Sunday, May 31, 2015

More Off Trail Adventures

Beautiful grotto

This week I decided to do some more off trail hiking.  It's the only way to escape the crowds that the internet is bringing.  I was rewarded with the discovery of a beautiful grotto.

The trail


Funaria Hygrometrica moss



Wild Marchantia liverwort

Wild Marchantia liverwort

The River during the spring melt

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Lake Bagging


Strawberry Lake
Off to a secret but not so secret lake.  My first time at this lake.  We got caught in one heck of a hail storm while were were on an exposed ledge.  I got soaked from the waist down as I had only packed a rain coat.  A freak lightening and thunder and hail storm was not in the forecast.

This pretty little lake could easily be loved to death so I won't reveal the location.  A combination of too many braggarts and the internet are ruining many places that were only known to locals.   The Vance Creek Bridge is one example.   Some people are more concerned with their egos than anything else.  These people should stay in the city and join a track team or a pickle ball league or something.  Leave the mountains for those of us who actually care about them.

 And yes, I do know that loggers love the woods and the mountains.  I'm not talking about loggers or anglers  here, I'm talking about people who put on track suits and then brag that they found all the secret spots and boost their egos by providing track logs to them.  They don't care about the secret spots or how fragile they are, they only care about bragging.

Sadly people have chosen to place two grave markers at this lake.  I disapprove.  If every person who ever died had a grave marker in the wilderness there would be no wilderness left.






Philontis moss with sporophytes

Polytrichum moss with sporophytes

Jacob's shooting star flowers

Fontinalis aquatic moss

reflections and stripes

Off the beaten path




My wanderings have taken me off trail again.  I'm disgusted by certain people who care more for bragging about their accomplishments than they care for the mountains.  My solution is to go off trail to avoid all of them.  I will continue to post pictures here but my trip reports will always be vague unless I am on a well traveled trail.  Some things don't need to be bragged about on internet hiking boards or listed in hiking guidebooks.













Wednesday, May 13, 2015

In town



  I've been under the weather with a nasty cold but I'm finally on the mend.  Not wanting to overdo it while I am recovering I opted to take a short hike in town.  I got a good dose of automobile exhaust .  I tried to find the canyon trail via  a new route but instead got lost in the scot's broom.  The scot's broom is blossoming so it was actually nice to walk in.

5 miles with 250 elevation gain