I packed up my backpack in San Francisco. Leaving home just before 7 a.m., I took the Muni metro and then the BART train over to El Cerrito del Norte station. That's where I met up with Mike the Red-Haired Englishman, Jennifer the Equally Red-Haired California Girlfriend, Matt the Italian-Californian Outdoorsy Music Buff, Daisy the Endearing Trooper Lab/Rottweiler Dog, and last but not least, Matt's Jeep Cherokee SUV. Once we got on the road, we promptly stopped for a leisurely breakfast just 15 minutes away in Crockett--something which for me, totally defeated the purpose of getting an early start (we planned to meet at BART at 7:35 a.m., and although I arrived typically late at 7:55 a.m., this was still early for me, and especially a bummer since I had brought fruit and freshly baked breads to share in the car and help speed us along ... whine, whine, whine, I know, but indeed I was quite tired and disgruntled!), and I'm afraid this is part of traveling with an "eccentric Englishman." All in all, it was a small price to pay for good company! We left Crockett at 9:30 a.m. ... on our way out of the Bay Area, at last!
A sputtering start
Matt's Jeep Cherokee transported us to the Ranger Station in Placerville and onward to the the Eldorado National Forest. We parked at Horse Camp, in between the trailheads for Lyons Creek and Grouse/Smith/Twin/Island Lakes (near Wright's Lake). Once we got our packs ready, we got started looking for the trail, walking through wooded, flat terrain. By the time we found Lyons Creek Trail, I was in major pain ... I felt like too much weight was on my right hip and leg ... in addition to the pain in my hip, sharp pains were radiating down my leg, and I was wondering if I had too much weight in my pack. The rest of the group was ahead of me and out of earshot, and I kept slowing down because I was in so much pain. Eventually Mike came back and helped me adjust my pack. We completely loosened all the shoulder straps so that the pack could adjust itself over my hips as I walked. Free to adjust on its own, the the hip belt adjusted to be somewhat crooked--and that reminded me ... on a previous backpacking trip, 2 years ago, my old sweetie Chris had discovered that I need to wear the pack leaning slightly to my left for the weight to sit evenly on my hips ... this is because I have one hip higher than the other. Once we made that adjustment, things were so much better! Unfortunately, I had pulled the muscles in my right leg, which continued to hurt every step of the way for the rest of the day, but at least the sharp pains were gone so I could keep walking. Something's missing ...
We walked through the forest, over granitic and dusty trails, often hearing the flowing and rushing of Lyons Creek. Just inside the Desolation Wilderness boundary, we stopped for a late lunch near the creek, and Daisy played in the water. As we neared the split in the trail for Lyons Lake and Sylvia Lake, Jennifer noticed that my Teva sandals were no longer attached to the outside of my backpack. We figured they must have become disconnected at the lunch stop. However, we still had a lot of work to do to get up to Lyons Lake and then over to Hemlock Lake where we could meet the others in our party, so there was no way we could turn back. I was bummed that I lost the sandals, especially because I could have easily prevented it by attaching the sandals properly to my pack. But, alas, sandals at the creek were "so much water under the bridge!" Fabulous Lyons Lake
The hike up to Lyons Lake was the steepest part of the hike, but it actually went by faster and easier than I expected, partly because Jennifer and I passed the time discussing one of my "favorite" topics ... nutrition and weight loss, etc! When we got to the top, we were AMAZED by the beauty of Lyons Lake ... irregularly shaped, with clear mirror waters, and fantastic granite mountaintops rising up on three sides. The sun was getting lower in the sky, but it was still above the level of the granite ridges, so that everything was drenched in the soft amber glow of late afternoon. A stonework dam separated the lake into two parts; Lyons Creek rushed out of the smaller part and flowed down the steep grade we had just climbed. Decision point
Matt and Daisy had fallen far behind us on the steep climb to Lyons Lake, and they arrived maybe 15 minutes after us. Matt was encountering something similar to altitude sickness, and we were all pretty tired. We were supposed to continue across the west ridges of Lyons Lake to meet up with Scott and Andrea at Hemlock Lake that night, but it became clear we weren't going to make it. So we hoped that Scott and Andrea weren't too worried and planned to go over to Hemlock Lake as soon as possible the next morning to meet up with them. There and back again (swimming!)
