Aug.3 Oplin Creek area 8,800’

I started early today-6:30am on the trail. In part this is because, for the third night in a row, I barely slept. And in that I mean 4-5 hours max. One reason is that I am suffering the effects of an experiment I tried this trip. I made a quilt that was to warm to use at home and thought it would be good to use out here. Weighs slightly less than my down bag. The first night was to warm under the quilt, but my shoulders were cold. Plus, whenever I turn over I have to re-tuck the quilt-not restful. So last night I decided to sleep under the stars, without the protection of a tent. Bad Idea! I wore EVERYTHING I brought and still was cold. Finally I had to cover my bag, with my water proof poncho, from the waist down to try and retain heat. It worked, but it also retained moisture, so when I finally got up (not woke up) at 5am, my quilt was very wet with H2O. Who knew legs and feet would sweat that much at night? Go figure.

So tonight I’m back in the tent hoping it will provide some warmth. I’m also a bit lower tonight so that should help as well. I’ve decided to call Char and have her bring my down bag when she brings me my food drop next Wednesday. Oh to be warm and be able to turn over in my sleep!

The hiking was superb today. For most of the morning I meandered along the South faring , moving into the trees occasionally, but mostly I walked through miles of Mules Ears. What a smell!

Eventually the trail swung around to the N/E and began the steeper climb to Rocky peak, the highest point (10,388’) of the Tahoe rim trail. Those last couple of miles were steep…I’ve still got the lungs of a flatlander! When I was making the last turns to the top I was surprised to see butterflies flying down the trail toward me. At first I was amazed by the amount of them flying by on their way somewhere. I kept walking and they kept coming till finally, when I reached the top 5 minutes later, thousands of butterflies had passed me by. And guess what? They never stopped the whole time I was up there. I’m sure there were millions of orange butterflies, maybe even billions. I had the feeling I had inadvertently wandered into a fly way, the same way birds will do when they are migrating. Anyway, it was cool!

So the mileage for today is 13 miles. Tomorrow’s goal is Marlette Peak campground in Nevada State Park. Still no bears!

Aug.2 Saturday Brockway Summit 7,009’

11:20am I didn’t manage to get on the trail until 7:04am, having slept fitfully till 5:30. It always takes so much time to re-learn my systems when I begin a long trip…by the end I am usually very efficient and can get out of camp within an hour of waking up.

Watson Lake was beautiful in the morning light with mist rising and birds singing. The first 2 miles on the trail were filled with fields of wild flowers, scarlet paint brushes, shooting stars, lots of daisy like flowers of white, yellow and purple. Mule’s ears by the bucket full with their distinctive smell. I actually crossed a creek and could hear running water in the near distance. A sound I never heard yesterday and won’t again until tomorrow. I’ve managed 6.7 miles by 11 and I have only 4.3 to go if I stay at my planned stoop for the night, Martis Peak Junction. If I wanted to get to my next water source I’d have to hike 11.6 more miles today-something I’m not likely to be able to do. So when I leave here today I will have 5 plus liters of water to get me through till tomorrow mid-day when I get to Gray Lake.

I’ll just rest here in the shade, chatting with hikers and bikers till I feel ready to hoist my pack again for the afternoon push.

7:13pm .5 miles S. of Mt. Baldy 9,000’+/-

I pushed on past Martis Peak Junction and I camped just east of the pile of rocks from which I can see from Truckee to Donner Lake to the entirety of Lake Tahoe, except the eastern side where I am tonight. Quite an expansive view from here, and I earned it too!

I saw lots of people today, day hikers and bikers, but only a few backpackers. I saw a couple yesterday close to Tahoe City, a grandfather/granddaughter duo this afternoon and a pod of young men at Brockway trailhead. So while seeing lots of people, especially today, I don’t see much evidence of them staying out here.

Wow, a large bird just flew by me and landed on a branch in the tree behind me. I’ll try to get a better look. It was a raptor for sure; probably a hawk, but I don’t know what kind. It had white with speckled chest feathers.

Anyway, as I was saying, very few at campsite, not much litter or fire rings. I’m surprised that the back country gets so little use.

