RoadTrip: Ruby Mts July 23-28 trip planning, conflicting Tetons/Yellowstone plans

Ruby Mts trip planning

7AM 3/28/2012
Hi ML, Ann,
I may be able to make it to your meeting.  What is your address?
Gary

8AM 3/28/2012
Hi Gary -
The meeting was last night. Sorry!
Ann

11AM 3/28/2012
Well rats! We just had it last night. I wasn't here when you e-mailed. We were all wondering where you were. Peter said you were doing the Pacific Crest Trail in the south. I didn't know that. I thought you were car camping and going to different So. Ca. sites. Ann says there doesn't seem to be much blooming yet in the desert, the rains coming at the wrong time, but maybe in May. You were doing that by yourself?
We didn't do much in the way of planning. Just confirmed that we are going, and the reservations are going to remain in place. Right now there are eleven of us. Ann warned of rain storms, which could be a problem since we are only supposed to have two tents at each site, when there are going to be 4 people at each site, and none of us except Ann and David want to share a tent. I will already be sharing my tent w. Imp so I get first priority! Anyway, we'll deal with that when we come to it.
Are you going to be around for a while?
ML

3PM 6/28/2012
Hi ML,
I'm just back in Santa Rosa (temporarily) from my loitering (only did about 366 miles - but at  the rate of 111 photos per mile!) on the PCT in SoCal.

I'll be hanging around here til at least my Dr's appointment on the 12th of July.   Beyond that  I am eyeing some of the CNPS Rare Plant Treasure Hunt outings in the Sierra that are scheduled about mid-month, to see how many of those I can squeeze in before heading to the Ruby's to meet up with "YOU-ALL".

So, having missed the big meeting on the Ruby's trip at Ann's, I am probably missing a few essential details. Reviewing the messages I have: Ben may get there early for the weekend before the 23rd, but the Lamoille Cyn campground reservations are for Monday the 23rd and the few days following?  And I probably owe you some money?

Do I have that right? Should I know more? Any updates? Who's still going and when for how long? Where to meet and when exactly?

Following the Ruby's gettogether I plan to head off into the sunrise north-east from there towards Yellowstone and beyond for the rest of the year, and so will have a pretty full car, but could make room for a "one-way" passenger on the way there (possibly from one of the CNPS Rare Plant outings in the Sierra) if that passenger can arrange an alternate ride to return (...or willing to go on with me to Yellowstone and on?)
Gary

10PM 7/1/2012
all,
My sister and I decided not be going to the Ruby Mts as planned... 
You will all have to share your stories and pictures when you return.
Pat C

11PM 7/4/2012
Pat,

I feel so so lucky I am still in one piece after that two-month walk I did (but I was just going at my normal leisurely pace with my camera, so it was just very pleasant.)

Best wishes to you and your sister,

-Gary

Gary,

...I start working for SVH the last week in July.

You will love the Tetons, there are so many trails. There is a public
small hot pool off one of the roads on the east side of the park which
I am sorry I did not part take when I was there. They have make the
park very bicycle  friendly.  Yellowstone is fabulous too but more
land to cover. If you have the time, just take in one area for a day
or two. This will make the driving not so bad.

When you return to Santa Rosa, it would be great if you do a
presentation via pictures of your travels.  Happy trails and keep
safe.

Pat 

noon 7/5/2012

ML,

Thanks for the Ruby's FYI's.  

No I haven't yet had time to research the Ruby's but Sandy and I did climb 13,000ft Wheeler Peak at Big Basin just south of there a few years back on our way to Utah  - spectacularly rugged range of peaks extending south of Wheeler - the picts of that are still buried on my disk drive.... should dig them up and post them but unlikely to happen any time soon....

I may be heading up in that direction as soon as the 17th of this month, if I decide to meet up with Sandy (currently in Michigan) and her friend Peter from Moss-Beach who plans to meet her at that time in the Tetons, then do Yellowstone, before they both return to California.  I still hope to persuade Sandy to delay her MI departure by a few days so we could all meet in the Tetons after the Ruby's trip.  But I think Peter may be time-constrained before having to return to Moss Beach.  So I may end up doing _some_ of the Tetons with them, then drive to the Ruby's, then try to catch up with them in Yellowstone.  Too much driving!   Probably more sense for me to skip the Tetons meetup andjust  catch up with them in Yellowstone.

