Adventure – California Fall Color

Adventure, Fall Color Report, Shasta Cascade

Private Waters

Bigleaf maple, Hat Creek Ranch (10/30/18) Martha Fletcher

The Fly Shop in Redding operates streamside fishing cabins on private waters. That might sound exclusive, but visiting them is as easy as staying at one of their lodges, whether you’re an angler or not.

Shasta Cascade color spotter Martha Fletcher was at The Fly Shop’s Hat Creek Ranch and found its two streamside vacation cabins shaded by yellow bigleaf maples.

Nearby, “the creek offers meadow fishing with undercut banks and willows that offer just enough cover to keep the fish happy, but not so overgrown that an angler can’t present a fly to one of the numerous trout that rise consistently throughout the day. PMD, BWO, Caddis, Stoneflies, Midges, Hoppers and other assorted Terrestrials and even streamer patterns, all have their time and place during the many seasons of Hat Creek.

“Hat Creek is noted for the vibrancy of its aquatic life. Top water action is prevalent every day of the season, and opportunities abound for nymph and streamer fishing as well. There are fish of all sizes in this stretch of river, and patient anglers, who take the time to stalk their quarry and make a good presentation, can sight-cast to some real bruisers,” The Fly Shop writes.

As for Hat Creek Ranch’s fall color, it appears to be dropping off.

Hat Creek Ranch (3,422′) – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

October 31, 2018/by John Poimiroo

Adventure, Fall Color Report, Hike of the Week, Shasta Cascade

Hike of the Week: Cascade Trail

Cascade Trail (10/21/18) Ravi Ranganathan

In summer, Plumas County’s Cascade Trail is a short hike to swimming holes. In autumn, it’s a favorite hike to fall color reflected in Spanish Creek.

Ravi Ranganathan hiked this popular trail on Friday and found it “filled with beautiful colors. I hiked ‘til the point where I could find a couple of wooden bridges. Looking down, the view of the stream was amazing with the fall colors reflected with gold.”

Five small falls comprise the cascade along the trail, which is easy and a mile in length. Take CA-70 west 5.1 miles from Quincy; turn right at Old Highway and follow a paved road .7 mi. past several homes, turn left onto a dirt road and travel .4 mi to a rocky parking area.

The trail is mostly wide and level though narrows at points and can be slippery. It was built originally to transport water for hydraulic mining and was later used as a supply road for the Western Pacific RR.

Cascade Trail is this week’s Hike of the Week.

Cascade Trail, Plumas County – Peak (75-100%) Go Now!

Cascade Trail (10/21/18) Ravi Ranganathan

October 22, 2018/by John Poimiroo

Adventure, Eastern Sierra, First Report

Mount Up and Ride

Lower Rock Creek Trail (10/13/18) Gigi de Jong

“Mount up and ride,” encourages Bishop Area color spotter Gigi de Jong who describes the Lower Rock Creek Trail (at the top of Round Valley, north of Bishop – First Report) as the gold standard for mountain biking in the Eastern Sierra.

“This trail earns ‘gold’ for its superior ride, and fall is its ‘golden season’ due to mild days and the trail’s splendid color,” she explains.

Aspen near the top of the trail are just beginning to yellow. Parts of the trail appear luminous. Gigi writes, “The last rays of the setting sun drop like liquid gold through the canopy, leaving traces of iridescent color on the ripples of Rock Creek. Willow and birch stand out in hues of deep gold and burnt orange.”

Bishop Creek Canyon is now done peaking. Though the lowest sections of the canyon remain at peak, none of them compare to the spectacular scenes witnessed for the past three weeks, higher up. Now, the show in Inyo County is dropping to the lower canyons and valleys.

Bishop Country Club (10/15/18) Gigi de Jong

In the Owens Valley, a surprising place to be wowed by autumn is the Bishop Country Club (First Report) where, Gigi continues, “where the luscious green of the fairways meets the lustrous yellow of the trees. Soon the beautiful grounds of the country club will blend with the last colors of summer in a riotous collision with autumn. Then,” she exudes, “if we’re lucky, a blanket of white will soften everything into the monochromatic colors of winter. Get ready for the most beautiful round of golf, ah … apologies, gold – anywhere!”

Owens Valley (10/15/18) Gigi de Jong

Other Owen’s Valley developing areas include Buckley Ponds, Rawson Ponds and canals where landmark cottonwoods grow along their edges, adorned with yellow crowns.

“They are majestic and tower over the valley’s lowland landscape,” Gigi adds, “Also, abandoned grain silos rise like ghosts from a forgotten era, standing sentinel over fields of pure sunshine. California grasses mixed with still-blossoming yellow rabbitbrush and cottonwoods cloaked in gold are filled with the sounds of migrating songbirds and bees.”

Owens Valley (10/15/18) Gigi de Jong

Owens Valley/Round Valley/Pine Creek

Lower Rock Creek Rd – Patchy (10-50%)
Round Valley – Patchy (10-50%)
Pine Creek Canyon – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!
Bishop Country Club – Just Starting (0-10%)
Owens Valley – Just Starting (0-10%)
Big Pine Creek – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!
Mt. Whitney Portal – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

Chocolate Lakes Trail, Inyo County (10/13/18) Kirsten Liske

Bishop Creek Canyon

S. Fork Bishop Creek

South Lake – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Weir Pond – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Parcher’s Resort – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Willow Camp – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Surveyor’s Meadow – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Table Mountain Group Camp – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Stiny Loop/Mt Glen Camp – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Mist Falls – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
Four Jeffrey Camp – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

M. Fork Bishop Creek

Sabrina Lake – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Sabrina Approach – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Sabrina Campground – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Groves Above Cardinal Village – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Aspendell – Peak to Past Peak – GO NOW, YOU ALMOST MISSED IT!
Intake II – – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
Big Trees Camp – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!

