NOTICE -- Two (2) hikes to Relief Reservoir, 7/7 & 7/14

Immerse yourself in history -- and rugged beauty -- on this hike into the Emigrant Wilderness where the Clark-Skidmore wagon train of 1852 was stranded without supplies as they crossed the Sierras to the Southern Mines. At just over 7 miles round trip, this trail is demanding due to the high elevation and steep, steady ascent of 1200’ to a high point of 7360’.


There are two, count 'em 2, hikes offered -- 7/7 and 7/14.  Same details, different days:

It may be hot; bring plenty of water. Bring lunch for a picnic at the reservoir. On leash dogs OK. This will be a strenuous hike.

Two stops on the carpool/caravan:
First stop/meeting point - 6:45am at the Starbuck's in the Junction; leave at 7am
Second stop/meeting point - 7:15 at the Mi Wuk Ranger Station; leave at 7:30
Or meet at the trailhead parking lot at Kennedy Meadows on the left just before the resort and pack station. Hike starts at 8:30.

TCT #7 -- Relief Reservoir, Kennedy Meadows



Leftover building material, Relief Reservoir,
and East Flange Rock (almost dead-center)

At last we're heading to the high country.  On July 7 we'll take the strenuous 7.5 mile hike to Relief Reservoir near Kennedy Meadows.  Relief Reservoir is named for the rescue mission sent from Sonora to the stranded Clark-Skidmore emigrant wagon train who had a near-Donner experience in 1852.  For the 10-year life of the treacherous West Walker Route crossing the Sierra, a camp outfitted with supplies was maintained by the residents of the Southern Mines towns of Sonora and Columbia.  After that, a new route was constructed about 3-5 miles to the north.  This road, the Sonora-Mono Toll Road was used to transport goods from San Francisco and Sonora to the silver rush boomtowns of Bodie and Aurora.  Modern Sonora Pass roughly follows the route of the Sonora-Mono Toll Road.  In the early 1900s, East Coast money-men decided to invest in a hydroelectric project -- a dam on Summit Creek which runs through Relief Valley.  The investors hoped to strike their own "gold" by supplying power to San Francisco and communities on the way down from the Sierras.  And so we have Relief Reservoir and a lot of interesting artifacts on the trail.

The dam is rock and earth filled with a concrete "veneer"



Moving cars using
the derrick-pulley system

Today's trail follows

yesterday's dam supply road

This is our first high-elevation hike; the trailhead is at 6,127'.  We'll gain about 1,200' more as we hike up, up, up (then down, down, down).  Other things to be aware of is that we'll be going on footbridges high over creeks; if you're afraid of heights, steel yourself.  Speaking of heights, it's almost impossible to prevent elevation sickness, but there are some ways to cope if it comes on you (slow down, take smaller steps and deep breaths).  Also, we will be sharing the trail with equestrians and pack horses.




Learn more about this spectacular hike by listening to TCT #7, an interview with returning guest, Summit Ranger District Archaeologist Lisa DeHart.  Lisa talks about the history of the Relief area and her own contribution to Gold Country scholarship -- when she cooperated on an expedition that not only found the site of the Clark-Skidmore original relief camp but the exact location of the West Walker Route.  The show starts with audio trail reviews from our National Trails Day hike along the Sugar Pine Railroad Grade, Strawberry Branch.  Listen and learn why it's my favorite hike:



Trip Report - Strawberry Branch, Sugar Pine RR Grade, 6/2/18

My Favorite Trail

We celebrated National Trails Day by taking my favorite hike, the Sugar Pine Railroad Grade from Fraser Flat to Strawberry (and back).  Participating in the American Hiking Society’s  initiative to improve 2,802 miles of trail (the distance across the Lower 48), we committed to pack out our own trash and toted garbage bags to collect any other litter.  We were pleased to find the trail in fairly tidy condition.  Our take was less than one kitchen trash bag full, most of it the micro-garbage variety.

There were around 30 Trail Heads on the trip, ranging in age from very young (around 10-years-old) to senior (noneaya-business-years-old!).  There were families, couples, friends from out-of-town & out-of-state (Joshua Tree! Oregon!), singles, and even a teacher-student combo.  And, of course, dogs.

 

Rapids and Pools

Garter Snake

The day was perfect for hiking starting out cool, progressing to warm then hot in the sun but pleasant in the shade.  The trail offered sections shaded by tree canopy and sunny through meadows.  Almost always we had the South Fork Stanislaus River within view or earshot.  Blossom-laden Dogwoods were bountiful.  While it wasn’t quite a riot of wildflowers, there were colonies of tiny Five Spots, stands of Paintbrush, a few wild iris getting ready to blossom, bright Western Wallflower, and plenty of fungi.  In the animal realm, we constantly heard cheerily chirping birds, and we saw a small garter snake.  A group our size tromping along the trail scares away larger mammals, but once while snowshoeing here I’ve seen bear prints (winter access is from the trail’s Old Strawberry Road end).  As far as non-TCT humans, we did encounter at least one mountain biker.

