Backpacking

Friday May 13, 2005, ~22:00: I don’t have a watch so time will be estimates.

We’re up at Lake Eleanor after a much longer hike than anticipated. We hiked about six miles to end up at a good site on the peninsula on the east side of the lake. The trail actually started about a mile from the like, but well beyond the Cherry lake dam. Since I figured the hike from the dam to Eleanor was 2 miles I figured the hike to the other side was another mile. But since the 1.5 miles is from the top of the pass, getting to the other side was much farther than anticipated.

Now to the gear. The bear canister sucks. It’s inflexibility results in the canister pushing the lumbar pad right into my tailbone, which is uncomfortable for six miles. Having everything I would use on the trail in the upper pocket sucks because it’s hard to find stuff. After a while, I put my camera on the chest strap, which was perfect. But I got hungry and pulled out my GORP, only to have to constantly hold it. I figure another pouch like my camera would work perfect for this. I needed my map and almost my compass, and that was a pain. So the four things I need very handy are my camera, snacks, map and compass, and optionally binoculars.

I didn’t have my pad strapped on very well, and though the weight wasn’t awkward, passing low branches to my left was. Strapping that stuff to the outside is a big pain, but I’ll see tonight whether it was worth it.

So our camp is nice. We have a fire, though it did take us youngins some extra time and effort to get it rolling. The frogs are croaking constantly, but hopefully they’ll go to the background. I’ll get more pics tomorrow.

Friday May 13, 2005, ~23:00: I’m in bed now but it’s very warm in my tent right now. I’ll have to wait for it to cool off before I retire. Being the weight that I am sucks. My clothes won’t fit me well and my pack doesn’t sit on my hips well either. At least I’m not totally bushed after the hike. It was six miles and it wasn’t perfectly flat but there weren’t too many ups and downs.

I think Carl is enjoying his first trip, though it was more work than he expected to get here, so he is very tired.

Saturday May 14, 2005: ~9:30: Last night’s sleep wasn’t great, but it wasn’t too bad either. I probably woke up 10-15 times to change positions. Also my neck wasn’t very well supported by my pillow. I need to stick something underneath it to raise its height.

Most of the time I woke up because my arm hurt from sleeping on my side. Come to think of it, I don’t remember even waking up on my back, though I know I feel asleep that way a couple times. I think my extra weight is one of the culprits, since my own body squishes itself into the firm pad. Just another reason to lose weight.

This morning I got up a little later than I wanted because the sun was well up when I got up. I don’t know what I want to do today. I can maybe go to the top of a peak which is ½ mile east of the ranger station. It looks like a plausible 2 mile hike with a 700’ elevation gain. There would be some bushwhacking but the terrain seems possible.

Saturday May 14, 2005: ~2:30: We’re back from the hike, but we never made it to the mountain. We started bushwhacking our way to the trail, but we kept going and going, not reaching it. After maybe 1.5 hours of this, we found and area we remember going past on the way in and we found the trail. We were quite tired so we decided to go back, being sure to mark the trail and the way to it. We don’t want to do this again tomorrow.

After getting back I took a bath. The water was much colder than many other mountain lakes I’ve swam in. I also did a little sock laundry. Then I went to the point and got a series of pictures for a panorama, if it turns out well. Unfortunately I forgot how to use exposure lock.

When I put my shoes on, I didn’t check for bugs. A red ant got in there so it was chewing up my ankle. It felt like a bee sting and I have a small welt in the place. Lunch and book time.

Saturday May 14, 2005: ~22:30: I ate lunch and read for a while. Then my back started to hurt so I laid down in the tent to relax some. I ended up taking a 2-3 hour nap. Afterward I did some chores and had dinner. Carl had already got the fire pit set up and it turned out well. I had some dinner mishaps though.

I was boiling water and I move around on the bench some people had set up around the pit. The seat I was on wasn’t too stable and I tipped my stove and pot full of water on the ground. Flames started shooting out of the stove and eventually I got it turned off. Then, I went to start my stove again but the lighter wasn’t lighting. I removed it and tried it out only to shock myself. I flailed my arms and sent the lighter flinging into the air. Thankfully I didn’t have any more issues, but it was kind of fun.

I’m read to come back and see Jenny again, but I’m not ready to go back to work. Tomorrow I hope to get up earlier and maybe catch sunrise. The sooner I get up the sooner I can dry my tent, pack up, and head home.

