How to beat the heat?

[cmayer31]

Go to the mountains ! I've been camping, or out and about somewhere for what seems like two months now. I spent a week in Utah enjoying the awesome weather there and when I came back to San Diego it was way too hot so I went and spent some time in Mammoth Lakes in the Eastern Sierras . I have a ton of pictures to go through and I took all of the Utah ones, so need to do a lot of editing before I can post those. However, I was a moron and left my camera charging at home when I went to Mammoth . I guess the good news is I can steal pictures from my friend who did have a camera and can post those.

Every year some of my closest friends and I head off to Mammoth for a weekend or more of hiking, fishing, and just enjoying the good ole outdoors. The last two years we've stayed at Upper Soda Springs and I can honestly say that it's my favorite place on earth. I grew up fishing Mammoth in the summer and skiing Mammoth in the winter and someday I will retire here.

The gang at camp. I'm in the white shirt blue hat second from the right.


Our annual trek out to Rainbow Falls (Can you spot the Rainbow?):


Fishing the Falls (I'm in the background, my buddy Mike is in the foreground) The water level was extremely high this year and it was like standing in a monsoon, but we do it every year and there's some great wild trout in there.


The lower falls


Just a few more in the next post....

[K9karen]

OK, I'm jealous!

[cmayer31]

We normally go on an 8-10 mile hike to Shadow Lake, my second most favorite place ever, but this year we decided to up the ante and go for Garnet Lake and 10,000 Island Lake. We hiked until our critical turn around point and unfortunately turned around about 1/2 mile short of the hike, It took us almost 5 hours of hiking around 10k feet before the turn around and only 2 hours to get back . We surprised the crud out of a backpacker who couldn't believe that a group of day hikers had made it as far as we did. Oh well, next year we'll leave really early and get there, or just backpack it.

This is before the Shadow Lake trailhead a few miles from the starting point. We have basically the same picture in this exact spot every year. I even think some of us are wearing the same clothes .


Once we hit the higher elevations we ended up hiking through snow, rivers, and streams; the trail had turned into a perfect snow melt path. Here's one spot where the trail goes under the snow:


After we made it back to camp it was time to catch dinner. This spot was gold for me and I fed the group a couple of nights when others got skunked.


After Vince and I left the others did one last hike and their pictures really make me regret leaving, but I have to work to pay for these trips . Here's a couple of pictures of the Jem lakes, just a little further down from where we camped.




Can't wait 'till next year!

[shais_mom]

those are FABULOUS pics Craig!
thanks for posting them!
And I'm jonesing for your UTAH pics!

[Karen]

Gorgeous pictures, I can imagine the glorious smell of the mountain air!

[Lilith Cherry]

They are truly wonderful pictures! thanks for sharing them with us. Sitting here in the sweltering humid heat of South China ( it's working up to a typhoon) they made me feel cooler lol!

[Randi]

Wow, what great places you went hiking! It must have been fantastic! The scenery is beautiful, you've got it all.... mountains, waterfalls, woods, lakes and even snow. I really miss a landscape like that, Denmark is so flat.

Is the other guy in the white t-shirt and blue cap your brother? You look alike.