Grotto Canyon - Death Valley

Grotto Canyon is located relatively close to Stovepipe Wells, and in addition, there is gravel road that will lead you to the mouth of the canyon in no time flat. Unfortunately, I initially didn't know about the road, and thus slogged a couple of miles up a never ending and always ascending alluvial fan...walking on stream-bed gravel for miles isn't fun! I finally entered the canyon, which I can't say was all that remarkable, at least at first. After hiking a mile up-canyon, I encountered a narrow slot followed by an 8 foot dry-fall. Several Chinese tourists were attempting to scale that feature, and I was preparing to do the same. Then I remembered reading about a side-route that bypasses the fall. So I backtracked and found the alternate route, which led me up another mile or so of so-so scenery...although I did climb up a couple of fun, albeit short, class 3-4 falls.

Golden Canyon/Gower Gulch Loop - Death Valley

A popular hike in Death Valley is the Golden Canyon/Gower Gulch Loop, which is a 5-6 mile hike that you can start at either the Badwater Road trailhead, or the Route 190 trailhead (map here). I started from Badwater Road, hiked a half mile south, and then entered Gower Gulch. The Gulch was about what you would expect...steep sidewalls, a couple of small dry falls, and views that increasingly remind you of, perhaps, the planet Tatooine in Star Wars...which in fact was partially filmed here (click here). After exiting the Gulch, I entered an area of badlands that led me to the popular photography spot at Zabriskie Point. I then backtracked across the badlands and connected with the final part of the loop that leads through Golden Canyon. During this final section, I passed Manly Beacon and the surrounding views of an incredibly eroded landscape, which were the highlight of this hike.

View from Zabriskie Point.

View from Zabriskie Point.

Manly Beacon.

Manly Beacon.

View from Manly Beacon.

Sidewinder Canyon - Death Valley

Sidewinder Canyon is a moderately long narrow canyon located off Badwater Road, several ten's of miles south of Furnace Creek, CA. I hiked this canyon back in 2014, but mistakenly explored several adjacent canyons, thinking they were Sidewinder Canyon. By the time I found the true Sidewinder Canyon, I was too tired to walk through the slot canyons that Sidewinder Canyon is famous for. So, here is a map, and note that Sindwinder Canyon is southwest of the gravel pit parking lot. I picked the right canyon this time, and made my way through and up the second of three slot canyons, eventually ascending around 500 feet up to the rim of the primary gorge. The valley and mountains were lit up in reddish-orange morning sunlight. My timing couldn't have been better. I then worked my way farther up Sidewinder Canyon, and entered a third slot. This one displayed more dramatic erosional features, but also dead-ended at a tall dry-falls, which I could have climbed up, but admittedly would have been a bit too freaked out to climb back down. So, I exited the slot, hiked another mile or so up Sidewinder, and then called it good.

Route 395, Owens Valley, and Death Valley

I recently drove from Eureka, CA to Death Valley...crossing the Sierra Nevada Mountains via Highway 50 on the way to the valley; and then during the return trip, north on Route 395 all the way from Lone Pine to Susanville, CA. The continuous wall of mountains making up the Eastern Sierra is truly remarkable, particularly near Lone Pine, where Mount Whitney and other granite spires rise nearly 10,000 feet from the Owens Valley floor. The Alabama Hills, which sit immediately west of Lone Pine, were another interesting geological feature. I'm guessing these hills represent a pressure ridge occurring due to right-lateral motion along the Owens Valley Fault Zone. In fact, geologists estimate nearly 30 feet of instantaneous lateral motion occurred along the fault near Long Pine during an 1872 earthquake. Furthermore, the general north-south oriented trench located east of the Sierra Nevada Mountains is estimated to take up 15-25 percent of the motion occurring along the Pacific and North American plates, and may in fact be the future location (in several million years) of a major transform fault as the Mendocino Triple Junction continues moving north, and the San Andreas Fault subsequently jumps eastward.

