Three days later my brother in law Dave and I headed to Sunol Regional Park for an early morning walk in the green hills of the East Bay. Whenever you hike the Diablo range always be on the lookout for wildlife. The hills have deer, wild pig, coyotes, bobcat, and even a herd of Tule Elk. There are reports of mountain lions but I have yet to see one of these. This trip we saw no large animals except for the cows that roam all over the hills. Apparently the cattle are allowed to graze the land and provide fire protection by keeping the grasses low, but they do leave an awful mess. Watch your step as you hike these hills. Upon our arrival there were three large wild turkeys near the visitors center.  The day was perfect. There actually was a bit of rain in the area and we had a few light showers pass over us as we headed up Hayfield Road.  I knew I wasn't in the best shape after so little activity this winter but it seemed my legs were getting heavy awfully quickly. I looked down and saw that I must have had 5 lbs of mud on each boot. After shedding this weight the walk was much more pleasant. At a pond near the old barn we saw a few newts and western pond turtles, though not nearly as many as in the past. We continued on over Cerro Este and were rewarded with grand views of the South Bay and Calaveras Reservoir as the clouds broke up. We continued on to the backpack area which is at the edge of the Ohlone Regional Wilderness. The return trip was made along Camp Ohlone Road which parallels Alameda Creek and takes you through an area known as Little Yosemite. There is some nice boulder hoping along the creek here. It was late morning now and the crowds were arriving which said it was time for us to leave.

On Friday April 7 I felt the need to get out come hell or high water. Well it was almost high water. I headed out to the Black Diamond Mine Regional Park. Like Sunol and Ohlone, it is park of the East Bay Regional Park System. Black Diamond is located near Antioch, CA and is a former coal mining area. From the gate at the east end of the park it is a 1.8 mile hike to the prospect tunnel. This is an exploratory tunnel dug 400 feet into the hilside. Supposedly 200 feet of it is open to for exploration. It was raining and I did not read the trail markers and wound up not finding the tunnel entrance. I went to the Star Mine group camp area to get a little shelter and grab a bite to eat. I continued along the Stewartville Trail (it is actually a gravel road) to Miners trail. This took me up the hill to the junction with the Ridge Trail. There is evidence of old mining operations all around. The rain abated and I was rewarded with a nice view of Antioch and the west delta area. Soon the rain picked back up. Even with the rain it was an enjoyable 6.5 mile loop hike.

A few weeks later Lynn and I took Niki and our mountain bikes with a bike trailer to Black Diamond Mines. The road that I thought was fairly flat for hiking was definitely up hill when one is towing a trailer with a 40 lb. child. We did find the tunnel entrance. It is a few hundres yards up a side trail off the main road. You can still see the 140 year old marks in the rocks made from the picks of the miners. We had lunch at the group camp area, looked at birds and such then headed back home. For Niki it was a good adventure.

A couple of weeks later I found the Morgan Territory Regional Park. Actually it was never lost. This is a good place to do some hiking or mountain biking with views of the San Joaquin Valley and Mount Diablo. I also found out that it is a favorite of the horse riding crowd. I got to share the trail (for a while until I finally figured out I could take other trails) with about 100 to 150 horses and riders. There are trails of all different difficulty. It is very dry, so take plenty of water.

On Memorial Day Joel and I decided to head up Leavitt Peak in the Emmigrant Wilderness near Sonora Pass. We got off to a late start, 11:30 a.m. We took a short steep trail up a ridge from the trail head rather than the PCT. This trail saves quite a bit of distance and intersects the PCT near the Sierra crest.The first part of the hike was nice with some awesome views from some small little crags. We stopped here to have a bite to eat and take some pictures. We left the PCT and decided to head off across the cirque to the Northeast of the peak. By now it was well afternoon and the snow was softening up and we did a bit of post holing. We headed up a chute to the ridge coming off the east side of the peak. By the time we topped out it was 4:30. We decided it would still take us awhile to reach the summit via the ridge which would be quite rugged or by heading douw into a gully and then ascending the standard southeast ridge.  So we left this peak for another time and headed back to the car via the main trail.

