Hikes – Page 25 – On the Loose Live

Mae Wang 3 Day Bike & Trek Adventure: Bike Portion

April 16, 2017June 2, 2017livevigorously

Tour company: Green Trails My rating: Excellent, highly recommend

Cycling level: Easy (While this was pitched as a half day tour it is very slow paced and doesn’t cover that much ground, but it is followed by 3 hours of moderately tough hiking in tropical heat so it’s a nice warm up.

Trekking level: Moderate++

Guide: Tui (Interesting fact, our guide does many different types of tours, and took Anthony Bourdain on a street food tour of Chang Mai. Hey Anthony, you missed out because Tui is also an incredible chef. He made us a couple of incredible dinner feasts in the mountain villages of the Karen Hill tribe. Video, pics and posts to follow.

8AM Our tour guide picked us up at our hotel in Change Mai. We loaded up and jumped into the back of the truck. (A bit rough and tired, but excited to embark.)

Notice the sky in this picture? So much for fresh mountain air. My first impression upon arriving at the airport in Chang Mai was “YIKES”. I haven’t seen smog as bad as this in a while. I was hoping it wouldn’t be like this in Mae Wang where we were heading. My second impression was hey, I thought it was supposed to be cooler here than Bangkok.

9:30 We started our adventure cycling dirt and narrow concrete roads through the rural lowlands, passing seldom visited Lanna style temples and various agricultural fields. We also stopped at paper making factory that was closed for the holiday. We were saw some of the materials they use mulberry trees pulp and the vats they use with natural dyes. Just had my cell phone on me for this portion. Wish I’d taken more photos en route, but I was in a bit of jet lag fog. Lots of great photos of the trek and tribe experience to come.

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We hopped back into the truck after our ride and headed further north into the mountains, stopping for a savory and sumptuous lunch (chicken and pork dishes) and supplies at a local market.

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Stay tuned for the trekking portion. It was AMAZING!

Cheers to “Alcoholic Pass” Hike, Anza Borrego, CA

March 24, 2017March 24, 2017livevigorously

Scenery: Desert delight

Distance: You decide – up to 4.8 miles out & back

Difficulty: Moderate

This lovely little hike, was especially magical during the current wildflower super bloom. It entails some switch backs and a moderate climb (approximately 833 feet in .8 mile.) You can sign in at the top and keep going down the other side or turn around.

It was near the top when I captured a video of a bird greeting me with its morning song.

I’ve never experienced the desert quite like this – the morning light waking the shadows on the rocky ridges, the citrus wildflower breeze – oh my! Wish I’d camped at the top, it would have been fantastic to wake up to breathtaking solitude. Instead, I was running around getting wildflower pictures at dawn. (Post to come.)

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Local lore

The Cahuilla Indians originally used this route as a short cut between Coyote Canyon and Clark Valley. Subsequently early settlers also used the trail to cut off the 6 miles it takes to go around Coyote Mountain to get to Clark Valley. Some say it might have gotten it’s name from the drinking habits of the cattlemen and settlers who frequented Borrego Springs’ “watering” holes. Other say it’s just the winding trail that gives it it’s name. All this talk and typing is making me thirsty for a quenching margie and I know just the spot – the Ram’s Head Bar and Grill. (Post to come,)

Getting there: From Christmas Circle in Borrego Springs, drive east on Hwy S-22 and turn left (north) on DiGiorgio Road toward Coyote Canyon. You find the trailhead on the right, 2.4 miles past the paved road on an easily traversed dirt road. Desert Garden is just past Alcoholic’s Pass, you can take an easy stroll in a concentrated area of cactus and other native plant life if you’re short on time or prefer not to hike up Alcoholic Pass.

Footloose and Fancy Free: Off Trail in Fallbrook, CA

March 6, 2017March 6, 2017livevigorously

Spring fever anyone? The air is so crisp, clean and fragrant with the pungent fertile earth and the scent of jasmine and citrus blossoms. And the hills are abloom with wildflowers already. The plan was to take a lazy Sunday afternoon stroll / trail run at nearby Santa Margarita River Trail. When we got there, we discovered that the area was closed due to recent heavy rains. As we drove along De Luz road the lush hillsides beckoned to me. “Let’s just run up this first hill”, I suggested. And we were rewarded with a mini-meadow sprinkled with California poppies and wildflowers. And then we climbed the next hill and so on. There weren’t any “Private property” or “No trespassing signs so we just kept going. Scrambling up through the bramble and brush until our car was a distant spec below. So on we went, bouldering up to the highest point on the ridge. It was exhilarating fun though my legs did sustain a few scratches…Once we reached the top, we looked for another route down. That’s when we came upon a hidden estate. We tried to traverse down another section, but the scratchy overgrowth was taller than we were. We ended up following a country road back down to De Luz and the car. A fun impromptu adventure that no doubt was more thrilling (and a better workout) than what we had planned. And my boyfriend, Ken, knows me by now, if there’s a hill around, I’m likely to find it and want to “check out the view from there”.

