Coachella Valley Hiking Club Blog

Ron's Art Smith to the Cross hike

On Saturday 12/08/07 Ron Chang led a group of hikers on the new trail that winds from the Art Smith Trail to the Holpalong Cassidy Trail. It was advertised as strenuous 8 miles with an elevation gain 2800 feet. Here are some pictures taken by Larry Pleet.

 

Doug Young's Bear Encounter

The following is an account of a bear encounter by Doug Young one of our active hike leaders. I thought you would enjoy it. The picture isn't Doug's bear. I put it in in case you forgot what a bear looks like.

  Is there anything a bear won't eat?  They may prefer bacon or chocolate, but they also are happy with deodorant, tothpaste, lip gloss, old candy wrappers...you name it.   So, as we l5 hikers adjusted our 35 pounds or  so   of backpack on our shoulders, a bear-proof cannister took prominence.  Our security onthe 35 miles of John Muir trail between  Yosemite and Mammoth.   Good security, I thought.  First night,  piece of cake.  Second night, a call, as we settled into  tiny wind-flapping, one-person tents beside a pristine Sierra lake; 'bear headed our way.  Sleep tight'.'

  'How big"?

  'BIG'.

   l5 very silent campers, confident in their cannisters. Then I heard it and smelled it, cust outside my tent, inches away from my possum-silent body.  Clanging, crashing, snorting; the full range of cannister-busting, ursuline activity.  'Oh, go away,' I silently command him or her.  'Nothing there.'

    He/she knew better.  Tirelessly working the cannister, until it yielded its peanut butter sandwiches and energy bars.  Munch, munch, munch. An hour later, by the light of a million brilliant stars, I recovered cannister, emptied; backpack, somewhat shredded and discarded 50 yards away; and miscellaneous other.

  Word to the wise; secure that cannister.  And don't leave your deodorant just any old place.  Bears just can't resist 'em.

There was a great turnout for Tuesday's social with Desert Trails club. at the old Whitewater Trout Farm.  What a beautiful place!  The Wildlands Conservancy has done a magnificent job transforming the place into a hiker-friendly area, complete with indoor rest rooms, picnic tables - even a paved parking lot!  There is a nice trail that goes directly to meet the PCT.  We look forward to the official opening in January.                                                                                              Robin.

Sorry for the paucity of pictures. If someone took any others could you send them to Eric at ebaecht@gmail.com. Thanks.

    

Don't forget the Joint Social with Desert Trails at the Fish Farm

Hi all you CVHCers

Just a reminder & updated info - let me know, if you haven't already, if you plan to attend the Joint Social with Desert Trails on Tues 11/6 (see below).  I haven't had a lot of response yet and it would be great to have a good show of support for their invitation.  Mary Barlow, their Social Chairman, called yesterday and noted that since it gets dark around 5 we should get there early- by 3:30 instead of 4 if possible so tours can be completed before dark.  So, CVHCers should meet at the BLM at 3 PM to carpool out there.  In addition to the below recommendations you might want to bring a headlamp or flashlight and jacket.... 

Thanks all,
Robin

Tues Nov 6-- Combined Social & Tour. Whitewater Preserve (old fish farm) northwest of Palm Springs. The Wildlands Conservancy has bought this wonderful property and is remodeling it for public use. It will not be officially open in November but we have been invited by the Desert Trails Hiking Club to join them on a picnic/potluck and tour of the facility. There will be toilets but no potable water.  4 PM-6PM. Bring a dish to share, your beverage of choice, a camping chair (they have picnic tables) and walking shoes for a tour. Please carpool if possible. The exit is Whitewater Canyon Road off the I 10 just west of the Hwy 62 junction. Please RSVP by November 1st to Robin (760) 322-6324.

News Flash!

News Flash!.... Potential Oscar nominees Chuck Nisbet, President of Coachella Valley Hiking Club, and Larry Liguori, aka Enrique Suave, were in town last week for cameo appearances in the acclaimed TV commercial advocating a No vote on controversial Measure C.  As seen below, they delighted the large crowd of neighbors gathered to catch a glimpse of the handsome duo.  Tune in to Channels 4 and 6  anytime before Election Day for a chance to catch the thrilling 30-second piece.  Or - stop in at the Casablanca Country Club for an exclusive showing. 
Confused about the Measure?

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Here is a link to the comments Chuck made in the Desert Sun.

http://www.mydesert.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2007710220306

Thanks to Robin for the text and the pictures.

