Levi Cole

Water, It's Heavy. But We Need It!

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:16:00 +0000

We know that when hiking we should more water than usual.

So, how much should you drink?
How should you carry it?

I was researching the answers to this for myself and decided that if I’m doing the research I might as well share.

Water is a pain in the ass, and here’s why:

Water is heavy at 8.3 lbs per Gallon(3.75 liters)

On an average hot day without exercising you should have about 3 liters of water a day

If you are hiking you want to bring more, let’s say 3.75 liters This is about a gallon of water. At 8.3 pounds per gallon, This is very manageable if you are going on a day hike, but not if you are going for longer that that. Considering that for 2 days that’s over 16 pounds you have to add before you even start.

You need containers to hold these amounts of water which can be cumbersome.

So how you carry the water you need?

Carry a water filter with you when backpacking, which allows you to get clean water from a lake, pond, puddle, river or stream. Insert the hose of the water filter into the water and pump the water into a bottle. (http://www.ehow.com/how_2210377_carry-water-hydrate-backpacking.html) I have a small review on one such filter I used on a camping trip the filter is called the Katadyn Hiker Pro Water Micro filter You can read what I thought by reading about my California Camping Trip

Hike with a bladder system, such as a camel pack. This can be placed in your backpack and has a hose that attaches to it and connects to your shoulder strap. You can filter water directly into your bladder system. You can pick one of these up for a good price at Wal-Mart. Or you can find Multiple web sites on the Web that sell them as well.

I use the water pack option. I also carry Some water purifier tablets just in case.

If you have any Ideas on carrying water, please leave a post.

hikingforums.net

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 17:43:00 +0000

I recently found a forum for hiking called hikingforums.net. It is a great Forum with plenty of ideas as well as help for anyone new to hiking. I encourage everyone to check it out.

Bristle cone Trail-Mt. Charleston, NV

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 22:41:00 +0000

Bristle cone trail at MT. Charleston goes in a loop. and it has some great scenery.

The following information about the trail was taken from the US Forest Service site at

http://www.fs.fed.us/r4/htnf/recreation/hike_backpack/smnra/bristlecone_trail.shtml

Bristlecone Trail

LENGTH: 5.2 miles round trip
ELEVATION: 8,470 feet to 9,380 feet
USE: Hiking, pack & saddle, biking
ABOUT THE HIKE:

The beginning of the Upper Bristlecone Trail winds through a picturesque forest abundant with fir and large quaking aspen. As you climb out of the canyon, the vegetation becomes sparser due to harsher conditions and shorter growing season found on these more exposed slopes. It is here that you reach the rugged, stands of ancient Bristlecone pines.
After two miles the trail widens and follows the abandoned WPA road. Follow this road for the remainder of the Bristlecone Trail.
The route passes the junction with the Bonanza Trail then descends into a canyon as the Lower Bristlecone Trail. Stay on the abandoned road, pass through a small grove of aspen, and continue on until the roadbed ends at the lower Bristlecone trail head.
Walk south up State Route 156 for ¾ mile to return to the upper parking lot of Lee Canyon Ski Area.

DIRECTIONS TO TRAILHEAD:
Upper Bristlecone Trail head

Travel southwest on State Route 156 for 17 ¼ miles into Lee Canyon until the road dead ends in the upper most parking lot of the Lee Canyon Ski Area. The Upper Bristlecone Trail head is located on the west side of this lot.

Lower Bristlecone Trail head

Head southwest on State Route 156 for 16 ½ miles into Lee Canyon . Turn right onto Scout Canyon Road 140 ft. north of the McWilliams Campground to reach the trail head. Ample parking is available at this trail head.

It was a great hike with wonderful scenery. As a matter of fact a little off the trail at one spot there was a little log shelter that it most likely used by skiers and snowboarder in the winter time. Considering that the upper trail starts at a ski area.

Archway on the trail

Along the trail

Thistle along the trail

Log Shelter

Inside Shelter

View from High point in the loop

Natalie On the trail

Another view

Once again it was a great hike. Although the whole thing was over 5 miles. So considering the dryness of the air and heat in the summer of this region. I encourage you to make sure you bring enough water. Especially since there is none in the summer time near the trail.

