It's been a busy day driving around an unjustifyable amount for questionable reasons
Woke up with the sun hitting my site at Scott Summit early as I had hoped. Got myself ready to go and decided pretty much as I drove onto the road, to head south again back to Parks Creek Summit, to climb Mt Eddy instead of heading north toward Etna as had been my plan.
This simply because I felt good and felt like hiking, and staying at cooler elevations during this heat wave, rather than sitting in the car getting to Etna just a bit sooner than necessary for a possible Friday evening hitch up to Etna Summit, without an overnight stay at the Alderbrook Hiker Hut.
So down Scott Summit then up Parks Creek Summit Road again - feeling like it's becoming a commute going to Parks Creek Summit for yet again. Packed my day pack with some snacks and water filter, and my microspikes and ski poles and snow pants just in case. Another "commute" heading south to the Deadfall Lakes for the 2nd time, it would be third time back, including my "real" PCT hike from Castle Crags to here. Got to the first lake in about 40 minutes (using the ski poles do lengthen my stride) and continued up off the PCT to the upper lakes, now slowing down a bit to take picts, and to refill my emptied liter bottle filtered from one of the higher lakes, but pushing on up the slopes of Mt Eddy, with my usual stops to photodocument the changing vegetation and some of the rocks, and a few hazed over pano's of the changing horizon including distant Castle Crags and the ridge the PCT traversed to the Deadfall Lakes. Got to the summit, a broad gravelly ridge with some remains of two former huts and twisted lengths of cables that used to hold the huts from being blown away by the wind. Today there was virtually no wind, reminiscent of my balmy afternoon on Mt Whitney last year. No snow on the trail, just a few patches around - one long remnant of a drift in the north-east side, making for a fair foreground to Mt Shasta looming to the east. Didn't take a break at the tup, took a break back at the topmost deadfall lake, finally drinking the water I'd filtered earlier and carried up & back unused. Decided to walk around that lake, very interesting boggy meadows around the north side, with a profusion of shooting starts and buttercups, but most strikingly, clouds of mayflies, rafts of mayfly larvae casings on the water, and mayfy larvae covering the lake bottom. Hundreds of mayflies hitching a ride on me. I eventually found my way back to the trail and commuted back to my car, by about 4pm. It was worthwhile for the opportunity to visit the upper Deadfall Lakes.
A bit later than planned, I headed straight for the Alderbrook Manor in Etna, talked (again) with Vicky and Dave Harrison about leaving my backpack, explained my intention to be back tomorrow noonish with my bike, not sure if I would stay the night if it was easier to hitch a ride upFriday evening than Saturday morning, he informed my he offered rides to the summit for $5, sounded good to me, would probably stay the night then.
Off then to Callahan where I again decided, at about 8pm that I had time to leave myself a food & water cache there (sort of had that possibility in the back of my mind though there was only a 20 mile distance on the trail between the two road crossings, and a total of only about 55 miles from Etna Summit to the ridge above Kangaroo Lake, Did so, FWIF. Back down to Callahan, then on to Kangaroo lake, got there just at dusk, parked at the Parking area for the Fenn Trail, which I assumed would be the trail coming off the ridge from the PCT above. It said no camping, but I wasn't building a fire or anything... I had bought a rotisserie chicken in Etna on my way out, and stuffed that down, with some other fresh fruits etc I'd bought.
Next morning it did take me a bit longer getting myself and my bike sorted bike packed than planned, so didn't get bicycling til about 9:30 am.the Alderbrook Hiker Hut the evening of 6/6, with some drousiness from being past my normal bedtime, and distraction from fellow hikers, at 10pm now. got to stop now.]
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