A near empty office, just-excused jury duty, and continued dry conditions conspired to persuade me to join the Great Pink One and his Mrs. on a four day Christmas romp through parts of Yosemite that would be considered inaccessible in winter to most. Unfortunately, JKW was still tending to her her injured foot and would not accompany us, but she graciously agreed to drop us off at our trailheadby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Thank you everyone for the kind birthday wishes! I know that I haven't been posting may TRs recently--hopefully there will be some down time to catch up on the backlog. Special thanks to JKW and The Great Pink One for re-doing a lot of completed TQ so that I could knock off a lot of Yosemite (and SEKI) miles! I didn't finish the Yosemite TQ this year due to the fires in the southern part of thby basilbop - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
"My JetBoil let me down, so I tried a makeshift Crotch Pot. Next time: bring instructions." "Chick-On Crack: Pass" "Bare sighting in Tuolumne Meadows!" "This is why some people should not hike alone, and why some people should."by basilbop - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Who makes the jacket? Some manufacturers offer inexpensive repairs on gear--we've had good experiences with Western Mountaineering and Big Agnes, but I've heard that a lot of the other "big names" have similar policies. Also, what is the failure? If it's just that the slider doesn't zip the teeth together but the zipper teeth and backing material are otherwise OK (no missing teeth,by basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
The Big Oak Flat permit station will be closed, but you can pick up your permit at Hetch Hetchy until 9. The White Wolf campground is closed. Actually, the road to White Wolf is closed, so be sure to factor in a bit of a road walk. Maybe try to reserve a campsite at Hodgdon, Crane Flat, or Dimond O for Thu night? Tamarack Flat and Yosemite Creek are first-come, first serve, but I would guessby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Pieces of the infamous Merced Pass Lake airplane crash can still be found in the lake along the west shore. I didn't get any good pictures, and the best way to view the debris is from a boat. There are some larger pieces, some cables, lots of metallic scraps, and a few things that appear to have lettering on them still. There is no sign of the cargo of said airplane.by basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
QuoteDavidK42 I did go down to the road into Hodgdon CG later to see where I would have come out but I couldn't find anything that looked like the continuation of the OBOFR. It looks from your pictures that the old road goes to the meadow but not to the CG...is that right? (I did once go a short ways up the stretch of the old road starting near the Day Use area (was looking for the Carlon Fallsby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
A few weekends ago, the still-recovering JKW offered to help with some car shuttles so I could complete some western Yosemite TrailQuest bits. The forecast was for cool weather--perfect to check off some mid-elevation sections of trail. My first section was the old Big Oak Flat road from Tuolumne Grove to Hodgdon Meadow. The dogwoods were unfortunately a bit past their prime. I had toby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
(This report is from early June, 2017) A few weeks prior, we had tried to check off some TrailQuest miles, but due to lingering snow we couldn't claim some trails due to uncertainty of actually being on the trail. So, we once more found ourselves heading up to Buena Vista Peak, this time with hardly a trace of snow--and with JKW. The top of the peak was as The Pink One and I had remembby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
I don't remember any markers, but it's an obvious, wide road. I have heard different things about overnight parking at Tuolumne Grove. I do not recall any signs specifically disallowing it. We have parked overnight at the large turnout near the Crane Flat lookout station road, which isn't too far from Tuolumne Grove. There are no bear boxes that I am aware of in the area.by basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Edit: You could follow the Old Tioga Road Old Big Oak Flat Road from just east of the (closed) gate to Gin Flat. It heads uphill from the current road. The road to Tamarack Flat campground is a continuation of this old road.by basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Quotechick-on eye taught ewe just putz ur snow shooz on to dodge the creekz: But what about the toofs?by basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
For Easter weekend, due to JKW's recent foot injury, we opted for car camping and day hikes instead of a backpacking trip. This would reduce the amount of gear she would have to carry on any hike she might do--and, we could ask her to help us with a few shuttle trips. When we arrived at the campground, most of the sites had already been claimed. We were fortunate to locate a decent site andby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
JKW saw this first, but... Could this (the rock with the obvious rectangular outline) be the former location of the General Grant NP Mather Memorial Plaque (which seems to be in storage currently)? If so, why was it removed--to avoid people walking up to it and trampling the sequoia roots, or to protect it from snow and water damage?by basilbop - General Discussion
The conditions were not perfect, but since we were in the neighborhood...by basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