More hikes and Photos coming soon. Thanks for reading.

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 23:14:00 +0000

While looking for information for my blister prevention post, I came across a site called Hike Hacker. It has some great tips on hiking for the new comer and the seasoned hiker. As a matter of fact I got one of my blister prevention ideas from them. They have many other good articles as well.

http://www.hikehacker.com/

How to Prevent Blisters

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 19:19:00 +0000

Blisters are one thing that any hiker has to deal with at one time or another. Blisters can not only be painful and ruin a hike, they can also lead to infection and be dangerous. The best way to take care of them is to prevent them.

First we have to take a look at what a blister is, and what causes it.

according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blisters

A blister is a small pocket of fluid within the upper layers of the skin. Blisters can be filled with blood (known as blood blisters) or with pus (if they become infected). However, most blisters are filled with a clear fluid called serum. Serum is the part of the blood that remains after red blood cells and clotting agents have been removed.

A blister usually forms because the outer layer of the skin has become damaged. Fluid collects under the damaged layer of skin, cushioning the tissue underneath, protecting it from further damage and allowing it to heal.

A blood-blister usually forms when a small blood vessel close to the surface of the skin ruptures (breaks) and blood leaks into a tear between the layers of skin. This can happen if the skin is crushed, pinched or squeezed very tightly.

Blisters can also form as the result of certain medical conditions.

OK, so we know what a blister is, How do we get them.

Back to wiki, it says.

Causes

Blisters are usually caused by injury to the skin from heat or from friction, which creates a tear between the epidermis—the upper layer of the skin—and the layers beneath. When this happens, the surface of the skin remains intact, but is pushed outwards as serum seeps into the newly created space between the layers.

Short periods of intense rubbing can cause a blister, as can any rubbing of the skin continued long enough. Blisters are most common on the hands and feet, as these extremities are susceptible while walking, running, or performing repetitive motions. Blisters form more easily on moist skin than on dry or soaked skin, and are more common in warm conditions.

So in essence it is saying that hiking is probably the easiest way to get a blister. But, looking at the causes it is easy to find ways to prevent them.

It says the main cause of blisters are friction.

To minimize this you want to wear hiking boots that fit well. This will minimize any rubbing that your foot will be doing.
You want to wear appropriate socks. The best sock I have found are Thorlo® you can purchase a pair at http://www.thorlo.com/hiking-socks.php

2. You are more likely to get a blister if your feet are moist.

You want to have good socks that wick moisture, Thorlo® once again.
When possible wear well ventilated shoes.
When you take breaks you want to take your shoes off in order to cool off and dry out your feet. Better yet take your socks off to dry and give your feet a little massage.
If you are really prone to blisters you may want to wipe your feet down with a baby wipe in order to clean off any pieces of dirt. These can also cause blisters if they rub on your feet for a period of time.

If you have tried all of that or don't have the money to get new shoes and socks, you can try to reduce blisters by reducing the amount of friction on you trouble areas. One way to do this is Duct Tape. If you know you are going to have trouble on your heel for instance, put Duct Tape right over your heel before you put your sock on. Or if you are feeling a blister starting to happen, you can put Duct Tape on the trouble area to reduce friction.

You don't have to bring a whole roll of tape with you, you can just take a little bit and wrap it around your hiking pole or around something else that you normally carry with you.

If you have any other ideas on how to prevent blisters please post them.

Until next time, hope you enjoyed it.

Caves at Red Rock Nevada

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 22:06:00 +0000

Exploring caves is fun.

My friends Ben and Justin where coming to visit for a while and we thought it would be fun find some caves that I heard about in Red Rock. Unfortunately I am not going to say the exact location of the caves because over the years they have received much damage from visitors. There is a lot of trash and spray paint all over the walls and floor. So, in order to preserve what is left of them I don't want to be responsible for sending many other people there.

I will say that if you are planning a trip to Red Rock, their location can be found elsewhere on the Internet and judging by the amount of spray paint on the walls there are quite a few people from Las Vegas that know about them as well. Enough of my rambling though, lets get to the trip.

