Outdoor Adventures with Ancient Brit
PCT 2002 - June 4th
Day 49: Tuesday 4th June Cow Creek - Crestline Saddle
I left early enough in the morning to come across Megan and Gilby still in camp.
Megan, from Chicago, had started from the border on May 1st, but had missed the
Mojave to Walker Pass section to meet Gilby for the traverse of the High Sierra. Gilby,
from Iowa, was working as a lawyer in London. Megan, also a lawyer, had just heard she
had got a place on a MA journalism course starting in august, so it was unlikely she
would be able to complete her trek. While I had my second breakfast with the girls
“Hahn Solo”, Larry and “Grasshopper” came through travelling fast. “Grasshopper”
needed to keep moving since he had to be back in his native New York for a court case
in September.
There was a “David and Goliath” struggle between two lizards on the trail. There were
several of the rare and unusual Snow plant beside the trail. These bright red fleshy-
leaved plants poke through the forest floor as the snow recedes.
It was hot by the time I stopped at Death Canyon for my afternoon siesta. Death Canyon
had some nice pools for a welcome bath. The next part of the route followed a long dry
ridge so I rehydrated with several pints of tea and refilled my water bottles. There were
a few mosquitoes around, but a bigger threat was a wasp-like insect with sting looking
like a swordfish.
I waited until it started to cool down before starting on the 2½-hour climb up to ridge
and camped at 10,390ft at Crestline Saddle. This was my first camp above 10,000ft, so I
was expecting a cold night. As usual I was camping on the fine sandy gravel resulting
from the breakdown of the granite rocks from which these mountains are made. There
were good views of Owen’s lake, now dried up since the water that should filled it had
been diverted to Los Angeles by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
Day 49: 14.8 miles 7.26 hours Camp: Crestline Saddle
I left early enough in the morning to come across Megan and Gilby still in camp.
Megan, from Chicago, had started from the border on May 1st, but had missed the
Mojave to Walker Pass section to meet Gilby for the traverse of the High Sierra. Gilby,
from Iowa, was working as a lawyer in London. Megan, also a lawyer, had just heard she
had got a place on a MA journalism course starting in august, so it was unlikely she
would be able to complete her trek. While I had my second breakfast with the girls
“Hahn Solo”, Larry and “Grasshopper” came through travelling fast. “Grasshopper”
needed to keep moving since he had to be back in his native New York for a court case
in September.
There was a “David and Goliath” struggle between two lizards on the trail. There were
several of the rare and unusual Snow plant beside the trail. These bright red fleshy-
leaved plants poke through the forest floor as the snow recedes.
It was hot by the time I stopped at Death Canyon for my afternoon siesta. Death Canyon
had some nice pools for a welcome bath. The next part of the route followed a long dry
ridge so I rehydrated with several pints of tea and refilled my water bottles. There were
a few mosquitoes around, but a bigger threat was a wasp-like insect with sting looking
like a swordfish.
I waited until it started to cool down before starting on the 2½-hour climb up to ridge
and camped at 10,390ft at Crestline Saddle. This was my first camp above 10,000ft, so I
was expecting a cold night. As usual I was camping on the fine sandy gravel resulting
from the breakdown of the granite rocks from which these mountains are made. There
were good views of Owen’s lake, now dried up since the water that should filled it had
been diverted to Los Angeles by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
Day 49: 14.8 miles 7.26 hours Camp: Crestline Saddle
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Megan
Gilby
Lizard wars
Ancient Brit on
Olancha Ridge
Olancha Ridge
Snow Plant
Ancient Brit filtering
water in Death Canyon
water in Death Canyon
Ancient Brit in
Death Canyon
Death Canyon
Olancha
Crestline