From this link: https://matadornetwork.com/read/16-must-see-national-parks-year/: QuoteYosemite National Park, California | Tuolumne Trek The 28-mile Tuolumne Trek offers nonstop iconic Yosemite views of Half Dome, Bridalveil, El Capitan and more. It showcases why Yosemite has earned a reputation as the Disneyland of National Parks, but unlike the lower valley view, it provides a glimpse ofby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Forecasts that are more than 7-10 days out are generally not too reliable--especially since we haven't shifted into the summer/dry pattern yet. There will be a lot of snow up high, but Yosemite Valley itself should be free of significant snow up to about the valley rim, depending on sun exposure. The temperature could be anywhere from chilly to quite warm: a month ago we had three trips that weby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Quotechick-on We (JKW, basilbop, OD, and I) hiked this road last year (it's TQ) It had a lot of deadfall. Not terrible. Not great. It's a nice stroll. I don't know if basilbop posted a TR. He might not have on account he got snipped on a boundary marker... From Crane Flat is it Crane Creek Road. At least that is my understanding. Though Crane Creek Road goes all the way to El Portaby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Saturday morning was a bit chilly in Three Rivers, but the weekend forecast was for spring-like conditions. As we drove towards the trailhead, we still hadn't quite decided what the trailhead would be: Wolverton or Hospital Rock. We needed to stop at Hospital Rock to leave one of the cars, and we decided that it was time to start walking. Since the road to Buckeye Flat and the Middle Fork trby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
QuoteERICG I don't think Half Dome is as close as it looks. Or in that direction. (The bridge curves to the north, so HD is behind the photographer...).by basilbop - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
The Clark Range is fairly far from almost any trailhead, so while it's technically possible to do an overnighter and touch it, I'd really want to spend more time there (and have in the past, and will gladly do in the future). Some ideas: - A strong hiker could do an in-and-out to the Clark Canyon/Obelisk Lake area from either Happy Isles or Glacier Point/Mono Meadows. Very strong hikers haby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
QuoteAnotherDave I've never met Chick-on, but if I ever do, there's only one thing I want to know.... Why DID you cross the road? Because it is TQX (TrailQuest Extreme)...?by basilbop - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Please join JKW and me in wishing the Great Pink One a very happy birthday! This forum would not be what it is without his wealth of knowledge about all things Yosemite... and SEKI! So many boundary markers, so little time... Double Boop! Found it! Yes, it's TrailQuest! Hey everyone, there are bighorn sheep near here! Boatable! And finally... The One Betweeby basilbop - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
For the first time in surprisingly quite awhile, I joined the Advance Party near Yosemite--instead of SEKI--late Friday evening. It was raining lightly during my drive up, but the forecast called for a break in the storms through at least early Sunday. The weather was actually quite clear Saturday morning--a far cry from the doom-and-gloom forecast of cloud cover and lingering showers.by basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Unlike the previous weekend, which ended with a cold, wet storm, this weekend was forecast to be warm and dry. Despite starting with several feet of snow, the temperature was very summer-like from the start--at least, once we were able to start the hike proper. There was a short section of trail in Redwood Canyon that the Pink One had not yet completed, so we headed cross-country to our cby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Early in the week the forecast had been for a clear weekend, with a weak system approaching late Sunday. As the weekend neared, the weather system trended wetter, colder, and earlier, so it was with open eyes and much rain gear that we headed into the mountains to knock off more low-elevation SEKI TrailQuest work... and look for a few very large trees. Saturday was in fact warm and somewhatby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Quotechick-on Eye purty much threw in the towel. "I'm going to Kings Canyon" This means I'm going to be driving down to the Kings River at 8000 ft. below Spanish Mountain. See you there. O wait, no, I'm I'm ... Sew Confoozed! It's all Kings Canyon: "A few miles outside the parks, Kings Canyon deepens and steepens becoming arguably the deepest canyon in North Amerby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Somebody took the sign at Turkey Blop View as well: This one: There was enough stuff below the trail where the sign was that it's possible it was taken out by nature, but...by basilbop - Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada. News & Discussion
Despite some fog/smog down south in the Fresno area, by the time we were near the "Mountain View" exit in Turlock... 30x zoom, 65mph, windows up, JKW with a steady hand on the rudder See if you can spot: Kuna/Koip Peaks/Crests Clouds Rest Fletcher and Vogelsang Peaks Parsons Peak Simmons Peak Mt. Florence Sentinel Rock The Glacier Point "water works" area Rby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra
Quotettilley Well...he gave the direction from "Kings Canyon", which is ambiguous - is that the geographic feature, in which case "west-southwest" is probably correct, or the park, in which case...it's inside the park! Or were the directions referring to Hume Lake, in which case the lake is northeast of the Panoramic Point part of the park, and largely west of the geographic fby basilbop - Backpacking and Hiking Yosemite and the Sierra