The trail to the caves

There was a very nice trail that took us most of the way there. The trail is actually where they take people horse back riding around the area.

View Back Toward The Road (almost to the caves)

Closer To The Cave

It was all an easy trail up till about this point. We knew the caves where around that area. But we didn't know exactly where. But, whats the point of exploring if you know where your going. Unfortunately the exploring let us up a cliff. It wasn't anything you need rope to climb, but it wasn't completely safe ether.

Justin Before we climbed

On The Way Up

(Ben, Me, Justin, Natalie) Close To The Entrance of one of the Caves

We finally found both caves. The photos are a mix between both. One of the was basically one large room. While the other drops down several times and had many rooms. It only went back and down though so it was impossible to get lost.

Entrance To Cave

Ben, Me, Natalie Eating Lunch in Cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

Inside cave

One interesting thing we found was that when you hold a black light up to the rocks in the cave, little speckles glow on them.

That image is also a good example of how dark it is in a cave without lights.

You can see what I mean about the spray paint. It really detracts from the cave. We did manage to get all of our cave exploring in before the sun went down.

Right outside the cave

I hope you enjoyed the post and Photos. As always, Comments are welcome. So is subscribing to this blog.

My Ranting Note:

If you do visit a cave or anything in nature I stress once again as I have before, Please take you trash with you. And try your best not to F#!k up the place with a can of spray paint, no matter how much self control you have to exhibit at the time! Thank you.

Mary Jane Falls

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 20:52:00 +0000

I recently hiked Marry Jane Falls trail on Mt Charleston in Nevada.

Top of Marry Jane falls Trail

Mary Jane Falls is a hiking trail on MT Charleston in Nevada, it's not to far from Vegas. It's only a 25 to 30 minute drive from where I live. It is interesting to see the desert scenery change into Pine trees and forest on the way up. The best part about Mt Charleston is the fact that it's never to hot.

Mary Jane falls is a nice day hike if you want a decent workout.

According to http://www.localhikes.com/Hikes/MaryJaneFalls_4120.asp

Highlights:	Steep switchbacks & rock steps to year-round cascading falls, escape from desert
Near:	Las Vegas, NV
Scenery:
Distance:	3 miles round trip
Elevation Gain:	1200 ft
Hike Time:	2 hours
Difficulty:	Moderate
Trail Condition:	Well maintained trail
HikeType:	Out and Back

Summary:

Short but very strenuous hike utilizing switchbacks and stone steps (rip-rap) on a very well marked and heavily used trail. Keep your dogs leashed and under control since a lot of hikers seem to bring their dogs on this one. With a very steep trail, loose rock, and netting in place for erosion control, you definitely don't want to cut across this trail. Older children can make this hike, but be sure they are used to climbing and high altitude. There is a nice size cave along the N cliff, to the left of the falls on the left; with an easy to follow path leading to the mouth of the cave. From the base of the falls you can see Big Falls to the WSW, and Charleston Peak in the background (snow covered until mid/late Spring). This is a pretty trail with ponderosa pines, white fir, aspen, and mountain mahogany. Look for deer and fox in the aspens at sunrise and sunset, near the beginning /end of trail. Hike early to avoid the crowds at Mary Jane Falls.

Trailhead: I-15 N from Las Vegas to 95 N towards Reno, W on SR 157 (Mt. Charleston - Kyle Canyon) continue past the hotel, 2 miles W of USFS ranger station, to Echo Road. This is where the road curves sharply to the left to head up into old town and the lodge. Instead, continue to the right (almost straight) as it becomes Echo Road. Turn left at the fork (signed) onto the gravel road and park at the trailhead. There are RR at this parking area and it is also the trailhead for Big Falls. MJ Falls is a good trail for the visitor who wants an escape from the casinos and from the desert floor - - it is a short hike and the drive up and back is very scenic. Pack a lunch to enjoy at MJ Falls, but don't expect heavy water flow over the falls unless it is early spring. LOTS of people use this trail so please pack out any trash you see along the trail, there is a dumpster at the parking area to put it in. (Lat:36.26776 Lon:-115.66295)

You do want to make sure you are in decent shape for this hike as like the summery said is all up hill. That is until you come down. The scenery was beautiful, There was still a little of snow on the higher mountains making the view breath taking.

