Tuolumne County Trailhead: December 2020

Maggie & Yogi were my most reliable
hiking companions in 2020.
Here we are at Rushing Meadow.

In November, a Facebook memory popped up from 2014. Apparently, I'd listed my total miles walked/hiked from March to November of that year. I was curious as to how 2020 compared (I had 200 more miles, wow!). Of course, that precipitated a lot of list-making and a review of outdoor adventures in 2020. Many of my outings were with you Trail Heads, but because of the pandemic, plenty of my trips were solo or with just a couple other folks.

This year the physical distancing has accentuated the interconnectedness of our lives and the preciousness of the people in our lives. The reality of the pandemic was slow to come to Tuolumne County, but we're in the thick of it now. But humans are resilient, and the vaccine is coming. A life lesson we learned from hiking -- leave no trace, the golden rule of the outdoors -- applies as we come down the stretch in beating COVID-19. It's all about the people, and the ripple effect of our actions have on others. Keep
on flattening the curve, Trail Heads. The end is in sight!

Ron Edson and Barb Owens enjoying
hot cocoa during our January
snowshoe outing to Crabtree Loop.

How the year 2020 panned out:
Introduction: song = "Switchback," Bill Horvitz

We started out with COVID as a small blip way off on the horizon. We were able to pull off three regular "first Saturday" hikes, and everything seemed hopeful as the new year dawned.
Song = "Farther on Down the Road," Taj Mahal
Hikes:

Snowshoeing at Nordic trails near Dodge Ridge (Crabtree loop)
Most of the trails at Tuttletown Recreation Area, New Melones Lake (interpretation by Pat Sanders)
Trio of trails at Columbia College (interpretation by Barbara Balen)

Robert, Bridgette, Chai,
Jessica & Billie on the
"Most of the Trails at Tuttletown" hike

Everything changed on March 19 when Governor Gavin Newsom issued the Stay-At-Home Order. I mainly walked roads in my neighborhood and hiked nearby forest roads. My doggos were my main partners, but I had a few "corona-bubble" friends who joined me on occasion.
Song = "One Road More," Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore
Hikes:

Snowshoeing at Sugar Pine Railroad Grade, Strawberry Branch
Big crowd of Trail Heads at the
"Trio of Trails at Columbia College"
Tuolumne Grove, Yosemite National Park
Sonora Community Trail
West Side Trail
Dragoon Gulch
Sugar Pine Interpretive Trail/Confidence Railroad Grade
Keltz Mine Road
Red Hills Serpentine Loop
Table Mountain to Peoria Mountain
Lyons Creek Road
Neighborhood walks

Stay-At-Home Order relaxed in June!
Song = "Iceberg Meadows," Crawdad Republic
Limited-attendance, socially-distanced Trail Head hikes:

Twain Harte to Lyons Lake via ditches and flumes up and Confidence Railroad Grade back
Arnot Creek Trail off of Clark Fork Rd.
Dutchess Mine Trail at northeast side of Parrotts Ferry Bridge, New Melones Lake, Vallecito

Trail Heads on a landing on the flume
heading to Lyons Lake

Yikes! Memorial Day craziness results in resumption of restrictions. Back to solo or "corona-pod" hikes...
Song = "Dreams Come True," Marcia Ball, Angela Strehli, and Louann Barton
Hikes:

Herring Creek Trail
Bear Lake and Camp Lake from Crabtree Trailhead

...and camping and backpacking!
Song = "California Stars," Billy Bragg and Wilco
Hikes:

Three days and two nights backpacking in the Hoover Wilderness camping near Fremont Lake
with a monumental 17 mile day hike including Chain of Lakes, Long Lakes, Cascade Falls, Lake Harriet, Piute Meadows, and Long Canyon.
Overnight backpacking trip to Summit Creek past Relief Reservoir
Car camping in Lee Vining for a weekend of day hikes in Yosemite. Friday we went to Summit Lake from the Virginia Lakes Trailhead. Saturday we humped up to the 13,061' summit of Mt. Dana. Sunday we kept it mellow on the lovely Lyell Canyon trail.
Trail Heads at Arnot Creek
Overnight backpacking trip to Koenig Lake via Pacific Crest Trail at Sonora Pass Trailhead

And more hiking and backpacking!
Song = "Willin'," Little Feat
Hikes:

Sonora Peak
Rushing Meadow
Four days and three nights backpacking in the Hoover Wilderness near Bridgeport. Friday we
hiked in to Peeler Lake. Friday we walked through Kerrick Meadows in Yosemite National Park over to Iceberg Lake (10,000') then down Rock Island Pass to spend two nights at Crown Lake. On Sunday, we took a day hike to stunning Mule Pass (10,400') with exceptional views of the Sawtooth Range and Slide Valley.

And in October we were able to have a weekend of limited-attendance, socially-distanced fall color hikes with the Trail Heads with

What large claws you have, Sheri!

interpretation by Ross Carkeet:

Saturday: The Bennett Juniper and Telescope Peak
Sunday: Barn Meadow and Eagle Pass

Out-of-town hikes near Reno:

Snowshoeing at Chickadee Ridge near Incline Village, Lake Tahoe
Hiking at Brown's Creek

China Flat to Sand Bar Flat, Beardsley Lake, with a small group of Trail Heads

Wendy, Sue & Corinne at Camp Lake

That's quite an exhaustive list of trails and outdoor adventures in this exceptional, exasperating year of
COVID. But as fulfilling as getting out in the wild was, the best part of every trip was, and always is, the people. Song = "In My Life," The Beatles

Please take care on this home stretch as we await COVID-19 vaccinations. Your actions make a difference! Song = "Ripple," Grateful Dead

Here is a link to the December 2020 Tuolumne County Trailhead program, TCT #37 -- Musical Musings:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dzAbTnEv-9ACJsrzaIvZKrf6DmBF0biw/view?usp=sharing