Gary-Summer: August 2019

Saturday, August 31, 2019

August 31, 2019 - Delilah Lookout

Title: August 31, 2019 - Delilah Lookout
Hike Info : Description : Background : Menu

Trail head: Delilah Lookout

Hike Info:

Type: Lookout

Description:

Mother and Child

Today will be the first day of a three-day stint at Delilah. At least our first day was pretty quiet, but still active enough. I get up at 0540, just before the alarm. Sherri gets up a few minutes afterwards. We make it out the door and out the alleyway pretty much on time. At Clingan’s Junction, we stop at Sherri’s coffee shop but it is really full, so she decides to continue on. Around Davis Road, we see a young buck, but it is picture shy and scurries away fast. And then a friendly, but protective bovine is encountered with her calf. A Ford pickup truck comes out of the Delilah area as we go in-wonder if there is meaning here? Also We get up to Delilah just a few minutes before 0900. This means no rush to go in-service at 0930.

I take the weather while Sherri unpacks. Glancing at our white board, it says that Davis Road is now open, but only to those who have a Forest Service key. Wonder if this means we will be able to walk it this Winter/Spring? (Don’t get your hopes up too much Gary. ( Read the note at the bottom.)

We go in-service without a problem. But internally we have a problem Houston! No Internet-oh catastrophe of catastrophes. One of the luxuries we have at hotel Delilah is for the most part a reasonable Internet. But a good thing about being a former techie, is that I know one how to look in those little cupboards to find things. Yep, there is the Wifi router under the fire-finder. But wait, there is a second one! Our old one is disconnected and a new one is in its place. Evidently it was swapped out. But the kind tech person left the SSID and password on the router for us. I am able to get in. Actually they have a 2.2 and 5ghz networks and I am able to get in for both. In reading through the lookout log, I see that the tech was here Wednesday. Sort of explains things.

But also reading through the log, I come across a reference to a smoke at the : Bailey Bridge. I know about the Bailey Bridge by Bubb’s Creek, but it does not sound like this is the one, since Delilah was asked to check on it. I am thinking it may be near Rodgers Crossing since that is the only other crossing I am familiar with. But there are lots of other places where a Bailey Bridge could be.

After our 1100 Sierra lookout check-in, I asked Buck Rock if they knew either about the Wifi or the location of the Bailey Bridge. No was the answer on both. So I called up Kathy to see if she knew about either of the items. She was surprised by the Wifi and asked me to write it up-I did. But she knew about the Bailey Bridge-widely known (I guess I am still learning). It is not at Rodgers Crossing, but a bit up from it and Camp 4½. It is where the road turns to go into Balch Camp instead of heading up the Kings. We cannot see the bottom there, but if there was a lot of smoke, we might be able to see that. Kathy said that Park Ridge has a good view down into that area. I texted Judy to see if that is the area which she was talking about-yes. Then she called about the WiFi-the person before us was having issues as well.

Meet Celeste, our newest member of Team Duran

I have not introduced our newest lookout member of Team Duran. We are not sure of its gender, but we are calling it Celeste for the time being. We are trying out Celeste to see if it will work out. So far it has done a good job of getting a bit closer to the action than what my old eyes are able to. But it does not really help when the visibility is a bit hazy. So why did we add Celeste to the team? A couple of weeks ago we were looking for a hike and was thinking about going up to Shuteye. Looking at a web site, we saw a telescope in the picture! Aha! That is the reason why Shuteye is so sharp eyed! (They are good for several reasons-accuracy, clarity of reporting, and always on their toes concerning a smoke.).Now to see if it helps our ability to pinpoint a smoke.

As the afternoon progressed, it started to get more hazy, particularly to our south. When the haze comes in, being a lookout is not much fun. Not that a fire lookout is there for the fun. But I get a lot of enjoyment of looking at the trees, paths, ravines and mountains as I look for that telltale sign a smoke provides. When the haze comes in, it is akin to driving with fogged up glasses. You squint and try to make out a different shading of gray among the gray of the haze. All the while, just hoping that you are not missing something.

We are not the only ones. Park Ridge and us had a discussion of what we could see. We both agreed our visibility was decreasing, particularly in the south. But to the north, we can still see OK.

