Fun In The Yosemite Sun

Trip Report - Yosemite With Eric's Parents
Toulumne Meadows, Hetch Hetchy, Yosemite National Park, CA
July 16-19, 2009

It was a warm weekend in the park, but once again we found ourselves having a blast. I was able to see some things in Yosemite I've never seen before, and visited some good ole' fashion tourist attractions. Eric, his parents, and I hopped in a rented SUV and headed towards the park.We stayed at a hotel just outside Yosemite named the Evergreen Lodge. Eric's parents booked a family suite, and it was very nicely decorated. There was no TV in our hotel suite, but who needs it when you have ping pong, hammocks, pool, foosball, board games, and a full bar? Not me!

The view from Crane Flat fire lookout

The first afternoon we visited our favorite fire lookout just before Crane Flat. It was fun to show the Clark Range to Eric's parents. The fire lookout is the best place to learn the layout of the park. After we checked out the views, we headed down to the Giant Sequoia trees just a mile from the road near Crane Flat. We walked down the one mile path and found some pretty cool trees with an amazing history. Bigger, taller, and heavier than any living thing on earth ever.... pretty impressive. I made sure to give one a big hug.

Eric walking by a huge Giant Sequoia

Later that afternoon we drove out to Hetch Hetchy. The scenery was beautiful! I can't believe I've never been there before. The drive in felt long due to the anticipation of driving into a beautiful hidden valley tucked in the shadows of its popular neighbor. The valley there is gorgeous. Its just as impressive as Yosemite Valley proper, just a lot smaller. I would love to spend more time there, but this time we were in a hurry because we had dinner reservations at the hotel restaurant that night. It was yummy.

Hetch Hetchy Dam

The next day we headed to Tuolumne for some climbing. Eric and I tried to climb at pothole dome, but we failed to find the bolts for the top rope climbs. It was kinda annoying knowing we were just missing the bolts right in front of our faces. It was getting pretty warm so we had lunch and then hung out at Tenaya Lake. While we were there a Search and Rescue volunteer approached our picnic table to tell us that lightning storms were coming. She was doing a preventive program warning people of the dangers of being in Tuolumne during the summer months. That's a really smart way to get people in tune with weather in the wilderness, and in tune with safety.

Eric checking out the view with his Dad

The last day there we headed into the valley during the morning so we would beat the heat of the afternoon. We parked at Camp Curry and did the tourist thing- hop on a valley bus and see the sights! We visited the dried up Mirror Lake, Yosemite Falls, El Captain, Bridal Veil and Camp Curry. Everyone had a great time and we all came back with some amazing memories. I can't wait until the Fall when we get to do it again! Eric and I are very Lucky to live so close to a place many people will only visit once in their lifetime.

Janelle and Phil- Eric's awesome parents

Photo Gallery:

Yosemite July 2009

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

Holiday Recap Pt. II

Trip Report - Winter Fun in the Southern Sierra
Lake Isabella / Kern River Valley / Greenhorn Mts, Wofford Heights, CA
January 1 - 5, 2008

After a couple days at work between Christmas and New Year's, Amber and I headed south to meet some Santa Barbara friends for a sort of ski trip with other stuff mixed in. We stayed at a rental lake house near Lake Isabella, in the Kern River Valley. A short drive away is the small ski resort Alta Sierra (formerly Shirley Meadows). We spent the next few days playing up in the Greenhorn Mountains and also in the Kern River Valley.

View to the east across Lake Isabella

Friday most of us seized upon Alta Sierra's 'Friday Special' which was a comprehensive learn-to-ski or learn-to-snowboard package for only $60. The trip was a bit of a belated birthday celebration for Traves, who was dying to try snowboarding. Keely and Traves signed up for snowboard lessons, while Mike, Amber, and I took a downhill skiing class. The place is tiny, and only has two short lifts, but as newbies of one sort or another it didn't matter much and the price meant we really got our money's worth.