Sunday May 15, 2005: ~7:00: We got an early start this morning. I woke up way before dawn and got up just as the sun was peeking over the mountains. There is some early cloud cover so drying out the tent will take a little longer than hoped for.

As is typical it’s prettier here in the morning. Interestingly the water level has gone up probably 6 inches or so since we first came in. Time to pack.

Sunday May 15, 2005: ~16:00: Packing, hiking and driving were all uneventful, though I wish I had a way to get to food on the trail. I slept about the same last night, waking up maybe a few less times. I put my fleece under my sleeping pad to give more height to my pillow, which worked out okay.

I picked out a quartz rock for Jenny as all the rocks were just granite. I didn’t find it in my pack, though, so I hope it’s still in my car.

Now I’m home and clean and well rested. So ends my first trip of the year.

Friday June 18, 2004 - 14:15: We were at Rockbound after I think three and a half hours. Where do I start?

Surprisingly, the hike here was much easier than I remember. Last time I was so tired I took a two hour nap and was grumpy. This time I feel tired but I'll be able to get up and do stuff without a problem. We just got off the trail and I'm eating lunch. For the trail I packed GORP, a Powerbar, and some beef jerky for energy. Well at some point I took the jerky out of the fanny pack, and unfortunatley that was what I was craving most. I made it to camp with barely enough GORP (there was still some left in my pack, of course).

We hiked the first four easy miles in a little over an hour. I munched on GORP and stayed pretty energied. When we stopped before leaving Loon behind us, I took off my shoes, kicked back, and ate my Powerbar. Then we hit the trail and I felt good; really good like I did when we first hit the trail.

I hit a small wall just after passing Buck Island, but knowing we were almost there I didn't stop for a needed break. After more ups and downs, a bit of backtracking, and some cross-country, I'm a bit low on energy. Actually in the time I've been writing, I've eaten (mmmm, Jerky) and feel energized again.

My gear worked out well. If I lose some inches on the waist, the backpack would be more comfortable. My feet are sore in the arch area unfortunately, but I have no blisters. Time to finish lunch and set up camp.

Friday June 18, 2004 - 18:09: It's getting a bit chilly now with the breeze, but the breeze goes away long enough for mosquitos to get interested.

After setting up camp I took a really quick dip in the lake. Yes, very cold but now I'm refreshingly clean. I got a sunburn on my legs because I didn't put sunblock there this morning.

Next we took a short hike along the river to Buck Island and when we got back it was dinner time. Chili-Mac and green beans hit the spot, but I've had better meals out here.

There weren't any thunderstorms today despite their forcast. At most it got partly cloudy.

I'll be resting the rest of the night. I'll pump some water, change, wait for hot-cocoa time and sunset. I need to replenish my strength for tomorrow's hike.

Friday June 18, 2004 - After 22:00: Bringing the pillow was a very good idea. Even laying on hard rock I'm comfortable with the pillow. I think I'll sleep really well tonight.

My legs burn. Neglecting to put on sunblock on them was a big mistake. How many times must I get burned before I learn my lesson?

After sunset the misquitos were a really big problem. I put on my undies and fleece but they were still finding parts that weren't well covered. I felt surrounded by a cloud of them. I need to see if there is some more compact alternative to misquito coils.

After dark I saw five satelitees but only one shooting star. It's nice to see so many stars but I think as the years go by you can see fewer and fewer.

I've taken very few pictures, but I don't know why. If feel like the pictures won't do the scenery justice anyway, and there isn't anything that would really incite a memory. I guess I need to look harder.

Jenny's pack worked very well today. I fill it with whatever I am going to need and it's easy to carry everything, for example, when I'm filling water. I'll definitely have to get one for myself.

Saturday June 19, 2004 - 14:33A lot has happened. Last night I didn't get great sleep because I kept waking up to change positions. It's difficult to say whether it was because of my small sleeping pad or small pillow. When laying on my back the pillow does a fine job. But any other position and my neck isn't supported. When I woke up most of the time my neck was in pain.

We found the cache but we had a heck of a time getting there. The second leg of the route I planned has us walking a trail for a mile or so. We're not sure we ever found the trail. So following waypoints we ended up climbing over ridges through thick brush and all other kinds of nasty terrain. It was the most difficult hike I've ever had. Unfortunately we aren't done yet. We've stopped at a stream near the cache to build up our energy. We still have to go back, but this time we won't be following GPS. I definitely underestimated the difficultly in reaching this cache.