On June 18 & 19 Joel and I took our 3rd annual trip with beginners to Sword Lake in the Carson Iceberg Wilderness. This year it was 5 Southeast Asians. The trip had an interesting start. As soon as we crossed the road from the parking area we were confronted by a large Timber Rattler. We all managed to pass with out any trouble, although the snake seemed agitated and let us know. Two of our hikers worried me. They seemed to get very tired and sore and were moving very slowly towards the end of the hike (both going in and coming out). They both managed to make it though. One young man and I bush whacked our way down to Spicer Meadow Reservoir on Tuesday morning. He had never fished for trout so I showed him what I knew, which some would say isn't much. I manged to land a dozen or so nice Rainbows, all in the 12 to 14 inch range. The ole handy dandy gold Kastmaster was working well. Our charges told Joel and I of an Asian legend that says if a snake crosses the path of an military group headed out that most if not all of the members will not return. Well we manged to get all of our group back to the cars intact despite the rattler. But Joel's truck was severly wounded on the drive home when his thermostat stuck closed and the truck over heated. We manged to make it to Pinecrest where my wife drove our van up so we could get everyone home. Joel's truck is back up and running now. Is there something to their legend?

On June 24, Joel met me at a friends in Portland and we headed for Mount Adams. The weather was rain, but we headed on. At the Cold Springs trailhead (5500 ft) it started to snow. Our original plans were to climb the Mazama Glacier. With snow falling and visibility poor at times, we decided to take the more traveled route up the South Spur. We were told it would be nice weather on the 25th. It took us 4 hours (the last part trudging through fresh snow) to reach the Lunch Counter (9000ft). By this time the wind was blowing pretty hard and the snow was fairly heavy at times, so we pitched our tents and settled in to wait out the blow. There were two other parties here. I looked at my watch at about 1a.m. and noticed the wind had stopped. I got up to answer natures call and saw that the sky was clear and there were more stars than could imagine. I got up at a little after 5 a.m. and the view was awesome, St. Helens to the west and Hood and the Sisters to the south. I called out to Joel to see if he was ready to go. Unfortunately, he had been unable to dry out during the night. So we packed up and headed back to the car. We learned some valuable stuff about the clothes we had, like it is for fair weather climbing. Once down we visited the Ice Cave about 6 miles south of Trout Lake, WA. When you enter the cave, going to the right takes you through about 100 yards of a pretty typical lava tube cave and a second opening. Going left takes you to some beautiful ice formations. I would suggest you take a helmet and gloves. You will need to hold on at times, their are many low bridges and the ice is very slippery. Two weeks later Joel and his brother returned and summited via the South Spur.

On July 12 I headed up to Sonora Pass again. This time I made the Summit of Leavitt Peak. I headed out at 9:10 and made the summit at 12:10. I had figured on 2.5 hours but stopped and talked for about half an hour to some PCT through hikers along the way. I followed the PCT this time even though it is a bit circuitous from the trail head up to the Sierra Crest at about the 10,700 foot level. After signing in I ate some lunch and decided to wait for the group of 4 on the ridge below so they could take a picture of me on the summit. After about 20 minutes it became obvious that they were not coming up so I headed down. Two of the packers were from Arkansas, one from Seattle and one from Sacramento. I was able to get my picture with the summit in the background. Thanks folks. I met several other hikers on my way out. One lady, hiking alone, wasn't aware of exactly where she was and which peak was which. She thought the peak just ahead of her was Sonora Peak. In reality it is a couple miles north of where she was. I met another gentleman and his step sonat the trailhead. They were headed in for a multi-day trip. It was the highest altitude they had ever been to.  They had started not long after me and had not gone far when I met them again on my way out. They had a fair way to go if they wanted water for the night. I did not hear anything about lost or overdue hikers, but  everyone, please know where you are and what your skills and abilities are.