This pleasant route is a little under 6 miles round trip.  Because it’s a former railroad grade, it has a gentle incline of just over 3%.  It’s my favorite because it’s easy to get to, it’s do-able for all skill levels and ages, and it’s got the attractive water-feature of the Stanislaus River.  I was pleased to see that there have been some improvements in the trail since last year – there are some trailhead and distance markers, and the interpretive signs have all been restored.  I’ve uploaded the interpretive guide; it’s under “Pages” in top right column of the blog’s main page.

Interpretive sign at Fraser Flat Campground

To get to the trailhead, go east on Highway 108 through Sugar Pine, Me Wuk, Sierra Vilage, and Long Barn.  Continue along the 4-lanes east of Long Barn.  After the road narrows to 2-lanes again you'll go about another two miles (the road's a bit windy then levels out).  Watch for a hard-to-spot sign on your right for Fraser Flat & Spring Gap.  The sign is on the right, but you'll make a LEFT turn (on the left it's Road 4N01/Fraser Flat Rd.; on the right it's Jenness Park Rd.).  If you get to Cold Springs/Mia's Restaurant, YOU'VE GONE TOO FAR!  Turn around & backtrack about a mile; heading west, you'll turn RIGHT on 4N01/Fraser Flat Rd.).  Drive downhill about 3 miles to the bridge.  Park as far off the road as possible.  The trailhead is on the southeast side of the bridge.

There aren’t any services at the trailhead.  However, if you continue over the bridge and go about a mile, you’ll come to Fraser Flat Campground on your left.  It’s worth a visit to the campground and not just to use the vault toilets.  There are two interpretive signs with interesting cultural and historic information, a bedrock mortar (Indian grinding stone), and a wheelchair accessible fishing platform!


Here's a link to the Tuolumne County Transit Council's Sugar Pine Railway, Strawberry Branch webpage:
https://www.tuolumnecountytransportationcouncil.org/single-post/2016/08/10/Strawberry-to-Fraser


Here's a link to the American Hiking Society's webpage:
https://americanhiking.org/

June 2, stroll along the Stan

Our June hike falls on National Trails Day. It's the 50th anniversary of the National Trails Act; celebrate with a hike! We're taking my favorite hike in the county, the Sugar Pine Railroad Grade section from Fraser Flat to Strawberry (and back). This is an easy hike though, at 7 miles, on the longer side. It's a lovely, shaded meander along the Stanislaus River.

On-leash dogs welcome. Bring water, snacks and/or lunch. Dress in layers; wear a hat.

The hike starts at 9. The trailhead is on the south side of the bridge just before Fraser Flat Campground. To minimize parking congestion at the trailhead, we'll be carpooling/caravanning from the Starbuck's at the Junction. Carpool leaves at 8:30.

TCT #6 -- Sugar Pine Railroad Grade, Strawberry Branch, Cold Springs

Stroll along the Stanislaus River on Saturday, June 2, National Trails Day.  Discover this attractive trail with something for everyone: water, trees, flowers, meadows.  Tuolumne County Trailhead has registered this hike with the American Hiking Society which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the National Trails Act by improving 2,802 miles  of trail (the distance across the US).  Our contribution will be to pack out our own trash along with any other litter we find.  The hike is 7 miles round trip and considered easy-to-moderate (lessen the difficulty by hiking to your own halfway point and return to the trailhead).

The radio show features catch-up trail reviews of the Melones Railroad Grade hike (4/7/18) and the Preston Falls hike (5/5/18).  Over these two outings, spring exhibited its mercurial nature:  Our April trip occurred the weekend of the "atmospheric river."  In May, conditions were close to perfect -- except for the prolific poison oak which "got" a few of the Trail Heads.  We also prep for our June 2 (National Trails Day) hike on the Sugar Pine Railroad Grade, Strawberry Branch (Fraser Flat trailhead).  We have an extensive conversation with Lisa DeHart, Stanislaus National Forest, Summit Ranger District Archaeologist.  Lisa offers insight into early logging methods and the game-changing introduction of steam -- donkeys and trains -- to the industry.  We also wax philosophical about how this and our hikes coming up in the summer follow a lot of the early emigrant trail -- in reverse.

Trip Report - Preston Falls, 5/5/18

This hike was superlative in a couple of ways – at 8 miles, it was our longest hike so far; over an hour from Sonora, the trailhead was the most remote so far.  It was also typical in a couple of ways – we had another challenge with roads, this time a cattle drive was in progress at Jacksonville and Stent Roads; the weather was perfect (as I’ve come to learn, ANY weather is perfect for Trail Heads!).

photo by Joey Partridge

About 20 of us carpooled and caravanned from Jamestown and Groveland, and about 10 more met us at the trailhead.  The adventure started pretty much as soon as we hit the road:  We halted for a cattle drive at the intersection of Jacksonville and Stent Roads!  We proceeded unhindered through Groveland and Buck Meadows, past the Rim of the World vista point and Rainbow Pools, turning onto Cherry Lake Road and into the heart of the Rim Fire burn area.  Cherry Lake Road is narrow, winding and scales ridges which afford stunning views into the Tuolumne River canyon and the snowy peaks of Yosemite and Sonora Pass.  At the highest on the road, we were at about 4,000’ but quickly dove into the canyon and reached river-level at 2,400’.  Thank goodness for low gear!

