Two For The Price Of Three
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23-DEC-2006
Failure
The previous weekend was a white-out. I had attempted to do the Manzanita Trail out in Valyermo, but the weather spanked me HARD! What had been localized micro-storms over the high peaks of the San Gabriels developed into a full-fledged blizzard. I bailed on the attempt, and by the time I returned to Southfork CG I had nominal feeling in about 4 of my 20 digits.
Success
I got a late start, which forced a change in tactics. I parked at Camp Fenner, thereby splitting the climb into 'before' and 'after' climbs. This worked well, but I was still racing the clock by starting at 2:30. A layer of snow (and some mud) killed my climb time up to Vincent Gap, where I arrived at 3:30 PM.
Under optimal conditions, it usually takes me about 1.5 hours to 'descend' Manza, and conditions were not optimal. After snapping some pics of snowed-up Mount Baldy, I turned and waded down through deep snow and onto the trail. The first mile was a chore. I was riding where I could, but mostly hiking/running through the snow. This was perfect skiing snow, and I cursed my bad gear selection (bike over skis...the proverbial "brought a knife to a gunfight!").
After a while, the snow became patchy, then mostly clear in the heavy forest. Conditions on the trail were actually quite good, and the snow firmed up some of the otherwise loose sections.
Mostly, the ride was 'same as it ever was' ... i.e., and excellent adventure. The best part, those final switchbacks dropping into Southfork CG, were even better. A 2-inch layer of powder yielded a ride-feel like a SleepNumber mattress! I reached the trailhead just as it was getting seriously dark, took a quick nutrient break, then began the crawl up the 4 paved miles of Big Rock Road back to Camp Fenner.
The late return home (8:30 PM) pushed my 'last-minute' X-Mas shopping into the 'last-second.' I was forced to bribe the wife with a chicken-penne dinner at Jerry's Deli - not my fave eatery, but it was the only decent grub still open at 10:30 PM.
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25-DEC-2006
Lost Dogs
I had convinced my brother to try the Manza, but as we drove into Valyermo on Fort Tejon Road it became obvious that there was still too much snow. Arriving at Southfork CG, we switched plans and headed over towards Devil's Punchbowl.
The initial climb out of Southfork went very quickly...until we met the dogs. Two very friendly black Lab-mix dogs came trotting down the trail from the first pass, and we expected to see hikers following close behind. The dogs gave us a polite escort as we continued up the trail. We took a short break at the pass and gave the dogs a quick drink. Still no hikers!
Our escort followed doggedly (pun intended!) for the next several miles, taking a swim in the creek while we stopped for a break at the bottom of the canyon. When we reached the Devil's Chair junction, the dogs heard voices up the trail and decided to switch alliegence to the newcomers.
We continued across the mountainside, sun blazing and snow melting, until our next break at Punchbowl Creek, just before the road crossing. Here, the hikers the dogs had followed came back a few steps and asked us if they were our dogs. We answered in the negative, and one of the hikers had a stroke of remembrance and said "I think I know who they belong to." Mystery solved? I dunno...
Anyway, we hit the trail again and crossed the road, then followed the Burkhart Trail over to the top of the switchbacks. Now that we had no escort, we could pay more attention to our surroundings. Despite a high cloud layer and a little haze, this was a 100-mile-visiblility day. We could look out over the western Mojave Desert and see dozens of tiny 'mountain ranges' like Saddleback Butte scattered over the gigantic Mojave River basin. Most impressive was a long-distance mirage that made a remote mountain chain look like a colossal square building. At a distance of nearly 80 miles, it would have to be one honkin' big building! When it mysteriously disappeared, we figured it must have been the reflection of the top of the mountains bouncing off a lower layer of haze.
After taking a nice break high above the creek, we returned via the same route. This direction (west-to-east) has much better downhill runs, and again, like Manza, saves the best for last. That final section of switchbacks leading down to Southfork is really a hoot! Also, this last section had the only realy snow cover on the whole ride, down at creek-level where it stayed very cold the whole day.
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Paz on Earth! Be the pelota!
"Merry new year! Would you like some beef jerky?"
Posted by Dr Wellington Yueh 
on 12/26/06