Lynn's family planned to head up to Clark Fork along the south edge of the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness, for a weekend outdoor get together on July 27 -29. My job was to head up on the 26th to secure a campsite. So as not to be just sitting around on Friday I headed up for the summit of Disaster Peak. I read several trip reports prior to my trip. I headed up the Disaster Creek trail to the meadow where the trail toward the intersects. I looked for the landmarks mentioned in the reports but couldn't find them. I spent an hour going up and down the trail and heading off on several promising looking route but they quickly petered out. I did find what I thought was the Paradise Valley Trail. Turns out it is the trail toward the summit but at a different spot than what the map shows.  Once the summit can be seen, you can pick your own route cross country. There is no formal summit trail. The first part is through soft dirt chapperal. Once on the rocks travel is much quicker, although one needs to be careful as some of the rock is a bit loose. Once I gained the summit I was surprised to find someone else already there. Vernon had apparently passed me when I was trying to find the trail. He was kind enough to take my photo with Stanislaus Peak in the background. On Saturday, Lynn's brother, Dave and I headed over Sonora Pass for Kirman Lake. The trail head is about 0.5 mi. west of the junction with U.S. 395. The hike is 3 miles of pretty flat high desert with one small hill. The fish are supposed to be big brooks and cutthroat. We started fishing about 7:30 and I quckly caught 2 large brookies and then nothing else. I was wading. Most of the shore is choked with tules and a float tube is pretty much a must. Even with a float tube, Dave only caught 2 fish, one a brook and one a cutthroat. Dave caught seveal fair planted rainbows in Clark Fork. I only caught a few dinks. The weekend was a great time for all.

I was planning to head up to the Tioga Pass / Saddlebag Lake area for August 9 & 10. My plans were interrupted by a mud and rock slide that closed the pass in both directions. So on Friday the 10th I headed to Ebbetts pass on Highway 4 and the Kinney Lakes for some fishing. The fishing was terrible. In 2+ hours I caught 1 small fingerling. There were some crags to the north of Lower Kinney Lake that kept calling to me. So I stashed my pole and fanny pack of fishing gear and headed up. It is about a one hour trip from the lake. There is no trail, although I did cross the Pacific Crest Trail. Most of the way is through soft dirt and chapperal. Once I gained the rocks on the east ridge travel was much better. Most was class 1 & 2 and quick travel. Near the summit there is about 20 to 30 feet of class 3. The view was great. I could see many peaks that I have summited, Round Top to the North and Sonora, Stanislaus, Disaster, and Leavitt Peaks to the south.

On Wednesday August 15 I headed back up to Ebbetts Pass again. This time the object  was to reach the summit of Highland Peak. I headed out from the Pacific Crest Trail Head just past the pass on the south side of the road at about 7:30 a.m.  It is about 3.5 miles along the PCT to Noble Lake. After moving up over a ridge you actually lose some elevation as you head up to the end of Noble Canyon. A series of switchbacks takes you up to Noble Lake. I saw several deer, a coyote, and two backpackers along the way.  At the inlet stream, turn left and follow the stream / trail up to a smaller lake. Work around the south end of the lake and head up a swale below some cliffs until you find the climbers trail. This trail takes you to a saddle where you turn left and head uphill along a ridge. There was a lot of scree and made for some slippery walking. Why do I pick these peaks? Anyway I topped out just to the left of an unnamed peak at about 10,800 ft. I forgot about this peak and thought I was at the summit until I saw the actual peak to the north. It had taken me 2 hours from Noble Lake to get here and I had thought It would take me that long to get to the summit of Highland. I sat down and contemplated whether I should go on. After some water and a snack, I went on. It took me just 40 more minutes to reach the summit. You first actually go down to a saddle between the two peaks and then head up the ridge. The broken granite was like walking up stair steps. Just shy of the true summit is a false summit that is easily skirted but which I went over. I was a short class 4 climb with a long way down to the west. Once on the summit I signed the resister ( the first person in a week), drank some water, had some food, and drank in the view. I could see 5 other peaks I have summited, Round Top to the North and Disaster, Stanislaus, Sonora and Leavitt Peaks to the south.  On the trip back to the unnamed peak I took a wrong turn and it left me scrambling back to the summit ridge line. Once I was headed back down the climbers trail it was like skiing at times on the scree. Most of the way down I had the day lights scared out of me when from behind and to my right I heard "Hey there!". Two folks, Lisa Weiss and Paul Suits had started up late and were stopped and resting. When told of how much longer it would take to summit they decided to head down with me. The conversation was pleasant and it was nice to hike with someone. Well below Noble Lake I decided to stop and rest and Paul & Lisa kept going. Shortly after I started again I ran out of water, it was warm and I just hit the wall. A couple of packers gave me a few swallows of their water and it was enough to get me back to the car. Moral of the story, refill water containers whenever you can.