I ended up going with my entire family. (Wife, Mom, dad, sister and her friend)

Mom on the trail

Wife on the trail

Dad in front of one of the falls

It took us a little while to find the trail head but we knew it when we saw it namely because of the other cars and trucks in the parking area. The summery wasn't joking when it said Marry Jane was a popular trail. It wasn't crowded to the point of not being fun. As a matter of fact most people coming down, that we passed on the way up, were very cheerful and gave nothing but encouragement to other people on their way up. That may not happen all the time, but the smiley faces were up lifting.

Getting Ready At the Parking Area (My sister is the skinny girl in the middle of the Photo)

Me and Dad making sure we know where we are going at the trailhead

Me Along the Trail

Once we got to the top we were treated with an excellent view, as well as the falls. Although I wouldn't call them falls myself, I would call them trickles. The water does trickle 50 ft though.

View From The Top

The Falls

The coolest thing how ever was the ice. The snow and ice that had fallen off the mountain as spring hit, gathered in little mounds. The water trickling down on to the snow and ice cut through it, making very interesting formations. Its one of those things that words won't describe well.......but I have photos.

Ice Formation

Ice Wall

The next thing we decided to check out was the cave the you read about in the summery. I wouldn't call it much of a cave but more of a shelter. It went back a good 15 ft or so. It was interesting non the less.

Inside the Cave

View of the out side from the inside

Natalie Right Outside Cave

The way down was quick and fun. All in all I found this to be an interesting and fun hike. I hope you enjoyed the post. I'll be posting on another hike soon.

Comments and suggestions are welcome and appreciated.

And remember,
The blog is for you, so suggestions are important in making the site more enjoyable for you.

Food for Hiking

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 20:52:00 +0000

Ever wonder what food to bring on a Hike or camping trip. I personally like to pack as light as possible. This not only helps with hiking but when I camp I don't want to spend lots of time searching through all the stuff I didn't have to bring to get to the stuff I need.

Food is one of those things that you need, but it can get heavy depending on how you pack. On the other hand some may think that in order to cut down on weight you must cut down on verity and taste. Fortunately this is not true.

I came across another blog that offers some good food advice for hiking.

they also have a menu for a six day hiking trip that they use. Everything on the menu when portioned correctly can be a very good calorie to weight ratio.

They also had a great Idea that I will use from now on, which is, pack your condiments in film canisters. Me and my wife Natalie have had trouble packing condiments and have tried different ideas and film canisters is the best one yet.

I encourage you check out their food article at http://frankinoz.blogspot.com/2007/09/food-preparation-for-overland-track.html

Happy Hiking

California Camping Trip

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 18:27:00 +0000

I recently visited my hometown of Prather California which is in Fresno county to go camping with my friends Ben and Justin. We had a great time. Though we did get turned around because of poor navigation on our part and we didn't end up staying where we originally intended, which was Edison Lake. We ended up on some Jeep trail at Kaiser Pass. The elevation was around 9,000 feet and the views were great.

Camp

As you can see from the photo we slept in hammocks, aside from Justin who was on the air mattress on the ground. This was actually my first time sleeping in a hammock while camping. Because of this I had to experiment in order to get the comfort I was hoping for. I may make a post devoted to tips on sleeping in hammocks but for now I'll add just a couple tips.

If you are going to sleep in a net style hammock like the one I was in make sure you bring something to put on the bottom of it for insulation. I found this out the first night when I couldn't warm up my back. Thankfully I had a 2 inch self inflatable pad that I put on the hammock the second night. These pads are great, I have the Therm-a-Rest® brand of these pads and I find them warm, comfortable and easy to pack. If you don't have one of these I suggest getting one even if you never plan to use a hammock while camping. I got mine from the Bass Pro Shop.

Bring a pillow. I thought I wasn't going to need one in a hammock, but I was thankful I brought my inflatable pillow.

Bring a tarp. (This can be helpful if it rains.)

