1997 JOHN MUIR WILDERNESS 50 MILER LAURA'S JOURNAL
JULY 18:
Traveled from the Bay area to our camp at Wishon reservoir, elevation approx.
6500 feet. The drive through Gilroy and the back roads was peaceful,
and took less time than expected. Its pleasant to be just another
passenger watching the scenery as it changes rather than concentrating
on the logistics of driving. As Heber was driving, I noted in my
journal the directions to Wishon Reservoir, as he made turns, changed directions,
and crawled on one-lane roads. I want to come back here again someday.
JULY 18: EVENING:
Found a walk-in camp site that was a pleasant surprise. It's a beautiful
little campsite that's secluded from the other 2 sites and is not overused
like some of the trailhead campsites I've observed in the Islands and in
Yosemite. After the spaghetti dinner, the evening sky did its part
in providing entertainment in the forms of stars and the various constellations.
Unfortunately, there was a full moon which made it difficult to see a lot
of the stars. Hope to see more during the week.
JULY 19: MORNING
Hike to Duck lake 4.2 miles, elevation gain 1600feet, average miles per
hour 1.25. Had the famous "McSiddenblad Egg/Ham/Cheese McMuffins"
for breakfast, my last decent cup of espresso for the week, and packed-up
to head for the start of our hike. Nicole led our hike of 4.2 miles
today. While she may hike a little slower than others due to a short
stride, she hikes strong and is quite an interesting character. I
like how she manages to personalize her boots and clothes; as well as her
interesting social commentary on those with whom she interacts. She
and Suzanne, another one who, with a strong and independent voice, appear
to be the more outspoken of the group. Molly, is the "lets experience
everything" enthusiast and Ann and Harmony remind me of the phase "silent
and strong willed." Shannon is somewhere in the middle of all 6 in terms
of personality
While hiking today, it came home to me how many of these scouts are
legally adults or "soon to be" adults." Two are 18, one is 17 and the other
three are 15 and 16, respectively. I fully anticipate "mentally"
sitting back and watching them make a lot of the decisions on this trip.
One of the reasons that I do this trip, is because I believe it allows
young women the opportunity to make leadership decisions. Because
half of the group is in the 17-18 range and several are seasoned "milers"
I expect some interesting times in getting to know them even better and
see what they do in various situations.
JULY 19: NOON
I don't believe it, I'm the first "fatality" on this trip. I've broken
a tooth (the front left lateral) on hum-drum jerky! I was never a fan of
it, but from now on its verboten. The tooth broke off at the root.
I hope Dr. Ishida can still give me a cap. I would really be disappointed
if the root has to be pulled and I have to wear a bridge. Ugghhh!
This thought brings to mind visions of my parents and their dentures.
After I inspected the tooth, I'm not sure the tooth had a post. I
know I had a root canal done on that tooth, but that does not mean a post
was implanted. Hmmmm, guess I'll find out more only after I visit
the dentist.
JULY 19: EVENING
Duck Lake The mosquitoes were pesky on the way to this lake and the trail
was dusty. Puffs of clouds could be seen rising from each scout's
foot as they hiked single file. Sometimes Shannon would suddenly
halt in order to get more breathing room between her and the rest of the
scouts. By the end of the day the troop was strung out on the trail
like a string of beads, each moving to their own rhythm. Elevation
gain was approximately 1600 feet and the lake was much nicer than either
Paul or Heber expected. I was not quite sure what to expect.
Heber and Paul fished at the "fish restaurant" while everyone else set
up their spots, and then went swimming. Harmony and Ann have chosen
not to swim and to remain in camp. It looks like Suzanne has decided
to walk or "skip" around the lake and help the "boys" with their fishing.
I on the other hand will tryout my new $8.00, 2.5 oz portable water shower/heater.
Its supposed to heat the water up with solar energy. It takes approximately
45 minutes to heat the water, and its amazing how quickly you can clean
yourself with a minimum of "hot" water. Celebrated Ann's birthday
and enjoyed a lively debate with the girls about various movies, their
merits, and what type of makeup is acceptable for young men of their age
and/or your date to wear. After this discussion, I'm afraid I'm a
lot older and more stodgy than I suspected. Nail polish or eye makeup
on a man would definitely eliminate him as a potential date. I draw
the line at long hair and/or a stud earring. However, goatees and
mustaches are definitely okay.;)
JULY 20: HIKE TO SCEPTER LAKE
6.87 miles, 2.2 cross country, elevation gain 1600?feet. At 9500
feet elevation (or is it 9400?--I've lost Heber's elevation gain map, again)
Average miles per hour 1.37. Shannon was the trail leader today.
