summer_jackel

I had this all written out and then accidentally colosed the window, deleting the entry. /facepalm/ Let's try this again, shall we?!

So, I had an utterly fantastic trip. We went in to the Trinity Alps Wilderness of Northern CA, Long Canyon trailhead if you are that familiar with the area, for five days and four nights. We didn't see a single other human during that time, and it was a profound solitude. We got out a day sooner than planned because a storm came in on us. But for the last hike down to the truck (where I got soaked) we stayed dry, though.

I took lots of pictures. Warning: this post will kill your dialup stone dead.

Sheltie riding shotgun sez "Are we there yet?" Rogue was just coming out of heat when we started the trip, and I didn't want to have to tell Pryderi off every 10 minutes so he'd leave her alone on the 5-hour drive North, so Little Rogue got the front seat. Where she was really really cute. On the way back, of course, she rode in the back with the other filthy, wet dogs.

Jez and Rogue at my favorite swimming hole on the Eel River, just north of Laytonville:

Jez swimming in Humboldt Bay on a pit stop. So she could get wet and dirty even before the trip! I am so made of fail: I wanted to see

javachickn and passed right past her town, but I didn't remember to bring her phone #. Oops. Next time.

Noble Alpine Sheltie.

Fall colors in the Alps:

It rained briefly on my first morning, blessing me with the most beautiful sunrise I've ever seen.

Jez looking all noble and wolfish. There are moments when she seems to remember that she's 75% or so wolf, but mostly she's a pretty silly, dorky animal. Since Fenris' passing, she has been a little more serious and notably more attentive to me. This is because she's suddenly the de facto alpha female in our pack, and that can be a psychologically diffucult thing for a dog, especially one who isn't a natural leader. So I get a lot of "Hey? Remember that you're actually in charge, right?" from her. I could see her confidence grow over the course of the trip, though, and back at home she seems more content and relaxed.

Noble Trail Sheltie and friend. The dogs carry their own food and necessities, even the fluff princess. Shelties are basically working-class ladies with some nice clothes and impeccable taste; They may be awfully pretty, but they are tough little things. Rogue loves being out there. (And Pryde is more vain about his loks than she is, although yes, Rogue is plenty aware of exactly how pretty she is).

On day 2, we climbed up to Lakes Anna and Billy-Be-Damned, which are about 3 1/2 miles from the trail, mostly vertically, and to which there is no trail. It's not hard to find if you know where to turn off or are good at reading topo maps, and is about as steep as I think I could climb with a pack. It is also one of the most beautiful and remote places I've ever seen, one of my favorite spots. The route in is between these peaks.

Pryde on the way up

Dogs, stone.

Lake Anna.

From the opposite ridge.

With a view of Mt. Lassen, eerily free of snow.

Billy-Be-Damned; no idea why it's called that. I've been eying it on the map for years but have never attempted to get to it. Once you're at Anna, it's not at all hard, though.

The view from the lip of the lake; you look down a cliff into a sweeping expanse of the steep Bowerman Meadows.

Same view, but with diminutive sheepdog.

Jez on the ridge.

We climbed the peak behind this lake in an attempt to get to another lake, but the other side of the mountain proved to be impasible cliff. There was an amazing view and a lot of wind, which would bring the storm a day later.

This needs a LOLdog caption of "Timmy's in the well again? Do I look like I care?"

High-elevation tenderness amid the sharp rocks.

The trees up there are tough and worn. One of the really amazing things about being up there now was seeing their new cones, which were a vivid and velvety-textured blue.

Sunset at Lake Anna.

Find the Jes in this pic.

Camp.

glare.

Back on the trail, we crossed the ridge at Bee Tree Gap and were on the 4-lakes loop trail, a difficult and rewarding hike.

Deer Lake.

Up here, life hangs on where it can. Little ferns on an exposed hillside, holding up a mountain.

Summit Lake.

And the next day, when the storm was starting to come in.

Tent Princess. Shelties are very good for warming one's feet, though somehow her head always seemed to end up tucked under my chin come morning. Wolves warm the back wonderfully.

Diamond Lake. My other favorite lake in the wilderness.

Jez wearing Pryde's pack, because at this point in the trip he was beginning to be pretty sore, and I wanted all weight off of him. He held up quite well and loved it; he's been an amazing trail dog for his whole life, but at 12 he's slowing a little. He still has maybe a year or two of trips left.

The view from Diamond Lake. This is one of those things that mere pictures cannot encompass.

Indian Paintbrush in bloom.

We dayhiked to Luella Lake. I always forget how pretty it is.

The storm begins to come in.

Diamond Lake camp (see the tent under the tree?)

Us, before we high-tailed it down the mountain in an attempt to make it to the truck before the skies opened completely and utterly drenched us.

The weather was incredibly beautiful, but I didn't take very many pictures, in an attempt not to destroy my shiny and 'spensive new camera.

Osprey perched next to the highway and Trinity River, shot from the 'blind' of my truck. She caught on to me and flew off the second after this...she was a really big bird for her species.