Skip to main content

Sierra's 2017 - Part Two

My reading friend, as you enjoy my Sierra blog posts, by now I’m sure you get the impression that I’m obsessed with age. And maybe I am. Now that I’m on the north side of 60 honestly, I find it difficult to do what seemed so effortless just 10 years ago.

Committing to an annual Wilderness Mountain Adventure is my way of reminding myself that daily activity, regular exercise, stretching your imagination, proper diet, and a positive approach to living are what allow me to live life to the fullest. 

As Zig Ziglar would say, “You don’t pay the price for good health, you enjoy the benefits of good heath.” So, when I see someone older than me, (older than me, you understand, is 10-15 years my senior) engaged in the same challenging activities it gives me hope that you and I will be exploring life’s mysteries well into our 80s and beyond, God willing. So, let’s get to Part Two of this years adventure.

We left our heroes kicked back gazing into a starlit black velvet sky watching the Milky Way appear with millions of tiny twinkling lights above. The temperature was dropping quickly now.

“I’m turning in for the night.” Thinking, the warmest place for me right now was the comfort of my down sleeping bag, away from the wind, in my tent.

Those of you that know me well, know that I’m an early riser. About 4:45 am. I start pulling clothes into my sleeping bag to warm them before leaping into the morning frost. It was still dark, (about 36 degrees) the moon had risen in the east, illuminating the landscape, the skies crystal clear. You could see Orion's belt and a multitude of Constellations.

We have a tradition during these Mountain adventures. Our goal is to capture the golden glow of “first light” as it creeps down the peaks. In September, in California, this happens around 6:30 am. To my surprise, I watched daylight come without fire on the peaks. That’s odd, I thought. Looking at my Topo Map I realized that our campsite on Upper Lamarck Lake was nestled behind a much higher range of the Sierra’s and the Sun was still hidden behind that horizon.

So, I decided to carefully traverse the lake to another vantage point. For those not familiar with high elevation terrain, this means bounding between very large boulders, paying close attention to each step, or you  end up in a freezing cold lake. It was about 6:40 am, by then. So, when I stopped and looked up suddenly, very unexpectedly, the mountain began to glow! No creeping down the peaks, just POW there it was - Fantastic!

Now, the best part of having a base camp is exploring the Sierra’s without a 35-40 pound pack. It’s also a huge advantage when your backpacking partner is a seasoned Mountaineer and Geologist. So, with a small fanny pack, the 10 essentials, lunch, water, and our hiking poles we set off to explore an area North West of our camp, the Wonder Lakes (click the link to see Google maps location).

According to the map, this area was about one mile from our campsite, no problem, right . . . wrong. Day hikes are ‘off trail” adventures where very few venture. The challenge is to carefully pick your way UP and Down sheer cliffs; over huge boulders, getting trapped in a crevasse formed by an ancient glacier, working your way to a higher elevations, exploring verdant hidden meadows, and to our surprise discovering 10 beautifully hidden waterfalls not visible from the trails.

What an epic hike!

“Let’s go up just one more level,” Brendan would say after conquering a waterfall.

Apprehensively, “I don’t know, How do we get back to our camp from here, I’m exhausted?”

“No problem, we’ll drop down to Lower Lamarck Lake and take the trail back to our campsite.”

“Are you sure that’s the best way?”

Sounds easy enough, well, by the time we get back to camp it’s five hours later and my FitBit had recorded over seven miles of hiking. Needless to say I was beat.

Well, as you probably surmised by now we made it home. 

Today, as I reflect on this years Sierra adventure I’m reminded once again of natures potential; exquisite solitude, exhilarating experiences, a beautiful companion, the delight of discovery, yet contrast with the harsh reality of survival.

As John Muir so eloquently stated, “Take a course in good water and air; and in the eternal youth of Nature you may renew your own. Go quietly, alone; no harm will befall you.”

Comments

Most Popular of All Time

Mom Was Right

In this episode: Mom Was Right (Again!) . . . Remember that old saying, "Mom knows best?" Well, this week, it resonated profoundly. I vividly recall my mother's steadfast remedy for the common cold, which was ingrained in my 1960s childhood: "Rest in bed, drink plenty of fluids, and take aspirin to reduce pain and fever." . . . Or now that I think about it, this may have been a Bayer aspirin commercial–Simple . . . Fast-forward to the age of AI and endless medical information at our fingertips, and guess what? Not much has changed. Yet, somehow, this week, Lori and I were blindsided by a cold—the first in over five years. My incredulous "How could this be?" quickly morphed into a dawning realization. Our company's annual meeting, a melting pot of colleagues from Illinois, Texas, Vietnam, Colorado, Northern California, and the Central Valley, was a veritable petri dish of germs. And, oh, the germs found me! Getting sick, especially after a long str...

Whispers of Spring

In this episode, Whispers of Spring . . . Spring has a way of sneaking in when you’re not looking. One day, you’re shaking off the last chill of winter, and the next, you realize the light has shifted, stretching shadows just a little longer. It didn’t make a big fuss about it—no dramatic entrance, no trumpets—just a quiet unfolding, like an old dog settling into a sunny spot on the porch. Last week, Daylight Saving Time kicked in, which meant we all fumbled with our clocks, grumbled a bit, and then, like frogs taken aback by a warm rain, leapt forward into longer evenings. The sun now lingers, in no rush to set, hanging in the sky like a tossed coin that refuses to fall. With the extra daylight, we find ourselves drawn outside once again, migrating to the back patio like folks are drawn to a warm campfire. The lawn chairs are right where we left them, waiting like old friends. The air hums with wind chimes, their tuned cylinders catching the breeze and weaving together something that...

Special April Fools' Edition: Did You Fall For It?

In this episode: Special April Fools' Edition: Did You Fall For It? (And a Little Baseball Nonsense) Welcome, fellow baseball aficionados and purveyors of the peculiar, to a very special, dare we say unpredictable, issue of On the Fly! Today, the air is thick with . . . well, probably just regular air, but a specific mischievous something is buzzing around. Can you feel it? Does that tingling sensation make you double-check your shoelaces and suspiciously eye any unusual packages? Yes, dear readers, it’s April 1st! A day steeped in mystery, shrouded in playful deception, and frankly, a day where you shouldn't believe anything you read (except maybe this . . .maybe). But before we descend into a whirlwind of whimsical falsehoods (don’t worry, we’ll mostly keep it light!), let’s take a quick, slightly wobbly, historical flight through the origins of this most unreliable of holidays. Whispers from the annals suggest a few intriguing possibilities for why we dedicate this particula...

At 92–Don's Digital Daydream

Listen to the audio here. In a world of his own–lives, ole' Doctor Don, Not one world, but three, 'til the setting of the sun! There’s his Blog-World , so bright, with words all a-whirl, And Book-World , with stories of boy and girl! Then, Day-World , where legs didn't leap, didn't run, Just shuffled and creaked 'til each day is done. But his brain, oh, his mind, it’s zippy and keen, A most curious fellow that ever was seen! At ninety and two, with a twinkle so bright, He met Chatty and said, "What a strange delight!" This box with the answers, so quick and so bold, Of theology and stories, new truths to unfold!" "Integrity, relationships, where do they fit? This thing makes me wonder, bit by bit!" He ponders and pokes with laughter and a grin, "Til POOF! he has gone to a world from within! A world made of words, a fantastical place, Where limits of the body, left not a trace! He Soares, and he zooms, with a thought and a rhyme, Trans...