She's very good at picking her way across country and finding the best
spots to cross difficult terrain. Once we were finished with the
cross-country section, the troop was strung out along the trail in 2 groups
more or less.
I hiked up front with 5 of the Scouts, Paul played middleman, and Heber
with the last scout were in the rear. There were no more than 15-20minutes
of separation between the front runners and the rest of the group.
On the trail from 9:00 to 2:30 today. Spent most the day hiking in
or along stream beds up to Scepter Lake. The mosquitoes were even
worse than the day before. Ann admitted that the mosquitoes were
as bad as in some previous years in the Sierras. Got to the lake
and there was animated dropping of packs and diving for the lake.
Paul came in 15 minutes later and Heber about 10 minutes after. The
boys decided that the camp on the far side of the lake was a better site,
so after washing some clothes and enjoying the lake, we all trooped over
there. The lake, was, I suspect, more of what Paul expected for Duck
Lake. It is pretty, but basically wide and shallow. I could
walk across the entire lake at about waist level. Being only 64"
tall, that's quite amazing to me, a mid-western from Michigan. Lakes
in my home state have steep drop-offs that occur within 30-100 feet of
shore.
Paul and Heber are upset with the amount of trash left by the horse
packers. I admit, the broken glass and not even leaving camp to go
the bath room is pretty disgusting. Several scouts are having major
allergic reactions to the mosquitoes and their bites. We are all
starting to look like muggers around the campfire. In an effort to
foil the pesky insects, all of the women have taken to wearing maximum
clothing, including bandannas and or hoods over most of their faces.
The men, as usual, don't seem to be bothered by the mosquitoes; and don't
quite understand how bothersome the mosquitoes and the accompanying allergic
reactions to the bites are. However, Paul did come over for some
bug juice before going to sleep tonight. I'm deeply saddened to note
my vicious pleasure in stating that fact. No I'm not. It's
about time one of the boys got pestered by some of those bugs. (Sorry,
Paul, no ill wishes or anything.) Its amazing how much contraband has been
coming out of the woodwork during the last two days. I think that
the leaders shall have to change how they do pack inspection in the future.
JULY 21: PEARL LAKE TREK
400 foot climb, 600 foot drop, and a 1000 foot climb to 10,400 feet, 6.8
miles, average 1.25 miles per hour. The trek from Scepter Lake to
Portal was not as long as I anticipated but it was filled with trials and
tribulations. We hiked again along a stream bed for most of the way.
The air was more humid than the previous day's and there were even more
mosquitoes than during the last two days. Aggravating, argggghhhh.
Every time we stopped, the mosquitoes would swarm around us and the "mosquito
dance" began. Even moving, we were targets. Although the surrounding
foliage was lush and beautiful, I unfortunately also started to associate
mosquitoes with lush foliage and began to dread seeing any more lush foliage.
However, this dread did not prevent me from stopping and taking pictures.
I'm itchy but I refuse to lose photo-ops to the pesky bugs.
In the morning we climbed 400 feet to Scepter pass and dropped 600
feet on the other side very quickly. The view was spectacular and
the obligatory pictures were taken. Molly was the leader yesterday.
The 600 foot drop was more class II than class one and was fun to do.
Although I don't like steep hills, I do like to go down them, just as in
cycling. The down hill section would have been perfect for practicing
rock climbing. We passed through some lowland forested area; some
of us got temporarily separated from the rest, because the trail was not
well marked; and then we all regrouped and stopped for lunch. Paul
suffered separation anxiety from some of us going off-trail and requested
that everyone stay closer together. After lunch Molly, Suzanne, Harmony,
Ann, and myself headed up the front part of the hiking line. If Molly
is this strong of a hiker, particularly on the uphill side of a trail,
I hate think of how strong she'll be in 1 to2 years. She's constantly
way out in front and seems to have wayyyy too much energy. To keep
my self-respect, I was forced to keep up in the rear of the "front" group.