Pre-meal nourishment

We work with Celeste a bit more to see how it does in the haze-just magnifies the haze. It seems like to 20mm lens is the best, the 20mm lens even though has a high magnification, tends to wash out everything. Not good with already issues with the haze washing things out.

The afternoon passes along pretty well-maybe because I took a nap. What will happen when I need to stay awake for a whole shift? Will Porterville be upset if they hear snoring? Some of the reason for taking a nap is that our shift today is a bit longer-until 1900. It is Labor Day weekend and those who have primary concern for the forest want eyes in as many places as they can get during this time of high possibility of fire.

Gary and Dinner-Celeste is on the lookout for smoke

Is Smokey the Bear no longer effective? Some of the radio traffic we heard was for abandon campfires. Not many, yet.

Sherri starts to cook our meal even while we are in-service. It will start to get dark soon after we go out. So getting that done ahead of time is prudent. We actually eat our left-over hamburgers while in-service. Of course, we are looking around for smoke. After cleaning up we go down for personal maintenance. Here we find our friends, the Delilah deer. Then back up into the tower as it is getting dark.

Gary trying to get a hammock to work

Now what will be the sleeping arrangements? We do know where Sherri will sleep-in the bed. But Gary? Steven gave him a hammock for Christmas. So Gary wants to try it out hanging 80’ above the ground. But evidently Delilah is not ready for such a swinger. Gary put it up to its farthest reaches and still his bottom touched the grates of the catwalk. So he gave it up and said he will sleep indoors on the floor.

Night comes and the lights come on in Fresno. There is a sliver of a moon out tonight, so the stars shine brightly. I read for a little while and then fall asleep.

Background

Bailey Bridge. Technically a Bailey’s bridge is not a place but a thing.It was developed in 1940-41 by the British as a pre-fabricated truss bridge which did not need any specialized equipment to put together. It was light-enough to carry in via a truck and put together by hand, but strong enough that a tank could be rolled across it. The bridge type is named for Donald Bailey. See Wikipedia for more.

Davis Road. In talking with Kathy, there seems to be a translation problem. Being “open” really means that if there is a fire or a reason that forest service personnel need to go down into that area, it is available as an access road. It is not open to the general public.

Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner	Snacks
Ate at home	Peanut Butter, Nutella, Chips	Leftover Hamburger-still tastes pretty good.	Jerky, Cheese, nuts

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

August 21, 2019 - Fresno Dome and the Way of the Mono

Title: August 21, 2019 - Fresno Dome and the Way of the Mono
Hike Info : Description : Extra Photo's : Animals : Flowers and Plants

Trail head: Fresno Dome Trailhead

Hike Info:

Type: Hiking

Trail: Fresno Dome

Destination: Fresno Dome

Distance: 1.65 miles

Start Time: 9:41

End Time: 11:55

Travel Time: 2:14 (0.74 mph)

Moving Time: 1:27 (1.14 mph)

Elevation Rise: 512'

Descent: 277‘

Maximum Elevation: 7,512'

GPS Tracks

Description:

This will be a meetup hike, or more accurately, hikes. The first one is to Fresno Dome, maybe about 2 miles-this is where Sherri, Andrea, Steven and Lawrence went to in July when their way was blocked from going to Chain Lakes. The second hike is the Way of the Mono, about half a mile. Should be an all around easy day-at least that is what I am telling my body.

We get to the parking lot where the meetup group is gathering a few minutes late. We had a few last minute things to take care of. As we are ready to go, one of the cars had a dead battery. Not a problem for us-we were intending to take the Ranger up, but it causes a bit more reshuffling of people into cars. Sherri and I need to stop to get gas, just in case. In Oakhurst we gather a few more people at the Chevron station. Then it is off up the mountains.

Sherri on her way to the top

Fresno Dome is well off the highway. For the most part, there is a paved road-Sky Ranch Road which goes past Calvin Crest and Nelder Grove. But once you are well back, you turn off onto road 5S38-you know when you are getting back aways when the roads stop having names and are using forest service designations. As we go up the road, there are signs that logging is taking place: the road turns muddy from spraying to keep the dust down and there are stacks of logs and machinery.

