the Sierra Crest snowfields this evening, caressing our campsite nestled behind a copse of bushes running along Goodale Creek, north of Independence in the eastern Sierra.  The change in temperature is a refreshing change from the hot and desicating winds of the southern California desert we left behind just this morning.

We camped last night at Red Rock Canyon State Park, off Route 14, northwest of Barstow, CA. This very large park is home to a population of desert tortise and contains many tall and colorful eroded rock escarpments dating back to older than the Sierras themselves.  Once the  sun went down and the temperature moderated, the black tailed rabbits, and cottontail rabbits came out to forrage.  We have modified our daily schedule to accomodate the climate, rising early for a sunrise outing, then resting in the shade or driving with the AC on for the hot mid-part of the day, then making another forray out later in the afternoon or early evening.  As we serendipitously wind our way back towards home, we are making stops as suits our fancy,or as recommended by fellow travelers. 

Today we had an interesting set of experiences at Fossil Falls, 2 miles south of the northbound rest area on 395 just north of where it joins 14, just south of the massive red cinder cone on the east side of the highway.  We had just pulled into the parking area at the end of a fairly short and passable dirt road, when a large SUV pulled in, loaded for bear, canoe on the top,towing a 25 foot shimmering airstream trailer. This parking area was way too small for such a rig, and there was no room to turn such a beast around.  We kept nibbling our sandwiches, as I was brewing some espresso, and watched the show, wondering how this driver was going to extricate themselves from this predicament. Next thing we heard a sickening scraping sound like aluminum against igneous rock, and the whole assembly came to a halt.  The driver got out inspecting the possible damage, walked around in circles for a few minutes, saw us and came over to request our assistance. She asked if we could spot the trailer as she tried to manuever it somehow off the rock she was impaled on, mid-trailer.  Having never manuvered such a large trailer before, I was not sure how much help I would be.  The most recent and relevant experience I had was managing the snowmobile and utility trailer at Royal Gorge all winter.

We discussed her predicament, and decided the only solution was to BACK the whole thing up the dirt road to a Y 1/10 mile away where there was more room.  She had almost no experience driving in reverse with the long trailer attached, so Diane positioned herself towards the back, and I stood about mid-ships, and tried to offer suggestions and direction as the motorized assembly began it's treacherous backwards journey up the dirt hill and around a series of tight turns. After a very promising start, things started going south, and after several failed attempts to correct the situation, we had a jack-knifed rig on a blind sharp curve, on a dirt steeply sloping road, one lane wide.  I did my best to use a calm voice and to tell the driver she ws doing fine, but she kept over turning and over compensating. Her confidence was shot and in exasperation, she asked if I could try.  Well, what could I do? In did not tell her about my snowmobile trailer resume,but agreed to change positions with her. She hoped out of the drivers seat, and I hoped in and was immediately affectionately licked by a huge black dog who had been concealed in the back seat.  I pulled forward, straightening everything out, then slowly began to back up,wracking my brain for any past experience or adventure story I had read which would offer me some insight on how to manage this situation.  I remembered reading something about doing everything backwards from what your intuition tells you, so I gave that a try, with Diane spotting the rear, and the owner spotting the blind side.  Fighting my urge to turn the wheel one way I experimented with turning it the "wrong" way as the rear began to deviate from the centerline of the narrow road.  Sure enough, the trailer obediently revered it's errant path, and curved back off the bank and onto the road.  Slowly, ever so slowly we worked our way backwards up the grade and around the curves,with just a few stops to force my brain to stay on task and working backwards, we made it into then"Y".  I got out, breathed a sigh of relief, bid our farewell  to the frazzled owner who sheepishly informed us she was at the very beginning of her solo trip to Alaska.   We wished her safe travels and ran back back to the camper, where we had left all the windows open, valuables out, and coffee simmering in our haste to respond to a call for assistance.  Diane quickly informed me she had turned off the coffee before we left abruptly, so disaster was averted.  

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

Desert Palm Oasis - Borrego sighting

May 20, 2011

It's very quiet this morning.  I awake thinking something is amiss, then realize it's just that the wind has stopped blowing.  For four days we have been buffeted by the incessent wind, only escaping it deep in a canyon hike, or nesstled securely in the protective fan palm trunks of a desert oasis.  I peer out the window at sunrise and see the creososte bushes still and calm, the tall blooming ocotillo stalks, spikes protecting the bright red flowers at the top, standing tall, anad unmoving.  This day looks to be a hot one here in the southern desert.

