Out of the Way: Camping at Spicer Reservoir

Spicer Reservoir

Date: August 30-September 1
Place: Spicer Meadows Reservoir, Stanislaus National Forest, California
Coordinates: 38.407836, -119.996876

As happened so many times before, I decided where to go on Labor Day weekend when it was already too late to reserve anything. All the reservable campsites in the vicinity of Lake Apline have already been reserved and we had to put our faith in the first come first serve campgrounds in the area. And to add a level of complication, we were going camping with two other families, meaning we needed three available spaces, preferably close to each other.
On the way up Hwy 4 we stopped at the National Forest office in Hathaway Pines and the ranger in attendance directed us to the Spicer Meadow Campground, about 10 miles off Hwy 4 on the way to Lake Alpine, near Spicer Reservoir.
We arrived there early in the afternoon and we were very lucky indeed - not only was there space available, but we have found a double site where all of us could legally and physically fit. This was possible because at the last minute before leaving home Papa Quail decided to stay behind and catch up on his work.
As soon as we unloaded - the children found the trail to the water and vanished from our sight. I reassured myself that my chikas were in the company of responsible teenagers and that they had a radio communicator with them, but as soon as I finished with the tent I too hurried down the trail.

Spicer Reservoir

Like all other reservoirs I've seen in the past two years, this too had a low water level.  The water was cold, but not to cold to swim. Not for me, anyway. I got in the water with a couple of brave teenagers. My chikas were satisfied with staying at waist level.
I was glad I brought my camera along. After I got out of the water I photographed the osprey that was circling overhead.

Osprey

After we finished building our camp and had something to eat we decided to go for a little walk along the water. After some discussion the two fathers have decided to remain behind and prepare dinner, so me and the other mama took all the younglings, including all the complaining ones, and headed down the road.
Not having a proper map of the area and not seeing any obvious trailhead we simply got out of the campground and hiked along the asphalt road, following the contours of the shoreline from above. As late as it was in the season, there were still plenty of flowers abloom.

Wright's Buckwheat (Eriogonum wrightii)

I was particularly attracted to the small lupine shrubs that decorated the roadside, and took many photos of them.

Brewer's Lupine (Lupinus breweri)

Only while processing the photos at home I noticed that bumblebee that got itself into the focal plane and stuck its tongue out to the camera :-)

We couldn't hike too far because the hour was getting late and there was dinner to consider. Past the group campgrounds, just before the road curve going down to the dam, we found a nice rock ledge with a spectacular overview of the reservoir. It was a good spot to stop.

The pine trees perched on the bare granite make magnificent contrast to the deep blue mountain sky.

The view to the other side was no less impressive. I wished I could have stayed there until nightfall to watch the sunset.

The children, however, had other ideas. Without even asking, the teens hopped over the ledge and descended all the way down (a long way down) to the waterfront. My chikas gave me pleading looks. I shrugged and allowed them to go down with the others. Thankfully, they had their radio communicator with them so we could call them back up when it was getting dark.

By the time we arrived back at the campsite it was already dark. The men were BBQing but nothing else was ready, so me and my friend went to work to complete the dinner menu while the children got themselves busy with the campfire or playing annoying games with the radio communicators.
Suddenly there was a great excitement at the table and high-pitched screams pierced the evening's tranquility. My elder chika, who was playing with the dog quickly came a-running and just as quickly came to fetch me. When I saw what the excitement was all about I immediately run to my car to get my camera.
I managed to get a decent photograph just before it took off into the night: it was an enormous insect, as big as an old-world cockroach. It wasn't a cockroach, though. I didn't know what it was at the time but it did look harmless enough. Later I found out that this giant water bug, as it is called, is indeed harmless as long as it's not messed with. I one tries to pick it up, however, it can have a nasty bite. Thankfully, no one in our group had any desire to handle this bug and we separated in peace.