One thought I had in that context and noting that Pat & her sister have cancelled, is that there might be "space" available for Sandy and her friend Peter to join us at the Ruby's.  I recall reading it was the #of cars that were the limiting factor, so maybe one "condition" would have to be that all three of us arrive in a single car.... 

Sandy has been to the Lamoille CG before, I think, and may have 2 or 5 cents of her experience to contribute to the "research".

-Gary

7AM 7/5/2012

Gary,

That would be fine. Nice to see Sandy again.

Oh the Tetons. You will be so amazed! If you have time, hike the less popular Tetons after you've done the hike above Jenny Lake where you camp. But start early in the AM, as it is a very popular hike.

2PM 7/4/2012
Hi Gar,
It was nice to hear your voice last night and talk about plans. Did you say you are thinking about moving to CT and have your sister find you a room to rent? Why? I have never been to New England but the midwest has awful weather. Right now it's humid and 100 degrees. We are all hanging out in the nude and trying cool off in the lake . It feels like Samoa.
Hey, I was thinking of living in AZ because the rents are cheaper  and then hanging out in the desert for wildflowers in the spring and camping in Hawaii in the summer. All the campgrounds are $5 per night and there are alot of free places also. ... Think about it.. I'm gonna go jump in the lake! 
Sandy

9PM 7/5/2012
Hi Sandy,
No not permanently, but if I stay there over the winter months I may want to do so not as a guest but as a tenant.

So there's no possibility that Peter (and you) would consider delaying when you meet up?

One possibility would be to meet at the Ruby's instead around the 23rd, to join the other CNPS folk for that week and then go up to the Tetons.   That might be most efficient car-mileage-wise.

I mentioned the possibility to ML (who is organizing that trip) about the possibility that you and Peter might be interested in joining in, and she said that's fine, but the number of cars is a limiting factor.  If we are going to the Tetons first, it might make sense to "pool" to the Ruby's in one car (if we can find a secure place to leave the other two.)   If we meet at the Ruby's first, we may also be parking some of the cars elsewhere than at the campground.

I'll send you some of the emails on their plans, as I haven't yet paid much attention to their detailed itinerary.
Gary

noon 7/6/2012
Hi Gar,
No, it doesn't make sense for me to meet at the Ruby's first because WY is closer to MI and ID is next to WY so I will be going to those first and then could drop down from ID to NV. Gas and milage are expensive. I also think there won't be enough time for me to join cnps if I arrive at the Tetons on the 18th or 19th -- that would only leave me 10 days to see yellowstone, tetons and friends in ID! I don't like rushing around and the stress it causes. However, I do want to see the wildflowers in the Rubies and do one overnight backpack. I guess it's hard to find level campsites there.
Let me know what you can/want to do.
Sandy

4PM 7/6/2012
Oh,
I didn't know you had other constraining dates.  What are those "windows" when you have to or can be at those various places in Idaho? That would help me plan ahead as well. Thanks.
(And if you give names, reading them might help me remember them...) Thanks.
Gary

11AM 7/7/2012
I don't have other constraining dates other than meeting you and Peter at the Tetons. Bob will be at his log cabin all summer(in Idaho) and David and Lois will also be at theirs in Idaho. 
Sandy


11AM 7/6/2012
Hi Gar,
I was talking with Bud... He said he wants to talk to you about doing a few chores for him...
Mike is moving to that senior apt. on Farmers Lane and Hwy 12 next week... 

Meanwhile, let's meet up at Grand Tetons July 18 or 19. Peter will be joining us. You and I can go stay at my friends in Stanley Idaho if you want. I'm moving next Sat the 14th and will be on the road by Monday the 16th. Later we can go to the cascades with peter.
Sandy 

4PM 7/6/2012
Sandy,
I called Bud this morning, and I guess I'll help Mike move on Monday.
Any ideas where in the Tetons to meet?
Gary

11AM 7/7/2012
Gar,
Jenny Lake campground on the north shore. We need to see if there are any spaces available. 
Thanks for helping Mike.
Sandy   

11AM 7/13/2012
Hi Gar,
I decided to leave on the 30th of July and hopefully meet you at the Tetons on August 2nd or 3rd.  That should give you plenty of time to get there after your Ruby Mt. visit on the 27th of July. 
Peter looked into the 10 site campground at the north end of Jenny Lake (in Grand Teton National Park). the campsite is non-reservable.

