The Art Of Constant Walking

Trip Report - Backpacking in the Hover Wilderness
September, 2009


Recently Eric, Kenneth and I adventured into the wilderness to seek solitude, and to break our long distance walking records. We also recently moved into another apartment, which Eric and I have come to realize, is a lot like backpacking. We moved from one apartment in our complex into another - It was one of the easiest moves we have ever done because there was no truck, no boxes, and it reminded us a lot of backpacking because you put your stuff on your back.. Walk. Take all the stuff out of your pack. Pack it back in. Walk. Repeat. It took us just as long to move into a new apartment, as it did to backpack 22 miles. Two Days.

Getting ready to go

On this most recent trip, we attempted to backpack to Tower Peak. We drove up to the area the night before and slept in the car (with a bivy for Kenneth.) As it turns out, most of the people we saw on the trail the first day did the same thing. A group had already beaten us to the trail-head backpacker's parking lot, and were setting up camp for the night on the hard asphalt. The next day, everyone was excited and we hit the trail bright eyed and bushy tailed. That was a long day. It seems like we hiked forever, and we weren't entirely sure if we were making good time or not. Our original goal was either the upper meadows, or Tower Lake. We didn't make it as far as Tower Lake.

Pretty Lake

After hiking 11 miles on the first day, we were pooped...to say the leased. All three of us decided it would be a good idea to sleep on top of a raised area in the medow. We found proof that people had camped here before from an old fire ring. We made dinner, cleaned up, and went to bed. After midnight we were awaken by the sound of large animals in our camp. I heard what sounded like a deer hoof, and I figured it was no big deal. Then I heard more... like five more. It sounded like these animals were throwing a party. Rocks were being tossed, trees were being bucked, and the curiosity of a few large sounding deer had taken over our camp. Eventually, Kenneth ripped open his tent and scared away the culprits.


In the morning we awoke to the aftermath of the deer. A chewed up REI walking stick, knocked over gear, and a cozy I had spilled food on chewed up and left 10-15 feet away from where I had left it. We had been ambushed by a gang of curious deer, taking advantage of a beautiful full moon lit night.

Chewed on Kenneth

The next day we were sore, and still pretty tired. We decided to take advantage of the three day weekend by hiking out the second day so we could spend Monday resting. It was a good choice. Even though Eric and I had been doing cardio at the gym to prepare for this trek, we hadn't actually been hiking in a while. This was a great reminder to our bodies that we should probably hike more.

Eric and Kenneth resting

It was a long second day, but we made it back alive, in one piece, without injury and that's what matters. We had a lot of fun backpacking in the sierra for the first time, enjoing all the wonders that create it's allure (including the boisterious wildlife!) I guess in a way backpacking got us ready for moving, it worked the right muscles and prepaired us for the hard work of walking back and forth carring stuff. Even though we didn't get all the way to Tower Peak, it was worth it. Every damn mile.

Kenneth in all his glory

Summer already?!

Trip Report - Hiking Mt. Hoffmann
Toulumne Meadows, Yosemite National Park, CA
June 27, 2009

Well, the solstice has passed, and Summer is now in full swing. Amber and I decided it was time to get away for the weekend, and get up into the mountains (not that there isn't plenty of this planned for the upcoming weeks).

Mt. Conness from above May Lake, this is the kind of thing that gets us going!

Over the first half of this year, we've been slowly adapting our newer adventuremobile, the PT Cruiser, to meet our needs. One thing we've toyed with is a solution for sleeping in the back. Needless to say, we've tinkered and tested and now got it down. You can expect a more detailed post on this in the future.

Friday night, Amber and I threw a ton of gear, and some meager rations into the car and yanked the back seats out. Did I mention a ton of gear? Seemed so, since we had no idea what we would do up there, but without the seats or passengers it was quite manageable.

Our luxurious accommodations (I'm not doing a good job of pretending to sleep)

So we drove late into the night, up and over the pass, and found a secluded place to pull off and crash in the car. The next morning we awoke to grand mountains along the Tioga road, still peppered with snowfields. We were meeting Dirk and his climbing partner at the Toulumne campground office bright and early, so I cooked up some oatmeal while Amber reserved a campsite, and just short of coin flips, decided to try a hike.