Giant Water Bug (Lethocerus americanus)

Spicer Meadows is a very nice campground. There's potable water there, the campsites are well separated, allowing for reasonable privacy, and there's plenty of downed wood laying about that can be legally gathered for the campfire. The camp host, a very pleasant man, advised us to dump all of our waste in the dumpsters before 8:00 pm. "After that," he had told us, "I lock it up so the bear wouldn't get into it."
I thought it was a general rule for all Sierra Nevada campground to have bear-proof dumpsters so I didm't give it any further thought.
After dinner our group split into the tents. I had my chikas with me in our 4-person tent. The other two families, however, had a more interesting arrangement: one tent had my friend and her husband. Another tent had the second father with his teen son. And a third tent hosted my friend's teen twins with their 10yo sister, and their friend: the other family's teen girl.
I did instruct them not to have any food inside the tent. In fact, I drilled into them all the bear-safety camping rules. But as always, the best teacher is first hand experience.
About an hour after retiring into the tents the teen tent was alive with screams. Turns out, a bear came nuzzling by.
The bear fled quickly and I don't blame it. I would have run away too if four teens would have screamed at me.
Later that night one of the fathers saw that bear (or another one) near the dumpster on his way to the restrooms.
It took a long while before the excitement subsided and all voices quelled.

Rose Spiraea (Spiraea splendens)

The aftermath of that exciting night was that in the morning everyone was dead-tired. Almost everyone: my chikas, as it turned out, had slept through it all.During breakfast it became evident that my friend's husband came down with fever. He sat by the campfire shivering miserably. We had planned to go hiking that day but he wasn't going anywhere that morning.

After some discussion between my friends we decided that we will go hiking after all, but that he would stay behind and take down the tents: they would be leaving than evening.

Checker Mallow (Sidalcea asprella)

Everyone else got in the cars and we drove to Lake Alpine, where we had a beautiful hike around the lake. When we returned, the third family had decided to leave as well. After a nice dinner together, everyone but me and my chikas got in the cars again, said goodbye and drove off into the night. With a sigh I had my chikas ready for bed, tucked them in their sleeping bags and sat down to wash the dishes in the pail by the now lonely campfire.
It was very quiet that night. 

Platforms on the Soles of My Shoes: A Sticky, Muddy Hike in Garin Regional Park

Meyers Ranch Trail

Date: December 1 and 21, 2014
Place: Garin/Dry Creek/Pioneer Regional Park, Hayward, California
Coordinates, Dry Creek entrance: 37.607567, -122.017732  Garin entrance: 37.62800, -122.028950
Length, the large loop: 3.2 miles. The shorter loop: about 2 miles
Difficulty: normally easy but challenging when muddy.

Garin/Dry Creek/Pioneer Regional Park is a regular hound for me. Close enough to my home to frequent, isolated enough from the city to escape it, and pleasantly rich with natural diversity of plants, animals and, as was evident in my most recent whiles there: fungi. I love hiking in that park. Usually, when I go by myself, I hike up the hills where I have solitude. This fall I was planning to take my hiking groups there and I was checking out the loop trail that goes along Dry Creek, over the Jordan Pond Dam and up the west part of the High Ridge Loop Trail.

In yellow: my solo loop hike. In orange: the hiking group loop hike

I started at the Dry Creek entrance and walked north on Meyers Ranch Trail along the creek which, following the recent rains was anything but dry.  I was welcomed by the lush, green hills, a green I haven't seen in a while with the long drought we had. Very soon, however, I realized that it wouldn't be a good idea to bring my group via this route. The trail, an easy one most times of year, was very, very muddy. Deep, thick, and highly slippery mud that slowed down my walk to crawling speed. A week later, when I brought my hiking group there, we started at the Garin park entrance and hiked a smaller, more manageable loop. The photos here are from both of these hikes.

Muddy Mayers Ranch Trail

The weather was perfect, though, and I enjoyed the freshness of post-rain air. It ha been a while since I saw the hills so intensely green. I look back at the photos from my last year's hike in Garin and I'm amazed at how dry it looked, at about the same time of year.

The hillsides glistened. It was droplet-covered cobwebs, spread between last year's dry weeds, that sparkling in the sunlight.

Morning dew on cobwebs. on the hillside along Dry Creek Trail

I was by no means alone: this loop is very popular among joggers and dog owners, and I met quite a few along my hike. The runners seemed to be struggling with the muddy terrain. The dogs thoroughly loved it.

Sycamore in winter dress

Dry Creek was anything but dry. In fact, I cannot recall ever seeing it this high before. I was very pleased to see the energetic flow of this creek!

Dry Creek

Narrow old wooden bridges span the creek at several points along the trail. Some of them are shaky and probably better rebuilt before collapsing under an unsuspecting hiker. I took this photo of the flowing grass on the steep creek bank from one of these bridges.

November rains brought forth a bounty of mushrooms I haven't seen in a long time. Although not matching the variety of fungi I've seen in Northern California during my Thanksgiving family vacation, Garin Regional Park sported a splendid display nonetheless.

