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| Hiking | 33.00 Miles |
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| | Hiking | 33.00 Miles | | | |
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| no partners | | I haven't been able to really get in more than an overnight backpacking trip so far this season but finally had the chance last week, from Wednesday to Saturday. Since it was the first (and perhaps only) longer trip of the season, I figured I'd just do a nice little tour de western supes to enjoy all the running water, 3 nights/4 days. I started at Peralta and went clockwise, Dutchman -> Coffee Flat -> Side Trip down Randolph Canyon -> Red Tanks -> Dutchman -> Cavalry -> Boulder -> Terrapin -> Bluff, roughly 33 miles, with the plan to do 6 or 7 the first day and 12 or so on days 2 and 3 leaving a short hike out on day 4.
The road in was fine but I did notice way more campers/RVs/etc than previous years. Like, massive amounts more and there are a couple areas where forest service/county/someone has dropped some porta potties. I know there was a race this past weekend so maybe some of it was related to that but looks more like a lot of long termers. Was generally just surprised by the difference in numbers this year compared to previous.
As expected, all the creeks were running great, meaning I never carried more than my 700ml water bottle. I was able to rock hop and keep my feet dry at most crossings but this is basically impossible on some of the crossings of La Barge on the red tanks section and definitely impossible on the section of trail between reeds water and dripping spring but I had brought an extra pair of socks and sandals to wear at camp so no problem there. The days were in the high 60s/low 70s which was a bit warmer than I would've liked due to the lack of shade, but nothing bad. Nights were low/mid-30s which was fantastic.
Most of these trails are well used so the conditions are just fine and able to make great time on without any fuss. The only exception is the stretch of Red Tanks from the Randoph canyon junction to whiskey spring. There were several spots where I ended up off trail and had a very tough time filled with many bloody cuts finding it again. Also very overgrown in many places; in this section, I think I barely averaged 1 mph. I was on this trail 14-18 months ago and don't remember it being near this bad but now I need a new shirt and shorts.
The drive out was uneventful except for one lady on a bike raising her fists and screaming at me on Peralta. It seems obvious to me that if you're slowly riding a bike on the wrong side of a dirt road, a car will pass you at some point, so not entirely sure what she was angry about but that's people for ya. |
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