Category: Personal

Quick Turn-around in Mineral King

For most of the summer, I caught rides up the hill with neighbors and then rode home with Trail Guy in the Botmobile. It is fun to drive the road, but there is no reason to beat my car up needlessly. It is also fun to spend car time with friends.

I didn’t make arrangements for a ride up the hill because I thought I’d still be painting in Mooney Grove. However, I finished the mural, and then wild horses could not have kept me from going to Mineral King. It was for only one night, a total of about 28 hours up the hill.

Hello, Oak Grove Bridge!!

Hello, Traugers!

And this is what I meant by “beating up my car”. The potholes are legendary.

I didn’t photograph the hogwallows in the 3 dirt sections. The light and shade hides the deep dips, so you’d better be going v e r y slowly and paying close attention. (I thought for a bit that I needed a gear lower than first.)

Deck-time is precious, particularly in light of not having time up the hill during the past two Septembers. Much of my short stay in Mineral King was spent catching up with friends.

We had some work to do on the Honeymoon Cabin‘s new steps.

I still don’t understand why this is called the “Point Cabin”. It’s not on a point; what’s the point?

We had time for a short walk to Crystal Creek.

Fungus?

The light was rapidly changing, sometimes brilliant, sometimes muted.

The currant crop is very light this year but the juniper berries are thick.

The colors never look as good in photos as in real life.

Crystal Creek is like Facebook at this time of year: about 1/4″ deep, and a mile wide. There was a stray clump of Sierra Gentian by the creek. (A PhD* camera isn’t adequate to the task of exposing the flowers clearly while blurring the creek.)

And thus we conclude a quick turnaround trip to Mineral King.

*Press Here, Dummy

A Week of Mineral King, Chapter 6: White Chief

When our little group headed to Eagle Lake, Trail Guy stopped before the rocky section. He pointed out the route to White Chief, a hike, nay, a scramble that we took a few years ago. (I’d give you the link but I can’t find the blog post about it; this is to be expected after 14 years of blogging, a total of 3,443 posts.)

Suddenly, Trail Guy was gone. We knew he wasn’t going to Eagle Lake, but didn’t know he was going to White Chief, up and over the ridge that separates the two bowls.

Because I wasn’t huffing and puffing behind him with my camera, we only get this photo of White Chief from the top of the ridge. Or maybe halfway down. (I wasn’t there.)

Here is everyone’s favorite juniper.

And, (perhaps it is my influence), here are several beautiful wildflower photos of a late season flower. I think it is fuchsia, in spite of being red rather than fuchsia colored.

Thus, we conclude one week plus one day of Mineral King posts. My 2023 calendar may follow this theme, but this is an idea that is just percolating, not fully formed. (THANK YOU, BARBARA L. FOR ANOTHER EXCELLENT IDEA!)

Mineral King White Chief

A Week of Mineral King, Chapter 5: Eagle Lake

Yesterday we stopped at the Eagle Lake dam, a steep hike on a tough trail out of Mineral King.

Wait—isn’t there supposed to be a lake? Isn’t that the purpose of the dam?

Well, oops. The dam either didn’t get closed last fall or it got opened too soon this summer. Looks more like Eagle Pond.

However, these gentlemen caught quite a few fish (catch and release, using a spinner).

Little Sis replaced her cat ears with a Kevin jacket (ever seen “Up”?). We watched the raindrops on the pond while discussing circles, ripples, and shiny places.

The Farmer found a checkerboard as he explored the edges of the pond, formerly known as Eagle Lake. My guess is that some youngsters’ phone batteries died so some oldsters showed them this primitive, non-tech game.

The exposed rocks in the lake are bizarrely geometrical.

This is the “normal” view of the lake, looking back toward Mineral King.

And this is looking toward the upper end of the lake.

I’ve painted it from a similar angle.

Enough recreation and lollygagging. Time to make like a cowpie and hit the trail.

The Farmer found this rock, and we all thought it would make a great paving stone but had the good sense to leave it as a concept rather than a reality. It is a weird geologic formation, not someone’s early attempt at mosaic.

Does this look like a trail to you?? I turned back toward Eagle Lake to take this photo, because even though I’ve hiked it many times, it still astonishes me.

Finally found some flowers. These are Pride of the Mountains. Sawtooth is in the distance, with its “shadow”, Mineral Peak just to the right.

Well, yea. A little bit of good trail bed.

Haha. Fooled you. Climb over these rocks, you mountain goat.

After the rocks, I stopped taking photos with the exception of two more of the scene that I have been struggling to paint for 2-3 years now. (Not gonna show you that sorry mess today.)