We'd been in Toulumne just a few weeks before, but nothing was open yet and this time it bustled with activity! We stashed our food safely at the May Lakes trailhead and headed up towards Mt. Hoffmann. Hoffmann is considered pretty easy for a Sierra peak, but it turned out to be just the adventure we bargained for.

May Lake, where the use trail leaves the official park trails


Amber checks out the Clark Range, at an early rest break

It's not a particularly long hike, nor is the gain excessive (~2000ft), but it had a little of everything. First we had to DEET-up to drive away the voracious mosquito squadrons (they do not travel alone). We wound around the south side of the lake and found the first of many small snowfields to cross. Thankfully the snow was soft, and easy to cross (with steps in many places).

Amber hiking up one of the more significant snowfields

On one of the snowfields we met a hiker, now named "Polly Prissy-Pants", who had turned back due to "horrifying clouds of mosquito" in the talus above. Though we did meet with some tiring switchbacks, the mosquitoes never worsened, so perhaps he had no DEET or just should have waited for things to warm up a bit.

At times we've had trouble hiking above 9000ft, but sleeping up near the pass the night before really helped. We were able to hike pretty consistently without really "feeling" the elevation. Though there were a good amount of switchbacks and snowfields, there were also nice flats where you could get a bit of a break. One reason to recommend this hike is that, not too far in, you get GREAT VIEWS of parts of Toulumne and Yosemite Valley, and as you wind your way up, they just get better. Eventually revealing every major range in the park! (and some might be surprised that Half Dome looks a bit puny from above)

The false summits of Hoffmann

We though we were heading for the large formations overhead, but this was not the true summit. At one point you round a switchback onto the large summit plateau and the true summit (with antenna) becomes apparent. Though it was a bit further away, we made it to the base quite quickly. There should be a class-2 scramble to the top from there, but almost everyone ended up using their hands enough to make it class-3. With careful route-finding you could probably keep it class-2. Though we were alone almost the entire time we were on the trail, we shared the summit with several other parties.

The west side of the formidable Sawtooth Ridge, seen through a gap in the summit plateau

Hikers crossing the summit plateau, Lyell and friends in the background

For such a tame hike, Hoffman treats you to precipitous drops on the other sides of the summit. It sits at near the center of the park geographically, and also treats you to amazing views. You can see Half Dome and Clouds rest, the Cathedral Range, Mt. Dana on the Sierra Crest, the domes of Toulumne Meadows, the Lyell group, the Clark Range, the Sawtooth Ridge and Tower Peak. A view like that inspires you to keep working to try more peaks.

Amber and I savor our success on the summit!

While our marmot friend scurries away from the excitement...

Tower Peak I have seen on several occasions, and it is striking in being a bit of a loaner. We hope to hike it this fall, on a backpacking trip. Another that is particularly striking is Mt. Clark. Remote and more difficult, it is extremely striking, and near the top of my list. Yosemite is just a small portion of the Sierra. There is more variety and adventure waiting for the hiker or climber than could be fully appreciated in a lifetime. Just another reason I like to play like it's my big back yard.

Tower peak from Mt. Hoffmann's summit


Savoring a day well spent, above Mono Lake

But enough pontificating, hungry and starting to lose steam on the summit, we celebrated briefly then promptly headed back down. It was a long return, and I'd guess the whole trip was around 7 miles. The last mile was especially long. Though it wasn't a super tough hike, we have been doing lots of other activities so weren't particularly warmed up for it. In the end it was just the right length, not leaving us particularly sore. We drove down to Mono Lake to have a few beers before meeting people at Whoa Nellie Deli for dinner. Sunday we'd do a few rock climbs, bask in the beautiful Toulumne weather, and head home.

Photo Gallery:

Mt. Hoffmann / T.M.

Granite Ditch Season Opener

Trip Report – Yosemite Valley
April 3rd – 5th
Guest Blogger: Scotty Ellis

Yosemite Falls in good form!