Amber and I did cross-country several times last season, and I had skied a few times as a teenage, but it was good to get fresh bearings on the downhill skis. Amber soon got comfortable on the easy-turning downhill skis and went to work learning to make big esses all the way down the slope. Mike, having never been on skis at all, struggled a little more. I marveled both last year with Amber, and this year with Mike, at how difficult it is to communicate the motions of skiing. Something that seems so natural once you get it, is in reality, awkward, counter-intuitive, and difficult to communicate. But although he tumbled several times, Mike was getting it as the day went along, and was really a trooper. He would get a lot out of this YouTube Learn to Ski playlist we found before the trip.

Snowboarding seems terrifying to me, and Amber has had a bad experience with it before, but Keely and Traves took to it pretty well! By the end of the day, Keely was boarding good distances in a very controlled manner before stopping. Traves had a different approach, he would go as fast as possible and then bail. What seemed terrifying to me was very enjoyable to him, as he would howl with delight after each crash. All in all, everyone had a good time on the mountain that day.

Driving into Kernville

The next day we took it a little easier, flopping around much of the morning, then several of the guys went hiking in the afternoon. We searched for some hot springs, which turned out to be a bit of a bust, and searched for snowshoe rentals, which turned out to be a bit of a bust... The redeeming factor that day was braving the black ice for a delicious dinner at the Kern River Brewing Company, which came highly recommended. Also we were able to recon some of the climbing areas in case we should return some day. Oh, and the champagne, don't forget the champagne.

Surface Hoar

Rime on trees (notice how it coats the windward side)

Though we couldn't find snowshoes for a hike, we did go and have a good time in the snow on Sunday. Amber and I loaded up all the snow junk we could muster and everyone else suited up as well as possible. We hiked around to find a good hill for which Keely had the foresight to get some sleds. When we arrived that morning there was good-sized hoar frost crystals on top of the snow, and the trees were covered in what looked like rime. I dug a test pit and Amber, Keely and I did our best to work through a snow assessment.

Finding the right place to play

Keely enjoying a sled ride

Then the real fun began... We divided into two teams, and spent hours building two huge snow-forts. We stockpiled snowballs then had a breif snowball fight that completely exhausted us. In the afternoon, the sun disappeared and it got pretty chilly, but everyone was doing well. Some snowboarders were screwing around nearby as well. Finally we truged back up to the car, and headed back down to the cabin to unwind.

Traves and Brett build their fort


Our snow fort has deadly spikes!

All-in-all I really enjoyed the trip. The propane tank went out one night and left us without heat for a little while, but he lady who ran the place came and fixed it first thing the next morning. The house had a nice view, and was a good deal since the area sees more visitors in summer, due to the lake. There is also a lot of rock climbing in the area, which we scoped out a bit. Since the valley stays snow-free, it would be fun to return in winter and do some climbing, as the weather was really good for it. Another reason I love California: each season brings so many different options!

Photo Gallery:

Lake Isabella / Shirley Meadows

Indian Cove Turkey Days

Trip Report - Joshua Tree National Park
Indian Cove area
November 27 - 30, 2008

The park is named for an abundance of these goofy-looking trees

Climbers' Holiday

Earlier this year, Amber and I decided that since it wasn't a good time to go to Texas this year for the Holidays, we'd spend one holiday with her family, and for the other, do something for ourselves. As it turned out, we'd be doing our own thing over the break for Thanksgiving, and in October, got invited along to Joshua Tree with the D.O.A. and some of their friends.

Kenenth, also invited, rode down with us and we met up with everyone in the Indian Cove area of Joshua Tree National Park. Indian Cove is a sheltered nook in the rocks just south of Twenty-nine Palms, outside of the 'main' park road. It's a good spot because the campsites are reservable, and Indian Cove is lower elevation and more sheltered from the wind and cold. There is a lot more climbing in the 'main park' but Indian Cove still has boulders and walls as far as the eye can see; more than enough to keep you busy.

