For Memorial Day weekend we went up to our friend’s cabin near Bear Valley. I can’t say I’ve been up there much and all but forgot that hwy 4 lead into the Sierras. I think I’ve been snowboarding at Bear Valley once back in high school. Much to our surprise, it only took about 2 hours from the east Bay Area, closer than Tahoe! It was pretty cool to visit and explore an entirely new area.
Friday, D and I went up to check out the climbing areas. I had found a rough bouldering map for Hells Kitchen Vista where they apparently hold an occasional bouldering competition. A few miles before the Bear Valley result, there’s a large shoulder off hwy 4 where you can pull off and park. And with one step you’re amongst the boulders. By far the easiest approach I’ve ever had. It felt great to be outside and breathing that fresh mountain air. The mountains still had their snow caps but where we were was dry and warm. So we played.
The next day we had planned to hike to Elephant Rock however that didn’t exactly work out. We were able to find the right turn off for the trail we wanted but were immediately confronted with snow blocking the end portion of the road. I found a makeshift parking space next to another car and a closed bathroom. We figured we’d be able to find the trail-head from there. Wrong. We wondered around the closed-for-the-season campground without seeing anything representing a trail-head. We finally were heading back toward the car when we realized it was because the trail-head had about 5 feet of snow on top of it. The only thing differentiation the general area from the rest of the forest was the notice board at the trail-head and you could see some reflectors every couple of trees. We called that a scratch and decided to hike around Lake Alpine instead.
I think I could get used to the cabin life. We had a great time up there nestled in the forest. Being so close to all the activities we enjoy makes me wonder why we ever made cities in the first place. Something about the quiet and the wind through the trees. But mostly the smell. That warm piney mountain smell that’s so representative of summer and backpacking and adventure. Maybe someday.
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