Hi! My name is Scotty and I am a recent addition to D & D’s group of adventurous friends. I am writing this trip report to add some new blood to the D & D blog postings. Our recent trip to Yosemite was my first trip with the D & D crew. The plan was to leave and arrived early Friday, the 3rd, to do some XC skiing. Then after skiing, to head back and set up camp and prepare for a weekend filled with awesome Yosemite granite climbing.

Eric xc-skiing near Crane Flat

Well… because I am as bad at skiing as this Australian is at differentiating between kangaroos and ninjas, I decided to pass on the XC trip (I was later told by Eric, Amber, and Kenneth that it was awesome and that they are going to miss the snow once the season is over). Thus, I am going to start this report at the point when we (my girlfriend, Katie, and I) began: Friday night.

The trip began Friday night with the perfect introduction, food from Sonic “America’s Drive-In”. After we clogged our arteries with jalapeno poppers and cheesy tots, we were ready to start our weekend full of climbing. We finally arrived at the Lower Pines campsite around 11:00 PM where the whole crew was trying to stay warm from the night’s chill. Our group had campsites 10 and 40 reserved (they are nearly back to back sites) so we had the perfect setup for the weekend.

The approach to the Valley can include several cool tunnels!

When we arrived, we were told by everyone that the bears were being really active and to watch out. Sure enough, a bear approached our campsite that night and almost stomped our tent (probably smelled the deliciousness of Sonic on our breath). Thank God that Dirk was around to scare off the bear.

The next day, we all woke up around 9 am and had a nice Noah’s Bagels breakfast. All carbo loaded up, our group (Eric, Amber, Shenoa, Dan, CJ, Jackie, Katie, and myself) left to top rope and boulder at Swan Slab while Kenneth went to the base of El Cap to do some aid climbing. The short trip to Swan Slab was beautiful. Due to the snow thaw, the waterfalls were gushing which created a picturesque scene.

Picturesque indeed! (Katie and Scotty)


Our little friend!

Our group was very productive once we started climbing: Shenoa led a nice 5.6 climb, Dan led a tall 5.8 route, and there was some awesome bouldering done. We got back to the campsite around 6 PM and Eric prepared his famous Texas-Style Chili for dinner (which was delish!).

Shenoa leading near Swan Slab


Katie, Scotty, and Eric bouldering near Camp 4

Eric also provided some entertainment.. He had “I’m On A Boat” stuck in his head and was rapping while he worked. By the end of the night he had us all rapping, “I’m on a boat and it’s going fast and I’ve got a nautical themed, Pashmina Afghan.” I am pretty sure that we all had dreams of being in our swim trunks with our flippy-floppies that night. Since we knew several other groups of climbers around that weekend, there was a massive campfire Saturday (and no-one got busted!).

CJ climbing near Swan Slab, Sunday

On Sunday, we all awoke to some cheesy grits and juice. After eating, packing up our tents, and loading gear, we were ready to get back on the granite. Shenoa, Dan, CJ, and Jackie decided to head back to Swan Slab while Katie, Eric, Amber, and I decided to go boulder in Curry Village. We chose to go to Curry Village because it was close to the Lower Pines campsite and we also wanted to check out the destruction from the last year's rock fall. The rock fall had some devastation but it also brought some joy to our world: the possibility of new untouched boulders to climb!

Kenneth approaches a belay station with partners looking on

We climbed for a couple of hours before we all headed home. What a fun filled weekend it was!

-Scotty Ellis

Photo Galleries:

Yosemite April 2009

• shenoaHAHAHA@flickr: Yosemite 2009

SHASTA!

Trip Report - Snow camping at Shasta and Transceiver clinic
Mount Shasta
February 13 - 15, 2009

We finally did it. We went snow-camping. It turns out snow camping is a lot colder than you think, but Shasta was beautiful. We took the long drive up to Shasta and stayed in a very nice hotel on the first night, called the Cold Creek Inn. Eric, Kenneth and I decided to take a transceiver workshop up at the mountain. I didn't realize how close we were going to be the mountain but Shasta stood proud above us the entire time we were there.