Anza Borrego Desert State Park is a van campers delight.  The rules here permit camping anywhere, and the fire ban precludes ugly firepits scattered about.  Anywhere we can drive, we can stop and camp.  The soil is mostly crushed granite and supports our weight, but then, without warning it can quickly change on these unmarked and undeveloped tracks to sand soft enough even to swollow up an entire wheel up to the axle.  We venture along cautiously, leaving the van parked, proceeding on foot as soon as the way looks dodgy. However, at least, this time of year, there are few other campers about and we have our secluded spots all to ourselves.  Yesterday, we hiked into the desert palm oasis and saw a roadrunner along the way. This dry wash winds up into the rigged hills, and then amazingly, a stream appears around a bend, with a necklace of green ferns lning its banks.  Still further upmcanyon large trunks begin to apear, washed down hill hybsome primoidial floods.  The large palm wood trunks seem to last forever in this climate.  The going gets a bit tougher as the trail gradient becomes steeper and turns to tallus and boulders, then around a corner, we are presented with a fine oasis of 80 foot fan palms denssly packed into the cleft at the bottom of the steep rocky intersecting slopes. One in the palm cluster, the temperature drops 20 degrees, and the wail of the desert wind is blocked, replaced by the trickle of the stream as it winds downhill right at the footnof the majestic stalks.  Birds flit about, making homes up and under the dense palm folliage clinging to the trunks, and in the acachia bushes circling the perimeter down lower.

On our way back down, along the "alternate" trail, we surprize a small herd of borregos, the alpha male tagged and collored, the females and juviniles grazing comfortably nearby.   The tagged and largest bighorn sheep kept a watchful eye on us as we stood frozen watching, and protectively moved between us and the herd as they moved as a group across the slope below us.

Once back in town, we stopped off at the town library (behind the mail mall) that conveniently has a wireless internet hub that reaches outside to the shaded benches.  While uploading my blog and photos, Diane stopped at the grocery store for provisions, and carried back two soft ice cream cones along with the bulging bags of dry goods.  Evreythng is quite close at this central hub of town. On our way out of town, we stopped off at the American Legion Post 852, and used their dump station to drain our tanks ($5), a real value these days. We were tempted to join the three friendly, but somewhat crusty desert rats cozied up to the dark bar at the post, but opted instead to drive west, and into the sunset in search of further adventures.

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

Anza Borrego Desert State Park

May 16,2011

After studying the traffic patterns on the Internet, we strike out from Thousand Oaks to cross the LA basin on our way to Anza Borrego Desert State Park.  The freeways are like river white water, with obstacles, catch points, and channels of flow through the mash-up of cars, trucks , buses, delivery vans and tractor trailer rigs.  The GPS, like a reliable bowman, calls out the maneuvers, directing us to the proper lane and side of the road.  Left exits, right exits, forks, turns and straight away lane changes are all anticipated and executed as the electronically synthesized voice interprets it's database of intersecting vectors.  101 to 134 to 210 to 15 to 79 then we were finally released from the multiple-lane frenzy and deposited onto a two lane country road and climbed up and out of the basin over the sage and cactus covered hills to the rolling desert country beyond.  One ridge after another we crossed putting the southern californian sprawl far behind.  Tall billowing clouds piled up behind us and chased us into the growing desert.  The low angle sun now reaching under the storm clouds and illuminating the towering mountains which cradle the valley of Anza Borrego in their lap, we arrive at out first night's camp, boondocking in the Yaqai valley south of Borrego Springs.

The wind has grown boisterous and rocks the camper to and fro, as if we are anchored in an open seaway.  Different pitch whistles sing out as the turbocharged storm winds finds its way into the various gaskets, window cracks, and vents that connect our secure cocoon with the outside.  The sun sets, lighting up the eastern side of the valley, and turning the towering clouds into a pumpkin colored caldron of bubbling water vapor.  No sooner does the sun set, then the full moon rises, orange, and luminescent, seemingly right out of the fold in the valley floor directly adjacent to our secluded stopping place.  We make up the bed, put in earplugs to drown out the racket being made by the symphony of wind chimes the outside desert has become and settle in, rocked to sleep by the friendly nudges of unrestrained air rushing from the coast to some low pressure sump to our east.

