NorCal Hiker

Four Mile Trail, Sentinel Dome, Panorama Trail, Liberty Cap and Mist Trail… In One Day

In John Muir’s book The Yosemite, there is a chapter near the end entitled “How Best to Spend One’s Yosemite Time”. This post focuses on the first listed single day excursion – the quintessential day hike in Yosemite. It’s about 20 miles total, with about 6,500 feet of elevation gain – longer and more difficult than a round trip up Half Dome.

In the Footsteps of John Muir [Part I]

In John Muir’s book The Yosemite, there is a chapter near the end entitled “How Best to Spend One’s Yosemite Time”. The chapter describes several hikes, just as a modern blog would. He describes two single day excursions, two 2-day excursions, a 3-day excursion, and a grand several week excursion (not the JMT). This post focuses on the first listed single day excursion – the quintessential day hike in Yosemite. It’s about 20 miles total, with about 6,500 feet of elevation gain – longer and more difficult than a round trip up Half Dome. Continue reading “Four Mile Trail, Sentinel Dome, Panorama Trail, Liberty Cap and Mist Trail… In One Day”

Ropi Lake via Horsetail Falls – Desolation Wilderness

This hike is 6-ish difficult miles beginning at the Pyramid Creek trailhead on Highway 50, with about 1900 feet of elevation gain. The unmaintained trail goes past Horsetail Falls (a neat destination itself) up to several beautiful lakes in Desolation Wilderness.

I’ve been wanting to hike up Pyramid Peak for quite some time, but it just hasn’t happened (yet). On the occasions I have planned to do this hike, I’ve been stopped by major thunderstorms or crazy gusts of wind. This weekend, the weather was looking pretty perfect, but with a late start and the days already getting shorter, we didn’t make it up the peak. I will get there eventually. Instead, we hiked up to some high alpine lakes and enjoyed a beautiful and relaxing October day in Desolation Wilderness. Continue reading “Ropi Lake via Horsetail Falls – Desolation Wilderness”

Jack London State Park – Mountain Trail

We hiked the Mountain Trail towards the top of Sonoma Mountain – a seven mile hike with over 1500 ft of elevation gain. It doesn’t quite reach the top which is outside of the park boundary, but it’s nonetheless a great hike.

It has been far too long since we’ve had a chance to get out and hike. Work and other commitments have taken up way too much of our time. We have plans to go to Yosemite in a few weeks – let’s hope the government is back up and running by then.

While visiting friends and family in Sonoma County last weekend, we made plans to stop at Jack London State Park. We hiked the Mountain Trail towards the top of Sonoma Mountain – a seven mile hike with over 1500 ft of elevation gain. It doesn’t quite reach the top which is outside of the park boundary, but it’s nonetheless a great hike. Continue reading “Jack London State Park – Mountain Trail”

Thoughts on my BioLite CampStove: a Review

Disclaimer: This review is not sponsored. The only money I could possibly (but most likely won’t) make is by the link at the bottom if somebody decided to purchase the stove. I do not intend to persuade you one way or another – this piece of gear has some significant pros and cons. Because a lot of people have asked me how I like it, I’ve decided to share some of my thoughts here.

Continue reading “Thoughts on my BioLite CampStove: a Review”

Mount Tallac in Desolation Wilderness

Basics: Mount Tallac is a 10 mile hike (out and back) with approximately 3500 ft of elevation gain. The main trailhead is just a few miles west of South Lake Tahoe, though this peak can also be reached from Gilmore Lake and other areas deeper in Desolation Wilderness. It’s strenuous, but the incredible views down to Fallen Leaf Lake, Lake Tahoe, and over to Desolation Wilderness make this a very popular hike. On summer weekends, there can easily be dozens of people on the summit at once. I would recommend an early start. Permits for day hikes are self-issued at the trailhead. For overnight trips, reserve your permit in advance at Recreation.gov. Continue reading “Mount Tallac in Desolation Wilderness”

Shepherd Pass and Mount Tyndall

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Back in 2010 when we hiked the John Muir Trail, we took a one day detour to the base of Mount Tyndall with hopes of climbing it. In the morning, we scrambled about halfway up the North Rib before deciding to turn back. I think we didn’t climb the mountain for several reasons: we didn’t do any research and weren’t sure of the route, we still had many miles yet to go (with limited food), we had no helmets (the rocks were very loose), and it was freezing cold which gave us a late start on the climb. Perhaps I’m just making excuses, but it just didn’t seem like a good idea at the time. Unfortunately, our failure to summit bothered us until we finally decided to return and finish what we started. Continue reading “Shepherd Pass and Mount Tyndall”

Inspiration Point, Artist Point, and the Old Wawona Road

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We had big plans for hiking in Yosemite (on the order of twenty miles or so), but the summer heat defeated those plans. With little more than wet rocks in place of raging waterfalls, I wanted to go on a hike away from the crowds, and with a little bit of history. This hike fit that bill perfectly, even if it was a bit ad-lib. Continue reading “Inspiration Point, Artist Point, and the Old Wawona Road”

Mariposa Grove to Wawona

Basics: This 6 mile trail near Yosemite’s southern entrance connects the Wawona Hotel to the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias. From mid-spring until the first snowfall, a free shuttle bus runs between these two locations, so this hike can easily be done one-way only. Alternatively, one could hike out and back for a total of 12 miles. The loops around Mariposa Grove are several miles long- so this could potentially make for a very high mileage day. It’s all uphill from the Wawona Hotel to the grove, so naturally we decided to be lazy take the shuttle to the grove, then walk downhill back to the hotel. Continue reading “Mariposa Grove to Wawona”

Garrapata State Park Loop

Basics: This 4+ mile loop trail in Garrapata SP goes from coastal chaparral to grassy hills with epic views to dense redwood forest. Parts of the trail are really steep, but the ocean views and springtime wildflowers are enough to keep anyone going. We added a side trip to Doud Peak, making this a 6 or 7 mile hike. Doud Peak was not worth the extra effort, but more on that later. This hike would be nice any time of year, but it’s especially pretty in the spring when the plants are still somewhat green and the wildflowers are blooming. It’s also a great workout if you are in the area and want to hike something that won’t take all day. Continue reading “Garrapata State Park Loop”

Hines Peak from Middle Lion

Basics: Hines Peak from Lion Canyon is about 20 miles round trip. It’s a long hike, but the views from the top of this peak are epic and worth the crazy hike. Hines Peak is the highest point in the Topatopa Range. Do not attempt this hike on a hot summer day – the Los Padres can be brutal.

There are at least four different approaches to climbing Hines Peak. The easiest? Contact the Forest Service to get the gate code for the dirt road leaving Rose Valley, then drive to the end of Nordhoff Ridge Road (4wd required) and begin the hike from there. The easy hike is around 7 miles roundtrip. Alternatively, Hines Peak can be reached from Sisar Canyon (20 miles round trip), Middle Lion (20 miles round trip) , Rose Valley (20 miles round trip), or from the Sespe River trail (multi-day trip). We opted for the 20 mile hike from Middle Lion Campground. Sisar Canyon seems to be the most common approach – the Sierra Club HPS page has a pretty good description. Continue reading “Hines Peak from Middle Lion”