Shasta in all it's glory!

The Cold Creek Inn was quaint. We stayed in a suite that had two rooms and everyone was comfortable. We got there really late at night, so the hotel having late check-in was very helpful. The hotel provided an interesting breakfast of oatmeal, Nutri-grain bars, fruit cups, boxed juice, and tea. I'm pretty sure we still have a V8 in the fridge from the hotel as well. After our morning "meal" we headed to a mountain gear shop named The Fifth Season, and met our workshop leader, conveniently also named Eric. After meeting at the store, the group there for the workshop drove caravan style up to Bunny Flat.

Walking on Bunny Flat

Bunny Flat sits at the foot of Shasta. Shasta appears intimidating at first, but it's beautiful features are the real dominating factor. The workshop was a lot of fun. We had to use our transceivers to find other buried transceivers in the snow. They were buried a few hundred feet apart, but not to deep. It seemed like a really easy task, but I can only imagine how nerve racking using a transceiver could be if there was an actual life attached to the other end of one. It's an important thing to learn if one wants to travel in back country snow.

Kenneth searching for a transceiver.

After the workshop was over, we enjoyed some tuna sandwiches and Bugles by the car. Over lunch we decided it would be a good idea to get camp set up before the sun started to go down. We piled all of our gear into backpacks and onto the sled, and went to go find a spot to camp. At first, Kenneth was going to snowshoe, and Eric and I were going to ski. Eric had some trouble going up hill on his Telemark skis, so we ended up going back and getting our snowshoes also.

Our wonderful sled.

We found a spot not too far from the car, and started to set up camp. Snow camping is hard. Usually it takes us about 5 minutes to set up a tent, but I'm pretty sure this tent took almost two hours to set up. First you have to pat down the snow with your feet. You have to wear snowshoes though, or you will sink into the snow. Then you have to figure out the snow stakes.

The stakes we had weren't working so great at first, so we had to reassess the situation, and start over from scratch. After figuring out the stakes, we had to prop up our A-frame tent with a pole. That took forever because the pole kept sinking down into the snow. OK, so we have a tent up, now we need to build a trench in the snow floor of our tent. We went to a snow camping talk at REI, and Zoo (the guy giving the lecture) told us that you build a trench so that the cold air drops into it, while you sleep above it. I don't know if that worked or not, I couldn't tell the difference, but I know it took a long time to shovel out the snow.

Time to build a kitchen.

Great, we finally got camp set up just as the sun started to go down. We were looking forward to a beautiful moonlit night, and hoping to eat something soon. Next, we had to dig out a kitchen. Snow camping requires a lot more digging than regular camping does. It just kept getting colder while we were setting up the kitchen, and Eric and I were starting to feel the absence of our puffy jackets. Some how I managed to forget them, but we had enough layers to survive. I will never make that mistake again, though.

The sunset was marvelous.

Making dinner was interesting. You can never leave your mitts off for too long on a cold night near Shasta, so we had to do things quickly. It was uncomfortable, to say the least. It took forever to boil snow for water and most of the time we just sat there, cold, staring at each other, wishing for hot food. The good thing was that our food only took about five minutes to make once we had boiling water. We feasted on a ramen spaghetti recipe invented the night before, and hot chocolate.

After dinner, everyone pretty much just wanted to get into their warm sleeping bags and sleep. Eric managed to take some beautiful night shots of our surroundings, but that was about it for the night's activities. There was no campfire, no singing to a guitar, no drunken conversations, no s'mores. It was cold and boring. I think Kenneth might have had a sip of bourbon but that's about it. The night was beautiful though, it was a full moon and the snow glistened. It looked like a million diamonds were spread all around us in a meadow of white. The night was still too cold to enjoy for long. The temperature dropped to about 18 degrees Fahrenheit, and we were feeling it.

Eric's night shot.

It was a long night. A cold long night. I actually fell asleep, which still amazes me now. I slept with my head in my sleeping bag all night and with my booties on. When morning finally came, I was so relived. It was crazy to see all of the people coming down from the mountain that spent the night up there. We thought we were crazy for snow camping, but some people climbed half way up the mountain just to camp! Everyone that stopped by our camp said it was very windy. I'm glad wind didn't play a factor in our experience.