Let me know what you think.

2PM 7/13/2012

Sandy,

Oh yay!  That should be perfect!

Thanks!

PCT: calling it A Hike for this year at Islip Saddle

It looks like I've run out of time this spring... a backlog of things to try to handle closer to home, before embarking in July on a different adventure farther from home, a roadtrip with friends first to the Ruby Mts in Nevada, then onwards from there to Yellowstone and thereabouts with other friends, then way east to visit family, then eventually back west by next spring just in time to continue my PCT hike.    

Maybe I'll get a chance somewhere in there to catch up on posting picts of my loitering on the PCT this spring (about 40,000 picts in 360 miles.) 

I'm leaving the PCT at Islip Saddle in the San Gabriels just west of Wrightwood, where the Mountain Yellow Legged Frog Detour begins.  I was last able to do a nice series of day-hikes with the aid of my bicycle.  For example, leaving my car at Dawson Saddle and coasting my bicycle down to the Baden-Powell Trailhead at Vincent Gap one day, and down in the other direction to Islip Saddle the next, and hiking back to my car at Dawson Saddle each time, exploring many of the side trails to the peaks along the way.   Another bicycle-assisted day-hike in this area was between Guffy Campground on the ridge above Wrightwood to Vincent Gap at the Baden Powell trailhead, which I hiked in reverse direction, north to south (actually west to east in that section,)  after bicycling  down from Guffy to Vincent Gap.  Also while I was at the Guffy CG I out&backed the bit of trail east to the Acorn Canyon Trail junction (the spur trail down to Wrightwood.)

It seems that I could continue doing a series of short day hikes like this through at least the remaining portion of trail that roughly parallels Hwy 2 on the crest of the San Gabriels, but I am just running out of time, and am also surprisingly  undecided about which "MYLFrog Detour" to take (a two mile "short-cut" road walk on Hwy 2 [duh!], or a 19 mile trek all the way down the mountain to and then through the Devils Punchbowl regional park, then all the way up the mountain again [huh?].)

So, I will save that decision and the rest of the trail for next year hopefully.

PCT: How's the Walk? Abt done4now, a productive 111picts/mile it's been

How's the Walk?

9PM 6/20/2012
Hi, Gary,
I've been intending to write for a while - somehow work keeps getting in the way.  Looks like I'll be busy most of the summer into fall.

How's your trip going...still going?  If you get this and can reply, just send a short note.  Many people have been asking about you.
-Peter W

7PM 6/25/2012
Hi Peter,
Thanks for asking...
I'm currently in the Wrightwood area in the San Gabriels - just a little past Mt Baden-Powell -  not quite as far as I had expected to be at this point although I chose to measure productivity in pictures not mileage: (about 40,000 picts in 360miles).
Actually I'm running out of time... need to be back in Santa Rosa by the beginning of July, if not sooner - maybe as soon as this Wednesday!
-Gary

PCT: Big Bear to Lk Arrowhead will complete the San Bernardinos

I'm heading back to the trail for now...

 

...after a few days "off"... Hope to "complete" the San Bernardino Mts this week - specifically the segment between Big Bear City to Lake Arrowhead, which I skipped last week because I decided to do the low-elevation (3000-4000ft range) section from Lk Arrowhead to Cajon Pass while the weather forecasted a cooler few days to do it in.  Luckily, I'll apparently have another few cooler days again to complete the section I skipped, though this segment is at about 6000ft, so less of an issue.  

Still not sure whether I'll be heading back to the Bay Area before I start the next (last for me) section - the San Gabriel Mts. (Actually I'd prefer NOT to go back - since I was planning to be back early July before heading out to the Ruby's...  Just not sure yet - will probably make a last-minute decision based on weather, etc.)

 

Last few days:

Overnighted Monday night at Best Western while processing picts, spent Tuesday in CSUSB campus Library also processing picts & some shopping (bought yet another USB disk drive... plus food etc...) in same part of town (San Bernardino.)