Then at the Fresno Dome Campground we get stopped by a flagger. They are bringing down some trees. We all get out of our vehicles and stretch a bit. I do not recognize the car in front of me. In talking to her, she is going up to Fresno Dme as well. Jenny is part of the meetup group, just came up here independently. After about 20 minutes, we are let through.

Those ants up there are people

We finally get to the Fresno Dome trailhead. A few minutes to get ready and organized and off we go. I would say the first part of the trail is pretty nondescript. If you have been hiking in the Sierra before, you have probably encountered much of what we walked through elsewhere. On the other hand, there is a freshness about being among the trees and meadows. Confession is that I do not see the flowers going in. I feel pretty good that it is pretty level or a slight downhill and I seem to be walking OK. I am towards the back-my choice. Just enjoyable walking with John.

And now we start our climb. It is not a bad climb at all, if you take your time. There is a side benefit for helping someone in this situation. That is besides the generally good feeling you get helping someone accomplish something they thought they may not be able to do. But the benefit to me is that we are travelling deliberate enough that my out-of-shapeness does not come into play. So up we go a few steps and then pick our way up another section. I think I will need to get someone to help on any slope :-).

When we get to the top, there is a great view. Shuteye is towards our east and Oakhurst to our south. I am not sure where Quartz Mountain or if I am seeing the Merced-I think I am. A nice little dome. While it is not crowded, except with our meetup group. There is a man and his dogs up here, but they leave pretty soon after we arrive. And then there is Jenny from our logging stop and her dog. We stay up at the top for awhile before heading down.

View to the east and south

View to the south and west

The way down-yes, those are people down there

Down is not too much of an issue. Just keeping off the scree and onto solid rock. Sherri has joined John and I in working our way down the dome. Once on the flat, my legs stretch out a bit. There has been some tree falls which has had people reroute the path, but nothing too bad as far as route finding. We get back in a reasonable amount of time. But I suspect that the road travel and the time it took to pick our way up the dome made for a bit slower travel.

Trail head: Way of the Mono Parking Lot

Hike Info:

Type: Hiking

Trail: Way of the Mono

Destination: Loop

Distance: 0.54 miles

Start Time: 1:18

End Time: 1:53

Travel Time: 0:35 (0.93 mph)

Moving Time: 0:25 (1.30 mph)

Elevation Rise: 105'

Descent: 198‘

Maximum Elevation: 3,675'

GPS Tracks

We make the long trip back down to Bass Lake. We get stopped for a couple of times when they are falling a tree. While we hear trees falling at Delilah, this one made a really impressive sound with a loud thump hitting the ground. After it is safe, we get waved on. Our route takes us back to Highway 41 and then down to Bass Lake. Then we turn off onto Road 222 and drive along the west side of the lake.

The parking lot is a bit small, so we need to maneuver around the cars. We have lost five people-they needed to get back early. The Way of the Mono is a short interpretive trail showing the natural surroundings and the relationship the Mono people had with it. While short, in a few places the incline will make you want to stop and learn what the signs say. But when we reach the top, there is a broad piece of granite able to hold the entire gang-about 20 now, with room for more. The view of Bass Lake is worth the climb. After loitering on the granite for about 10-15 minutes, we decide we are hungry. So down we go. While a good downhill, we take our time and complete the loop.

Now it is time to go to Ducey’s on the Lake for our meal. I think the waitress is up to the task, but is hampered by the system. So many of us pay cash to avoid problems. The bacon-burger I ordered was huge-I was able to eat the whole thing. Now it is time to get back to Fresno. After stopping to check and make sure the car with the dead battery can leave OK, Sherri and I make it home by about 6pm. Glad we went.

Extra Photo's

Gary the photographer wanna-be

Just a nice looking tree

Bass Lake and Meetup group

Flowers and Plants

Saturday, August 17, 2019

August 17, 2019 - Buena Vista Peak

Title: August 17, 2019 - Buena Vista Peak
Hike Info : Description : Extra Photo's : Animals : Flowers and Plants

Trail head: Buena Vista Peak Trailhead

Hike Info:

Type: Hiking

Trail: Buena Vista Peak

Destination: Buena Vista Peak

Distance: 2.34 miles

Start Time: 5:18pm

End Time: 7:04pm

Travel Time: 1:46 (1.32 mph)

Moving Time: 1:12 (1.94 mph)

Elevation Rise: 577' ¹

Descent: 610‘

Maximum Elevation: 7,589'

GPS Tracks

¹The elevation on the GPS did not record correctly. The elevations here is from Google Earth.

