Tag: sierra

The Long Ride

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On August 7th of this year, three women decided to take a trip on their horses from Tuolomne Meadows in Yosemite to Donner Summit.  The trip was supposed to be 200 miles. However, after day 5, with equipment failures, terrain that is not horse friendly whatsoever, snow,  and the extensive time it takes to pack and unpack each day at camp, they fell behind and knew they would be ending the ride for this season sooner than they planned.

Did this discourage them?  Heck NO! They are going back next year armed with experience and lessons-learned to continue where they left off. I plan on hiking behind them filming each step of the way.

If you are debating weather to traverse this section of the pct on horseback, take a look at this film.

Just a Little Coo-Coo on the Loch Leven Trail!

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In this episode of Twylaworld, we head up to almost 7000 feet to  some nice and refreshing alpine lakes for swimming and toe dipping.  It’s 107 degrees in the Sacramento Valley, so it’s time to head up into the Sierra for some cooler temps. The snow is FINALLY starting to disappear!

A six mile round trip hike didn’t sound like a big deal when I looked at the map, but you are going to climb 1633 feed in the three miles in and there are lots of  boulder steps to traverse.  You will really work for this swim, but its TOTALLY worth it!  There are three large lakes that are very close together with a fourth smaller lake that is tucked between the second and third large lake. The second lake is the largest and most popular for backpackers.  The water is clear and oh so refreshing!

Take your lunch, swimmin’ britches, sunscreen, bug spray and water. There is a place to filter water along the way if you run out.  The views are spectacular and the lakes are crystal clear!

I would consider this hike on the harder side.

I want to go back and camp next time!

A MONSTER Creek Hike

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2017 is the year of record snow and raging waters in California. I’ve been hearing about hikers fording creeks and streams in the High Sierra and having near death experiences. Hiking in the mountains definitely has its challenges this summer!  Fordyce creek is in Northern California portion of the Sierra just North of I-80 off of Hwy 20. As you will see be this vid, this creek is a flowing monster!  Take a rainy walk with me as we hike from Lake Spaulding to  Fordyce Creek Falls.

Art on the Train Tracks

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As a kid, we would travel along I-80 through the Sierra and I was always fascinated by the miles of man-made tunnels that hung on the side of the mountain on the other side of Donner Lake.  Back in those days, the tunnels were still being used by trains getting over the Sierra.  Today, the tracks have been removed and the trains have been re-routed.

It amazes me how many people never noticed them, even after traversing that stretch of freeway a zillion times!   How can you NOT notice these engineering marvels?   If you want to know the history of these sheds is fascinating, even if you aren’t a trail buff.

October of last year, we had the opportunity to take a guided tour of the sheds with a knowledgeable train historian. That was very interesting.  However, what I DIDN’T expect to see in these tunnels was the unbelievable art!  It’s not your run-of-the-mill graffiti art. These are masterpieces in my book!  Its dark in these tunnels, so these artists burned up a lot of flashlight battery to get these babies done!

PS,  if you are traversing the PCT, you can take a short side tour of the tunnels. It’s right off of the trail. It’s worth it, and very cool temps in the summer months.

Take a walk with me into the tunnel of Art.

 

Here is the link to the history of the tunnels.

Tales from the John Muir Trail

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Ok, we aren’t actually ON the John Muir Trail, but my hiking buddy John Denning HAS done all 210 miles of that high Sierra trail and he has quite a story to tell about his 2015 adventure while we hike  the Hidden Falls Trail located in the foothills of N. California near Auburn.

After hiking the Steven’s trail the day before, I thought I’d just do an easy 10 miler on the Hidden Falls Trail which is just down the road from my ranch. This is a wonderful trail and has some moderate hills to keep you in shape! Wellll….. my knee was giving me some problems and I didn’t get to do my usual 10 miles and only did 6.5, but, hanging with John and his hiking stories made it all worth it!

Here is just a taste of his 21 day treck with great pics he took!  Oh someday, I hope to do just a smidgen of that trail.

Lets HIKE!

 

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Up and Up and UP Mt. Harkness

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The trail is “short”…4.5 miles. The trail goes UP and UP ; the grade takes you from 5300 feet  to about 8300 feet. By the time you are within eyesight of the lookout tower, your lungs are screaming…. DONE! Your legs are crying out…. STOP, GO BACK!  Your brain is saying.. keep going cuz the view at the top is going to be EPIC! And it WAS!  So Epic!

Where: Lassen National Park – Chester entrance