Feeling ambitious...

So this morning I decided to hike to the top of Clarks Peak a different way than I did it last time. My plan was to ride up to the top of the ridge, then follow the ridge out to where it ends at Clarks Peak.

Well, the road I took to the top of the ridge was really nice, not too steep and since it was a dead end I didn't have any other traffic, which I always like. Unfortunately I ended up a lot farther away from the peak than I wanted to be and there is another road that gets me much closer that I should have taken, so I stopped short of my goal, got some sun while I ate my lunch and just enjoyed the solitude. It wasn't all that smoky so I took a few... ok, lots of pictures. (but only posting 2)

The first picture is of the way I went along the ridge and way off in the trees you can see Clarks Peak. I took the other picture above the other road that I will take next time I do this. The saddle between the peak and where I was standing has a pretty ridable road in it and makes the walk a lot shorter. Not that it was all that far today, but I will get to the top this way next time I try this.

It's all good and my ride/walk today came out a little over 15 miles. Saw only one truck all day just as I was heading back to my truck.

Tom's Thumb

Not my friend Tom, but I'm really not sure where the name came from. Yesterday I took my bike up to the top of Janesville Grade and headed up toward Thompson Peak.

I decided to ride up a road I hadn't been up for many years and ended up on the escarpment at Tom's Thumb, a huge granite rock that local rock climbers must have named. There are quite a few pitons embedded on the almost sheer rock face. I tried to climb up the only side that looked like it was climbable without ropes but chickened out after getting over half way up since I was alone and if I fell it could be a long time before anyone found me. The right side of the rock in the bottom picture is the one I tried climbing. It really didn't look too tough and next time I get a buddy to go with me I might try getting to the top.

I went all the way around this thing and checked it from all angles. The downhill side was really impressive in it's formidable appearance and I took the bottom picture looking up at it from near the bottom but you can't get the full perspective. It's a little too steep to climb from this side but you really can't tell from this view.

Climbin' and ridin'...

Had a nice visit with my sister Pat the last few days but yesterday she stayed out at Linda's so I went bike riding. I wanted to climb another peak I hadn't been to and that's what I did. I'm starting to like this bike riding/hiking thing I have been doing lately. I ride my bike as far as possible and hike the rest of the way to the top of whatever mountain I picked to climb. This one was Papoose peak. In the first picture the highest point is not what it seems. It's to the right of center and doesn't look like the highest point from that vantage point.

When I got up on top I found an old road that I could have easily rode up on so if I go up there again I'll try the road next time. I took the wrong route up through the brush and got into some very heavy snowbrush and manzanita and going uphill against the brush is always the hardest. Once I got up on top though, it was easy going.

The view from up there was nice and it wasn't too smoky. Total of 12 miles today including the hike up to the top of the peak. Ya gotta love this stuff... I sure do!!

Stony Ridge

I have been a little uninspired to blog lately, so I need to play catch up. Last weekend I went over to Chris's place and had a great bike ride from his place in Sloat up to the top of Argentine Rock Lookout. That was a great ride and quite the elevation change... over 5000'. After that I spent a couple of days fishing up at Antelope Lake. It was nice and relaxing and the heat made swimming the order of the day. I didn't post any pictures of any of that. (took lots of them, though)

My sister is coming for a visit this weekend so today I decided to get another bike ride in up in the woods. I went to the top of Janesville Grade road and rode my bike up to the road that goes over Stony Ridge. From there I hid my bike and hiked to the top of the ridge. My map says the elevation there was 6998'. It was a really easy saunter up the ridge, no complexity at all and no steep spots. Nice views all around even though it was still a little hazy from all the smoky fires. The top picture shows the knob I hiked to. You can see how easy it was.


On the very top there is this pile of rocks with a stick sticking out. Clarks Peak is right across in the second picture... I hiked up to Clarks a couple of years ago. The next one is looking down into the NW end of Honey Lake. Shaffer Mountain is the prominent peak in the top center. That little pointy peak in the foreground is one I haven't climbed to the top of yet.

Up on the very top, the rock formation is kind of volcanic and is probably a dike. This is also the highest point of Stony Ridge. On my many fires over the years, this place is yet another one I haven't been to before today. Not that there is anything to burn up here but I passed through some cool timber stringers and patches of mountain mahogany and brush on the way up that would certainly carry fire. Sooner or later lightning will start a fire up here... whether it goes anywhere will depend on the weather conditions at the time. My ride was not long today, I think my GPS said 12 miles or so, but it was a really nice day, not too hot and not too cool. Ya gotta love that!

Babcock Peak

Got a wild hair to climb Babcock Peak, so today I combined a bike ride up there with a hike to the top of the peak. Mighty fine day, I must say! Round trip it was 14½ miles with a 2700' elevation change. Climbing to the top through all the boulders was great fun. I mean it! I always love scrambling around on granite boulders. This first picture is Babcock Peak from Last Chance Creek. Looked a long way off in real life too. Eventually I started getting closer and the green meadows and wildflowers were a nice contrast to the dead burnt area from last summer.


I'm not sure why the monument on the peak has been ground down like it is, I have never seen one like that. There was no posted elevation but my map said it is 7015. Not much up there, a broken down wooden thing with some wire, and this monument. I laid out and sunned on a rock. It was pretty windy, and since it was so hot today, the wind felt great.


The meadows up here are still very green and lush. The cows haven't worked their way up there yet and many of the flowers are in full bloom. I even found a snow plant that was still flowering. Those have long since done their thing in most of my bike riding areas lately. I took a picture but maybe I'll post it on my web album, with more from this trip. Didn't see a soul all day but there were many fresh vehicle tracks, so the weekend must have been more busy. I saw fresh bear tracks in the soft dirt in the road in several places.

Cradle Valley

Rode around Cradle Valley and around Clark Peak today... very nice, hot day, almost too hot for sunbathing. I know this country like the proverbial back of my hand but I was on some new trails today. I knew exactly where they were going, so even though they were new to me, the country wasn't.

Found a little pond along Clarks Creek and saw a little fresh beaver sign, so beavers could have been responsible for this pond too, I suppose.


There was some smoke in the air which didn't help the scenery pictures much so I tried to keep the subjects in the foreground.

My GPS said 13 miles for this trip, with a 1500 foot elevation change. Wasn't a long ride but I took my time, laid in the sun for a couple of hours, stopped often to take pictures and smell the flowers, so it was all good. I even ran into someone I know up there... he was riding his motorcycle. Small world, or what?

Back Roads

The last time I was on this road was back in 1980 on the Elephant Fire. I drove a fire engine down it, but it was green and lush back then... and was until last year, I might add. As I was riding along I was wishing I had tried riding this road before the fire screwed it up beyond recognition. Too late for that now, but it still made a really nice ride.

Coming down along Last Chance creek the scenery always beckons me to take pictures.



I had to ford Last Chance Creek in one spot so I took off my shoes and waded across. I was surprised at how warm the water is. It's no wonder that certain kinds of trout don't make it here. Still, I have waded this creek many times and it seemed warmer than usual to me... There wasn't much flow anyway.


The wind shifted today and for a change, this wind shift you could watch happening... thanks to all the smoke from the fires still going. Just visible in the smoke in this last picture is Babcock Peak, where I had just come down from. The smoke moved across and as I type this the whole Honey Lake Valley is full of smoke. Tomorrow I'm heading back up to the top of Janesville Grade to explore all the roads... Life is good!!