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November 3 -- On a sunny fall weekend, 20 of us hiked to Dutra Flat and back in the southern Big Sur Region. We enjoyed lots of running water, a cool shaded spot for lunch and good eats in Morro Bay on our way home -- Gary Felsman

Leaving Dutra Flat	Spruce Creek
Dutra Saddle View Photos © Gary Felsman and the Santa Lucia Chapter of the Sierra Club

October 26-- On a sunny, gorgeous day Carlos lead a 15 mile Little Falls, Big Falls Loop adventure trek. The mountaintop views were fabulous! There were many creek crossings, and waterfalls, and Carlos showed us a secret grotto -- Gary Felsman

Click on the thumbnail for more photos:

Saturday, October 10--We had a great hike to the north side of Prewitt Creek.
Fourteen of us headed past Stag Camp for a great view of redwoods, oaks,
and the coast. It was a nine-mile trek -- Gary Felsman

Prewitt Creek, upper left. Sand Dollar Beach, upper right & panorama. Photos © Gary Felsman and the Santa Lucia Chapter of the Sierra Club

September 27 -- It was a warm weekend depending on where you were.
Dar and I rode to Avila on Saturday, and hiked to a peak on Sunday morning.
Note my wet shirt. Can you guess where we went?
--Gary Felsman

View of Gaviota Peak	Darlene and Gary

Photos © Gary Felsman and the Santa Lucia Chapter of the Sierra Club

Horseshoe Meadow, Late Season 2009

Our post-Labor Day trip took Scott and me to Horseshoe Meadow, ten thousand feet elevation, a six-hour trip from SLO.
Any trip across California is a challenge, of course. From San Luis Obispo, we took 101N to 41-46 to 99 S and Hwy 58 up and over
Tehachapi Pass, finally heading north on Hwys 14 and 395. Lone Pine, at the foot of Mt. Whitney, was surprisingly green,
defying the 100-degree heat.

After a brief stop for groceries and ice, we headed up the flank of the Sierra on spectacular Horseshoe Meadow Road.
We drive past Alabama Hills, a vast collection of sandstone formations that jut off the sandy foothills.
In the late afternoon sun they profile in chocolate brown against the smoky blue escarpments of the high Sierra.
This was the location of many old cowboy-and-Indian movies, now celebrated at the Mt. Whitney Cafe in Lone Pine.

Alabama Hills	Mt. Whitney View, Morning

Horseshoe Meadow Road switchbacks on the Sierra flank as it climbs 5,500' above Owens Valley.
What a road this is. Paved now (it was dirt back in the 70's), it can still be scary.
Midway to the top it loses one lane, part of the road having crumbled down the canyon.
Half an hour's drive takes us to the campground, a vast level area of sandy soil and pines.

Horseshoe Meadow Road	Flowers Line the Road

Camping at the meadow is limited to walk-in tent sites--no RV hookups, and I would guess
no RVs should consider driving up the road we just traveled.
There is no fee, andno facilities other than bear boxes and composting toilets.
A sign by the water pump warns us that water may not be available on cloudy or rainy days,
probably because water storage is powered by solar cells.
Well, there's always the creek, a five-minute walk away, a good place for a quiet lunch next day.

Horseshoe Meadow Campground	Who Says You Can't Eat Well?

We spend two cool nights up here. There are fire rings but wood gathering is prohibited, bring your own.
Our fairly quiet neighbors are largely hikers and backpackers heading into the back country.
The group closest to us is heading up Mt. Langley next day, except for one of them with a bad case of altitude sickness.
Horseshoe Meadow offers a number of day hikes as short as five miles one way--Chicken Spring Lake, Cottonwood Lakes, South Lakes.
We pass on any longer hikes. Wish we'd brought bikes, though.

On Saturday we make our way back to civilization. Before heading for Red Rock, our last camp, we visit Cottonwood Canyon,
at the end of 4.5 miles of broken-down pavement. A fishing trail follows Cottonwood Creek all the way to
Horseshoe Meadow, but the heat of the day and clouds of desperate flies are enough to discourage any thought of hiking.
We sit in the shade by the creek for a few minutes, take a few photos, and leave.

Cottonwood Creek Tumbling Down to Owens Valley	Red Rock State Park

We arrive at Red Rock (Ricardo Camp) at three in the afternoon.
It is still one hundred degrees in the shade, but as luck would have it, we score the only shady campsite.
A strong breeze and lots of icy soda help us wait for the evening shadows to bring relief.
I love Red Rock, with sandstone formations that tower above us, lace hills, drapes on ghosts,
and deep eyeholes that stare down at us mere humans.

If you want to visit, Ricardo Camp has running water and pit toilets.
The fee is now $25 per vehicle, thanks to California being broke.
This is a great place to visit in winter, but avoid summer heat.

