Summit Day on Summit Trail

Back from the dead.  After a crazy busy stretch I finally have a chance to do two things together, hike and write about hiking.


Mary and I celebrated National Summit Day by hiking the Summit Trail from the South Gate entrance at Mt. Diablo State Park.  As we went to bed the night before we noted a "smoke" advisory on our IPhone weather app.  We were not disappointed.  We got up at first light and drove under a hazy grey layer of smoke at about 3,000 feet above us.   Arriving at the South Gate of Mt. Diablo State Park, we found the gate to be locked, as we expected at 6:15 a.m. (it opens at 8).  We drove back down the access road to a spot where we could legally park without being either on the road surface or on private property (we think).


The reason why one must leave early is because all it does is get hot up there as the days goes on.  The more climbing you can get in before that sunlight gets direct, the cooler you will stay and the more enjoyable the experience.  We enjoyed a cool breeze drifting down our side of the mountain in the early morning, which felt great.


The trail climbs directly from a grassy area through a forest of holly, oak, and bay laurel, before moving to an area of madrone and slash pine(?).  Poison oak can appear anywhere, so be sure to stay on the trail if you do this hike.  Deer and turkey move freely about, and coyote scat appears on the trail.  I found a giant pine cone with nuts still in it, the squirrels must be slacking at their jobs!  Not sure if they were of an edible variety, I left it.  I then replied to the cooing of a mourning dove.  Peace.


Perhaps not even two miles up the trail we came to a campground that had running water and even functioning showers.  We enjoyed the fresh water, but had brought enough for our needs even without it.  The first of the mountain bikers climbed past us here.  I am not even sure what trails they can ride on, but they became more and more frequent as the day went on.


Taking a fortuitous wrong turn after the campground, we arrived at Sentinel Rock and relaxed for a snack.  The morning light was still at a shallow angle and helped light up our photos and our smiles.


Getting back on the trail, we encountered a few more hikers and numerous mountain bikers.  Mary noted that she only saw one other woman, day hiking up from the camp ground with her husband.  We ascended onto a ridge with sweeping views to the south and west.  Underneath the grey layer of smoke we could see Mt. Tamalpais in the distance.


Because of a medical condition that arose, we cut our trip short.  We did not make the Summit of Mt. Diablo for National Summit Day.  Discretion was the better part of valor.  We are back at home and were very happy to cover a little over half of our stated 14 mile objective.  It was a better morning than most Americans had today, in terms of hiking and being outdoors.  Every day in the woods is a good day and the journey is always more important than the destination.


Mary and I both felt relaxed.  That was a good thing.  School is starting up soon enough and we'll be right back in the thick of it before too long.


Until Next time...

Mt. Diablo Redux. Father's Day on a Hot and Dusty Trail.

Mary offered to go with me on a hike for Father's Day.  We've been trying to be a bit less materialistic and giving each other only intangible gifts is a great way to make the change.  Beginning with George Carlin and the deliberations of other famous philosophers, the idea that a home should be more than merely "A place for my stuff" resonates with me.  But I am a gear junkie, so while I am not as convinced that the loss of physical objects in our life will bring us closer to inner peace, I do marvel at the amount of shit we've accumulated and wonder what it would be like to live with less.  A home is where the heart is, not where a bunch of items are stored.  So, Mary's companionship on a hike is a great Father's Day gift; I'll take it!

I was still sour from failing to even get out on the trail on our last time up this towering inferno.  I was so close!  I have been staring at this hill for years now, and never bothered to venture to the top.  While I have never been much of a peak bagger, this mountain's time had come.