At the moment I'm at McDonald's at Lk Arrowhead because I had no internet connection at CSUSB library (complicated story...) emailing this etc and trying to  "verify" how my track logs matched up with my picts.  Seem to be generally correct - eventually will upload geotagged picts...

Still need to prep for my hike within the hr and check bus schedule betw here & Big Bear City where I'll be leaving the car & starting my hike - unless I do it in reverse - as you can tell - still working out the detailed logistics. 

 

Roughly, planning to leave car with Trail Angel "Papa Smurf" in Big Bear City, either get a ride to trailhead there & hike to Cedar Glenn/Lk Arrowhead, take bus back to Big bear City (maybe first leave my backpack at Cedar Glenn PO again.) Retrieve my car, retrieve my backpack.  Or visa versa, leave backpack at Cedar Glen, car at Papa Smurf's, take bus back to Cedar Glen, hike in reverse back to car...

So I've been doing a lot of "processing picts" inbetween hikes but still not uploaded much - still just the San Jacinto peak segment which happened to be during an interesting "ice-storm".

PCT: hiking again from Splinter's Cabin in Deep Creek Cyn to Cajon Pass

Previously described plan in progress. Car at the Best Western at Cajon Pass. Bicycle at CSUSB. Me in Cedar Glen about to try hitching to trailhead at Splinters Cabin in Deep Creek Canyon.

Hope to be back at car in 4-6 days.

PCT: Deep Creek to Cajon Pass car-bike-bus-hike loop logistics

My current plan is to hike the section from Deep Creek to Cajon Pass within the next few days (ideally starting tomorrow while the forecast "Low" keeps things reasonably cool.)  

Specifically, I hope to:

1. Leave backpack in Cedar Glen (at a Trail Angel's place there?)

2. Drive car to Cajon Pass and "hide" bike for an hr or so just below where the trail crosses (at N end of Cajon Blvd which paralells hwy 15 downhill but unfortunately does Not directly connect with hwy 138.)

3. Drive back up to Best Western Hotel At Cajon pass where I've prearranged to leave car for "about a week", promising to "stay a night" before I retrieve my car at the end of hike.)

4. Walk down to my bicycle (about 1/4 mile, but involves some bushwhacking from where trail emerges from under hwy 15 to where I'll have my bike hid.)

5. Bicycle to CSUSB where I've prearranged with campus police to leave my bicycle a few overnights.

6. Take bus back up to Cedar Glen.

7. Call the Trail Angel to retrieve backback & get a ride to traIlhead.

PCT: bus Big Bear to Hwy10 to fetch car, plan hike to Cajon Pass

I'm currently at another trail-angel's home in Big Bear City. Trail Angel "Papa Smurf" picked me up from hwy 18 at the trail, got a shower, washed my clothes, had lunch and just had dinner (meat loaf, baked potato, corn on the cob, and broccoli), will sleep overnight in their yard.

Tomorrow early they'll drive me a few miles to catch a bus at 6:30 that will go down into San Bernardino where I'll transfer to a few buses to get me by about noon to Beaumont which is along hwy 10 near the other Angel's "Ziggy & the Bear's" place where I left my car. They will pick me up and drive me the 10 miles to retrieve my car.

I then plan to process some more picts (not sure where yet), do some resupply shopping, return with my car to the Big Bear/Silver Lake area to scout out the next leg between where I left the trail and probably Cajon Pass, a distance of about 60 miles, or probably a bit over a week of walking.  There is another trail angel in the Silver Lake area about midway.  I think there is a bus between Big Bear Lake and Silver Lake, so I might try something like leaving car at Silver Lake and taking bus Back to Papa Smurf's where I've kept my pack & get ride back to trail, walk to Silver lake, then maybe drive down to Best Western Motel to drop off pack, drive back to Silver Lake & leave car there, bicycle back to Cajon pass, do reverse-hike back up to Silver Lake.  This shuttling would take another couple additional days.  Maybe some alternative will develop.  If not and bicycling turns out infeasible, maybe I'll take a break slightly earlier than planned below. 

After getting to Cajon Pass, I'll probably take a break since the timing would be within the window of Stephen's visit home.

That would leave 160 more miles through the San Gabrials. 

Oh, what about the hike so far.  Hope to post more picts soon.  It has all been very enjoyable.