June 6, 2013 - Day Hikes

Title: June 6, 2013 - Day Hikes

Trail head: Fletcher Lake

Hike Info:

Trail: Vogelsang Lake

Destination: Vogelsang Lake

Distance: 1.90 miles

Travel Time: 3:49 (0.50 mph) includes lounging at lake

Moving Time: 1:05 (1.75 mph)

Elevation Rise: 520'

Maximum Elevation: 10,394'

 

Trail: Fletcher Creek and Emeric Creek Trails

Destination:Emeric Lake

Distance: 7.19 Miles

Travel Time: 4:09 (1.73 mph)

Moving Time: 3:16 (2.20 mph)

Elevation Rise:1,102'

Maximum Elevation: 10,210'


 




 Description:

Woke up with the morning turning rosy. Most mornings this is a sign for me to get up. But not this morning. All which I do is grab my iPad and stick it in the  sleeping bag with me and stick my glasses on face. Then snuggle in the bag, watching the morning glow turning bright  slowly, through a small unzipped  place in the bag. I keep out of a morning breeze, while enjoying the morning. Eventually, the sun came peeking out from behind the hills to the east of us, as I peek through the zipper at it. Eventually Betty gets up and fixes her coffee. But for once, I was content to stay in the bag. Even Sherri made it out of the tent before I got dressed.

Bowl where Vogelsang Lake lies

But before you think I am too much of a sluggard, I was up by 6:50. We had our breakfast and got cleaned up. I washed up completely-water was not too cold. We appreciate the views we have from this camp by Fletcher Lake. By 9:30 we are ready to go on a day hike.

Barefoot Creek Crossing

Our first obstacle is just outside of Vogelsang High Sierra Camp. The creek  is a lot higher than when I crossed it 12 years ago. We look around and only find a log crossing over some heavily flowing water. So it was decided to wade across. I go back and forth three times. But the water is pretty cold on the last couple crossings.  But  we make it across without mishap.

Half Dome, Quarter Domes, Clouds Rest

Going up to Vogelsang Lake. There is a lot of snow covering the path. Not deep, but long stretches. I lead, kicking out steps. It works out pretty well. As we go up, we can start to see Half Dome and Clouds Rest. There is a black looking mound which I do not know what it is. But Sherri and Betty are really thrilled by the vista.  Wen make it up to Vogelsang Lake and there is a moment of silence, of appreciation of the beauty of the lake and the surrounding mountains. 

Vogelsang Lake

We spend about two hours here. Just taking in the sun, not baking yet. We enjoy the lake, even capturing an island for Capture California. I walk over  to where Andrea and I (Monica and Laura) camped. It is covered with snow. Good thing we did not come up here last night. We would have been in a freezer, even though last night after midnight, it was warm.

Bald Eagle

We returned the same way, a bit faster. The snow patches we ascended earlier seems easier going down. With me cutting the snow, the snow is softer. We see new views, and of course, take more pictures. When we were still high up, we see a large bird take off. It has a white head and feathers and a large wing span. By the time my jaw comes out of its dropped position, the bald eagle is over a mile away. But I am able to take a couple pictures.

We get  to the creek. This time Sherri and Betty cross unaided.  After putting on shoes, Sherri discovers that her camelback is leaking. Most of what is in the bladder has drained out. So we go back to camp and fill it up. We do spend about 15-20 minutes just relaxing.

Fletcher Creek and Emeric Lake

Fletcher Creek

Fletcher Creek Meandering

By 1:30, we are back on the trail down to Emeric Lake. We are descending down Fletcher Creek. A small, but steady creek. We see a few places where it forms cataracts and then decides to lull around a meadow. Not having been down this trail before, I am taking it all in. The peaks surrounding this canyon, a dead forest and the greening of the hillsides as we descend. By the time we hit the junction, we have come down 750' in two and a quarter miles. Betty and Sherri look a bit tired and looking ahead to the climb back up.

Rain Clouds at Emeric Lake

So I continue on to Emeric Lake, alone.  It is less than half of a mile and another 150' drop. The lake is pretty good looking. But the sky is darkening. I walk about half of the length of the lake.  A few minutes after turning around, I see lighting of the sky and five seconds later a loud roar of thunder. I hurry and find the ladies taking shelter in a grove, with the poles a distance away.

Emeric Lake

We wait a few minutes, then start out in a downpour. It did not last long. We start out walking in the storm; the rumbling of the sky continues. You can tell we are getting tired. Our conversation lags and the faces are a bit drawn. But coming back up the Emberic Creek trail is a good move since it is more gradual than Fletcher.

About a mile before Booth Lake we come across this trail of white feathers. Are they from our bird before? We pick up a couple. The trail of feathers goes on for about an eighth of a mile. No body or any black feathers. The white feathers do resemble what iBird shows as a bald eagle tail feathers.

We go up and see several of the pond before Boothe Lake. Frankly, we were a bit tired so we did not do too much gawking. The trail keeps going to Tuolumne Pass, but we decide to cut over when we see a gentle grade. I think we saved about half a mile. We finally get to Vogelsang and then to our camp by 6.

Dinner was a new item Sherri is trying out: unstuffed potatoes. It is instant potatoes with dehydrated vegetables and ground almonds. We are content. It seems like it is getting colder. But we  enjoying talking with each other. Going to bed around 8:30.