Not all of the fungi I've seen there were seasonal. Some are visible year-round. They too, however, look better after the rain.

Turkey Tail (Trametes versicolor)

Most of the fungi I saw in Garin were familiar to me from my trip up north. But I did see puffballs too, that were the first I've seen this season

Earthstar Puffball

I came upon Jordan Pond and sat down on one of the benches. Many coots were floating on the water, each in its own, unmarked, territorial circle of water surface. Whenever on bird would cross the unseen border of another,a spat would break out and the dominant coot would do its best to sink the other, until the poor trespasser would flee far enough and the victor would return to its spot to find it occupied by a third bird who took the opportunity.

Jordan Pond

From the pond I hiked uphill to join with the High Ridge Loop Trail. Higher up there was a nice view of the entire pond.

Jordan Pond

I caught a glimpse of color in the grass: an early (or a very, very late) California poppy, shining back at the sun.

California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica)

All the way up there is bench facing west. There, below the hill, the entire South Bay is on display. A short trail takes you to the edge of the hill where, visibility allows, one can see the entire Bay Area.

View of the Bay from the High Ridge Trail Vista Point

The view east shows a fantastic contrast: rolling hills of wilderness where one can escape to from the city hubbub, where the spirit can expand to the horizon and beyond.

East Bay Hills

It took me so long to complete the loop that I was almost late for picking up my chikas from school. When I returned with my group, however, it was on the weekend and we were in no hurry to go anywhere.  We took the time to imbibe all these scenes of East Bay beauty.

California Buckeye in winter dress

Children's eyes are closer to the ground. They find all the interesting stuff :-)

A germinating California Buckeye

It rained some more between my solo hike and the group hike. While it made walking even harder, the mushroom display was simply gorgeous!

We had a lunch break by the big sycamore near the cattle gate that separates the north and the south portion of Dry Creek Trail.  The children found a newt wedged in a crack at the base of the tree trunk, peacefully waiting for the noisy humans to finish their business and go away.

California Newt

I led the group on the narrow trail that connects Dry Creek and the High Hills Loop Trail. There were many more newts along that trail and the scattered hastily (as fast as newts go on land) up the hill.
A fallen log on the east side looked like it had grown feathers. On a closer look I saw it was covered with Turkey Tail fungus.

Fungi. Lots and lots of them that day. Even up on the hill, in the open grassland.

Fog covered the hills that day. The air was cool, refreshing, and promising of a long, wet winter. Sadly, December rains were the last. January has gone by without a drop and very little rain is in the forecast. The long California drought isn't over yet.

I'd like to finish this blog post with something I feel ambiguous about. At my solo hike I noticed some well-placed painted stone 'bugs' in tree crevices along the trail. At the group hike I saw some note of them, including one that was very conspicuous - on top of a wood post near the High Ridge overlook bench. They were very well done and looked very cute and pretty. However ... these things, cute as they are, don't really belong in Nature and didn't blend in, as well placed as they were. I have no idea who put them there or for what purpose. I didn't take any with my as I would a piece of trash I see on the trail, I just left them where I found them.

Garin/Dry Creek/Pioneer is a fantastic place to go hiking or even just to escape for a little while. For being really close to the city, this park is still amazingly wild. I love it there.


I'm not even sure they belong here in this blog post. I didn't make them part of the main post, but here they are, smiling at the bottom. Don't belong, but cannot be ignored.

Around Triangle Lake and out to Widow Lake

Date: August 5, 2014
Place: Caribou Wilderness, Lassen National Forest, Chester, California
Coordinates (Triangle Lake): 40.530752, -121.218065
Difficulty: easy


On our second day at Caribou Wilderness we were all ready for a good hike. The morning, however, started with rain. The children convened inside my friends' tent and played card games. I didn't mind the rain, which was more like a light drizzle, so I declined the invitation to join. Instead, I left my chika in care of my friends and went on an hour of solo walk, circumventing Triangle Lake (about 2 miles long).