It's a good thing I'm stubborn. After lunch the hike through lush
stream beds was one long uphill pull with a grunt up the last 400 feet.
During the last pull to the meadow below the Portal lake some of the scouts
expressed concern about our ability to make Pearl Lake. By the time
we got to the meadow it was close to 4:00, threatening to rain with the
accompaniment of thunder and lightening, and everyone was fatigued.
As we were crossing the last stream bed before reaching Portal, much to
the scout's delight, the heavens did open up and gift us with a sky show
of rain, thunder and lightning. We scrambled up the remaining hillock
and then the boys put up shelters with help from the scouts. We spent
the next two hours waiting for the rain to stop, and during the wait, it
was decided by the group to stay the night at Portal. After the rain
stopped, Heber demonstrated how to start a fire with very wet wood.
We got a very proper fire going, set up camp, ate, and then retired to
a clear sky. At this point, the girls had decided to lay over at
Portal and then move on to Blackcap and Half-moon on Thursday. Although,
I haven't said anything, I'm glad. I'm more tired than anticipated,
I think I have a sinus infection brewing, and I'm tight in the chest.
JULY 21: LAYOVER DAY AT PORTAL.
Woke up in a panic at around 3:00 am when Heber's predictions of a clear
night didn't come to pass. I should have trusted my gut instincts
to build a shelter while I still had light to do it. I'm not as accomplished
as the guys and scouts are at doing it, and I hate to be caught out.
Ah well, another lesson learnt. After Paul and Heber got finished
tucking in their "baby chicks," who by the way are quite capable of building
a shelter, they helped me finish mine. Next time, I'll more closely
inspect the shelter I choose before I attempt to use it. Attempting
to build a shelter with a bent pole was not amusing. Woke up again
around 8:00 and its raining and been raining since 3:00. This is
not looking up in terms of a sunny day at the lake. Later in the
morning it dried out enough for me to attempt to dry my clothes washed
at Scepter lake, and to attempt another "load." I along with most of the
scouts washed my hair, while the boys went fishing. During the fishing
expedition, Heber lost to a marmot parts of his clothing. Seemed
the little fellow liked Heber's smell on his bandannas and proceeded to
shed parts of them while no one was looking. I kicked him out of
Heber's tent at least 3 times, and once while he was boldly chewing on
a bandanna in Heber's shelter. The little guy is golden all over,
cute as a bug's ear, and as destructive to clothing as my pet rats.
Guess Heber has a new camp friend.
Later I opted out on the hike to Pearl, and slept until they came back.
Ann, Suzanne, Paul and Heber went to Pearl. The temperature was no
more than 45-50 degrees all day and it started lightly raining after 3:00
again.
After dinner we discussed our options and hoped that there would be
no more rain for tomorrow. On the positive side, NO MOSQUITOES.
The cold weather is keeping them at bay. The evening sky with Alpine
glow is spectacular again tonight.
JULY 23: HALF-MOON LAKE VIA THE PORTAL LAKE ROUTE
Elevation drop from lO.4 to 9.6 with some up and down. Average miles
per hour: approx. 1.6 tol.8 miles/hour Blackcap route scratched.
Its another cold and rainy day with fog. We're going nowhere anytime
soon. Pouring down rain most of the morning; curled up in my sleeping
bag and slept. The boys gave up their shelters in order to make the
girls' more secure. Eight people in one small area, I think I'll
stay where I am. The water is rising around my shelter, and the group
tent is not faring much better. Some of the scout's bags are now
damp at their ends, and everyone has some wet laundry that didn't dry.
Sun came out at 11:30 am. Ate breakfast and we all decided to make
a break for Half-moon if the weather held. Started on the trail at
1:30 with Ann leading. The streams are now quite full of rushing
water. Had to hike much further down to find an acceptable stream
crossing. The hike down the trail went much quicker than Tuesday's
hike up it and was much muddier. Met several people on the way down.
All men with boys. As we hike down, we're getting faster and the
mosquitoes are getting thicker. Skirted around Scepter pass after
passing our Tuesday luncheon spot. We got into camp around 6:00 and
quickly set up. Some talk cropped up about the weather on the way.
