Thomas Mountain Backpack

Since the planned trip to Yosemite didn't work out, I have been trying to find a shorter trip.  I was thinking of heading up to the southern Sierra's but suddenly Jyoti said that she would like to go with me.  I wanted to something shorter and closer to home since she is not as experienced a hiker.  We eventually chose Thomas Mountain near Idyllwild. On Friday we packed and planned the trip as a one nighter.  The weather looked to be warm but tolerable.
We drove up midday Saturday.  The drive was very pleasant through the foothills of Cahuilla, Aguanga and Anza.  We made a stop for lunch at the famous Paradise Valley Cafe.  The Gus Burger is highly recommended.  We then drove to the trailhead for the Ramona Trail just a few miles more north.  We donned our packs and headed up the mountain.  The trail was pretty steep, more so than I thought.  It was also quite hot (it turned out be in the 90's that day).  So it was slow going the first couple miles.  Then the clouds came out and the elevation cooled us a couple of degrees.  The pines were nicer hiking than the chaparral but bugs started to come as well.  Getting close to the top, we hit a trail junction that was not mentioned in the guidebook or on the map.  A bit of scouting and we headed in the right direction and quickly came across Tool Box Spring.  It surprisingly had good flow when the valve was opened.  Since we did not know the spring's status beforehand, I had lots of water and we didn't need to filter any.  Another 1/4 mile or so and we got to Tool Box Spring campground.  The camp had two other groups that had driven up.  We setup the tent and did a bit of strolling around the area.  The views to the south were great from the camp.  We chose not to try to hit the summit and made an early night of it to avoid the bugs.
The wind was roaring the tree tops but we only got slight breezes at ground level.  By morning, the breeze had completely stopped which allowed the bugs to come out full force.  We quickly packed and headed back down.  The hike down was very quick as was the drive home.
Overall, Thomas Mountain is a nice hike.  But the heat, bugs and steepness probably mean I won't be back in the near future.

Ramona Trailhead

Garner Valley

Tool Box Campground

Mt. Laguna Pioneering

T774 had its annual pioneering campout at Mt. Laguna this past weekend. The trailer had a makeover and now is capable of storing and transporting the staves in some new shelving.  There are also lots of bins for loose stuff.  Rand did a great job!
The scouts got started on the tower in the morning.  It took about 3 hours and it turned out great.  They are much better at lashings and most were quite tight and neat. In the afternoon, we took a short hike out to Big Laguna.  Afterwards, the scouts played around camp and the tower.
Getting ready to leave on Sunday, one of the vehicles had a dead battery.  It took a while to get the car started but we worked it out and everyone made it home safely.  Another scout season in the books!

Post-build donuts!

Testing the tower

Books, Books, Books

Hard Truth by Nevada Barr - very creepy but one of Barr's best
Ancient Greek Civilization by Jeremy McInerney - decent but somewhat slow going; interesting to hear the links to our current culture
Ancient Rome by Duncan Hill - good intro to Roman civilization
Blood and Iron by Harry Turtledove - next chapter in the Southern Victory series covers the period right after the Great War
The Center Cannot Hold by Harry Turtledove - the march to war continues; I enjoyed the mounting tension
The Victorious Opposition by Harry Turtledove - this last volume of the set ends right before the next great war
The Creative Thinkers Toolkit by Gerard Puccio - listened to the first few lectures; good content but not what I was looking for
Thinking about Cybersecurity by Paul Rosenzweig -  a good intro to cyber security that is not too technical
Winter Study by Nevada Barr - another creepy Anna Pigeon mystery; I hope the next has a different villian

Joshua Tree NP Backpack

Last time the troop was at Joshua Tree National Park, we car camped and did rock climbing.  This time, we were going to backpack the backcountry. We drove out on Saturday morning and stopped at the North Entrance trailhead.  We then dropped cars at XX, Geology Tour and XX trailheads.  The first two were water caches due to the lack of water in the park.  We then headed out.  The first 5 or so miles was a steady incline in lower desert terrain.  It was overcast so the heat wasn't bad.  The trail flattened out and the joshua trees started appearing.  We got to the first cache and loaded up on water.  Regulations state you have to camp at least one mile from roads.  So we trucked our water another mile along the trail to a great camp.  Everyone setup tents, cooked dinner and had a great evening.
In the morning, we hiked a few miles to the second cache.  All the scouts got an extra gallon to carry to our next camp.  We hiked about 4 miles with water up into the hills.  Our camp was located in some brush with a lot of mining debris.  Cans and other metal containers littered the area.  We even found the remains of a couple of old cabins.  The highlight was an open mine shaft.  The scouts had a good time throwing rocks down it.
In the morning, we hiked out the remaining few miles to the last car.  After some shuttling, we all headed back home.  Another wonderful trip.  We will have to be back to hike the rest of the trail.

At the trailhead

Water cache

Open mine

Bathroom break

Scouting Weekend

• Trail building at Mataguay
• Troop day hike at Denk Hill

Chino Air Show

My dad, Bengt, Roy and my dad's old friend and his wife headed out to Chino for the air show.  It was quite hot but the planes were great.  I very much enjoy the WWII warbirds.  The sound they make is unforgettable and the flying is much more elegant than the brute force of the modern jets.