Morning at Shasta was also beautiful, and cold. We took a second to enjoy the wildlife visiting our site, but then immediately tore down camp and proceeded to find the nearest, warmest, yummiest breakfast place in town. We found a restaurant in town called Lalo's, and their breakfast was the best part of snow camping. Boiling water again for two hours to make oatmeal wasn't going to cut it for this crew. We needed hot tea, coffee, omelets, and bacon. It was crucial to our sanity levels.

Our little snow camping friend.

Shasta is a very magical place, but I would only snow camp there again if I was planning on climbing it. Snow camping just for the hell of it doesn't make sense. It's cold, uneventful, and well, COLD! I can't wait until we go car camping again. I'm going to cook a hot meal on my propane stove, have a nice warm fire, and enjoy some drunken banter with a dripping s'more in my hand. Nothing compares to it really. I would definitely go back to Shasta, hopefully to ski next time, or to snowshoe around. Although we will probably find ourselves at a nice hotel (or motel) that night, were it is nice and cozy.

It sure was a beautiful morning.

Photo Gallery:

Shasta Snowcamp

Day 6-7 Bear Trails

We were not able to post the last couple of days, because we were in the high country of Yosemite, and they don't have any internet access. On Wednesday night, we had another encounter with a bear! We could hear our campsite neighbors start banging pots and pans together, and yelling from all sides of the campground, so we knew we had a bear checking around for food.

After we went into our tent for the night, we heard rangers explain to the tent next to us that there was a "very large bear" in the area. Then we heard him say, "there he is!" and we realized that the bear was running full speed towards our tent! We heard him gallop by, but by the time we unzipped our tent, he was gone. The ranger said that the bear was about 400 pounds. WOW!

On Thursday we attempted to climb Mt. Dana, but we missed the trail by a long shot, and ended up following bear trails through the wilderness for about two hours. After realizing that we were nowhere near the trail, we gave up and spent the rest of the day at Tanaya Lake, soaking in the atmosphere. That night we enjoyed a fun campfire program at our campground, and learned all about bears, and hiking in the high sierras.

We finally found a ranger who explained where the actual trail for Mt. Dana started, so on Friday we finally were able to climb Mt. Dana. It was 3000 ft up to the top, and as one lady explained at the top, it was a puffer. When you climb up to 13,000 feet, the air is very thin, and it almost feels like you are drunk or something when you reach around 12,000 feet.

Once at the top, we signed the register, ate lunch, and enjoyed the view. It was amazing! We were the first people up there that day, so we got to watch all the other hikers come up the mountain after us. We were most likely the only people that day that had the peak to ourselves for about half an hour. It took us a while to get downhill though, because it's so steep. Mt. Dana was beautiful, and we got to see about a dozen Marmots!

We decided to put a cap on our trip and end it on Friday, so that we could beat the weekend Yosemite traffic. We had a great trip, with lots of excitement and adventure, and we can't wait to do it again sometime!

Day Five - Camp 4

After having a few hairy moments of our own on the Trans-Sierra highways earlier in the week, we couldn't help but rescue a stranded motorist last night on the Tioga Road. We were coming back from the valley pretty late, having cleaned up, and done some laundry and shopping, when we came across a the owner of a stalled Jeep Cherokee spraying it's coolant all over the side of the road.

I think a lot of people don't fully realize how often there isn't any cell coverage for an emergency in the high-country. Luckily for Miles, a San Francisco resident, Amber and I came along to give him a lift to the nearest pay phone. He was on his way to meet some friends for a three-week backpacking trip on the John Muir trail. We did learn one important tip from him, which is to carry a phone card, something we'll surely be doing in the future. He got a hold of AAA and was able to get a tow to Lee Vining that night. We hope he still was able to meet his friends and has a great journey on the trail.