It was resolved by the scouts to approach Heber and Paul about cutting
the trip short if it continued to be cold and rainy. Everyone set
up shelters for the night just in case it rained. After dinner, a
fire was started again... . a night of infamy, the night of the tampon
bonfire. While the guys were out fishing, the rest of us were left
with the dilemma of starting a fire with wet wood. No one could seem
to get the fire going using Heber's tricks. Since none of the scouts
felt that they were in need of their personal supplies, (some were more
emphatic on this point than others), they proposed using the paper sanitary
envelopes and/or tampons to start the fire. I suggested the envelopes
would be more flammable. Before I knew it, we had more "flammable" supplies
than anticipated. After successfully starting the fire, it was suggested
that all scouts, boys, men and women should carry these supplies as a "sure-fire"
method. After that things degenerated even further and I'm afraid
Paul and Heber got teased rather badly. The girls exhibited the all
too common trait demonstrated by most women when in a group that contains
only a few males; the males get picked on and teased. Everyone went
to bed that night around 10:00 after the scouts reached agreement with
Heber and Paul about pulling out early if the weather remains cold.
JULY 24: WOODCHUCK LAKE 6.4 MILES WITH 1.5 MILE DETOUR
Woke up in the morning feeling even worse than I have during the last couple
days. I can't breathe through my nose, the sinus infection is a reality
and won't go away. I also woke up at 3:00 am, and spent the rest
of the wee morning hours awake worrying about how I was going to manage
getting my tooth fixed; the car picked up from the Oakland dealership;
how much is the car-repair cost; and the fact that I can't afford to take
off anymore time from work. I'm working a 4-day week next week because
I have to travel to Las Vegas for a wedding. The 4-day week means
a very full schedule without any hiccups in timing or allowances for time-off.
Discussed part of this with Paul and Heber. I'm not in favor
of using anyone's dentist but my own. The scouts still want to leave
a day early if the weather continues to be cold. They stuck with
this decision even when the guys asked them to reaffirm their decision
as they were waking up in their nice warm sleeping bags. No fair,
guys, teenager motivations at that time in the morning are to stay in bed,
not to move. Final agreement: a decision would be reached tonight
regarding our staying or hiking out early. If the weather continues
to be cold today then Heber and Paul agree to hike out early.
Hiked on to Woodchuck lake. The weather continues to stay cold,
around 45degrees. The girls are not able to go swimming or clean
up. The lakes are beautiful but coldddd
Hiked up around Crown Lake, got detoured due to a packer's trail to
Crown Lake that was better marked than the one to Woodchuck; and then hiked
in on the most beautiful lake (Woodchuck) during the entire hike.
Got in around 3:00, set up shelters. The guys went fishing and the
girls and I curled up in our sleeping bags. Its too cold to do much
other than sleep, read, or if your a fisherman, fish. No swimming
today. It started raining again around 3:30 and lasted until 6:00.
Ate dinner, had scouts own, and around 9:30, at the scouts' prompting,
the leaders decided to discuss the options and reach a decision about leaving
or staying. We leave in the morning, I'm glad that we are keeping
to the agreement reached with the girls yesterday. Both Paul and
Heber are disappointed, but the weather did not clear up. After this
week of unusual weather, I'm not willing to bet on fine weather for tomorrow;
and renege on an agreement reached with the scouts. I also need to
take care of several things that unexpectedly cropped up just before and
during this trip.
JULY 25: WISHON RESERVOIR
9.84 miles and a 3200 foot drop, average hike speed 1.6 miles. The
weather was very cold in the morning and warmed as we dropped in altitude
and as the day progressed. Met horse packers on their way to Woodchuck
lake. Glad I'm not sharing a camp with them. All of them were
men, out of shape, and each horse was loaded with a cabin's worth of supplies
for a couple days. Guess I'm biased. I believe that one enjoys
things more if they're not easy to achieve. During this trip we cleaned
up one too many campsites from horse packer use. At Woodchuck Lake
the toilet signs were riddled with 22 buckshot. Somehow, I don't
think that is really what the wilderness experience is supposed to be about.
Met an interesting old cowboy on the way out. From his perspective
the environmentalists are ruining the mountain because its reverting to
a more wild state unsuitable for cattle. Got out, took the obligatory
pictures at the end of the trail, called the dentist, and took a cold shower.
Note: Molly takes longgggg showers. Ate pizza and got home sans boots
at 11:00. The boots are still at Heber's.