Mud Caves

Troop 774 made a return trip to the Anza-Borrego mud caves.  We headed out on Saturday morning and made good time to the turn off at Canebrake.  We headed in the few miles to Arroyo Tapiado and up into the canyon.  We picked a good spot for camp, parked and setup the tents.  It was pretty windy so some of the scouts had trouble getting their tents to stay down.  A couple went rolling like tumbleweeds even with gear in them.  We then headed into the main cave and took it all the way through which ends up on top of the large mud mesa. Everyone spread out and explored the small hills.  The weather was overcast and perfect for exploring the desert.
The night was just and windy and one of the tents needed to be relocated.  In the morning, we ate breakfast and headed out.  The day was sunny and already hot.  We had good weather timing on this trip.

Why I Like to Hike

Here are a few reasons.

Another San Diego Weekend

• Jyoti and I exercised our Balboa Park Explorer passes and visited the Museum of Modern Art, MOPA and its new "7 Billion Others" exhibit and the History Center and its Exposition Centennial exhibit.  We tried for the Tower tour but it was all booked up.
• Sunset dinner at Ki's.
• Uncommon Liturgy at Moonlight Beach.
• Dog walks and lunch with the kids.

Ye Olde Website

I have maintained this blog for almost 10 years now.  But before that, I added content to my static website.  I had stuff on there about my cars back when I cared to spend time on cars, float-tube fishing and reviews of various parks in Encinitas.  The logo and design were done by a colleague back when we still lived in Scottsdale.  But I stopped updating the static content a long time ago.  I thought about republishing the content here, but in the end decided to just to retire the site.  Osten.net redirects straight here now.

OpenShift App Gallery

My watermap app got mentioned in the OpenShift gallery!

Snakes and Seals

During my walks this weekend, I came across some interesting creatures. First, Sophie and I stumbled across a gopher snake along the railroad tracks. The next day, Jyoti and I saw a young sea lion in Solana Beach. Also took Sophie for a quick run. She only lasts about a mile then will sit down and refuse to go farther.

Hike from Swamis to Library

Gopher snake

Seal on beach

Bull Taco Cardiff

Blue Sky Hike

The family and I did a great small hike in Blue Sky Ecological Reserve in Poway.  The weather was nice but not too hot. It was steep heading up to Ramona Reservoir but it was worth it.

Chaparral

The road up

Ramona Reservoir

Lots of Books

The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy by Thomas J. Stanley - good concepts but a bit tedious due its academic roots; could be compressed into a much smaller book
The Geek's Guide to Dating by Eric Smith - funny book
Walk In Hell (The Great War series) by Harry Turtledove - this series keeps getting better or at least the story lines are getting more interesting
Breakthroughs (The Great War, Book 3) by Harry Turtledove - the last in the "Great War" trilogy; this one was somewhat anti-climatic
The Last Season by Eric Blehm - great book about the tragic demise of a long time backcountry ranger
The Left Coast: California on the Edge by Philip L. Fradkin and Alex L. Fradkin - similar to the Golden Coast with great pictures
Long 19th Century - European History From 1789 to 1917 by Robert Weiner - got the final set of discs and finished this dense but fun series
High Country (An Anna Pigeon Novel) by Nevada Barr- the first Barr novel in a park I have been to, Yosemite; this was more of an action thriller than mystery
Molecules: The Elements and the Architecture of Everything by Theodore Gray - great follow up to Elements
50 Physics Ideas You Really Need To Know (50 ideas) by Joanne Baker - nice summary of key ideas in physics
Einstein's Relativity and the Quantum Revolution by Professor Richard Wolfson Ph. D. - I often get stuck on some concepts of physics but this explained most of them; I will probably listen to this one again to pick up the stuff I still don't get

Water and the PCT

Just in time for the start of the main PCT hiking season, I published a new project: backcountrywater.info.  It shows the PCT and other water reports on an map for easy planning.
Water is now big news in California.  With only 6% snow pack, many of the natural sources in the Sierras might be dried up by the time the bulk of the huge mass of PCT hikers get there.  The SoCal water caches are already under strain.  It will be interesting to see how many people have to get off trail due to lack of water.  Hopefully they are all prepared and willing to get off before heading into some of the more dangerous sections.

Fiesta Island Camp

The troop headed to Fiesta Island for a great event.  We did the annual emergency preparedness drill and launched rockets at the the nearby range.  The event was capped off by a fabulous dutch oven feast where every patrol contributed a main course.