Because of the heat we knew we'd have to start early.  Alarms went off at 5:00 a.m. and we were saddled up at the trail head by 6:30.  [Note to self, if you are going to get up early then earn your own sacrifice by getting out on the trail sooner!]  The South Gate Road into Mt. Diablo State Park was locked overnight.  Even though overnight camping is allowed, the Park is otherwise closed to vehicles.  But that doesn't fairly account for the summer heat and the longer days, so we resolved to make our hike happen.  We parked in an upscale residential area outside the gate, where I suspect "The Real Housewives of Danville" was filmed.  Was my car parked legally?  I wasn't really sure.  It was well beyond the last of the "No Parking" signs, but in an area where the properties had "No Trespassing" signs.  Was I parked on a road shoulder or somebody's yard?  Would the locals be irate at the sight of another tourist vehicle on their land?  For out of state readers, just know that California is the kind of place where everything is crowded and nothing is free.  I couldn't really be sure if my car was good, but adventure called.

By the time we finally got out on the Summit Trail we were greeted with cool morning temperatures, but what I would describe as the warmest cool morning temperatures I have felt so far this year.  Felt like temperatures in the 70s.  And that would be a tell of what was to come. The day would be the hottest this calendar year in our area.

Mary lead the hike at first.  I had run 8 miles the prior morning and my legs were a bit stiff.  I had to remind her to slow down or we would risk having two concurrent but solitary experiences in the woods.  Climbing up through groves of oak and bay laurel, we arrived at a campground.  Kids were running around and the park was coming alive for the day.  We mulled hitting the shower and refilling our water bottles on the return trip.

At some point after an hour or so, my new boots were wearing on my feet.  The back of my heels were feeling the friction from climbing continually, which caused my heels to pull up and down within the boots.  Noticing the "heat" I stopped and applied my usual gold standard - duct tape.  After another mile it wasn't working, so, Presto!  I pulled out my trail running shoes, which I crammed into my small backpack. I put them on after applying another layer of duct tape and my feet were once again functional.  I continued, only experiencing slight discomfort and one small blister on each heel.

Between trail switchbacks and road switchbacks, we crossed the main road several times during our ascent.  At each crossing we noted more bikes than cars.  It would appear that more than a few dads were given a get-out-of-jail-free card and allowed to go peddling on this Father's Day morning.  Mt. Diablo provides good vertical climbing opportunities for area cyclists.  The trail we were on is also open in sections to mountain bikes.  From top to bottom the Summit Trail could be described as 65 percent single track, 30 percent maintained dirt road/firebreak, and 5 percent pavement or other.  We climbed up into burn areas, which reminded me of a lot of western hikes including Yellowstone.  Young pine saplings struggled to grow up among burned logs and scrub brush.  We learned about history and geology with the signs along the way.  Apparently, angered by tourists driving up a new toll road in the early 20th century, local ranchers were suspected of setting a fire that burned the platform at the top of the mountain.  That explains why the observation deck on top is now made of concrete and stone.

After climbing approximately 3,200 vertical feet, we reached a parking lot, visitor center, and observation deck/tower on top.  Mary and I always regard these things as anti-climactic.  Our primary motivation in mountain climbing is the journey, not the view.  But we're not nature-purists who shun the presence of asphalt in all situations.  It merely reminds of us of how much we enjoy wilderness.  We debated the worst such examples of "civilized mountains" we had seen.  Was it Bear Mountain, New York?  Mt. Washington, New Hampshire?  Clingman's  Dome, Tennessee?  Mt. Evans, Colorado?  Any worse than all the ski lifts on top of so many mountains now?  I guess the question is subjective and can't ever really be answered. 

The wind really picked up near the peak.  A strong warmish breeze was coming out of the South East.  It did serve to keep us a bit cooler up there than when we were lower down the mountain.  There were some bikers on the observation deck, but otherwise the parking lots sat empty.  The bikers were trying to describe some VERY distant mountains.  One of them could make out some snow capped peaks up in the Sierras, but it was just hazy enough over the Central Valley that the guesses about Yosemite and such weren't confirmed by landmarks.  But looking in 360 degrees we could see San Francisco, the Pacific Ocean, the Bay, San Jose, Mt. Tamalpais, and just about every landmark in the Bay Area.  Mary and I snapped some photos, including an image of an eyesore-quarry to the north of us.  I wonder what they are digging or mining there, and whether it is worth destroying a shoulder of this majestic mountain?  We asked the bikers to take a few shots of us and then we walked down off the observation deck.  We stuck our heads in the gift shop, which wasn't supposed to be open yet.  It was full of the usual knick-knacks.  There was a cooler full of ice cream for anyone a little more hungry than me, but I passed on the opportunity.

