Hikes
It's way more fun to wander around outside
than to sit around the condo; even napping gets boring after a while. On previous years
we've had ambitious hiking schedules. This year I was pretty tired & was content to
take short, easy walks. It was lots of fun doing some stretching outside--Karen & I
made it down to the meadow near the condo on several mornings to practice the Tslogee Dance of Life (sort of a
Tai Chi/Yoga in motion thing that Karen & I learned during one of our Reweaving classes). This certainly helped us limber up
on the mornings it had been our turn to sleep on the couch! (No, I was busy doing the
dance, so I didn't take pictures of us!)
Horseshoe Lake
is the trailhead for my favorite lake in the Mammoth area--McCloud Lake. It's about 3/4 of
a mile to hike in--not too steep or too strenuous, just right to keep the schwarmer away
(the fishing there is only catch and release & that helps keep the crowds to a minimum
as well) while allowing the elect to get there without working too hard on a lazy day. The
Horshoe Lake area reminds us that the area is not completely dormant volcanically. There
is a large area where trees have been killed by venting carbon dioxide gas from
underground. You can read more about it here.
Rachel wanted
a walking stick during our hike to McCloud Lake. So, just out of the tree kill area near
Horshoe Lake I found a fitting branch. She was ready to go as soon as I trimmed all the
twigs off, but being a pesky dad, I had to go an flatten a section and carve a few runes in it for
her. They were two runes she could read (Rad & Sigel) & she was mighty proud to
carry her own walking stick with her own two runes in it!
Then, her mom wanted to get a picture of her with these handsome roots... Enough of this lolly-gagging! Let's hit the trail already! Not that patience is a vice from which I suffer or anything.
So here, as promised, is McCloud Lake, with Rachel & Bobby modelling
the seasons lake wading styles. Two years ago, Justin managed to spend over an hour
standing in the same spot in an even colder mountain lake. This year he wanted us to pay
him $20 for standing in McCloud for TWO hours! I told him I wasn't fool
enough to be parted from my money that easily...
I remember having to
wait to open Christmas presents until after daddy had all the photo equipment, all the
flashes & the flash umbrellas set up properly. I remember having to get dressed up and
have my hair done "just right" before he could take those pictures, before I
could open Christmas presents.
I couldn't make my poor father wait to enjoy a hike while I got perfectly set-up to take pictures, so I just grabbed this snapshot down at the base of Rainbow Falls.
All during vacation, Rachel and Annemarie were inseparable.
So, proud Dad & Uncle that I am, I had to take at least a few photos. Besides, they
hiked all the way down to the base of Rainbow Falls and nobody
even asked to be carried--not even on the way back to the car!
I
can't forget my nephew, Jonathon. Here he is sneaking in with the girls--hey! What are you
doing with your fingers, Jonathon? OK, Here's a shot of him solo. Last year he hiked with
Daniel, Justin, Bobby & me over the Sierra Crest to Red's Meadows--quite a feat for
somebody who was just over 6 1/2 at the time!
Here are Justin & Bobby at the top of Rainbow Falls. They didn't stay
up here for long. Once we got to the bottom, they were busy scrambling over rocks, trying
to get close to the falls. Here's a picture that Justin took of the falls:
And he didn't even fall in once!
Visits
10/07/2001