Monthly Archives: September 2023

Powderhorn trail maintenance 2023-09

Leave a reply

Finally, a trip without rain! The weather was perfect. Cool mornings, warm afternoons, fair weather cumulus clouds in the afternoon, clear skies at night with a new moon and incredible stars.

I camped four nights beside Five Lakes Creek, in a gentle area below the gorge but above where the Hell Hole Trail crosses. There is no trail to this place, but I found it in my explorations and it has become a favorite.

I went back to Powderhorn Trail to do maintenance. The horrible condition of this trail gnaws at me. Very few people used this trail this year, and I am afraid that people will just stop using the trail completely. The bears, of course, still use it, but even they seem to be using it less.

I worked the bottom part of the trail for three days. The first 1.5 miles from Diamond Crossing are now in good condition, other than the down trees. I spend a lot of time cutting back and thinning the fir trees which encroach on the trail. Most young trees die, the larger trees you see a the result of a long process of natural thinning. But in the meanwhile, the live trees crowd the trail, and both live trees and dead trees lean over into the trail. Along this section of the trail, traditional brushing is not the main work.

The upper 1.4 miles of trail is in acceptable condition. It needs some brushing and winter debris removal, but is quite usable. That leaves the middle section of the trail, about one mile, which, still, sucks (see my earlier post Powderhorn Trail maintenance 2023-07). In this section there is heavy winter debris on about half the trail, firs are crowding the trail, a lot of live and dead firs are leaning into the trail, and there is some brush. This section includes the postpile meadow, where the alders are beginning to crowd in but are not too bad yet.

One down tree on the trail presents a barrier to equestrian use. This is an off-the-ground tree that hikers and backpackers can slide under, but there is no safe bypass for equestrians. One could be created, with a lot of work, but for now, it is not safe.

It is unlikely that I’ll get back to Powderhorn this year. In fact, this may be the last of my mountain backpacks for this year, as my next window is not until the second half of October. If fall is late, perhaps again. Otherwise, foothill and coast range backpack trips.

I did my usual Amtrak bus to Truckee, TART bus to Barker Pass Rd, hitched a ride to Barker Pass and walked to the Powderhorn trailhead. Coming out, I walked back to Barker Pass, then attempted to hitch down, but during the week and after Labor Day, there isn’t much traffic, so I walked more than half the way. Bus back to Tahoe City, and the next morning, bus to Truckee and the Amtrak California Zephyr home. The train was almost on time!. Several times this season and others, I’ve had to take the Amtrak bus instead because the train was many hours late.

rain, rain, rain 2023-09

Leave a reply

My last backpack was cut short by rain, again. As mentioned, I discovered on my last trip that my tent is no longer waterproof, and had ordered a new tent. It came after I had headed out on this trip. I wasn’t worried because the forecast was for a few times of light rain, and my old tent was up for that.

It started raining as I left the Granite Chief trailhead, at 2:00PM, and it continued for 14 hours, through 4:00AM the next morning. I continued hiking in hopes of a break to set up camp, but there was never a break and I finally stopped at Whiskey Creek Camp and set up in light rain. I had my rain jacket, so my upper body was not soaked, but my lower body was drenched and cold the entire time. Though the section of PCT from Tevis Cup Trail to Whiskey Creek junction is not terribly brushy, every bit of brush holds water to shed on me as I walk by. Whitethorn seems better at holding water than any other shrub. The willow thicket along the trail was like a rain storm on the spot.

upper Washeshu Creek in rain

During the night, the rain was never heavy, light most of time and moderate in the thunderstorms from about midnight to 2:00AM. But nightlong rain and saturated ground was too much for my tent. My sleeping bag was quite wet, and some of my other gear.

The next morning was another one uncertain whether the sun would come out. It did for a few minutes, but by late morning I realized that even if it came out it would not be enough to dry my bag. So I hiked out to River Ranch. The sun was out for a while there, and I managed to dry all my gear except sleeping bag, which would have taken several hours of direct sunlight. I had decided to take the bus into Tahoe City and dry my bag at the laundry, but then I looked at the weather forecast. It was another night of rain, never heavy, but light to moderate, for hours. So I took the bus to Truckee and went home!

Extensive rain at night is not characteristic of the Sierra Nevada. Summer thunderstorm season it often rains in the afternoon, and often clears by sunset but sometimes goes into the early evening. But all night? Not the way it used to be. I check my weather apps before heading into the backcountry, and in those few places where there is cell reception, while out hiking. Though at home in Sacramento, they tend to give similar forecasts and be reasonably accurate, no so for the mountains. The Apple Weather app continually underestimates the amount and duration of rain. Accuweather comes closest to what actually happens. Weather Underground is mixed.

Trail conditions, for the section of the PCT from Tevis Connector to Whiskey Creek junction: Getting brushy and needs brushing by next year. A few small trees down and one medium tree. A fair number of spars (the dead conifers that lean into the trail and rip at skin and clothing). Winter debris light to moderate.

There is a large tree down across the crossing of Whiskey Creek. The rock hop is still available, but requires climbing through or around branches. You can also walk the log itself, but the bark is still sloughing off, and it is a little hard to get up onto down off the tree.