Make sure you have enough rope and you have some knowledge of knots. On that note you may also want to bring something like foam, or another soft padding material for the trees you are tying it to. The bare rope on the tree will damage the bark on the tree and sometimes more than that. This opens the tree up to insects and disease. It's quite like a rope burn for us, hennessyhammock.com sells tree huggers which are special straps to prevent damage to the tree.

To continue with the trip our first order of business once camp was set up was to look around the camp site.

View from campsite

We decided we liked the spot and then needed to get water. Normally I would suggest bringing your own, but Ben just got a new water filter we all wanted to try out. I highly recommend these if you camp where there is water. As it happened we were by a creek. So I got out my collapsible 5 gallon container and we headed to the creek with the filter.

1. The Creek
2. Justin (Left) & Ben (Right)
3. Justin pumping water

The water we got from that little filter tasted great. (And none of us got sick from it) But, considering I never used a filter before, because I have brought my own water. I decided to look up how reliable they are. Turns out the Katadyn Hiker Pro Water Micro filter that we were using passes the test in filtering out all the bad stuff and leaving water that from personal experience, tastes great. You can learn more about the filter as well as purchase one from http://www.backcountry.com they run around $75.00 on that site.

You can also get them from Bass Pro Shop.

I was thankful we got the water when we did because after the hike back to camp with the water I was starting to get unusually fatigued and I had developed a headache that the Ibuprofen wouldn't take away. This could be two things, dehydration or altitude sickness. Altitude sickness can effect people at 8,000 feet or above and is not fun. Dehydration is the easier to cure. Considering I had nothing to drink but a couple of beers and a soda the previous night, I was voting for dehydration. Thankfully After a few glasses of water and some rest back at camp made the headache go away and I got my energy back. If you want more information on altitude sickness Click Here.

After my strength was back we went on a 4 to 5 mile hike. (Made sure I brought water with me.) It was on that hike where we found a natural lake and beautiful scenery.

Photos: Natural Lake about a mile from the camp site.
(The top two were taken by me, while the bottom two where taken by Ben.)

A little farther past the lake and we were treated with a great view and some Yellow-bellied Marmots.

The view

Marmots

Viewing the image in full size will allow you to see them better. In case you have not heard of these animals the short description is that they are big F###ing squirrels, if you want the longer definition I took the following article from Wikipedia.

The Yellow-bellied Marmot (Marmota flaviventris), also known as the Rock Chuck, is a ground squirrel in the marmot genus. It lives in the western United States and southwestern Canada, including the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada. It inhabits steppes, meadows, talus fields and other open habitats, sometimes on the edge of deciduous or coniferous forests, and typically above 2000 metres (6500 ft) of elevation. Yellow-bellied Marmots usually weigh between 5 and 11 pounds (2 and 5 kg) when fully grown. They get fatter in the fall just before hibernating. A marmot's habitat is mostly grass and rocks with few trees. Their territory is about 20,000 to 30,000 square meters (about 6 acres) around a number of summer burrows.

You can read the full article at Here.

The next day we decided to head down the hill. On the way we decided to take a look at an abandon Logging town not to far off Dinkey Creek Road. While we where exploring the buildings, we found out the forestry was doing a preservation project to open the town up to the public as a museum. There was no one there that day though and it appeared that the preservation was a slow going process that started in 2001 according to a sign on the wall of the general store.

Machine Shop & Single Room Cabin

Inside One Room Cabin

Inside Another Cabin & Old Boots Outside

It was inside the old general store that we saw indications of the age of the town.

Old bottles and cans on the store shelves.

I did some research on the Pepsi can and found out it was from 1971 and originally looked like this.

It rusted because those cans were made out of steel. The Spam looking can with the brand name Temt was around in the late 1940's.

Old Freezer In The Store

The one room school house was our first clue that some of the buildings were being restored.

School House

Notice the wood looks new, and the stove looks much to clean for 20 years or so of weather.

Kitchen with wood burning grill.

One of the most interesting things about the town that is still standing was the tepee incinerator. I later learned that is was the reason the town shut down. Apparently they made this type of incinerator illegal so as apposed to spending the money to fix the problem the Owner of the operation shut it down.

