Yearly Archive2007
Hiking &National Parks 22 Dec 2007 10:28 pm
Yosemite
Over the Christmas holiday weekend, we headed to Yosemite National Park. With Tioga Pass closed for the winter, it’s a long drive over Donner Pass (I-80) and then south in California. We left Reno at 9 a.m., made a few stops along the away, and checked in the the Yosemite Lodge around 4 p.m. We took a walk in the twilight along Yosemite Creek, in time for a gorgeous sunset lighting on Half Dome (above). The main activities were a hike partway up the Yosemite Falls Trail on Sunday and a snowshoe hike into the Mariposa Grove of Sequoia trees on Monday. Yosemite is a wonderful place.
Snowshoeing 16 Dec 2007 12:40 am
Tahoe Meadows Snowshoe
First snowshoe hike of the season, to Tahoe Meadows. There was finally a weekend since the very late arrival of snow that wasn’t horrible weather. It was a bit cold in the wind, but fine in the woods. See the pictures of some aggressive juncos.
Statistics:
2.57 mi (1.07 mi uphill, 0.94 mi downhill, 0.54 mi flat)
325 ft total ascent – 11.1 % uphill grade, 61.4 % downhill grade
1:50:14 total time (1:40:35 moving, 0:09:39 stopped)
0:39:09 pace (1.5 mph average speed, 5.2 mph max speed)
3.3 difficulty, 5.7 effort
Pacific Crest Trail 24 Nov 2007 11:59 pm
PCT California Section L2 North Loop
Another nice hike on a section of the Pacific Crest Trail, south from the Henness Pass Road at Jackson Meadows Reservoir to where we ended heading the other way previously. The very first section of the trail was a bit confusing because it intersected with campground roads and a recently logged area, but otherwise it was easy to follow. Great views of Sierra Buttes from various points along the trail. We returned via the Pass Creek Valley on forest roads.
Statistics:
9.28 mi (3.75 mi uphill, 4.36 mi downhill, 1.09 mi flat)
1132 ft total ascent – 10.2 % uphill grade, 24.0 % downhill grade
0:24:50 pace (2.4 mph average speed, 7.4 mph max speed)
8.616 difficulty, 16.723 effort
Hiking 18 Nov 2007 11:48 pm
Clear Creek Canyon
A pleasant hike along old Highway 50 in Clear Creek Canyon west of Carson City, Nevada, nearly up to Spooner Summit. The abandoned highway curves its way through the canyon, well below the new four-lane highway that was built in the 1970s[?]. It’s interesting how nature is reclaiming the road.
Sightseeing &Trips 01 Nov 2007 11:59 pm
Colorado Return
Returned from Colorado with few stops, but took this shot at the Bonneville Salt Flats along I-80 in Utah near the Nevada border (click to view panorama). And took a walk around Expedition Island Park in Green River, Wyoming, where the Powell Expedition started their journey in 1869 to explore the Colorado River (see photo album).