Trip to Little Lake and Centenial Canyon

On October 6, 2007 a group of us went on a tour of the petroglyphs at Little Lake with the Matarango Musiem. Little Lake belongs to a duck hunting club but a few times a year they allow the Museum to lead tours of the remarcable petroglyphs found there. The following are some great pictures taken by Billie Harken. The last two pictures were taken at Centenial Canyon. The snake is a Panamint rattler Crotalus Mitchellii Stephensi.

                                                                                                                                         

Here are some more pictures taken by  Eric.

 

Paulette's Hike to Apache Peak

This Saturday, Paulette led a hike to Apache Peak by way of the Zen Center Trail. She had called ahead and the very nice people at the Zen Mountain Center said it was OK if we parked in their parking lot. The Zen Center Trial is a mostly unmaintained trial that goes from Garner Valley to the PCT. To access it, it is necessary to go through the Zen Center. We meet some of the people and most of us donated, as requested, 5.00 to help maintain the road. They were kind enough to tell us where the restroom was and pointed out a drinking fountain.

The Zen Center Trail is very steep, about 1,300 feet in 1.5 miles to the top of the ridge. The rest of the hike is a gentle climb going south on the PCT to The top of Apache Peak, about 7 miles total. It is a great hike with wonderful view of both the desert and east toward Lake Hemit.

The hike took about five hours. We had a lunch at the Sugarloaf Cafe.

Kerry's Camping trip to Telescope Peak

Death Valley National Park, Panamint Range, Mahogany Flat Campground (8133 ft.) and trailhead, Telescope Peak Hike (11048 ft.), June 8-10, 2007 Leader: Kerry Campers: Leslie, Mariam, Elmar, Kathy Viola, Dale, Shirley Grant,

The campground at Mahogany Flat is at 8133 feet and the weather cooled down to the upper 40’s at night, warm enough for several people to sleep in the open. At 8:00 A.M. Saturday, the hike to Telescope Peak began through pinion and limber pines, and continued for a strenuous 7 mile one-way trek with over 3000 foot elevation gain. This is the highest peak in Death Valley National Park, with spectacular vistas. Don’t forget the elevation difference from the Death Valley floor is over 11,300 feet. Along the way there are long exposed stretches across the mountain side and gigantic gnarled bristlecone pines adorning the higher slopes. At 11,000 feet, the trail climbs along the ridge for the last ¼ mile before reaching the peak. Kerry, Dale, Mariam and Kathy reached the peak by 12 noon, with Elmar and Leslie steadily hiking to reach the peak in the afternoon. All were rewarded with spectacular 360 degree views from the distant desert basins at the salt flats of Badwater to mountain ranges, including distant hazy Mt. Whitney. Saturday night the potluck dinner was filled with good food, fun conversation and the joy of another exhilarating day of hiking California’s best trails. On Sunday we explored the 10 perfectly aligned ‘beehive ovens’, the Wildrose Charcoal Kilns, built in the 1770’s.

Note to Elmar: next time you want to mark your travel along the road to camp, please use something other than transmission oil!

Shirley Grant

                                    

Hike to Tahquitz Peak from the Zen Center

On July 21, Kerry Leavitt led a hike from the Zen Center to Tahquitz Overlook. On the hike were Udi Katz, Gary Wolf, Rob, and David Maietta. The text and pictures were sent in by David. 

Thanks David!

There were five in our group and none of us had ever been on this trail before. We picked it up at the end of a dirt road that leads to a Zen Buddhist retreat and although we heard no audible chants, we were quiet just the same. The initial climb to the Pacific Crest Trail winds through a mostly shaded area which was nice since it was fairly warm by 8:30 when we finally hit the trail. We passed Murray Canyon at the top of the saddle and it was clear enough to see part of Palm Springs in the distance. Once at the overlook, we could see not only Red Taquitz but also Tahquitz peak. Since we were the only hikers out there, we had it all to ourselves. This is definitely a hike worth doing!

 

Fourwheelin' in the Inyo Mountains

On May 25 - May 28, a group of us took our four wheel drive vehicles up to the Owens Valley and the Inyo Mountains. We visited the famouse salt tram that carried salt from Saline Valley to the Owens Valley. We were up to about 8,000 feet and this area can only be accesed by four wheel drive. We also visited the old mining town of Cerro Gordo. After this, went to Indian Wells Canyon and hiked up to some pictographs.

Because of the drought, there were not many flowers. Here are a few that we saw.

                                                                       

Here are some pictures of Cerro Gordo and the Salt Tram up in the Inyo Mountains.

                                 

Here are some of the pictographs we found.