Incinerator

Inside The Incinerator (The disco ball pattern is from bullet holes.)

And how would you like to open your door at home and see this view.

While search for information on the town I came across this article in the Fresno Bee (Fresno's news paper)

Pine logging camp

History of the once-vibrant camp is shared

By Guy Keeler / The Fresno Bee

10/04/07 18:09:07

DINKEY CREEK -- A soft breeze sweeps through mountains once filled with the clatter of machinery and the deafening scream of saw blades tearing into thick logs.

Although this section of the Sierra National Forest has been quiet for nearly 30 years, Patrick Emmert and Thomas Catchpole are eager to talk about the noisy old days when the Pine Logging Camp was producing lumber here to build homes in the central San Joaquin Valley and beyond.

"This place is a unique feature of the mountains," says Emmert, a forester for Sierra Forest Products and secretary of the Central Sierra Historical Society. "It's a sawmill town in the woods that has a human story."

Emmert and Catchpole, a retired forester who worked as a part-time scaler at the sawmill from 1976 until it closed in 1979, want to keep the logging camp's story alive so future generations can appreciate its role in Central California history.

Both men will be on hand to share their knowledge of the camp today during the Central Sierra Historical Society's Pine Logging Picnic, a fundraiser to acquaint visitors with the site and stir up interest in preserving it.

A significant amount of work already has been done to preserve the camp's remaining buildings. Many were damaged by weather or vandals over the years, but in 2002 and 2003, Emmert coordinated restoration work to clean, stabilize and repair the structures.

"We still need to do more work on the buildings," he says. "We'd also like to put up some interpretive displays and signs to tell people about the buildings."

Emmert says additional improvements, including construction of public restrooms and a parking lot, may come in the future as the U.S. Forest Service moves ahead with plans to turn the camp's old truck garage into a fire station.

The Pine Logging Company was organized in 1933 by Robert Grimmett and James Rohrbaugh. Initial logging operations were conducted in Mariposa County and other mountain areas but were moved to the Shaver Lake area when Grimmett bought 3,500 acres of timber from Southern California Edison.

A site near Dinkey Creek, about 10 miles east of Shaver Lake, was selected for the camp. Workers began clearing the area in 1936, and the sawmill went into production the next year.

Equipment and living conditions were primitive in the early years, Catchpole says.

"They used two-person saws to clear the trees," he says. "Chain saws were not developed until after World War II."

Catchpole says the first building was a structure to house a diesel generator, which supplied the sawmill and camp with electricity.

"The sawmill would start operations as soon as the road opened in the spring, which was usually in March or April," Emmert says. "Then it would keep going until snow closed the road in the fall."

Logs were cut into boards at the mill, and the lumber was hauled by truck to a yard in Fresno. After the boards were dried and finished, they were shipped to lumberyards throughout the central San Joaquin Valley and as far away as Los Angeles.

Workers and their families lived at the camp while the sawmill was in operation, and several buildings were constructed to meet their needs. Emmert says the tiny community, which numbered 150-200 people, grew to include 41 houses, 14 bachelor barracks, shower houses, a cookhouse, office buildings, a general store and a one-room schoolhouse.

The school, which served children up through the eighth grade, had an enrollment of 20-30 students.

"The camp had a company store where you could buy basic supplies," Catchpole says. "Single men lived in cabins, and the families were in homes. The buildings were rustic and made with plank construc- tion."

And Emmert adds: "The schoolhouse was used for church services on Sunday and movies on Saturday night. These were things to keep the community happy."

The sawmill was built on stilts to provide plenty of room for sawdust to fall out of the way, Catchpole says, recalling the time he spent there as a scaler. His job was to determine the number of board feet in a log by measuring its diameter and length.

"I only remember two logs from the time I worked there," he says. "One had a nest of meat bees [yellow jackets], and when it went through the saw, we all got stung. The other log looked good at both ends but was rotten in the middle. I had to change the book and make the log a cull," a log that's unusable.

Sawdust and wood scraps were carried by conveyor belt to a metal tepee burner, a huge, conical furnace where the fire temperature reached 2,000 degrees.