We were fortunate to have interpretative specialists along on the hike, this time Seth Connolly of the Tuolumne River Trust with his companion, Ariel, an Americorps volunteer.  Seth gave a brief orientation, mentioning that a work crew of American Hiking Society members on a volunteer vacation were due to start rehabbing the trail the next day.  Then we were off, immediately encountering projects and hazards for the AHS volunteers: downed trees blocking the trail and huge, healthy poison oak stands with tendrils extending into the trail.  Thank goodness for Tecnu!

photo by Joey Partridge

 

It was slightly overcast, and the diffused light made photography a joy.  The river was a dynamic subject, rushing in places, wide and still in others, and crashing through its rocky gorge in yet others.  There were wildflowers galore (Bush Lupine, California Indian Pink, Paintbrush, Baby Blue Eyes, Tufted Poppies, Mustang Clover, Common Madia, Brewer’s Lupine, Fivespot, Lindley’s Siverpuffs).  We enjoyed the shade of pines and moss-covered oaks.  We crept through a charred skeleton tree forest, remnants of the Rim Fire’s devastation.  We heard birds but didn’t see many; butterflies were the prevalent winged creatures.  Someone spotted a slithering creature – a small rattlesnake.  Thank goodness the dogs steered clear!

At the falls we picnicked, napped, and cooled our toes in the Tuolumne.  As we geared up to hike out, Seth offered motivation:  The AHS volunteers had invited us to stop by for cookies and tea after we returned to the trailhead!

Due to the low elevation, this trail is open year-round, though there may be issues with access if it happens to be snowy or icy on the access roads or highway.  To get to the trailhead, take Cherry Lake Rd. from Highway 120 (east of Groveland, Buck Meadows, the Rim of the World vista point, and Rainbow Pools).  After many gorgeous miles on the narrow, winding road, you’ll come to a distinct fork – take the left (right takes you to Camp Mather and Hetch Hetchy), which continues as Cherry Lake Rd.  You’ll immediately begin your descent into the river canyon.  You’ll reach a bridge at river-level; cross the bridge then turn right.  Drive on past the houses, buildings, powerhouse; the road dead ends at the trailhead.  There’s plenty of parking, a vault toilet, and a bear box.

Here's a link to the Stanislaus National Forest webpage about Preston Falls:

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/stanislaus/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=14967&actid=50

Here's a link to a nice California State Parks flyer about the Tuolumne River (with a map):

https://www.parks.ca.gov/pages/28702/files/tuolumne1.pdf

Photo by Seth Connolly

 

 

 

Hello, Trail Heads!

I am just back from a fact-finding trip to the Preston Falls Trailhead for tomorrow's Cinco de Mayo hike, and I'm THRILLED to report we're in for a fabulous day!  The weather outlook is great -- it'll be in the mid-70s, so bring sunscreen, a hat, and lots of water.  It's green & lush at river-level, and the Tuolumne is running full and loud.  I walked a short distance on the trail and found healthy, huge poison oak bushes, so beware.  On-leash dogs are welcome, but Seth of the Tuolumne River Trust says he's never seen a dog-hiker combo make it all the way to the falls, as the doggos tend to poop out.  My critters came to the trailhead with me today, but they're staying home tomorrow.

Final check in about tomorrow's Cinco de Mayo hike to Preston Falls, east of Groveland. The hike starts at 10am at the Preston Falls Trailhead at Early Intake/Kirkwood Powerhouse off of Cherry Lake Rd. (access on Highway 120 east of Groveland). We are offering two carpool/caravan opportunities:
* 8:15am (leaving at 8:30am) at Jamestown Day-o Espresso stand OR
* 9am at Mary Laveroni Park (watch for Seth Connolly's Tuolumne River Trust group).

If you're driving directly to the trailhead, here are the directions:
Take Highway 120 east through Groveland and Buck Meadows; continue past Rim of the World vista point and Rainbow Pools. Just past Rainbow Pools, the highway crosses a bridge; just over the bridge turn LEFT at Cherry Lake Rd (also known as 1N07, National Forest 17). Continue quite a ways on this narrow, beautiful road through the Rim Fire burn area. Eventually you'll come to a fork in the road; go LEFT, staying on Cherry Lake/1N07/Forest 17.

You'll immediately begin your descent into the Tuolumne River canyon (if you'd gone right, you'd end up at Camp Mather & Hetch Hetchy). Go several miles down to the river. Just after you cross the bridge, go RIGHT toward Kirkwood Powerhouse.

Keep going straight through all the SFPUC housing, past the powerhouse; the road dead ends at the trailhead. There's plenty of parking and a vault toilet.

If you're coming, please RSVP by voting YES on the upper-right.