With 2 miles left to go, Little Sis ran out of gas. She asked for breaks about every 20 yards. That is the slowest mile I have ever walked on a trail, and we were quite relieved that her pa was waiting at the White Chief junction. They did a pack shuffle, and she rode the last mile on her pa’s shoulders. I chased Big Bro for awhile at a rapid pace, marveling that the child never ran out of steam, never slowed, never complained.

Those are two amazing children who accomplished a huge journey on foot.

Tomorrow, we will return to White Chief, our favorite destination.

A Week of Mineral King, Chapter 4: Eagle Lake

One day, a group of cabin friends went to Eagle Lake, the most popular hike in Mineral King. It has been 5 years since I went there, and I had an ominous feeling that this might be the last time I see it. Dramatic? Maybe, but that trail is TOUGH. (Trail Guy actually refuses to go there any more.)

Remember this little hiker from last year? (You can read about our hike here.)

This year Little Sis wanted to go to Eagle Lake. There was a bit of a competition going, since she wanted to go before turning 5, because her Big Bro had gone to Eagle before age 5. Eagle Lake is closer than last year’s hike, but oh so much tougher.

Big Bro studied the trail sign as we were heading out.

Instead of a cat tail this year, there were cat ears on a hoodie.

Whoa, Daddy, is that a flower in your cap?

What? We have to go up that?

Holy smokes, the trail is rough. However, I think it is a little bit improved over its 2017 condition. Maybe, maybe not.

The views are spectacular. With all the stopping to huff-and-puff, there are many opportunities to enjoy the view.

I probably have photographed this twisty tree (a juniper) every time I have gone to Eagle Lake.

Oh yeah! A break from the rocks and the climb.

This is a weird rock, a leverite, as in “Leave ‘er right where you found ‘er”.

AT LAST! The dam. We have arrived.

You’ll have to return tomorrow for the rest of the story.

Here is the story from 2017: Part One and Part Two

Mineral King

A Week of Mineral King, Chapter 3: Franklin Falls

One day I took a walk with two friends to Franklin Falls. This is a four mile round trip walk, fairly flat, a nice way to just meander along the valley floor in Mineral King for awhile.

We discovered a creature poking his head out of a hole, until he filled the hole with dirt. Guess he was shy.

We wondered what this little fern-like plant is that no one has seen previously but is very abundant this year. Maybe it will have flowers…

We meandered up the Franklin trail just to the falls. Not much water in late August/early September. (Look at the beginning of this post from 2017 to see it roaring.)
This little flower has been hanging in there for awhile. I think it is a fuchsia, but I can’t quite tell. It is red, but the color fuchsia is bright pink. Anyone know of a good wildflower book?

I like this view of Crystal Creek, even when it is low and spread out, probably because I am just ravenous for green.

I considered posting a photo of my two friends at the falls, but since this is the World Wide Web, I decided to keep that one for myself.

Tomorrow, Eagle Lake.

Mineral King

A Week of Mineral King, Chapter 2: Nature Trail

This is the classic view of Mineral King: Farewell Gap, the Crowley Family cabin, the creek (sometimes called “the river”, which would make people in wet places fall down laughing). I snapped this photo as we crossed the bridge at the end of the road. This is one of the easiest routes: down the road, up the Nature Trail.

Although this view from the top of Endurance Grade is gorgeous, the camera is often incapable of relaying that information to you.

Wait, I have a better photo from another day:

On this little walk, Trail Guy explained everything to us, starting with these giant nettles above the Tar Gap parking area. (It ain’t much of a lot, but it is a place to park.)

Do NOT touch that stuff. It will hurt you. We believe the seeds came with feed for the stock that used to be in a pack station that used to be at this site. (Burchell pack station)

These are tracks from a millipede.

This is the source of the cold spring that gives Cold Springs Campground its name. Wait—one spring, but Cold “Springs”? Looks a bit weak and tired, but it never stops flowing.

We also explored the walk-in campground sites at the lower end of the campground. They are downstream from the rest of the campground, farther than I expected. I’d never seen them before, nor had our hiking friends. Nothing much to photograph, but interesting to see in person. With the online reservation system now in place for the campsites, it is pretty difficult to discern how to reserve one of those walk-ins.

It was a hot day, so we abandoned the idea of heading out on the Tar Gap trail a ways.

Instead, we headed back up the Nature Trail. There is a clear sign stating no dogs, but it seems that there are many illiterate folks in Mineral King this summer.