"The fire was hot enough to melt rocks," Catchpole says. "You can still see the clinkers in the soil."

The sawmill is gone, as are most of the houses where families lived. But enough buildings remain to give visitors an idea of what life was like during the camp's heyday.

The bachelor cabins, simple square buildings with room for one or two men, are stark reminders of the camp's spartan living conditions.

"If you were single, all you needed was a place to sleep," Emmert says.

In the cookhouse, where many workers ate their meals, visitors can still see marks on the wood floors left by the spikes in the boots the men wore.

"You can tell where the tables were from the marks," Catchpole says.

A cool house, where perishable food was stored, reveals how challenging it was to keep things cold during summer. The building has two roofs, separated by several inches of open space.

"The top roof was to reflect the sunlight," Catchpole says. "The space in between was so air could circulate and keep the building cool."

The most impressive structure is the tepee burner, which is 75-80 feet high and provides a hint of the extent of the sawmill's operations. During a typical shift, the sawmill produced 100,000 board feet of lumber. From dawn to dusk, the camp was alive with the raucous sounds of men and machines at work.

"You'd hear the clanking of chains," Catchpole says. "And at a sawmill, everything has a squeak to it."

A steam whistle signaled the beginning and end of shifts, and diesel engines groaned long into the night as trucks loaded with lumber headed for Fresno.

But more relaxing sounds were never far away.

"You could hear Dinkey Creek roaring," Catchpole says. "And there were the sounds that wildlife makes -- grouse and quail calling to each other. There were all the typical California mountain sounds."

The sounds provided a soothing, memorable setting for many people who lived in the camp. Emmert says during the initial restoration work, he met several former residents who stopped to visit.

"They'd walk by and say, 'I used to live over here,' " he says. "They come back because they have fond memories, and we need to continue that with the restoration."

I am glad that I was able to see the town before it was completly restored because I think it adds to the old feel of the town. It felt like walking through a time capsule and an era of history that had been frozen in time.

I feel that this is a good time to say that if anyone ever does come across one of these gems in the woods or any other place, many hikers as well as myself ask that you abide by the leave no trace rule. It basically states that you leave nothing behind and that you don't take anything with you. Taking photos and memories are fine, but if you leave something behind it detracts from the scene for the next person. If you take something with you the next person will never see it. In order for the forest and these historical sites to remain we must all do are best to to keep it there.

All in all if you enjoy the feeling of discovery, don't deprive others from that feeling by taking their opportunity away.

Hope you enjoyed the post. Let me know what you think.

Hiking

noreply@blogger.com (Levi and Natalie) — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 21:34:00 +0000

Me Hiking

I have decided that this blog will be about hiking. Not all tips, most will be hiking adventures I have had.

This Particular picture was taken while at Red Rock Canyon in Nevada. It was along the way to Calico Tanks.
Summary: This is one of those must-do hikes in Red Rock Canyon -- both because it is so easy and accessible, and because it's a great introduction to the diverse vegetation and rocks found throughout Red Rock. This is a nice short hike for tourists and others who want a lot of" bang for their buck". If it wasn't for climbing rocks we'd have to call this an easy trail, but people who have sore knees or difficulty with their footing say it's moderate to strenuous for them. Be prepared for the tanks (tinaja) to be dry most of the year. If we have a rainstorm or sustained snowfall & melt you might be lucky enough to see water. Tinajas are indentations in the rock (usually sandstone) caused by erosion which capture water and provide critical water source for wildlife. In spring/early summer this hike takes you past many wildflowers and blooming trees/shrubs as you walk into the brilliant red rocks & washbed (loose gravel). Many nice places to step off the trail & rest, snack.

The summery was taken from:
http://www.localhikes.com/Hikes/CalicoTanks_4120.asp
You can find additional information about the trail there as well.

Some photos me and my wife took on our way up to the tanks.

On the trail.

View from the top of Calico Hills

On the way up

View of Las Vegas

Water in the tanks
Calico Tanks

Another shot of the tanks.

All in all I thought it was a great hike and the payoff of the water on top of a hill in the middle of the desert was very interesting to see.