My hike around Triangle Lake, as captured by my GPS (No, I didn't make a shortcut through the water)

The joy of backpacking begins even before going into the wilderness. Part of the fun is the game of weight calculation, of course. It's about laying out the equipment, adding their weight in ounces (or grams), discarding some, adding others, deciding what is an absolute essential and what's luxury, packing and unpacking a gazillion times until it's time to go whether you're happy with the result or not.
The one item upon which the rules of this game don't apply is the camera, which was by far the heaviest non-essential item I brought along. Never once did I consider leaving it behind. I did leave behind, however, all the speciality lenses, choosing to bring along just the basic, multi-purpose lens. So most of my photos of this backpacking trip (that aren't of my chika and our friends) are of scenery. That, and the intermittent  rain, of course, which made me reluctant to pull my camera out all too often.

Triangle Lake, west shore

There were a few wet birds in the branches. The only other evidence of wildlife were deer tracks in the mud.

Deer was here!

I saw many blue penstemon flowers, small and delicate. Alas, none of my photos turned out good enough. Most of the hike I didn't even pull my camera out. I simply walked quietly along the trail and cherished the solitude I had for the first time in a long while.
As I came around the lake's south corner I was surprised to see a couple of day hikers on the trail. They were the only other humans I've seen throughout the entire backpacking trip (except for our friends, of course). I didn't engage them in any conversation, they too seemed to appreciate the silence.

Triangle Lake, east shore

It drizzled on and off throughout the hike. Mostly on. There was no wind and it wasn't really cold at all. Other than having to protect my camera, I found it to be quite pleasant. The constant dripping was calming and very beautiful. The lake surface was fizzing with the expanding concentric ripples. Little by little, one droplet at a time, I was getting soaked.

Truffle Rock

It took me about an hour to complete my hike.By the time I reached the campsite the drizzle had stopped. We had a quick lunch and went back on the trail, intending to do as much of the planned hike as possible before the rain renewed.
My friends planned to hike to Widow Lake, which is within the boundaries of Lassen Volcanic National Park, about 3 miles to the west.

Triangle Lake to Widow Lake, as captured by my GPS

I was amazed at how fast our friends were hiking, even when with their 4yo who insisted on walking himself rather than be carried. My chika did a good job keeping up. She was too busy playing riddles with her friends to worry about the pace. I also kept the pace, but I had not a second to spare for photos, except on moments when we stopped to put on the bug repellant or to drink a sip of water, or when my friends tried to convince their toddler to let them carry him.

Once a pond, now a small meadowlet.

I love walking in the woods when everything is wet. The colors are much stronger and more intense. Same goes for the smells. Too bad I cannot post here the scent of the forest in the rain, it was so intense! 

Lassen National Forest

Whenever I saw flowers I stopped to take photos. Each stop I was done in time to see the last of our party disappears behind a curve and had to run after them. Most of my photos didn't come out right. Some did.

Indian Paintbrush (Castilleja affinis)

When we descended to Widow Lake (I haven't figured out yet why does it have that name) I was panting hard from all the running. Everyone else seemed to be tired as well. We all slumped down under a large pine tree, had our snack and relaxed.

Coming down to Widow Lake, Lassen Volcanic NP

Before too long, however, the children felt rested enough and got up to play. They skipped rocks on the calm lake surface (I'm glad I took the reflection photo before the rocks started flying into the lake), and my chika even tried skipping pine cones. Then they looked for interesting tidbits and found a frog. Then they skipped some more rocks. Then they started complaining they were bored.
Then it started raining again.

Widow Lake

It was time to head back to our campsite, but then about half of our party decided it was time to go behind the bushes for some private time. I took the time to look for more flowers.

Primrose Monkeyflower (Mimulus primuloides)

Eventually we were all gathered together and we started hiking back on the same trail we arrived at, this time at a much slower pace.

Just slip on the magic ring and step into the pond. What world will this one lead to? 

At a slower pace I could notice more things, like this decomposing fallen log. I love the color contrast of the reddish disintegrating wood with the lush green of the manzanita shuns surrounding it. I pointed it out to my chika but she was more into playing with her friends.

The drizzle stopped. We kept walking. At some point my friends stopped to exchange their toddler one more time and I found myself racing after the three older children that kept on walking ahead. Then one of them cried out, "Snake!"
I hurried forward and got there just in time to take a photo of the cute, sleek reptile as it halted on a rock. It quickly slithered into the shrubs and by the time my friends caught up with us it was gone.  That pretty garter snake was the most exciting wildlife we've seen on that hike.

Garter Snake

Not that the squirrels aren't cute, they're simply too common to get excited about :-)

We arrived at the camp, had a nice dinner and very soon after the sun set we crashed inside our sleeping bags. Outdoors sleeping is best on the second night of camping.