Except for the fact that there was no way to communicate our revised plans to Scott and Andrea, I was happy to stay at Lyons Lake ... it was so beautiful! We picked a campsite high up on a granite cliff overlooking the lake. I put on my bikini and swam across to the other side of the lake and then lay on a warm granite slab to absorb the last of the sun's rays. When the sun slid behind the west granite ridge, I swam back over to our side of the lake. I was so cold, but I warmed up once I slipped into my sleeping bag and put on my thermal underwear. Starry starry night
After dinner (including hot chocolate with Wild Turkey whiskey for dessert) Matt and I had quite a time trying to hang our food bag off a tree limb to prevent bears and other critters from getting it ... after many tries at various different trees, we prevailed! Yipppieeee! Before we went to sleep, I told everyone that if I happened to wake up really early, I'd try to go back and find my Tevas, but that if I slept in, it would mean by body needed sleep more than the sandals, and so be it. As it turned out, I slept very uncomfortably--I kept waking up because I was so cold, and the rock slab under me was so hard! I kept waking up and looking at the stars, wondering, is it morning yet? One time, I noticed that the night sky above the eastern ridge was slightly lighter than the rest of the sky. With excitement I realized ... it's almost morning time!!! The search
So it was that I got up alone at the crack of dawn and put on my clothes and hiking boots and started down the steep grade away from Lyons Lake. It was nice to be hiking without that heavy pack! I didn't find the trail on the way down, so I had to go scrambling over the granite jumbles. Meanwhile, the sun was coming up, and I kept looking back to see the sky turning beautiful shades of pink ("the rosy fingers of dawn") above the eastern ridge. As I made my way down, I looked out over layers of tree-covered hills fading out into the distance, like pictures I have seen of the Appalachian mountains. When I got to the bottom, I still couldn't find the trail. I kept walking along the north bank of the creek, and finally decided to cross it--once I got to the other side, I found the trail right away ... what a relief!!! The next big question was whether I'd be able to recognize the exact spot where we had left the trail for lunch. Luckily, I recognized it right away and walked through the woods straight to it--the logs and granite slabs where we had eaten the day before were there ... but alas, the Teva sandals were not! Bummer, dude!!! But I thought, well, I've come this far, I might as well search all the ground nearby and see if the sandals slipped off my pack somewhere in the brush in between the lunch spot and the trail. So I started walking in a big circles, carefully scanning the ground all around me, hoping to cross the path I had walked the day before and perhaps find the sandals. After 15 minutes or so of this, VOILA! The sandals appeared, face up and side by side, perched on a pillow of greenery like an Easter present. It was so pretty, I wish I could have taken a picture! I grabbed the sandals and bowed three times in joy and gratitude over this special gift. Then I hurried back up to Lyons Lake, concerned about keeping the others in the group waiting. While they were sleeping
The sun was just coming up over the ridges at Lyons Lake when I got back. Matt and Jennifer were still in their sleeping bags, and Mike had gone to scope out our route for the hike to Hemlock Lake. What a relief! From the map, the sandals were a mile and a half back on the trail, so I had done a 3-mile hike that hike that morning ... it must have seemed easy to the others, since it took place while they were sleeping! To me, it's amazing that I woke up so early, and I'm thankful that I made it back without anyone having to wait for me. Here comes the friendly ranger
Soon after I returned to Lyons Lake, a very friendly ranger came to check on our permits. Because we were supposed to be at Hemlock Lake and not Lyons, he gave us a written warning (with Matt's name and ID). But the ranger was very understanding of our situation and even gave us advice regarding a good route off-trail from Lyons to Hemlock. Off-trail adventure
We tried to have a quick breakfast and get going quickly to catch Scott and Andrea. Fortunately my right leg was no longer bothering me. We hiked up to the top of the western ridge and then hiked over a flatter area until we reached the top of a cliff with views of some smaller lakes in the valley below. Mike said we needed to hike back up a little bit and we would find an easier way down. I wanted to see whether we could continue hiking down to reach the valley. I went to check it out, but by the time I realized it wasn't really a good route for all of us, I was apparently out of earshot of the rest of the group. I called and shouted for a long time, but I couldn't hear anyone calling back. At that point, it seemed safer and easier for me to continue down on my current route. This was the scariest part of the trip because I was all by myself, and I was scrambling with my pack over jumbles on very steep terrain, and it was possible I might not find the others when I reached the bottom. But luckily I made it, and the others in the group reached the valley floor at the same time as me--we were only separated for maybe 15 minutes, and I'm so thankful we found each other again so easily. Hemlock Lake!!!
With the help of Mike's orienteering skills and GPS, we walked directly to Hemlock Lake once we got to the valley floor. When we got there, we rejoiced! Our destination at last! Hemlock Lake! But alas, Andrea and Scott were not there! There were no signs of them anywhere. We hoped that they just went on a day hike and were going to come back sometime. So we decided to stay at the lake for awhile and perhaps camp there that night, keeping an eye out for Scott and Andrea. Matt and Daisy played in the lake, and I decided to swim across this (smaller) lake as well. As at Lyons Lake, I alternated between breast stroke and back stroke so I never got tired. When I was in the middle of the lake, my head had just moved forward on the backstroke, and my left hand felt something in the water ... it turned out to be an ice-berg shaped rock in the middle of the lake! The tip of the "iceberg" was at most 1 centimeter above the water's surface, so it was almost impossible to see from the shore. My head had cleared the massive rock by mere inches. I can't believe how lucky I was. THANK GOD for being so good to me!!! I climbed up on the tip of the iceberg and marveled at how clear the water was ... it made me afraid of heights because I could see the rock slabs at the foot of the glacier rock (maybe 15 or 20 feet below the water surface) so clearly. I doubt that Mike took a picture of me, but if he had, it would have looked like I was standing on water out there. Scary, due to how close my head almost hit, but cool. I continued swimming to the other side and lay out on the granite slabs there, falling asleep in the sun, which was quite relaxing, except for the moments when I would get jerked awake because I was sliding off the slab! :) After enough of this I swam back over and read my book and enjoyed a late lunch with Matt and Daisy. My lunch, inspired by my friend Katherine's travels in Europe, consisted of crackers, Mt. Tam honey, slices of Spanish sheep cheese, and fresh figs. The ranger's second visit
The friendly ranger came across us again at Hemlock Lake. He had confirmed our permit reservation with headquarters, but Andrea and Scott had not left any messages, and he had not seen them. Eventually we decided to pack up again and hike to Twin or Island Lakes to camp there and hopefully find Scott and Andrea. From Hemlock to Twin Lakes ...
