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| Hiking | 5.48 Miles |
696 AEG |
| | Hiking | 5.48 Miles | 3 Hrs 15 Mns | | 2.44 mph |
| 696 ft AEG | 1 Hour Break | | | |
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| no partners | | I’d not been out for a solo overnight trip for way too long. It isn’t that I don’t enjoy some company when camping. But there is something distinctly different in experiencing the back country on your own. I guess there are no distractions. There is you and dear old Mother Nature, who cares not in the least. She isn’t malicious in her apathy, being neither for you nor against you. Things out there just are what they are. I was missing that. So off I went to find some of it. Day and night one was to be Pivot Rock Canyon and then three more days backpacking the Cabin Loop.
Pivot was new to me. Figured it might be a touch warm, but nothing like the 110+ stuff down in the Valley. Parked the Jeep above the spring and bushwhacked down into the Canyon – mistake #1. There are easier ways to do this hike, but I didn’t know that yet. The spring was right where it should be, a decent flow of water and a very, very welcome cool breeze emanating from the cave entrance. Enjoyed the coolness, but felt zero motivation to explore beyond the cave’s mouth. Just not my thing.
Found the trail and moved clockwise around the canyon. The trail was easier to follow than expected. Stopped off to marvel at the geology of Pivot Rock for a few moments. Soon came on what looked like a foot path leading off to the south. Hmmm, wonder where that might go?
Not much later I heard voices above me and spotted a couple of hikers. So much for solitude, but that’s OK. Our paths merged a bit later. Was two young ladies, one who had a small child strapped to her back, searching for the trail. They’d been following a small Jeep trail. I told them the little I knew about the place and pressed on.
The trail now became the Jeep trail the ladies had been following. I walked it to the cabin ruins and took a short break. The ladies had gone the other way towards the spring. Thought about back tracking to the Jeep, but had downloaded a track into my gps that showed a nice loop, Kingsnake’s I think. Went for the loop – mistake #2. Followed the canyon around as it curved eastward with an obviously used ATV trail at its bottom. Turned south up a side drainage following the gps track. Mistake #3. There was a nice little ATV trail on this drainage, too. Looking at the gps I’m thinking back at the Jeep in 30 minutes. Not so fast. ATV trail ends. Drainage is now overgrown and steep with lots of sticker things. The afternoon is getting warmer. After a bit of that I opted to climb out onto the ridge and eventually stumbled across FR9385 which led me back to 616 and my ride. Lesson learned – read the triplog associated with the track.
Back at the Jeep I considered the options. Was a bit early to start setting up camp, so I explored. Found the old CCC camp site marked these days by a wide open area and a few building foundations. Was empty today, but not too hard to envision dozens of large campers parked here on weekends, kids, dogs, loud music, etc. Frightening!
Followed 616 further west and found the Jeep trail that led down to where the ladies were. Much easier access to the canyon than what I took. Next time will be better.
Found a decent camp spot and set up for the night. Cooked sausages and cabbage over a small fire. Paired with a local IPA, they made for a fine dinner. Later, some hot chocolate topped it off nicely.
Remembered that I'd left my phone on in the Jeep. Went to turn it off and somehow I'd gotten a message that an uncle had passed away from a long battle with cancer earlier in the day. He lived back in GA where I grew up and no one was expecting me to attend the funeral. We weren't particularly close given my years away from there, but he was a Vietnam vet and the only member of the family who'd also seen time in the military. The night under the stars became a little more reflective and introspective. He really wasn't much older than me. I hoped he had gotten to do the things he really wanted. Reminded me that time here is limited, so don't waste any. |
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Wildflowers Observation Light
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All you have is your fire...
And the place you need to reach |
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Route Editor
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