On Labor Day Weekend Lynn, the girls, and I joined Lynn's paremts at Little Grass Valley Lake. Niki caught a nice 'bow with her grandpa. Lynn drove me over to the horse camp area where she, Niki, and I headed up the trail toward Bald Mountain. After a little while they turned around and headed back to the van. I continued up the trail. A little further up there is a split in the trail. Heading to the right takes you to the Pacific Crest Trail. I heaed right toward the summit. I was nearly run down by a crazy mountain biker flying down the trail. I caught another group near the summit. Bald Mountain is a rounded granit knob just north of the lake. I thought there might be several routes up and maybe some areas for some technical climbing. The sides are heavily coverd by manzanita and only the one route up. The view over the lake is nice and Lassen peak can be seen to the north.  After the hike back to our campsite the rest of the weekend was spent relaxing and getting my self mentally ready for the first day of school.

On Saturday, September  29, my brother in law Dave Henry, colleague John Engebretsen, and I headed up to Kirman Lake on the east side of the Sierras for some fall fishing. We set up camp at a National Forest campground and then headed to the lake. We each caught several nice fish. There lower jaws were starting to hook and there were some color change as the Brookies were preparing to spawn. The other color change involved the aspen trees. The leaves were as bright a yellow as I have ever seen. These with some other plants made some of the Eastern Sierra hillsides look like a rainbow. This lake is becoming quite popular and well known. Each day there were quite a few other people there fishing. Using a float tube is the way to go. John and I waded the east side (which is pretty much where waders are restricted to) and caught several using Panther Martins and Kastmasters. Dave had a float tube and knocked 'em dead (23 fish landed on Sunday) using a white crappie jig. Saw a few deer in the area and watched a coyote across the meadow from the trail as we hiked in. The cows were much more populous than when we were there last time.

During the Veterans Day Weekend in November, Lynn and I took advantage of the free entrance fee and headed to Pinnacles National Monument (west entrance) to hike and check out the Balcony Caves. Niki hiked the entire loop through the cave, up to the base of Balcony cliffs and back to parking area with us. The weather was awesome with a few light sprinkles from an approaching front. Niki has joined me at our climbing gym a few times and has been climbing every fence she sees, so she did some on the boulders we found along the way. She also was able to negotiate the entire cave with minimal help.  We also watched a few groups of climbers on a couple of the routes on the Balcony Cliffs.

On Saturday December 15 I took Lyyn and Niki up to the Kirkwood Nordic area to try some snowshoeing. This was Lynn's first time in snowshoes and only the secon time of seeing snow for Nikaela. After some pratice in the "big shoes", we followed a groomed nordic trail for a little bit and then cut through the deep powder to another groomed trail and back to the lodge. Niki thought the powder was much more fun than the groomed stuff. We then did the 1K loop set up for kids with wood cut outs of various animals and their foot prints along the way. We then headed up the hill and some more fresh powder wher we saw a whole bunch of rabbit tracks in the snow. After a late lunch we walked over to the meadow area to have a look at the dog sled teams. Unfotunately they were finishing packing and heading for home. Niki said she is ready to go back and walk and play some more in the snow,