It was steep downhill from Hemlock Lake to Grouse Lake. Grouse Lake was beautiful and different from the other lakes, surrounded by lush greenery instead of granite. We had planned to go off-trail and follow the contour from Grouse Lake to Twin Lakes, but for some reason we went all the way down the steep trail to the junction. Then we climbed all the way back up that same steep incline to get to Twin Lakes. Along the way we saw lots of little lakes and creeks. By the time we got to Twin Lakes, we were too pooped to go on to Island Lake, which was less than a a mile away. Contemplation campground
Where the trail intersected Twin Lakes, we found a nice campsite area near the little dam crossing. That night we enjoyed dinner and laughed at the silliness of MAD LIBS, courtesy of Jennifer. We also contemplated the Scott and Andrea question--Mike said he thought that they must have not come, otherwise we would have come across them by now--or, the only place they could be was Island Lake since we hadn't been there yet. But I said it was quite likely they could be any number of places in the wilderness, since it's very easy to miss people in such a big place, with so many different trails criss-crossing everywhere. We pitched our tents that night, mostly just because we had carried them such a long way and might as well use them ... it was warmer that night, though, so we really didn't need them. Brilliant morning
In the morning at Twin Lake, we made an "extravagant" breakfast since we weren't in a hurry anymore ... we had pancakes made with real blueberries and topped with maple syrup and honey, bacon, coffee, hot oatmeal mixed with cranberry/currants granola, and fresh fruit (grapes, plums, and grapefruit). After breakfast, Mike and Jennifer left for a day hike to the second Twin Lake and then to Island Lake. I started out after them on the trail and came across one lake ... I didn't have a map, but I thought I remembered Island Lake was the next lake over, so I thought that was it. (But I found out later it was Boomerang Lake.) Since I didn't find anyone there, I hiked up on some high boulders next to the lake to see what I could see ... and it turned out to be one of the most stunning views of the trip. For the first time, I saw the second Twin Lake, which was sparkling and blue, with a huge granite ridge rising behind it. One thin waterfall spilled down over the ridge, but Matt told me that earlier in the summer, the entire ridge was covered in waterfalls. I was high enough to see both lakes laid out before me just the way they are on the map. To the other side, Boomerang Lake was like a mirror, reflecting the golden color of the rocky ridge illuminated by the morning sun. I spotted Mike and Jennifer out on a little island in the second Twin Lake, so eventually I headed their way. They said they were going to Island Lake, but since I thought I had already seen it, I decided to go back to the campsite by scrambling over boulders and slabs along the first Twin Lake's southern edge. Fire and ice
Back at our campsite, Matt and I read out in the sun and let the burning sun work on our tans a little. Then we decided to hop into the first Twin Lake ... it was so COLD, much colder than Lyons Lake! There was an island not too far off the shore, so we quickly swam to that. Poor Daisy was too exhausted (or too smart) to follow us over and just whined piteously from the shore. She eventually settled down, so we got to lay out in the sun on the island ... just long enough to get warmed up before our frantic swim back to the shore! The ranger's last hello
We were packing up camp when the friendly ranger found us again! This time he bore news of Andrea and Scott ... he had spotted them that morning at the trail junction between Twin/Island Lakes and Grouse/Smith Lakes ... and they had camped at Island Lake the previous night! As the ranger pointed out, they must have walked right past our campsite (which was right next to the trail) on their way out. It was too bad we didn't do the contour traverse from Grouse Lake to Twin Lakes, because then we might have had the energy to continue on to Island Lakes where we would have found Scott and Andrea. Oh well! At least we now knew that they were safe. Wrapping things up
Sunday morning my legs and back were very sore, but in a good way, and I felt like I was getting acclimated to the surroundings. We hiked out and got back to the car in late afternoon. On the drive home, we enjoyed more MAD LIBS and a pleasant meal at a Mexican restaurant in Placerville. The gang dropped me off at the MacArthur BART station, and I took BART and Muni home, arriving around 10 p.m. The trip was everything I dreamed of, and I'm so glad we got lucky in so many ways, and that on the whole, things turned out so well. (AFTERNOTE: I spoke with Andrea Monday morning, and as it turns out, Scott and Andrea stayed at Hemlock Lake until 12:15 or 12:30 Saturday morning ... meaning that we missed them at our first rendesvous point by mere minutes!!!)
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