Landscape typical of Indian Cove

We thought at first the place might be pretty empty, but, as it turns out, Thanksgiving is a popular climbers' holiday in Joshua Tree. There was a large proportion of climbers camped all throughout the campground, and the group areas were full of climbing clubs of varying degrees of formality. Luckily it had just rained the day before, so some people still bailed on their plans. It was close to full but not packed, and it was never too hard to get on a climb.

After arriving post-sunset on Thanksgiving Day, we feasted on stove-top stuffing, gravy, and foil-packet chicken. The we headed over to the Rock-Rendevous (a Bay Area club) group site, to share and feast on delicious pies. Throughout the weekend we had an excess of pie. Never before has there been so much pie consumed on a camping trip. If you like pie, I suggest going camping at Thanksgiving. Everyone will bring pie.

Our campsite, nestled amongst the rock

Lazy Lead

Feeling a little blown out from the drive, and not wishing to repeat the depletion of the last few trips, Amber and I decided to take it a little easier, since we were "on vacation". We went for a scrambling hike partway up rattlesnake canyon, which really helped loosen me up. Later we were ready to start climbing, but everyone had taken off so we had to find something the two of us could handle on our own.

Joshua Tree is primarily a trad climbing area, so we looked for something easy enough for me to lead. The rock there is awesome, similar Quartz Monzonite as you find in the Alabama Hills. Its a rock with great friction, but rough on clothing and skin as it has huge, sharp quartz crystals. The main difference to the Alabama hills, besides some differences in weathering, is the lack of bolts at Joshua Tree. There are few bolted climbs, and even fewer with top anchor/rappell bolts. It's important to scope out the descent before you head up and always take enough gear to build an anchor.

So we found this 5.3 "Double Crack" on the short wall that seemed easy enough, but turned out to be awfully awkward. It tested my skills as a leader, and even though I've worked leads on harder routes, was the hardest lead I've done to date. The main issue was awkward stances, and me spending a lot of time trying to get solid placements in the irregular rock. Amber also had some difficulty while cleaning. She slipped onto the rope a bit at one point, but that's no big deal when you're roped from above. Just as we finished, our friends showed up from their climb, and Amber and I really enjoyed the notion we had done that short climb "all by ourselves".

Kenneth leading the 'Double Crack' the next day

Leading ate a lot of my mental and physical energy up, and I was a bit shaken by how difficult that climb had seemed for a 5.3. As we later learned, no one takes the numbers too seriously for the low-grade climbs at Joshua Tree; turns out they're extremely inconsistent (for a variety of reasons). Obviously we eyed up the crack ourselves and we're comfortable with it but some of the harder rated climbs on the same wall may have been easier. Enough frustration (and joy) for the day, it was time to head back to camp and recharge with a belly full of chili and wine.

Rocky Relaxation

After a great nights sleep on our new 'car camping' pads, we were ready to go at it again. We tried to find some friends of Kenneth's in the main park. They didn't show, but we found the war zone aftermath of the CHAOS (Berkeley club) campsite. The wind had thrown their chairs in the fire and the stragglers that morning looked a bit shell-shocked. We took some pictures of the park, grabbed a snack and firewood at the gas station, and headed back to Indian Cove were the weather was much, much nicer (i.e. not windy and cold).

Stunning view of San Gorgonio from inside the main park

We did a couple more climbs on the short wall with Kenneth (he didn't lead much the day before so he wanted time to play with his gear). One was a fist crack that turned out to be super fun, and not nearly as awkward as the day before. It was a good mixture of climbing and relaxation for the weekend and I was glad I didn't beat myself up too much.

Belaying attentively, with the not so bad 'crowds' in the background


Amber giving it to a fist crack... Look at that awesome fist jam!

Since we'd had a late lunch, we screwed around a long time at camp that evening. Kenneth, Amber and I made up a gear placement practice drinking game. Well it wasn't much of a drinking game, but it was still fun. Our campsite was surrounded by features and boulders, flakes and cracks, and we were able to find placements for almost everything we pulled off the racks. It was fun and we all learned a little bit by having each other test the placements.