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It was on this hike that I found that spontaneous stream for my nature mediation section.

Here are a couple more pictures Ken took and the cactus bloom I almost forgot to add earlier.

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Across the road from where we were is pristine fenced-off Camp Pendelton land. Oh, if only…

Mammoth area, CA: Parker Lake Trail

February 27, 2017livevigorously

Sweet, easy, out and back stroll through quaking aspens, along gurgling Parker Creek to pristine Parker Lake. The perfect site for a picnic, fishing or to while away an afternoon drinking in the spectacular views and crisp, clean mountain air. Truly mesmerizing natural beauty framed by the massive granite walls. (No trails lead out of the basin of up the walls.) An accessible, but fairly untraveled alpine gem.

Difficulty: Easy

Distance: 4.4 rt

Elevation: 8,000 – 8,318 ft

Getting there: Take the Parker Lake Road exit off highway 158, drive 2 miles before turning left on Forest Service Road 1S26. Drive 1 mile to where it dead ends at the trailhead. (Well maintained dirt road, but doable for all vehicles.)

Magnificent Mammoth Lakes’ Duck Lake Trail, John Muir Wilderness

February 16, 2017November 13, 2017livevigorously

If you like pristine wilderness and glimmering, translucent alpine lakes, you’ll love this hike in the Eastern Sierras near Mammoth Lakes, CA. You’ll be rewarded every couple miles of effort with one of the 6 refreshing gems along the route. (If you’re into trout fishing, you’ll definitely want to bring your pole. They say the higher you go, the bigger the trout.)

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You’ll come upon the first lake, Heart Lake, at mile 1. While you might feel a little silly stopping so soon after embarking, you won’t want to miss this little gem. And given the altitude and incline, you find that you’d like to enjoy the view for a minute or two. Arrowhead Lake is next at mile 1.2 (9,680 ft) followed by Skeleton Lake and Barney Lake (10,022 ft) at 2.5. Once you tear yourself away from Barney, you’ll hit some switchbacks. Spectacular Duck Lake (10,850 ft) will reveal herself to you around mile 4. While you’re there you can visit her adjacent,charming little sister, Pika Lake. If you continue on, the pines close in on the narrow trail as you continue climbing, descending, climbing and traversing to Purple Lake (8 miles). (You can camp anywhere along the way as long as you are at least a 100 feet from lakes or streams.) We camped above Purple Lake, which was a bit anti-climatic after Duck Lake. Purple Lake has its own more subtle, woodsy allure, but the outstanding beauty of Duck Lake was mesmerizing and where I found my bliss.

For a quick overnighter, I pack some luxuries. For this trip that included the cozy, warm pants and fuzzy top you see in the picture. I also like to forgo a tent and just enjoy the night sky and wilderness. The gloves and the hat were necessities. It gets cold at night at altitude even when temps have been in the high 70s during the day. Despite my suggestion, my boyfriend did not bring a hat or gloves. He said. “It won’t get that cold.” I should have snapped a pic of him with his mummy back zipped all the way up with only the tip of his red nose sticking out. In the morning as our boots crunched along on the ice slicked trail, he conceded, “I guess it did get cold last night.” (Yes, we’re at altitude in the Eastern Sierra’s so even in late August, it can get quite chilly at night or when a storm front comes through.)

This trail is doable for a day hike, trail run or an overnighter. And it connects to the Pacific Crest Trail so there’s ample opportunity to just keep going. Kind of wish I could have, but I’ll be back.

Scenery: AWESOME

Difficulty: Somewhat strenuous given the altitude and fairly continuous climb

Access: Via Coldwater Campground

Starting elevation: 8,900 feet

Permit required. Pick it up with your bear canister (if you’re over-nighting with food) at the local Forest Ranger Station.