Wildfire Near Red's Meadow

[tgtaylor]

Heads up - there is a fire burning in the old Rainbow Fire area (famous 1992 fire Southwest of Reds Meadow). It isn't on the JMT and probably won't spread but keep an eye on the web page below if you're heading out soon.

https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6243/

Thomas

[Drew Wiley]

That fire looks tiny so far. I had to do about 14 miles of the JMT during a two-week trip in Kings Canyon earlier this month. Gosh what a freeway, and a menagerie of under-equipped neophytes ripe for hypothermia, as well as cocky young trail runners who are equally at risk if they twist an ankle in those mere glorified tennis shoes. It rained like crazy for a couple days; but the snowline was up around 11,000 ft. Pretty. Those who try to make quick time end-to-end on either the JMT or entire Pacific Crest Trail tend to get zombified and don't see a thing. Lots of international hikers. One of my regular backpacking pals is taking the entire month of Oct to re-do the JMT right now, without resupply, so he can take some quality time with side excursions. Ah, those were the days, back when I was comfortable with a 90 lb pack myself !

[Sirius Glass]

JMT? Can you define that?

[Jim Galli]

John Muir Trail ~

[John Kasaian]

Well familiar with Red's Meadow. Beautiful country!
Probably a lightning strike?
From the thunderheads I see over the Sierra there should be plenty of moisture to slow things down up there.
Maybe.

[tgtaylor]

I always found the trail out of Red's heading south both boring and got burnt dust from the original firewall over your boots. Guess if will be even worse now.

Thomas

[Drew Wiley]

You can always take the upper trail instead, Tom, from one of the Mammoth Lakes over Duck Pass. The main source of dust is the pumice soil. Since that contains almost microscopic glass-like silica, it causes quite a bit of irritation, and I always get nosebleeds on those trails. The best scenery isn't on the Muir Trail anyway. You might check out the "Sierra High Route" alternative through the Ritter Range to the north, though parts of it are rather steep. Bypassing the section south of Red's Mdw, I dunno. I prefer dropping down from the E side over McGee Pass. But there are several spectacular off-trail crossings possible over the Silver Divide itself.

[tgtaylor]

You're probably right on the pumice soil. I always associated it with the fire because of all the burned trees in the area. I never took the Duck Pass route before but I've been to Duck Lake on the JMT several times and while I have camped at Duck and Purple Lakes I prefer camping at Virginia Lake.

I've been meaning to hike the High Sierra trail and even bought the guidebook but have never gotten around to it yet. Several years back I ran into a locally well know photographer that I first met at one of my photo meetups - I can't think of his name at the moment but he was a music teacher at DeAnza College who took to photography and a coupe of years ago was being touted by a well known workshop photographer - I can't recall his name either...I'm thinking Charlie Waite but not him but equally well known, a former dye transfer and Cibachrome printer who I am sure you either know or are familiar with - anyway we ran into each other again at a campground on the JMT about a day or so north of Guitar Lake. He had just completed the High Sierra route with his group and was exiting via Trail Crest with a side trip to the summit of Mt. Whitney - same as my group. G. Dan Mitchell! Consulting Starr's Guide I found his card he gave me on the trail. His website is still active: http://www.gdanmitchell.com/ - you might know him.

Anyway I've been thinking of hiking the High Sierra Trail.


Thomas

[Drew Wiley]

I ran into some remarkably traveled hikers this past month, types who spend their entire summers in the high country and are still young enough to get to some of the most remote areas. What I find so ironic is that in the vicinity of popular routes like the Muir Trail, relatively few of the many adjacent off-trail high basins and lakes ever get visited, esp in Kings Can. But in lesser known parts of the range, hardcore backcountry types seem to go everywhere. If it weren't for the previous Lion Fire downcanyon from Reds Mdw, I had hoped to take the upper trail to the point where you can veer off up to Triassic Basin and Plateau of the Ponds. You won't find those names on any map, but they're both stunning benches full of lakes west of McGee Pass. I'd never been on any of the trails south of Mammoth - a bit crowded for my taste - but have been deep in there via various high routes from the east and south. ... Maybe you are thinking of Charlie Cramer, a highly experienced DT printer, but now working in inkjet. He's across the Bay. I've talked to him a few times. Nice fellow, but we have different philosophies of color printing. He's like Joe Holmes in this neighborhood and constantly thinking of how to get more "control" over color media, while I'm always trying to dance with the idiosyncrasies of any given color media.

[tgtaylor]

That's him- Charlie Cramer! He was telling everyone assembled - at least 100, standing room only, how good a photographer Dan is - and Dan is a good photographer. Come to think about it I first saw Dan when I
pulled off 35 at crystal Springs Resovoir to photograph the fog riding from the water. "It' s too late" he said to me as I was walking from the car, "It's already lifted." But it 's not good policy to trust what another unknown photographer tells you about a shot, I checked it out and yes I had just missed it. I think it was last year I was in the Valley with the 8x10 and Cramer was doing a workshop there and they must have spotted me. The next morning one if his students came over while I was having my morning coffee at the Lodge and, inter Alia, what a friendly guy Cramer is. He said Cramer told him that viewing prints on a monitor is different than from the print. I asked him how much was Cramer charging for the workshop and he replied $1,700 IIRC.

I spotted some good architecture in Oakland and was planning on checking it today but had to work. I'm going to pack the 810 in the car tomorrow and check it out.
Thomas

[John Kasaian]

Dang it you guys make me jealous!
I did a number on my right leg last week and can't make it down the hallway to get to my morning coffee, muscle relaxers and pain pills before the spasms commence.

[Drew Wiley]

Don't be too jealous, John. I've still got bursitis in one shoulder and can't drive very far or carry too heavy a pack yet. Gonna be medium format for me the rest of the month. I'm on a drymounting marathon anyway, before the weather gets wet and humid. Hope your leg improves soon.

[John Kasaian]

Don't be too jealous, John. I've still got bursitis in one shoulder and can't drive very far or carry too heavy a pack yet. Gonna be medium format for me the rest of the month. I'm on a drymounting marathon anyway, before the weather gets wet and humid. Hope your leg improves soon.

Thanks, Drew.
Gettin' old ain't fer wimps, eh?