Kenneth cleaning up after all the fun

That night around the campfire, all the climbers traded the days stories, and shared thoughts and tips about climbing (and a lot of beer and wine). It was a great trip, but we'd wished we could have stayed a little longer. Especially as that would have helped us avoid the horrendous holiday traffic on I-5 the next day. Despite the fact it took almost 11 hours (3 hours extra) to get home, we stayed cheerful and upbeat as we rode out of a near-perfect holiday weekend.

Photo Gallery:

Indian Cove (Joshua Tree)

Alabama Hills Shootout

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Trip Report - Alabama Hills ShootoutLone Pine, California
October 24-26, 2008

Eric climbing a 5.6

Kenneth met us early in the morning so we could get going. The drive was beautiful and we made some nice stops along the way. We stopped in Bishop to eat some amazing Carl's Jr., and to pick up a gift for Nareg's birthday at Schat's Bakery. After a long but picturesque drive we ended up in Lone Pine, the home of the Alabama Hills.

Our first route of the morning

The Alabama hills are a historical site where many films and TV shows have been filmed. It looks like a scene from space with red volcanic rocks sprouting from every direction and Mt. Whitney towering in the background. The Lone Ranger and Star Trek VII were both filmed there, and many people have enjoyed some really fun climbing. We rolled in and found Sara and Micah who had already found us some great sites. While waiting for everyone else to show up, we cracked some beers and sat around the fire ring. Friday was Traves' birthday so we had a cake and some balloons ready for him.

A beautiful view of the Alabama Hills

On Saturday morning we enjoyed some spray on pancakes and headed out to go climb. We found some great routes just off of Movie Flat road. The group started with a 5.6 climb called "Jackie's Rack", and Kenneth led it. This was a really fun crack climb with lots of great holds and places to jam. Sara, Candida, and Eric mock led this climb before moving on to some harder routes. Even Keeley got in on the action and climbed half way up the 5.6 on her first time ever rock climbing!

Kenneth leading a 5.6 crack

The next climb we tried to conquer was a 5.7 called the "Birthday Butt Crack". The crux was at the beginning of this climb and that made it super tricky. I fell off of it, but Candida was able to lead it and everyone else had a great time figuring out the hand cracks all the way to the top. Later in the afternoon, some of the gang headed over to another climb around the corner, and I led my first climb! It was a treacherous 5.3 sport climb that had a lot of smearing involved. It was fun, but still nerve racking to be leading anything for the first time.

Keely climbing "Jackie's Rack" and Kenneth climbing "Birthday Butt Crack"

That evening we headed back to camp and met up with Sean and Elisa. Eric, Kenneth, and I made yummy burgers, and then we all sat around the camp fire for the usual desert of s'mores and scotch. So good.

The night sky over our campsite

The next day after enjoying the rest of our spray-on pancakes, we gathered up the crew and headed to a climbing area just around the bend from where we climbed the previous day. We found a 5.7 and a 5.8 climb right next to each other, so Kenneth and Candida led them and set up a top rope. Eric and I found a 5.6 climb across from the others, so Eric decided to lead it. He got a little spooked towards the top, because the holds got slim and the rock was flaky. Sean finished leading it for him and we all climbed away. I had a great time on the 5.6, it was a lot of smearing with small painful holds, but I think it prepared me for some harder climbing.

Sean belaying Eric

The day came to an end for Eric, Kenneth, and myself because we had to travel almost 7 hours to get home. The rest of the people we were camping with ended meeting up with the others we left behind, and got in on some of the climbing action. There were some more first time climbers who joined in on the fun, and Sara lead a 5.7! I'm so sorry we missed that.

Candida on the left (5.7) and Kenneth on the right (5.8)

This trip was so fun, and I loved being in such a picturesque area. It was like being in an old western, or on another planet. The colors of the desert always blow my mind, and the rock there also gave us a little taste for what to expect in Joshua Tree. See everyone at Thanksgiving!

Having fun with shadows

Related Story:

• Alabama Hills Mini-Movie (coming soon)

Photo Gallery:

Alabama Hills