So it's good-bye to the Sierra Nevada for another season.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep, but we have miles to go before we sleep--Monica Tarzier

Photos © Monica Tarzier, Scott Reckefus, and the Santa Lucia Chapter of the Sierra Club

September 13 -- Well it was a good weekend for hiking as twelve of us hiked to Vicente Flat.
Only two or three people we knew might come along decided, instead, to sleep in or something.
The weather was cool and moist for the first three mile, then opened up for great views of Cone Peak,
Giant Redwoods and the Ocean below.
We ended our hike with lots of eats at Taco Temple on this day.

On Sunday, it was cool again and Darlene and I ventured to a beautiful place.
Can you guess where most of you will know some will not.
We ended up with good eats again after a pleasant two hour hike -- Gary Felsman

Photos© Gary Felsman

Photos© Gary Felsman

August 30 -- Well the least we can say is it was a warm Saturday as seven of hiked to the top of Valencia Peak .
On our way down a breeze kicked in promptly and two hardy souls headed for Oats Peak.
The rest of us who descended instead were met with a cool ocean breeze upon reaching the Visitor Center.
By the time we reached Costco, the temperature had soared to 111 degrees.

Tracey, Bob and Mark atop Valencia Peak

Saturday, July 25 -- a great day for a hike up West Cuesta Ridge from Stenner Creek Road.
We went up the Elevator Trail on Stenner Springs, then up Shooters across the ridge to the
Botanical Area then returned via Morning Glory Trail.
The hike was about 10 miles with almost 2000 foot of elevation gain and loss.---Gary Felsman

Lunch at TV tower. Photo by Kelly

Tracey led 19 of us on a Sunday hike along East Cuesta Ridge.
Phil and Tracey brought treats for the group: banana bread and apricot/cranberry squares.
We enjoyed cool weather and the great views on both sides of the ridge---Gary Felsman

Phil's Temper Tantrum	Santa Margarita Ranch View
Milk Thistle in Full Bloom	Heading Home on East Cuesta Ridge

Photos© Gary Felsman

Johnson Ranch and Salmon Creek in May

Darlene and I hiked the newly opened Johnson Ranch and Salmon Creek Trail on Saturday, May 23.
We caught up with Carlos, John and Janine as they headed to Dutra Flat for the weekend.
Lots of flowers were still out, and cool weather kept away flies and ticks.
Since Pine Ridge Trail was closed a lot of work has been done on the
Salmon Creek Trail to Estrella Camp -- Gary Felsman

Salmon Creek	John and Janine catching up
Photo© Gary Felsman	Photo© Gary Felsman

I had a chance to visit Vicente Flat last week. Great weather, and the trail was in good condition
after being closed for many months. The USFS, Ventana Wilderness Alliance, and other volunteers
did a good job of trail restoration, and the trail is in the best shape I've seen in many years.
Only about 30% of the actual trail burned. The redwoods are already resprouting high
above the ground from their scorched trunks -- Gary Felsman

Cone Peak Photo © Gary Felsman	Coastal View Photo © Gary Felsman

For more photos of the Vicente Flat area, follow this link.

Machesna Wilderness, April 19

On this beautiful day, twenty-one of us headed east of Pozo to hike the trails of the Machesna Wilderness.
We shared our day with the Pacific Coast Long Riders.
Safe, sound, and tired after a long day, we made our way back to the cars after a long day.
Darlene and I ended up in Santa Margarita at the Porch Restaurant to fill our belly and quench our thirst.
The photos below were taken by various hikers in our group -- Gary Felsman.

April 3-5 on Carrizo Plain with Carlos

We ascended Caliente Ridge, then headed down into the Morales Canyon Area.
Many flowers were out, including a field of Desert Candles.
The morning was crisp at 22 degrees, but it did warm up to near 70 degrees by the afternoon.
We had a wonderful Saturday hike -- Gary Felsman

East of Pozo, March 2009

On Saturday, a large group of us, twenty-two in all, hiked the eastern area of Pozo.
A cool morning was replaced by sun at lunchtime.
Ranch animals greeted us along the way. A herd of curious horses would have welcomed a snack,
but the bull stood its ground no matter what, forcing us to take a minor detour.
We enjoyed the flowers and lush green hills.

Photos are from BK Richard, John Cloninger, Gary Felsman, Karen Randall and Tracey Carr.

Lots of outings lately

John sends a picture of Junipero Serra, the highest peak in Monterey County.
Tentative opening date for the Ventana Wilderness is June 1 st . It may be sooner.

Below are pictures from Shaver Lake and a recent work day at Johnson Ranch,
where the volunteer crew built another 900 feet of trail.
The Ranch is supposed to open mid to late spring 2009. -- Gary Felsman

Photo © Gary Felsman

Photo © Gary Felsman

Photo © John Cloninger