Tonight is my first dry camp. I hauled 4.5 liters with me from Brockway and drank 2 getting here. I need to travel 5 or 6 miles tomorrow before I find water. That’s not too bad. I guess I could of cleaned up better tonight J Days total miles 14

Aug.1 Watson Lake 7,760’

4:40 pm I’m sitting on a log here in campsite #2, considering just when to make dinner and whether or not to eat then hike on a couple of hours. I’m pretty well done for the day, having hiked 12.5 miles from Tahoe City. On the other hand I’ve been here since 3ish and I still have 3 hours of daylight left. What I don’t have is gas in my tank.

I only slept 31/2 hours last night –too excited I guess. I finally give up at 4am, showered, repacked my pack in the configuration I couldn’t stop thinking about last night, ate, watched the weather channel and was out the door and in my car by 6:01am. I parked my truck in the long term area by the river and was walking by 6:15. And am I glad I did. I made great time in the cool morning and had covered 8 miles by 11:30. After lunch I was hiking on the South side of Mt. Watson, in the full sun. Dang, I sure wilt in the heat. My pace slowed to an odd dance of plodding along in the heat then standing in the next patch of shade for a bit. After what seemed forever I got here, wandered around a bit looking for the “official” campsites then plopped myself down-in the shade!

This is a pretty little lake. Shallow with lots of greenery growing out into the lake from the shore. Grasses, cat tails, and a red leafy type of water plant on the surface. So far, I’ve only seen one mosquito-the breeze is keeping them at bay I imagine.

6:30pm

Looks like I decided to stay. I need to rest up so I don’t get an over use injury. My feet are tired and a bit sore as well so I think it best to err on the cautious side.

I’ve eaten, stashed my food oh-so far away…hope I can remember where I put it in the morning J This is my time to lay in the tent, writing in here, reading about tomorrows day. The sun has gone behind the mountain now, but the tips of the trees are bright against the deep blue sky. Pretty soon the light will begin to fade and that will be my clue…I’ll follow suit.

7/31/08 6,300’

Best Value Inn

Tahoe City, Ca.

Phew. 7:15 pm I’m here. I’ve managed to complete all water drops, crammed the food into my pack, filled my water bottles and found that I actually could hoist the pack onto my back. I was worried it would weigh to much, but I think I’ll manage. Especially tomorrow morning when it will be cool outside and I’ll be rested.

Today began with a hearty breakfast at the Silver Spur with Angela, Lynda and Char. After too many cups of coffee and good bye hugs, I managed to hit the road by 9:30 am, heading up and over hwy 17 with my sights on Lake Tahoe.

I listened to NPR till I ran out of reception somewhere N/E of Sacramento. In the ensuing silence I could feel myself making the transition from urbanite to…what? Hiker? No that doesn’t do it. Backpacker? Well, that describes a person who does the activity, but it isn’t a full enough word to convey how it feels to be out there, on my own, carrying everything I need, but with nothing extra to clutter my life.

Here’s a quote by a guy named Mike Clelland. “Why go into the wilderness? The natural world can be hard work, frustrating and uncomfortable… but we go none the less. What pulls us there, to a place that we sometimes perceive as unwelcoming? For me, and maybe for you too, there is a very real tugging at the soul, a deep rooted desire to find something, to achieve something…a meta physical fix of some sort”

I guess that describes the place I can feel myself moving towards. Internal, observant, quiet and alert. Also tired, hot and dirty. But it is all part of the package so tomorrow morning I’ll be swinging the pack on my back and “heading for the hills” I’ll keep you posted.

Shelly

7/30/08

Finally it seems all the preparation is nearing the end and I can get off to the hiking part of this adventure. Most of the decisions have been made and I hope they have been the correct decisions…only time will tell. I will share with anyone interested just what some of those decisions have been and why I came to make them that way.

Gear is always a major decision for me. I, unfortunately, have acquired lots of gear over the years and I somehow think that if I get the right combination of stuff that I will be able to sail along the trail with wings on my feet. Or at least not plod along with my head down. I forget that training is what gets ones feet and legs in shape. Or rather I don’t forget but wish it weren’t true. Anyhow all the gear decisions are complete.