Description:

Sherri and I were to be out camping by now. But having an extra day at Delilah put a crimp in that. Then I got a call and said there was a problem in the sale of my parent's house. So I am having to do some research. Do we still want to? Can we actually go up and at least do a hike? Yes, lets get some dirt on our feet-it turns out getting dirty is easier said than done. But the things with my parent’s estate had me looking all morning for some documents.

We left Fresno at1:45. First, we needed gas. So off to the new Costco we go. Then we head to Grant Grove, still not sure what trail to go on. But we will stop at the Visitor Center to check on what is open. There, we ask about the Boole Tree-closed. Then, what about Little Boulder Creek-it is most likely open. So off we go down Burton Road. It is a pleasant drive. But today, there is much more traffic than our usual-which is nobody else taking my road. But they do look like they are trying to find a place to 4-wheel drive.

We travel down Burton Road, aaaah and ooohing about the scenery, but wanting to get on the trail. Sherri and I have been on this one with Rose a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it. But the area has been closed now for the past couple of years. We round a big curve and what do we see? A gate, blocking our progress to the trailhead. There is a sign which says we would need to walk about 2½ miles to even get on the trail, let alone walk it. Since it is about 4, this will not work out. So much for Little Boulder Creek being open. We back track, stopping along the way to view the Kings River and beyond.

But the star attraction today will be Buck Rock. When we turn our gaze from the Kings, the lookout stands stately, high above us, like a queen ruling the sky. It turns out that today, she will be our companion in our travels. No matter where we turn, there she is.

When we get back to Quail Flat, we make a decision: we would still like to hike and Buena Vista Peak is just down the road. So this will be our hike for today-pretty short, still a hike. As we get ready at the trailhead, I spot a Sequoia Forest truck go by us-it is Patrol 33 who we know.

Mt Sillman

Our hike starts a little after 5pm. Steven charges ahead; Sherri and I lag behind. Maybe it is the length of the day so far or just not having walked in awhile, but this hike is pushing me- I would classify this as an easy hike or slightly above, suitable for most people. I am breathing a bit more than I should. I am just glad that Sherri is also stopping as well. Still it is wonderful being out. Buck Rock comes into view-I told you it was her day. We are escorted on the way up with some late blooming flowers-no pictures, sorry. As we close in on the top, a hiker comes down. We chat for awhile-he is planning on doing Whitney in a week or so and has been training. We talk about different places. He asks about a peak to the southeast-it looks like Mt Sillman to me-not Whitney. He is carrying bear-spray. I do comment that he may want to find out how legal it is to carry the spray in the park-later I look and it is not. He is concerned about cougars/mountain lions.

View from the top

Then we are off and reach the top in short order. Here we just enjoy the view. It is very hazy as we look West towards the Valley, but pretty nice the rest of our viewing direction. One of the good things about this peak is you have a 360 view. If you know where to look you can see Park Ridge, but not Delilah. After awhile, it is time to move on.

The trip down is a lot faster and easier. My stride returns to more of a normal length and cadence. A few places it is easy to mistake a place where others have gone for the trail-this is what happens with Sherri. But we all make it down OK.

Now where do we eat? We decide on DNC in Grant Grove. It has been enjoyable for the last couple of years, but just a bit slow. When we get there, the wait staff looks frazzled. A couple large groups are in. But we get a table fairly quickly. The food is adequate, but the waitress is very scattered-Steven never gets his water after asking twice and a refill of ice tea for me only gets done when she gives us the bill.

We make it down the hill to Fresno. Sherri and I are having a debate about where certain lights we are seeing from Delilah are. One set of lights we find are from a warehouse just north of the airport. The other set, we are not sure about. But Steven shows us where the water tower is at Fresno State. We get home about 9:50. I take a shower and climb into bed.