That will be an interesting phenomenon indeed. But in the meantime, I enjoyed the areas scenic beauty, and maximized three days worth of hiking in Death Valley. I got lucky upon arrival to the Valley. I had not made a hotel reservation in the area, and instead took a chance that Stovepipe Wells would have available lodging. My roll of the dice worked. They had a room free for use during a 4 night stretch. The hotel room was simple, but who really cares in the middle of the desert? Despite the basic sleeping quarters, the amenities at Stovepipe Wells are pretty awesome. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are served every day. There is a fantastic bar, and a gas station plus general store are located across the street from the hotel. It's a top-notch place to stay for those visiting Death Valley.

Mono Lake, CA.

North of Bishop, CA.

East of Lone Pine, CA.

East of Lone Pine, CA.

Death Valley, CA.

Death Valley, CA.

Stovepipe Wells, CA.

Herlong, CA.

Granite Lake - Elk River Trail - Downtown Seattle - Mount Washington

I hiked out to Granite Lake in the Trinity Alps on Nov 17th. The hike is about 10 miles roundtrip with only a modest vertical ascent. Since I am recently coming off of midnight shifts, I naturally woke up at midnight, and thus decided to start the hike early in the morning. This involved a 3 hour drive from Eureka to the trailhead. Upon the start of the hike, I was slightly spooked by the potential for mountain lion attack, and thus found a sharp pointy stick to defend myself with...which of course wouldn't have saved my life, but at least gave me comfort while walking. After 2-3 hours of hiking under a vividly starry sky, I reached Granite Lake right before sunrise. I sat on a log and watched reddish sunlight paint the granite spires towering above the lake. I was also amused by otters swimming near shore...who showed similar curiosity toward my presence. Pictures are below...and after reviewing these images, I've got to say that smart phone photo technology is definitely starting to rival traditional DSLR images (not quite, but getting close).

Eureka, CA Elk River Trail Mountain Lions

Probably no surprise to most, but mountain lions have recently (recent meaning Thanksgiving 2018) been spotted along the Elk River Trail in the Headwaters Forest Reserve near Eureka, CA. Perhaps slightly stupid of me (haha), but I ran 4 miles of the trail regardless (luckily without incident). Still, smarter people beware!

Downtown Seattle

Carly Kovacik and myself spent a late November Saturday afternoon exploring downtown Seattle. We started the adventure with a search for food, ending up at the Alibi Room, which is adjacent to Pike Place Market. After pizza and beer, as well as the obligatory stroll through the market, which included some famous fish tossing, we decided to hike up to Kerry Park for views of downtown Seattle. Cloud cover obscured Mount Rainier, but the views of the skyline were still great nonetheless. We then hiked over to the Space Needle, followed by a long slog to Seapine Brewery. A few beers later, we hiked back to downtown, passing Starbucks Headquarters as well as Safeco Field. We finished the evening off at Elliott's Oyster House, where again, the food was fantastic. After all was said and done, we ended up hiking around 11 miles through downtown Seattle. Pictures are below, which include an awesome street cat, the Gum Wall, delicious fish and seafood, and of course a honey bucket.

Mount Washington

Carly Kovacik and myself hiked Mount Washington during late November 2018. The Mt Washington trailhead is just a short drive from Seattle located immediately adjacent to I-90. The trail starts off steep, and since Carly is in elite shape, I was eating her dust for the first mile. My lungs and heart eventually woke up and the remaining 3 miles became progressively easier. One highlight of the hike was the ever-deepening snow we encountered with height. The trail was hard-packed, and traction probably would have made the journey easier (especially back down), but we summited nonetheless. The views from the top were outstanding...I-90 sat below our feet, and Mount Rainier loomed close by on our southern horizon. After descending back to the car, we drove over to Snoqualmie Brewing Company for beer and pizza, followed by a jaunt over to Snoqualmie Falls...both of which I would recommend anyone reading this to visit.