May 18, 2011

We hiked yesterday to some pictographs, down a broad wash, to some overhanging boulders.  The drawings were nothing like I've seen before, with no representation of people, but more geometric designs, perhaps denoting passage of time, or directions to springs.  Again, we had the whole drainage to ourselves, and this helped in our emersion into this powerful and foreign place.  The soil is crushed granite, and there is no underbrush per se.  The plants emerge from the small stones in bunches, each protecting the other from the wind and the sun.  This area was seasonally visited several thousand years ago, by traveling bands of native peoples, to gather, dry, and grind Pinion nuts and to gather and prepare agave.  Evidence of these encampments is all over, evidenced by grinding stones and charred rock overhangs.  We see an occasional bird,but they are always shy, and rapidly depart.  Today we were treated to a sighting of a western tanenger, a bright yellow bird with a red cap about the size of a sparrow.  We explored a place called "The Slot", which is a very narrow wash, that turns into a mud walled slot canyon, with serpentine walls over 60 feet tall towering above a dry stream bed no wider than our hips.  Mid way through we crossed paths with another pair of hikers, the first we have seen during our whole visit here.  Tonight we are again boondocking - camped in the bush, not at an established site near a place called Yaqui Well.  The wind continues to blow, making the mid-60's temperature feel much colder.  The clouds are piled up high in the sky to our west, but they see to evaporate as they move east and overhead.

View pictures so far which appear belwow.

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

From Anza Borrego

Hike in Santa Monica mountains and visit to Everspring

From Spring-Summer 2011

Our hosts relaxing by the grotto at Everspring after work. Picture after that is from the Topanga banjo and fiddle competition, an amazing music fair held at Paramount Ranch near Thousand Oaks. Besides the main stage, where pros played between competitors, there was a whole music village to stroll through where ad hoc pick up groups played music on the street corners of the old movie set western town verandas. Booths were set up to sell guitars, banjos, and mandolins as well as straw hats, scarfs, and other folk music paraphernalia.

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

Wildflowers are all blooming. This is a refreshing change from the snowy confines of Donner Summit where we've spent the whole winter. We are using my brother's house as a base of operations as we explore this coastal region of southern California. The mediteranean climate is almost identical to Marin County near home, and it is easy to imagine ourselves far, far away looking over the uniformly red-tiled roofs and the multi-colored cascading hills rolling off to the distance. The trails here are already dusty and hot but the rugged terrain and tough plants are still enjoyable to ramble through. No single flower is large or showy unless you get real close and study the plants from a few inches away. On see exposed, dry slopes, the waxy leaved plants tend to grow like shrubs, with many blooms per plant. Lizards scurry just ahead of us on the trail, and there seems to be a steady buzzing from the busy pollinator insects in the shadows. At sunset we see a brown bunny cross the trail.

Hike up sandstone peak , the highest mountain in the Santa Monica Mountain Range. There was a thick marine layer on the coast, so we did not see the ocean, but the vistas were still remarkable...

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

From Spring-Summer 2011

Avoiding Toxic Produce | OnEarth Magazine

Just a quick reminder of simple things you can do to eat healthier.  Sure, it will cost a little more, but isn't your health worth it - think of the extra expenditure on food as an increase to your health insurance premium.   Avoiding Toxic Produce | OnEarth Magazine

Last ski day of the season - Creamy cruisers

Before we dismantle the mountain safety equipment for the season the patrol gets a few hours to ski on the fine spring conditions.

Bogus Basin Storm Tour

Its been a foggy, snowy/rainy drizzly week and this weekend was no different.  Even with precipitation everyday, there is just a slight accumulation of frozen, or not so frozen slush on the snow surface.  Even so, once you get away from the roads and the houses, and if properly dressed the backcountry traveling is sublime.  Today, with no time pressures I took a pull behind toboggan out to the Bogus Basin Warming hut, climbing up from Ice Lakes Lodge, approximately following the usual groomed ski trail, except that the trail has not been groomed for over three weeks and has been reabsorbed into the continuum of the backcountry by the regular deposits of precipitation and remolding by wind.  The snowmobile would never make it this far back in these conditions, so my only choice was to retrieve the propane tank, heater, stove ring,  and tea bags by foot - or leave it to good luck that the awakening bears would take no interest in the tea (or molding garbage) and that vandals would bypass the unlocked hut in the muddy months before the kit could be retrieved by 4 wheeler.

On the way up, I followed a very clear and distinguished set of bear tracks - a set that I believe weee left by some sleepy ursine staggering downhill hoping to find some food at lower elevations.  As I climbed more that once I crossed bear tracks heading down the Serena Creek Canyon towards the American River.  These tracks varied from one day old to several days old, as the snow had already begun to fill them in.