The descent was much easier than the climb.  We observed several hikers, some of whom appeared to be on "training hikes", schlepping large backpacks.  I felt bad for them because they still had to keep going up as the sun climbed in the sky and the mercury followed it.  At some point we came to an unmarked trail junction and guessed wrong, adding perhaps 2/3 of a mile to our trip.  Once we found the correct trail again we continued down through a lot of poison oak.  Some of it brushed my leg and I am still waiting to see if there is a reaction.  The heat was increasing, both because we were dropping elevation and because the sun was getting higher in the mid-day sky.  Dusty, hot, sweaty, and salty are the best adjectives to describe this part of our hike.

Coming back across that campground, we were happy to refill our empty water bottles and platypus.  Unlike the Juniper Campground we stayed in a few weeks earlier, this campground did not appear to have showers.  Darn, what I wouldn't have given to just hang my sweaty head in a shower for a few minutes. Oh, well, the faucet will do.

The grass on either side of the trail was full of the sound of scurrying voles and mice.  It is a bumper year for rodents, as I have also observed on other hikes.  Perhaps related to this fact, I also came upon a snake toward the bottom of the mountain.  I couldn't identify the species as it slithered out from in front of me.  I am normally very curious about such matters, but I wasn't about to wade into the grass after it on this hot day.

By the end of the hike Mary's phone app displayed 14.6 miles total, which was a little bit more than my maps and the signs indicated, but who is counting when it is 100 degrees outside?  Approximately 6 hours elapsed total, based in part on our leisurely pace.  We had each drank over a gallon of water by my estimate.  I left with a great sense of satisfaction.  Spending a morning with just Mary and getting in a good hike was worth a bit of heat and dust.

The car was still there when we got back, and there was no ticket affixed to the windshield.  Famished, we ate Father's Day lunch at Costco.  Because of our caloric deficit the pepperoni pizza never felt so guilt free.  After getting a quick bite, we proceeded to buy a bunch of stuff to fill our house with.  When we got home the kids had not burned the house down, but were uncomfortably warm because they didn't know how to turn on the AC unit.  Happy Father's Day!  :-)

Open Pit Mine

San Francisco

Mt. Tamalpais

Mary

What Species?

Mt. Diablo

I thought that I would now be writing about a hike up Mt. Diablo.  I had a great time on Mt. Diablo, but somewhere between my car having transmission trouble and a few glasses of wine the hike never happened.

My wife had been planning this camping trip with friends for some time, but neither of us bothered to work on the details until the last minute.  I wanted a significant hike to be a component of this trip, but my wife and daughters had a Girl Scout camping trip the night before and I did not calculate the effect that event would have on our timing and itinerary.  Moreover, most of my family had been sick the prior week and our youngest Inga was running a fever the day before.  In the end, we didn't get the car packed until about 2 p.m. and it became clear that all we would be doing on Saturday was driving, unpacking, pitching our tent, cooking, eating and drinking (did I mention drinking).

I had no idea how big Mt. Diablo is.  Sitting just under 4k feet above sea level, the mountain seems much taller when you are on it than it appears when you look at it from the surrounding countryside.  The climb up was grueling on my 2008 Subaru Tribeca.  Fully loaded with six passengers and gear for an overnight, my car started having transmission knocks about 2/3 the way up the mountain.  We had approached from the South side, coming from Danville.  The ride up featured a meandering winding climb with no guardrails and beautiful views.  My transmission was already having symptoms the last time I took it on a big climb and I wouldn't have done it again, today, if I knew what kind of hill I was facing.  But by the time I realized the scale of things I was already committed to my trip and wasn't about to turn back.