Now Trail Guy is telling the story of installing the water tank that supplies the campground and cabins in the area (he was Maintenance Guy back then). The situation got a bit dicey, and there may be a dent in the tank, but none of us wanted to climb the hill to inspect it.

The Nature Trail deceived us and somehow we were on the mini loop that goes past the garnet mine. I didn’t see any garnets.

We stopped for some fuel at Iron Falls and were thankful that The Farmer carried enough food to share with us all, which made it a hike for him and a walk for the rest of us.

This is how Iron Falls looks when we were plunked on the rocks, looking downstream.

This is how it looks facing upstream, while practically sitting in the stream.

And this is how it looks in an oil painting. (Last time I did inventory at the Silver City Store, it was still there.)
This is some mine tailings.

Here is the site of an old ranger station. The Farmer is “walking up the front steps”. (Use your imagination)

A little ways past the ranger station is this weird bathtub. Looks scratchy and pokey.

And beyond the tub is another trough, or a something else?**Come back tomorrow for more Mineral King. I wonder if I can stretch it to a week plus a day. . . stay tuned.

**Trail Guy just explained this item. It was a place to cook, an outdoor stove that probably had a sheet of metal with removable plates on top and a chimney pipe at the back.

Mineral King

A Week of Mineral King, Chapter 1: Clough

Recently I spent a longer stretch than normal in Mineral King and now there are lots of stories to tell, hikes to follow, hanging out to see. Let’s call this one Chapter One, Clough.

“Clough”? William O. Clough spent a great deal of time in Mineral King in the early 1900s. He disappeared one winter, and now we like to go to a site where he had a cabin.

First, this is an example of how a bear marks a tree.

We took the Clough Cut-off trail (off the Franklin/Farewell trail) and started up. The trail isn’t maintained, and we were relying on memory. I was looking for the gnarliest red fir tree around, and when I saw this one, it looked right but the terrain was wrong and the surrounding trees were missing. I was confused.

Trail Guy was in front (as usual), and he found the correct tree. This time the light was wrong so you cannot appreciate the true gnarliness of this giant red fir. It shows up in this old post about Bill Clough.

There’s Vandever, the peak on the right side of Farewell Gap.

Those people think they are going to find gold up there in some mine tailings. I’m happy to just bumble around below, looking for the missing memorial sign on the giant red fir.

The bear scratch marks showed up better on the way back down the Franklin/Farewell Trail.

Look at these guys. This view is common to me on our hikes. Makes me smile.

Monday, chapter two.

Mineral King

Many New Things Learned in August

If you can’t see the photos, go here: cabinart.net/blog. It was a month of lots of new information.

Victor Davis Hanson interviewed Dr. Steven Quay who explained the 5 different types of gain of function research, three of which are considered acceptable and two which are considered bio weapons. I had to listen over and over, taking notes, slowing down the podcast to half-speed in order to understand. Interview with VDH on August 5.
Dresser couplings (may you never need to know this): a brilliant simple device for repairing broken water pipes, available in plastic or metal. A dresser coupling also has “teeth” in the center, and this is why: it gives a pipe wrench something to grab onto while you use a second pipe wrench to tighten up the twirly ends.
Blueberry facts: A. farmers plant grass between the rows; B. they can be harvested mechanically; C. the plants benefit from sawdust.
Oregon facts (many of which I already knew, but maybe you didn’t): A. No sales tax; B. Everything I bought was less expensive than in California; C. Trucks (big rigs) can haul three trailers; D. The roads are lined with Wild Carrot, AKA Queen Anne’s Lace, in August; E. Many of their town names are copycats—Portland, Salem, Glendale, Albany, Dallas, Harrisburg, Jacksonville, for example; F. Although most of the state is small towns and rural areas, the 2 largest cities decide the politics.
Something very peculiar is happening with a book, Dawn at Mineral King Valley, by Dan Selmi. Trail Guy and I met Dan and his wife a number of years ago (5? 8?) when he was researching for a book about the lawsuit that prevented Disney from building a ski resort in Mineral King. I recently discovered that the book was published in June of this year, and I ordered a copy on eBay. I received an old paperback titled A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. What? I returned it, and ordered a copy on Amazon. This time I received a message that the book was out of stock. I ordered a third time from another seller and received the same message. I ordered from a third Amazon seller and received the message again. I ordered a fifth time (4th attempt on Amazon), and this time I received another copy of A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. This is truly baffling! When I worked out how to return the book, underneath the description of the book was this:In case you can’t read it, it says “There is a newer edition of this book” and it lists A Manual for Writers of Research Papers. . .” HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM. Next, I need to compare the ISBNs on the 2 books. The Manual for Writers has ISBN 0-226-81619-2 Selmi’s book has ISBN 978-0226816197 (the 13 number version) AND 0226816192 (the 10 number version) Aha! Does the assigner of ISBNs have a problem? Looks as if Daniel Selmi has a problem. I certainly do, if I want to get the right book!**
Perler Beads are tiny plastic macaroni that comes in multiple colors with little molds. You arrange the colors on a mold, melt them into place with an iron, and get these items. I made the blue one which is sort of a coaster.
Do you know how much a gallon of propane weighs? 5.25 lbs., compared to 8 lbs. for a gallon of water. You’re welcome.
This is more opinion than fact, but I believe it is better to drive through the Central Valley on Interstate 5 than on 99. Other people believe 99 to be superior; they are allowed to be wrong, because it will keep more traffic off 5.
There are ice packs made from a gel that when thawed, can be put on your plants as fertilizer! They are called Enviro-Ice. My plants haven’t shot up as a result, but time will tell.
If you want to package things securely in a ziplock bag, close the seal until the last inch, squish out all the air you can, insert a drinking straw, and inhale like crazy to suck out the air. Then, while still inhaling, pull the straw and speedy-quick-like-lightning, seal the bag. (I KNOW you are dying to try this!)
The President and the Freedom Fighter by Brian Kilmeade was a wealth of new information about Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. I learned so much about both of these remarkable men and the War Between the States. (“Civil War” sounds to me as if there was a plot to overthrow the USA, when in reality, it was an effort to secede from the United States, not take it over.) My conclusion is that if everyone at the time simply acknowledged that slavery is sin, plain and simple, it would have ended and there would have been no war. (Can I get an “AMEN”?)

