Pickett Peak Snowshoe

Hope Valley is a beautiful spot.  Tucked in below Luther Pass, it seems like a totally separate world away from Tahoe's shops and tourism.  Despite the rain and snow in the forecast I headed out to attempt a snowshoe hike of Pickett Peak.  From the junction of Hwy 88 and 89 I quickly found myself unstrapping my snowshoes and throwing them on.  The silence on the trail was beautiful as I continued up the switchbacks and then cross-country straight up to the peak.  The rain turned to snow once I got up close to the summit.  I thoroughly enjoyed the summit, with clouds flying across revealing views of Hope Valley for brief moments before hiding the valley again.  The warm storm allowed me to stay on the summit for a good while and admire perhaps my last snow of the year.

Grand Canyon, Bryce, and Zion

Spring Break is a beautiful time of year to see the American Southwest.  For the second straight year I ventured down to Arizona and Southern Utah for a road trip.  Weather in the Grand Canyon was perfect once again with cool nights and perfect days.  The feeling of peering over the rim of the Grand Canyon is simply spectacular.  It was fun remembering last year's 50 mile Rim to Rim to Rim run.

Southern Utah's Bryce Canyon is right up there among my favorite national parks.  With barely any crowds and hundreds of brightly-colored hoodoos, it is truly a unique spot.  You feel more like you are on Mars then on planet earth.  At 8,000 feet the springtime snow blending with the shades of red in the rock is a beautiful combination.

Zion is gorgeous.  It is a Yosemite valley full of red cliffs instead of granite.  The Zion Mount Carmel Hwy is a joy to drive with spectacular views around each bend.

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Obsidian Dome and Black Point Hikes

A summit unlike any other I've seen.  Obsidian Dome is a steep 100 foot vertical climb to an an absolutely enormous bolder field.  I had to hope along this snow-filled boulder field for nearly an hour before arriving at the true summit.  Views of the Mammoth Area and the White Mountains were particularly nice!

Mono Lake is one of the most recognizable landmarks on Hwy 395.  Its smell, shape,size and location next to the giant peaks make it quite unique.  Finding the trailhead for Black Point was tough.  My phone's GPS didn't even show the road existing which I needed to take!  Finally I was able to make my way Southeast of Black point and simply bushwack 1 mile up through ground cover and sand to Black Point where I had some nice views of Mono Lake with the Eastern Sierras in the background.

Silver Lake to Agnew Lake Snowshoe

The June Lake Loop is about as good as it gets.  I can see why my parents went here for their honeymoon.  Lovely little fishing lakes on a quiet 18 mile loop off of Hwy 395, and trailheads that take you in to some of the most photographed parts of the Eastern Sierras.

  

 On my way back from the national parks of the Southwest I was excited to camp out in the Eastern Sierras for a couple days.  I had the parking lot to myself at the Silver Lake/Rush Creek Trailhead and a beautiful starry night with a full moon.

I woke up on my own at 5, loaded up my gear and headed up the trail that leads above Silver Lake and up and over towards the John Muir Trail.  Today was much slower going compared to last summer, due to large amounts of snow.  I soon found myself throwing on my microspikes to get a better grip on the ice.  I alternated between using microspikes and snowshoes for the rest of the time until steep slopes up below Gem Lake forced me to turn around.  It was a gorgeous day on one of my favorite trails in the Eastern Sierras.

Palisade Glacier Lakes Snowshoe

Palisade Glacier Lakes Snowshoe

Coming back from Arizona, Southern Utah and Death Valley I wanted to explore some more of the snow-filled Eastern Sierras.  The only high road open year-round is the Glacier Lodge Road out of Big Pine.  I camped at 8200 ft. before heading out in the early morning darkness towards North Palisade's Glacier Lakes.  Last summer I ventured up to these bright blue glacier lakes.  This time the snow started shortly after the trailhead and I through on my snowshoes.  The approach to the the frozen glacier lakes was well worth it.  The sun rising over First-Sixth Lakes was spectacular.

Marshmellow-like 3rd Lake in front of Palisades

Constantly using my Nat Geo and Tom Harrison Maps

Always fun when there are more animal tracks than human footprints

Snow starting to melt in the early Spring

Trail leading back down to North Fork of Big Pine Creek

Death Valley and Red Rock

Death Valley is less deathlike in the spring when temps don't go much above 80 degrees.  I loved Charcoal Kilns trailhead with these unique rock huts.  The views going up Wildrose Peak spanned for 40 to 50 miles across Death Valley National Park

 Telescope Peak towers over Death Valley National Park at over 11,000 feet high.  I spent the night in the car at Mahagony Flats Camground for an early morning ascent of Bennett's and Rodger's Peaks in route to Telescope.  Views were tremendous of Badwater, Owens Valley, and the Eastern Sierra's over 50 miles away.  Used my microspikes for the final 500 feet of the ascent to the summit.  Gorgeous day

 Red Rock State Park outside of Las Vegas provides a true desert experience only 30 minutes away from the noise of the Strip and downtown.  Views were terrific from Turtlehead Peak