I had picked up a map of Mount Diablo Park the day before and had not had time to read it and, even if I had, my wife managed to book a campsite without knowing the name of the campsite - so, I wouldn't know where we were headed anyway.  Once in the Park, we were able to get sufficiently close to our campground before the car started acting funny.  A quick phone to our friends was enough to save our trip.  They drove down from camp to meet us and took some gear and kids.  The car got lighter and the after some cooling off I had no more problems.  We were able to offload our family and a lot of dead weight and the old Tribeca was able to limp up the remainder of the hill to our campsite at the Juniper Campground.

We arrived a camp to find a nice spot my friend Erica had picked out.  She had devised a scheme where the adults had one campsite, the kids had another, and the middle site was a common area for cooking.  It worked great.  Upon arrival I put Inga up in a tree to play and climb, Erol stuck a plastic cup full of good white wine in my hand, and the tents went up with ease.  The kids got lost playing a game of tag they call "Infection" and all was good.  My legs were still mad at me for not getting them out on the trail and my brain was a bit wracked by the thought of what to do about my car, but for a moment I was relaxed and enjoying my Memorial Day Weekend.

Oh, yeah, about that weekend.  In my hurry to prep food and pack my car I forgot to put my flag out.  This is actually a big deal because the day has always meant a lot.  I was raised by my mother's parents and my maternal grandfather was a WWII veteran who always knew what this day meant first hand.  He lost good friends in Europe and the Pacific.  His solemnity and reverence was duly noted by my young eyes.  Now that he has passed, and even though he did not die in battle, Memorial Day will always be Jim Farrell's Day for me.

About 4 glasses of wine into the evening we started eating.  The grilled steelhead and dutch oven baked mac-n-cheese were ready for consumption.  I got out the rest of the fish taco prep, including homemade fire engine guacamole and mango-corn-bean salsa.  The dinner was delish and so were the three cobblers we cranked out in the dutch ovens.  Cherry, peach, and blueberry, take your pick or try all three!  Topped off with semi-frozen vanilla ice cream that had survived in a small cooler.  We do car camping right!

After dinner, we walked down to a beautiful overlook and peered westward across a vast expanse of clouds.  The "marine layer" had set in from the Pacific Ocean and the Bay Area was blanketed with a fluffy layer of cloud cover.  It was lovely looking down on this as opposed to our usual perspective of being stuck in it.  We lost track of the kids and made it back to camp.  We talked about the passing of Greg Allman and Erol impressed us with a special bottle of Napa cabernet that he and some friends had produced exclusively for their purchase.  It was crisp, bright, and full flavored.  I could taste the oak of the barrel and a hint of cherry.  I love it, and that was saying a lot because usually that far into the evening you could give me Boone's Farm and I wouldn't know the difference.

I woke up after 8 the next morning with bright sun on my face.  It was a little too warm for that early in the morning and, despite the tree cover, the sun found a way to penetrate right onto the wall of my tent.  It was surprisingly hot up there on the mountain at sunrise, and returning to our overlook we could see all the way to Mt. Tamalpais.  It was peaking up out of that marine layer and it was the only other thing we could see above the clouds besides our own mountain.  Shaking off a bit of a headache, Mary and I agreed that there would be no hike today either.  Too much to pack up and it was already too hot.  We weren't sure if Inga was well enough for an uphill hike.

There was a temperature inversion, as we drove down from the mountain it got much cooler.  Definitely a good idea to get a specific forecast for Mt. Diablo if you are planning a hike or bike ride!

Mary and I have resolved to take on Mt. Diablo again.  We have now studied the map and are going to plan a day where just the two of us leave early and walk up and down it in one day.  It will be more of a cardio workout than an easy walk in the woods.  Stay tuned!


(p.s., the park doesn't allow alcohol, any reference to wine was the non-alcohol variety)