Along with the bear tracks were coyote tracks, and rabbit tracks.  The wind was blowing the wet snow/sleet at me the whole way, but I felt happy, and comfortable.  The deep snowpack will long be clinging to these mountainsides, but tomorrow I am to depart for Oakland and "The Green" - escaping this infernal drizzle for some tree and flower pollen.

Yesterday, I accomplished a similar chore at another warming hut, but with whimpy nordic skis on, and a fuller toboggan load, the uneven and at times steep terrain became very hard to negotiate with my awkward cargo in these sloppy conditions. Anyone watching would have been in stitches as the sled repeatedly  capsized bringing me to a sudden stop.  Today the work was going much better, with a differently loaded toboggan, and much sturdier ski equipment, the return trip down the mountain was a breeze, with my heavily burdened, but secure toboggan obediently following close behind my parallel tracks.  I did not want the trip down to end, but in short order I was back at the banks of the swollen Serena Creek and back to the parked car awaiting me patiently.


Ski into Bogus Basin to retrieve the warming hut propan tank, heater, and hot plate.  No groomer has been up here for weeks so its a quiet tour, breaking trail.  Lots of bear and coyote tracks

Tail end of the season...

The sun was breaking in and out of clouds, but the drizzle has stopped so I venture out and look for some light in the mountain landscape. As I drive towards Donner Summit, the high clouds open up and reveal the fog layer hovering over Donner Lake 1,000 feet below. The snow is saturated with fresh rainwater, and the warm night temperatures are precluding the formation of corn snow. Large soggy blocks of cornice are breaking of up high and the roadside banks are calving like ocean facing glaciers. Snow surface is that of pudding, with weak spots forming over tress, rocks, and old wind scoured ridges that had become submerged by the record breaking snow late spring snow fall.

From 2010-2011 Serene Road house

Clouds still obscure the higher summit peaks, but Donner Peak captures the lower morning light, with the adventurous skiers tracks just barely visible from a few days ago. The abandoned train shed is very obscured - keep in mind the face normally exposed of these sheds shows 16 foot walls as a formidable barrier to skiing down this aspect of the mountain. Now, a quick hop and you've forded the glide crack on the downhill side and on your way down to the lake below.

From 2010-2011 Serene Road house

After checking the time of the sunset, I set out from home, walked one block, put on my skis, and skinned up the ridge between Royal Gorge and Soda Springs, what I call Royal Springs ridge.  Here I can see an unobstructed view of e saddle of Donner Summit.  The clouds were building again, and a caldron of atmospheric activity was boiling up from the valley to our west.  I was hoping for a dramatic sunset with the multi-layered clouds, but as soon as the sun dipped into the moist air near the horizon, it was lights out.

I "ripped hide" - removed my skins, and had a glorious ski down through the buttery spring snow before all light was gone from the sky.

From Royal Springs Ridge at sunset

From Royal Springs Ridge at sunset

From Royal Springs Ridge at sunset

From Royal Springs Ridge at sunset

From Royal Springs Ridge at sunset

Leaving Donner Summit

We packed up and left Donner Summit for the season. I'll actually go back to work some more patrol days through the end of the month, but all our kit is excavated from Serene road, and piled up in the dining room in Oakland.


Departing Serene Road with camper stuffed to the gills. Snow is slowing receding, but still towers over the top of the campier in the driveway...

From Spring-Summer 2011

In our long absence, a small herd of deer (5 total) appear to have taken up afternoon feeding habits in our back yard. I only wish they were a bit more like goats to save me the trouble of weed whacking.

From Spring-Summer 2011

Trailer Hitch Mounted Storage Box fits the folding Kayak

On moving day, we attached this new nifty hitch mounted storage box to the camper to help get all our stuff off the summit and back to Oakland for the summer.  It's just roomy enough to hold the folded and packaged double expedition Feathercraft K-2 sea kayak we'll be traveling with this summer.  Installation was a breeze, although the hitch mounting screw/lock assembly that came with the unit conflicts with the trailer lights electrical socket mounted on the hitch.  I'll ned to do some work on that.  With a $13 connector from NAPA auto parts I was able to connect the male 7 pin (circular configuration) trailer light socket with the 4 in-line round pin connector that came with the storage box.  Still working on the how to mount the back-up camera that used to be attached to the license plate, but is now obstructed by the box.  Here are some pictures in a slide show format:

Spring skiing after storm with Steven and Jessie

Watch a brief movie with dialog...


The blizzard has blown out it's fury and we are left with great spring conditions. High temperatures and bright sun sooth my aching muscles and we spend a weekend with family ski touring at Royal Gorge.