We took some pictures of the cache for proof and filled out the log. Now I'm trying to stay in some shade so my sunburn doesn't get worse.

I ran out of water just after finding the cache and fortunately we found a nearby (10 minutes away) stream. I'm rehydrating and building energy for the long hike back.

Saturday June 19, 2004 - 21:00: The hike back was at least as hard as the hike in, especially after three hours of hard hiking. Dad insisted on going cross-country and not finding the trail. Getting to the trail would have been tough, but as a whole the trip back may have been easier.

Immediately after getting back I went swimming, then I relaxed. I am so physically tired, and drained of energy. I feel like I'm dehydrated and I'm having trouble getting enough oxygen. I don't know for sure but these may be signs of approaching complete exhaustion. I hope tonight my body will rebuild itself for tomorrow's hike out, which at this point seems like a cake walk.

I really need to do something about this sleeping situation. I may have to invest in a real sleeping pad that is air filled and can be converted to a chair. Just what I need: more weight. But if it gets me to sleep without weaking 20-30 times a night, it will be worth it.

From the cache I took a Dilbert pen, which I'm giving to Jenny as this trip's gift. I left five bucks, but next time I'll have a more thoughtful treasure.

I'm bushed and going to sleep now.

Sunday June 20, 2004 - 16:30: The hike back wasn't quite a cake walk, but was certainly easier. I stopped only once for a couple minutes to catch my breath. For the last two miles I kept thinking the trailhead was right around the corner. For future reference, YES the trailhead is on the very far side of Loon Lake.

Once back in the car it was still another two hours before we were able to find a Wendy's (with Jenny's help). It's in Folsom off E. Biddle left on Iron Point road. I had two whole cheeseburgers and fries, but the chili looked really good. Next time.

It's nice to be home now. I'm not sure about this next hike. It's six nights and the terrain to get to side lakes looks rough. Fortunately the milage is low. Dad says we're go, so I guess we'll do it.

This trip has made me realize the need for some gear changes: better sunblock, Maxi-DEET spray, mosquito repellent, air-filled mattress/chair, less film, daypack

Here are some things I forgot to say: The mosquitos, strangley, were almost non-existent on Saturday night. Saturday night I woke up fewer times because I changed my pillow. I filled my tent stuff sack with my fleece (comfortably slept in my silk PJs) and I placed my pillow on top of that. The added height was a big difference. Still, I woke up to change positions, partially because my sleeping pad is just a tad softer than rock. Also, I exchanged a Powerbar for one packet of oatmeal, which was a good move.

2004-06-13: This last week I've had some angry moments. I've been trying to find a trip for Dad Cleek and me that lasts a week long in August. I'm interested in a trip north of Redding and I've been looking all over the place to try to find a good one. At first, I started looking in the California hiking books, but didn't find any that I liked. Then I looked around the Internet for a while trying to find a central repository of known trails. It turns out there are none. Neither is there even a list of trailheads. Even the land managment organizations don't have a good map and list of trails in their respective areas.

It turns out that the only mention of trails is in relation to destinations. I came to the realization last night that there is probably a good reason for that: the crappy trails have been weeded out. No guides have just plain trails and trialheads, it's all about lakes and mountains. Trails.com seems to be the largest repository of hiking destinations, though it doesn't include Loon Lake. Additionally, there are some usage problems with trails.com. Membership cost me $40, and you get 20 free "eTrails". When you look up an area on trails.com you get a long list of hiking trips in the area. If you click on one, you get a three or four sentence blurb about the trail as well as some stats such as elevation and difficulty. You also get access to the topographical map, which is pointless since you get get that at places like TopoZone. This info is hardly enough to decide whether a trail is good enough.

Trails.com's eTrails give much more detail that is useful for figuring out what a trail is like. However, you need to spend eTrail credits in order to download these eTrails. Since you have a limited number, and getting new ones costs money, it seems like a total crappy deal because you need to waste credits on trips you aren't interested in taking. After writing a nasty comment to the site and then calming down a little, I began my search for a hike. I settled on a hike to East Boulder Lake. It should be a decent hike, but I fear it's not going to be very remote.