When we woke up this morning we discovered our camping bin had been toppled over and rifled through. Apparently there was a bear making good work of White Wolf campground last night. One of our neighbors had his cooler stolen as they were unpacking and we found paw prints around our car! Luckily we had properly stored our food and the bear neither woke us, or caused any damage to any of our gear. So remember: BEAR SAFETY PAYS OFF!

We spent most of the day today bouldering, a form of rock climbing done on short boulders with a pad underneath instead of a rope. It's a great practice because it allows you to work on technique without the usual constraints of moving gingerly to conserve energy on a long route. We picked up a pad last night, and bouldered this morning all around Curry Village. We worked on only the easiest problems, but they were still pretty tough for us.

We took a break from bouldering to walk across the valley floor, grab some lunch, talk to the rangers about hiking in the high country, and got to check out a great rock climbing exhibit at the Yosemite Museum. After our break the technique really started to set in. We did sever easy problems at Camp 4 and Swan Slabs, and were much more sucessfull. Amber said she had the most fun so far at Camp 4 and Swan Slabs. The climbs were challenging in that you really have to read the rock for the best place to put your hands and feet. Hopefully this will turn into gains in our roped route climbing too!

So now we're chilling out in this posh lounge, doing some recon. for hiking in the high country tomorrow, and writing this post. Time for us to head out of the valley, back up to White Wolf, and grub!

Man Vs. Wild

The planet we live on is amazing, and so are the animals we share it with. Humans have been exploring the planet for as long as they have been inhabiting it, and animals have always been right there along with them. As people become more adventurous and visit more remote places, they often feel driven to connect with nature. As a result, some humans are not just coexisting with animals, they are trying to connect with them, sometimes in dangerous ways.

What I am warning of is an epidemic of outdoors visitors feeding wild animals. People see cute little furry animals in the wild and want to get closer to them, so they offer them food. According to the California Department of Fish and Game, "when people feed wildlife, the wildlife becomes habituated to that source of food, and that can lead to animals that are unnaturally bold or develop aggressive behavior."

Crazed aggressive squirrel at Golden Gate Park

For years, American parks have been trying desperately to draw awareness to their "bear friendly" campaigns. Bears have been known to terrorize campsites and cars, because they can smell food. A bear can rip into your car just as fast as you can open a soda can, and their sense of smell is better than a dog's . National Parks, have been teaching people how to properly store their food by using bear bins, and removing all scented items from their cars and tents (including toiletries and things such as WD-40). If a person is not careful, they can find their car or campsite damaged in the morning. Due to it's popularity, Yosemite has garnered a reputation for especially ornery bears, largely because they've come to associate people with food.

This problem is not just with bears. When I was last in Yosemite Valley a few months ago, my boyfriend and I witnessed a coyote literally chasing cars on a main road where tourists gather to take pictures of the view. This animal knew, that if he waited long enough, someone would feed him. Typically, coyote's are fearful of humans, and many believe the loss of that fear through feeding can lead directly to aggression over time. Predator feeding also poses a problem that can lead to over population of other animals lower in the food chain. Deer and other animals when not being used as meals leads to overpopulation, can damage crops, trees, and grasslands.

I was in Golden Gate Park recently in San Francisco, and I was chased by a squirrel that expected me to have food. It was scary! This little animal actual chased me up a flight of stairs, and into another part of the park. There was another person there feeding the squirrels, so this little squirrel thought I would feed him too. Another reason feeding wild animals can be dangerous, is because most of the food humans eat is processed, cooked, or otherwise not digestible. This can make an animal very sick, and could eventually kill them.

YouTube: High - Low

Even in an urban setting, feeding birds and other animals is still not a good idea. While you may feel that the animals are "accustomed to people" or otherwise "not wild," a human food source can still be devastating. For one with many small animals, human sources of food can artificially inflate the population. When the park is less busy due to changing seasons, significant numbers of animals can be left to starve without a food source. Also many urban critters are a conduit for disease and often a threat to public health.

As you can see, feeding wild animals is never a good idea (unless you are a zoo keeper). As adventurous, exploring humans, let's try to keep the coexistence between Man and Wild peaceful. Please, KEEP WILDLIFE WILD!