Due to my having to carry upwards of four to five liters of water at some points during the first six days of the trip as well as close to ten pounds of food, I have come to the conclusion that my homemade pack won’t handle the weight without danger of coming apart. It is really designed for 20 pounds or so and that won’t be my maximum starting weight, which looks to be 30 pounds or more. Heavy for me as I don’t think I have carried more than 25 pounds into the backcountry for years now. No matter since I will be eating and drinking most of it up as I go. As a result I will be starting my hike with my trusty ULA pack, the P-1. At just under two pounds it will carry more weight easily and I am confident it won’t fall apart out there. At my first re-supply point my friend C will drive to Tahoe and bring me my #1 re-supply box, with my lightweight pack included. I’ll experiment from there with less water and food to carry.

My tent will be “The One” a new tent put out by Gossamer Gear, a cottage gear company started in California but now out of Austin, Texas. It was hard for me to go with a new tent as I really have come to love my Tarptent by Henry Shire who makes tarp tents in yet another California cottage industry business. It has been a good piece of equipment but I made the switch because of three factors. First The One is fully enclosed, keeping both mosquitoes and crawling critters from coming to visit in the night. Secondly I can sit-up comfortably in it, a blessing when changing clothes, etc. Finally it weighs less than my old tent. Not by much but every ounce counts when it is ending up on my back. The final weight of my sleep system, including tent, pads and sleeping quilt is 3 pounds 5 ounces. Not to bad.

My cooking system, with Ti pot, stove, spoon, windscreen, plastic jar, food cozy, matches and soap, ends up being 8.2 ounces. The fuel (alcohol) isn’t factored into the total weight as it changes as I go along. I will be carrying an Ursack (a Kevlar bag) with the odor proof bag to handle the increased bear activity being reported in some areas of the trail. Hard sided canisters are recommended but I have faith in the Ursack and have had good success with it in the past. Let’s hope my luck continues!

Clothes generally carried in my pack during the day weigh just less than four pounds while the clothes on my body weigh three pounds three ounces. So the grand total of all the gear carried in my pack, without food and water, is just at 11 pounds. Add in 9.5 pounds of food for the first six days, four to five liters of water, and then hiking an average of 12 miles a day and you have the makings for some serious exercise. Sounds like fun to me.

I will be writing a journal as I go and sending installments off to the FTTW office. Kate Sandusky has volunteered to transcribe my chicken scratches onto the blog so that you all can get some of the flavor of what the trail is like and how I am managing to get along. All spelling and grammar mistakes are mine only and I won’t be taking time to edit as I go along. So please be kind.

I assume I will meet many interesting people along the way as well maybe a few old cranks. I’ll get to see Lake Tahoe from 360 degrees, walk through the Desolation Wilderness and a Nevada state park. I’ll search for water; hide my food from bears and myself from mosquitoes. Eat dried meals; drink spring water and (by the end) dream of salads. All along the way I will try to let you see the trail from my eyes. Wish me luck, I leave tomorrow!

Hi! I’m Shelly. I’m an academic counselor at Cabrillo College.

California Community Colleges and CalWORKs face significant budget cuts in the governor’s proposed budget. This will have a profound impact on the students I work with soooo….I’m Walking to Raise Money!

I will backpack around Lake Tahoe on the Tahoe Rim Trail. The trail consists of 165 miles of a single track multi-use trail with a change in elevation from 6,300 feet to 10+K. If you are willing to sponsor me with a pledge of any amount, we can make a difference in needy students’ lives.

Goals:

• To highlight student need
• Publicize pending budget cuts
• Raise money to assist students with emergency needs

How You Can Help:

You can pledge any amount per mile. For instance, if you pledged one penny per mile, I would raise $1.65. Here are some other options:

5 cents per mile=$8.25

10 cents per mile=$16.50

25 cents per mile=$41.45

$1 per mile=$165

Even a small pledge can add up quickly! If you would like to donate, please contact Fast Track To Work at Cabrillo College at (831) 479-6344 OR fasttrack@cabrillo.edu

When:

Beginning of August 2008. Details to be announced.