See you in September, maybe in about one week…

**I made a sixth attempt to order the book, this time from eBay. Instead of receiving the book, eBay sent an email saying the book was damaged in transit so it got returned to the seller, who, OF COURSE has no more copies!!

What I Did On My Summer Vacation, Chapter Four

If you can’t see the photos, go here: cabinart.net/blog. “Day Four” refers to the number of posts in the series rather than to the number of the vacation day. And this day was definitely not a vacation day—it was a goodbye day and a 550 mile driving day.

I hated leaving. But over a week ago, I hated leaving home. Leaving is tough. Bye-bye, Beautiful Oregon.

This time I was prepared to see Truck Village, but still couldn’t get a decent shot. It is better to pay attention to the road than to the scenery when one is a driver.

The goal was 550 miles, in order to spend a night with a dear friend in a suburb of Sacramento. An audio book by John Grisham helped to pass the miles. He isn’t an author I enjoy reading, but it was perfect for driving.

I found my friend’s house without difficulty, following her directions rather than those of the unreliable Talking Lady. The next morning we took a walk, since I didn’t want to encounter commute traffic by leaving early. She lives in a pretty neighborhood with good walking routes available.

We had breakfast by her pool, which was such a welcome sight when I pulled in the previous evening.

As I was leaving her town, I saw this inexplicable road sign multiple times. When I asked her later what it means, she said, “Lookie?” Apparently she doesn’t know either.

I chose 99 for the route home, on the recommendation of family members who prefer it to The Five. I did not like it better than The Five, but enjoyed looking for the 2 trees that demarcate the center of California. This funny little landmark is between Madera and Fresno, a palm tree on the south and a pine (or fir?) tree on the north.

I stopped in Lemon Cove to get “cheap” gas, and felt compelled to document this. It is another angle of the scene in a recently completed commissioned painting. (Scroll down to “If This Ever Gets Returned in this link to see it.)

Thus we conclude our series of What I Did on my Summer Vacation. Next week we will resume our normal broadcast schedule. Wait. That’s not accurate. Next week we will resume our normal topics. Thank you for reading to the end!

What I Did On My Summer Vacation, Chapter Two

If you can’t see the photos, go here: cabinart.net/blog. After our three days of work, we went to the beach. (Because I am involving other people in these posts, I am keeping their faces small and leaving out names in order to use good World Wide Web etiquette.)

Oregon was so beautiful that I did not even attempt to knit on the drive. Instead, I was a sight-seer who took these photos from the back seat. The only unfortunate part about sitting there was that the window was tinted. Otherwise, I was perfectly content to be a passenger after driving 800 miles a few days prior.

The beach was beautiful, of course. I hadn’t seen the ocean since October of 2019 and could have happily spent hours (possibly days) walking along the edge, sitting in the sand, listening to the sounds, absorbing all the blues and greens.