Leviathan Peak, Monitor Pass: Pika Lookout
Guys, we need to talk about Pokemon. I think I might be obsessed. When I am not exploring the wilderness, I am instead exploring my neighborhood. I know exact spots where all the Pokemon like to loiter. My hobby of running is suddenly twice as useful because I can use it to hatch Pokemon eggs, turning weekends chilling at home turn into opportunities to crawl the neighborhood searching for stray Bulbsaurs. Yes, I probably think…
Backpacking Kerrick Meadow, Yosemite & Peeler Lake: Days 2 & 3 of Independence Day 2016 Trip
If Kerrick Meadows is the Northern Sister to Tuolumne Meadows, then Peeler Lake is Cathedral Lake’s Northern cousin. It is a really nice lake, the approach from the meadows has deep drop offs from the granite boulders with crystal clear waters
Backpacking Crown Lake: Herbert Hoover and Day 1 of Independence Day 2016 Trip
Fourth of July 2016: Another Independence Day and another backpacking trip into the Hoover Wilderness on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. But of course, on one of the busiest backpacking weekends in the Sierra Nevada we returned to the place where wilderness permits are moderately easy to obtain. But maybe, perhaps subconsciously, I was also returning on the 4th of July to the wilderness named after the 31st president of the United States….
Backpacking Aloha Lake: Moonlight, Alien lore, and Unexpected Snow
“Moonlight backpacking,” this was Trail’s next big idea. We were just settling in at Track 7 Brewery for some goodness and burritos when she pulled out the moon cycle calendar on her phone… When was the next upcoming full moon? Where can we get moonlight reflecting granite? You available? This is how Trails, Route, Curtis, and I ended up hiking out to the Aloha Lake region of the Desolation Wilderness between the…
How to Beat the Heat in the Foothills: Rafting the Mokelumne River
The Sierra Nevada Foothills are home to California’s Gold Country, an area predominantly known for the historic gold mines that attracted a massive influx of immigrants to the west. Here are some other things it one might say the California Gold Country is known for: It is hot in the summer. Really, sometimes the Gold Country is hot like molten gold hot. This might sound like hyperbole, but the sun above…
Table Mountain: It is a Wildflower Mountain!
It’s wildflower time! Usually, if I’m looking for a quick local hike I will just hit up the Red Hills, because the Red Hills are kinda where it is at. Instead, this year Curtis and I decided hiking wildflower hills was just so pedestrian. Nope, we were headed to a WILDFLOWER MOUNTAIN. Honestly, I think the Red Hills might have a greater flower diversity… but Table Mountain more than makes up…
Westfall Meadow: Easy Winter Yosemite Backpacking
While laying in our yellow slug winter tent, in the impossible quiet of the dark Yosemite forest, the question arose: When was the last time we actually backpacked in Yosemite? It was only last spring (2015), when Curtis and I backpacked to Styx Pass and Boundary Lake – an area straddling the Yosemite Wilderness and the Stanislaus Emigrant Wilderness. But does that count since we were able to get our permits from…
Cross-Country Ski to Sulphur Works: The Green Circle Trail I Always Dreamed Of
On the second day of our trip to Lassen, Curtis and I decided to ditch the windy, wet Manzanita Lake entrance and head south. The Northern California Snowshoe Routes book hadn’t really mentioned anything about this, but I had read online that you could cross country ski up the road to Sulphur Works – which sounded cool. The drive to the southern entrance to Lassen is beautiful, and it wasn’t raining! I…
Not quite Winter Camping: Manzanita Lake and Chaos Crags
Now that both Curtis and I work for branches of the government we share some of the same odd holidays. I am talking about the type of holidays that I tend to completely forget about until looking at the currents month calendar. For example Presidents Day, most notable in my mind for furniture store super-sales, is a real holiday for both of us. Score! As fate would have it, I had…
Hello! I am a 30-something outdoors-lady, backpacker, and resident of Groveland, California - 
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