N. Fork Bishop Creek

North Lake – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
North Lake Rd. – – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!

October 17, 2018/by John Poimiroo

Adventure, Fall Color Report, First Report

Lost Hope – So, Blue

Sunset Lake (10/14/18) Crys Black

Upper Blue Lake (10/14/18) Crys Black

Red Lake (10/14/18) Crys Black

Color spotter Crys Black visited the Hope Valley on Sunday, but arrived at the tail end of its peak.

Disappointed with the color, she “decided to go off the beaten path to see if we’d get lucky. We drove down to the Sunset Lakes where we found a little peak color and around Upper Blue Lake which had some nice scrub color.” Crys scores two First Reports for Sunset and Upper Blue Lakes.

Continuing onto Forestdale Rd., there were very few opportunities for color until she’d looped back to Red Vista Rd. beside Red Lake. If you make this drive, you must have a 4WD with high clearance. Anything less might get you stuck high and dry.

Hope Valley – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Red Lake – Past Peak, YOU MISSED IT!
Sunset Lake – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW, YOU ALMOST MISSED IT!
Upper Blue Lake- Peak (75-100%) GO NOW, YOU ALMOST MISSED IT!

October 17, 2018/by John Poimiroo

Adventure, Eastern Sierra, Fall Color Report

Touching Gold in Lundy Canyon

McGee Creek Canyon (10/14/18) Rodney Chai

Lundy Canyon (10/14/18) Rodney Chai

McGee Creek Canyon (10/14/18) Rodney Chai

Rodney Chai, a meteorologist from Monterey, led a group of hikers to Lundy Canyon and McGee Creek as recommended here, last week, and they “found gold (and then some)!”

Reporting that they were collectively “speechless by the vibrant display of yellow and apricot.”

Should you hike Lundy Canyon, you’ll find the first mile to have a lot of green (20-30%), though Chai estimates it will “be excellent viewing for the upcoming weekend.”

His group found the most intense color at about “mile 2, where a forest of quaking aspens reside.” Above that, the trail was past peak with a lot of leaves that had fallen.

McGee Creek, he continued, “was simply splendid from start to finish with a golden sea of aspen and apricot. The range of yellow and apricot, as well as the ability to see up the canyon made this his favorite hike.

Lundy Canyon Trail (7,858′) – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
McGee Creek Trail (8,600′) – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!

October 15, 2018/by John Poimiroo

Adventure, Eastern Sierra, Fall Color Report

Skate Skiing to Peak

Skate Skiing, Rock Creek Rd. (10/11/18) Josh Wray

True to Mammoth Lakes’ 360-degree adventure theme, skate skiers have invented another new way to experience autumn, by skate skiing past boulevards of fall color on Eastern Sierra canyon roads.

Mammoth Lakes is now virtually skating to Peak color, with GO NOW conditions at all canyon locations from Mammoth Lakes south to Rock Creek Rd.

A Fall Color Instameet is planned at Convict Lake on Saturday. For details, CLICK HERE.

McGee Creek (10/11/18) Josh Wray

Here’s what’s happening:

Convict Lake (10/11/18) Josh Wray

Crowley Lake (10/11/18) Josh Wray

McGee Creek (10/11/18) Josh Wray

McGee Creek (10/11/18) Josh Wray

McGee Creek (10/11/18) Josh Wray

McGee Creek (10/11/18) Josh Wray

McGee Creek (10/11/18) Josh Wray

Mammoth Lakes Basin (8,900ft+) – Peak to Past Peak – GO NOW, YOU ALMOST MISSED IT! – There’s still plenty of color around Twin Lakes. Though, the trees on the backside of Lake George are just about finished and will most likely be gone by the end of the weekend.
Laurel Canyon (8,500′) – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW! – 4WD high clearance vehicle required.
Convict Lake (8,000’+) – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW! – It’s finally “Go” time at Convict Lake. It’s only going to get better over the coming week.
McGee Creek (8,000’+) – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW! – McGee Creek is gorgeous. There’s lots of green, so this area will be at peak for a couple more weeks. Nevertheless, GO NOW!
Crowley Lake (7,000’+) – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW! – Beautiful Colors are starting to fill the town of Crowley. Worth driving through town when traveling south from McGee to Rock Creek.
Rock Creek (8,000’+) – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!- Some groves are at peak. Others are off to a slow start. The lower half of Rock Creek Rd. is stunning while above 9,000′ it is Past Peak. Colder nighttime temps have helped speed the process.

McGee Creek (10/11/18) Josh Wray

October 11, 2018/by John Poimiroo

Adventure, Eastern Sierra

Mono County on the Run

Trail running, Mono County (10/7/18) Leor Pantilat

Running does not happen on a boring treadmill in Mono County.

It’s a 360-degree adventure that happens on trails surrounded by intensely beautiful fall color.

Leor Pantilat and friend show how they experienced fall color on the run in these images taken over the preceding weeked at Sonora Pass, Molybdenite Canyon, Barney Lake, Parker Lake and Lundy Canyon.

They got there so fast, they had time to kick back, take a breath and relax.

Peaking aspen were everywhere they ran without treadmill tedium. (click to enlarge images)