Backpacking

[bluegoose]

Great pics PBW. Love that lake pic.

[BigPiney]

I did the San Juans in June once. I may still be wet.

[Paperback Writer]

I'm drying out from my latest backpacking adventure in the San Juans (SW Colorado). Here are a few pics.

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[Bo Diddley]

Beautiful. A little too cold for me, but if you're moving, maybe not too bad.

[PaloAltoCougar]

The pictures are great, BG, and worthy of repetition.

[BigPiney]

Come on up in two weeks! Doing a couples trip with some friends into the Marble Mountains toward the end of July. Black Marble Mountain and the Sky High Lakes. It's not technically the Trinities, but they're basically connected at the hip.

sound fun, but the 8 hour drive does not. I expect pictures.

[bluegoose]

very nice, though I don't like cold. Trinity alps is on my list.

Come on up in two weeks! Doing a couples trip with some friends into the Marble Mountains toward the end of July. Black Marble Mountain and the Sky High Lakes. It's not technically the Trinities, but they're basically connected at the hip.

[Pelado]

Beautiful. Those pictures are worthy of being double-posted.

[BigPiney]

very nice, though I don't like cold. Trinity alps is on my list.

[bluegoose]

(Haven't posted any pics in a long time, so I'm not sure why it double posted them here. )

[bluegoose]

We had some unseasonably warm weather this spring, combined with basically no rain from February through May. We had a free weekend in April, so my 21 year old son, a friend, and I decided to do a quick trip up into the Trinity Alps to a place none of us had been - Granite Lake. It was about a six mile hike in to the camp, with a couple thousand of elevation gain. The hike wasn't too bad until the last mile or so, which fairly steep climbing the last little pitch up to the lake.

Daytime temperatures were pleasant, probably upper fifties, but it was dang cold at night, mid 20s with a stiff breeze making it feeling way colder. We woke up in the morning to frozen water bottles for anything that wasn't stored in the tent overnight.

Beautiful scenery. There was still some snow on the north facing slopes, but we only had traverse a few snow patches on the way in. My buddy and I bagged Seven-Up pass on our second day, while my son hung around camp nursing some blisters. Great trip. I'm not usually one to go backpacking in the off season with the chance of lousy weather, so we really lucked out and snuck in an early-season freebie.
Granite Lake panorama.jpg Granite Lake Mirror.jpg Granite Lake Waterfall.jpg Seven Up Peak east view.jpg

[Northwestcoug]

most are in the 500-1000 year range is my guess, others over 4000 years, though the biggest one in that grove is 1566 years old. The one we are looking at is all dead, those in background are only partially dead.

That's crazy. I'd like to see those trees.

[Bo Diddley]

Gorgeous. I love it.

[BigPiney]

Looks hot.

We were at above 9000 ft the whole time, so not too hot. Were cold at night.

Looks like a unique hike.

Please estimate the age of that last tree please.

most are in the 500-1000 year range is my guess, others over 4000 years, though the biggest one in that grove is 1566 years old. The one we are looking at is all dead, those in background are only partially dead.

[BigPiney]

A leader had a quilt on our YM camp activity last week. I couldn't believe how light it was. I sleep way hot at night already and I hate the constricted space of a sleeping bag. In the past I've often just unzipped the bag and put it on top of me and used it like a quilt. I don't go camping/backpacking when the temps drop below 30 so I'm not worried about getting too cold. I'm going to get a quilt for the next YM camp activity (end of July in the Uintahs).

I will let you know how it goes.

I got this one for $160 at the 4th of july sale.