Oct 5 -- Hiking Fools Get Together

[Perry]

Last time I was up there, most of the picnic tables were over by the ranger station. I imagine it shouldn't be too hard to find everybody. We are both looking forward to this.

[Hikin_Jim]

Joycie and I are just getting under way. See everyone in a bit.

Joycie is very excited, right Joyce? Joyce? Joyce?



HJ

[drndr]

I am going to try and make it but not looking good. Have fun.

[neverwashasbeen]

Well, once it got started, I certainly had a great time. So nice to finally put some faces to some of the names and great to see old friends and meet new friends. I wonder if there is any interest in a Joshua Tree get together in the winter?

[towbradley]

I cant wait to see the photo's.

[Sally]

I had a great time seeing all you hikin' fools! Some highlights: Getting to see little Lily and Joycie, omelets and fritattas by Hikin' Jim, Jalapeno cheese rolls brought by Joe, molasses bread and peanut butter chocolate chip cookies made by Ellen, my chili, and tons of chips, salsa, killer brownies, and other sumptuous goodies. There was much stimulating conversation covering such topics as orange dots, locked gates, closed public lands, just about everything.

Here are some pictures of the festivities:

https://picasaweb.google.com/1009477359 ... directlink

[towbradley]

thanks sally, that was good stuff. glad all had a good time. some one mentioned maybe a gathering in Joshua tree in November ?

[Hikin_Jim]

Joyce and I had a lot of fun. Thank you to everyone who was nice to Joyce.

Before the event, Joyce and I joined jfr and Vicki for a quick trip up the Sid Davis route and back down the main trail from Round Valley. Joyce did the loop entirely on her own; I think it was on the order of four, maybe four and a half miles round trip. This was the first time I've not carried her on a hike, not even a single step. She even made it back up the Ramp of Despair (the cement ramp leading up to the tram from Long Valley).

The Sid Davis route is all but a trail now. Even as recently as a 2010 it was a lot harder to see a single route. Now, there are a few braids, but there's a pretty followable path. There' not much in the way of route finding anymore. Here's Joycie on the Sid Davis route:


And here's Joyce with jfr where things flatten out just before you get to the camp sites in Tamarack Valley. There used to be several use trails wandering around, separating and re-joining. No more. It's a clear path now. We ran into a bunch of folks from the San Jacinto Meetup Group here that morning.


Joyce and Vicki found a nice rock to rest on in Tamarack Valley...


...where Joyce used those cute looks of hers to wheedle snacks. I mean how can you say no to the cuteness?


Vicki introduced Joyce to the Face Tree of Tamarack,


a tree that someone has carved dozens of little faces into. I've never noticed it before although I know I've walked by it a number of times.


In Tamarack, we were treated to Arocknoid-esque wildlife sightings. Joyce enjoyed seeing all the "Bambis".


Less scenic but interesting are the new outhouses they're putting in over by the Round Valley Ranger Station. Say, they could use a couple of doors with those, couldn't they? Hope you weren't really needing to go...


I welcome these new outhouses. The plastic port-a-potties they've been using are such an eyesore.

I noticed also that they're raising the trail near Round Valley, so that it's a couple of inches higher than the surrounding terrain. Maybe people were getting lost back there?


Something tells me that some of the people who ride the tram into the heart of the wilderness may not be hard core backpackers. It's subtle, but when you've been around like I have, sometimes you can pick up those little hard-to-spot clues. Like this:

Yes, that's a backyard type propane BBQ he's carrying in his hands. His friend in the background didn't even have a backpack. He just took the handles on his duffle bag and forced his arms through. Takes all kinds I suppose. Gotta start somewhere.

They've also got a new spigot in Round Valley.

It's a little lower than the old one (or at least the rocks around the pipe are stacked higher), which would make it harder to fill some containers, but how wonderful it is to have a good source of water.

The old spigot:


Speaking of water, there was none to be had anywhere in Long Valley other than the pipe in Round Valley except for one and only one pool in the creek below Round Valley.


The creek itself was dry, dry, dry, as you might expect this time of year. Here, Joycie demonstrates her creek crossing technique.


Interestingly, there have been several bridges built on the main trail to Round Valley (the "low" trail) that cross side creeks, but the main creek crossing remains unbridged. Behind a couple of rocks sit some enormous, very expensive large beams (maybe 18" x 18" -- really big). They've been there for at least a year. Here's a photo from last fall:


I wonder if they've been forgotten? They almost seem too short to bridge the creek. I wonder if they realized they got the wrong size when they got them to the site? In any event, there they sit.

Actually, that's pretty much all my photos. Once I got to the potluck, I was too busy yakking and cooking to shoot photos. I hope some others will contribute more photos.

HJ

[HH8]

the new outhouses they're putting in over by the Round Valley Ranger Station. Say, they could use a couple of doors with those, couldn't they?

If they'd just leave the lid up, at least those of us with long legs could make do

[Ellen]

Howdy All

Leave it to HJ to make memories of that day even better by posting pictures of Joycie

It was great to see Grandmaster Perry and meet Crystal and lovely Lilly.

Sally, Marilyn, Joe Joslin and I started up Skyline about 5 AM. We were getting knocked around pretty good by the wind, but at least it kept us cooled off.

After a recovery beverage at the tram, Joe's friend transported us back to the museum -- thanks buddy. We went back up the tram with our goodies and met everyone in the picnic area.

Thanks to Sally's awesome chili and HJ's incredible egg dishes, I refueled enough to hike again on Sunday.

I love the idea of having a potluck in Joshua tree. Wonderland traverse anyone?

Miles of smiles,
Ellen