Camping on the Beach

Fiesta Island Rocket Range

Camping on the Beach

A Couple of Weekends

• Awesome weather for beach jogs and walks
• Spent quality time at Zumbar doing taxes and real estate work
• Relatives came to visit from the east coast to avoid the weather back there

PCT Section A Completed

This past weekend, I finished Section A of my nascent PCT section hike.
Jyoti and I drove cars to Warner Springs and left mine across the street from the fire station.  We then drove down the Mt. Laguna.  It was very windy and quite chilly as I started out.  The first 10 miles to Pioneer Mail picnic area wound down through the mountains had nice views of the desert.  One interesting highlight was the Kwamyii Point with all the impromptu memorials. For the next few miles, the trail got tedious as it was hot and the terrain very monotonous.  Then the steep decent into the Chariot Canyon.  Towards the bottom I got a bought of the runs and had the make a quick dash for the bushed.  My first plan was to camp near the dry creek at the bottom.  There I meet Big Dog and Captain Kirk and we talked a while.  But since it was still early, I pushed on to the water at Rodriguez Spur fire tank.  As I did a bit of laundry and filtered water, Capt. Kirk walked in.  We spoke for a while and quickly fell asleep as soon as darkness fell.
When I woke, Kirk was gone; he said he like to get up before dawn and hike.  I broke camp, made a cup of coffee and headed out.  The first few hours along the side of Granite Mt. were pleasant enough.  But the trail got tedious again before heading down into the valley floor.  At Scissors Crossing, I stopped for a lunch and rest break under the highway.  There was a small water cache there but I was still hauling lots for water from the fire tank.  The next stage had me heading straight up into the San Felipe Hills.  It was sunny and warm but not too bad.  Once near the top, it was an nearly endless series of ridges and canyons going through some burnt chaparral.  I eventually met up with Kirk again and we hiked the last few miles to 3rd Gate cache.  This cache is a true oasis in the desert.  Without any other source nearby, this is crucial to getting over the hills.  I took my 3 liter allotment and took a quick break in some shade.  Kirk decided to stop there for the night but I wanted to get over the next climb and hiked on.  Shortly after starting, I noticed one of my water bags had a hole.  I probably lost half a liter before noticing! It was another 4 miles to a great bivy camp on the side of the hills overlooking the valley.  This part of the trail was not burnt so had more shade.  I treated my now massive blisters and went to bed.  I didn't eat much to keep from getting too thirsty.
Right after waking up, Kirk hiked on past my camp; he was up early!  The next 5 miles were mainly in shade and was a pleasant hike down to the Barrel Springs.  Kirk was there and we chatted.  I had plenty of water to make it to Warner especially since there were some active stream along the way.  But I filtered some from the trough to test it out.  Kirk left before me as I rested a bit.  The next 8 miles to Warner could be one of the best hikes in San Diego.  The first part is mainly meadows with some ridges separating them.  Cows were off in the distance and flowers covered the fields.  A great camp could be made along San Felipe creek which had nicely flowing water.  I stopped for a bit at Eagle Rock for pix and talk to some day hikers.  The rock is pretty cool as it looks like an actual eagle.  The remaining hike is along the appropriately named Canada Verde and its stream.  I met up with Kirk again right at the highway.
We checked out the hiker town that the Warner Springs Community Center is putting on.  They offer showers, internet, store and food (I got coffee and pickles).  Since Kirk was thru-hiking and was only out for the weekend, I offered to drive him to the grocery store in Santa Ysabel.  He stocked up on goods and we parted ways.  Hopefully I will hear how his hike ends up.
Looks like I am back to square one in blister management.  This trip the only change I made was to wear trail runners and not my boots.  I will have to do more research to think up new strategies.  One thing I did think helped was to apply the anti-biotic ointment to prevent them from getting infected.  This kept the pain manageable so I can continue to hike.
Next up is section B from Warner to Hwy 74!

Cuyamaca Peak

Pioneer Mail Trough

Memorial

Desert View

Camp at Rodriguez Spur road

Camp at BV0095

On the trail to Warner Springs

Meadows

Eagle Rock and a horse's rump

Golf and Softball Weekend

• My parents came on down for Jaya's team picnic and a great dinner of Cardiff Crack.
• Walked dog at lagoon and Cardiff.
• Took Bengt to practice putting at Encinitas Ranch.
• Discovered a great new coffee shop: Zumbar on Chesterfield.

Sheep Canyon 2015

T774 took another trip to wonderful Sheep Canyon.  After the long drive out to the trailhead, we set up camp for the night at the flood control station.  The night was windy but not too cold.
The morning was very nice, crisp but with some cloud cover to keep the heat down.  It was like that way pretty much all day as we hiked out to the canyon.  When we got there, there didn't look to be much water in the creek. But the creek was flowing nicely further upstream.  The scouts immediately took to the hills.  They love exploring the caves.  Some also went up the canyon to the "oasis."  Dinner for the senior patrol was awesome but the scouts are struggling a bit with backpacking cooking - something to work on.  The night ended with a nice campfire courtesy of a wax log hauled in by Roger.
There was some rain during the night but it was intermittent and not very hard.  When I woke up it was sprinkling but I figured it would blow out soon.  It didn't.  It got harder.  It took a while to get everyone packed and in rain gear and we started out in a steady downpour.  My rain gear got soaked through :(
We made it to the cars without problems, everyone was fairly dry.  Some folks drove directly back home, while some of us stopped for the traditional Mexican food lunch in Borrego Springs.

Sheep Canyon Trailhead

Intrepid Hikers

Towards the Oasis