[yew]

After hiking the PCT in the Russian Wilderness and from recommendations from the guidebook, we decided to hike the PCT (Pacific Crest Trail) from Scott Mountain Summit to Carter Meadows. We preferred to hike one of the higher, craggier parts of the Trinity Alps Wilderness like Caribou Mountain area from Big Meadows but it was Labor Day Weekend and I will sacrifice scenery for less crowds. Plus, I was sick of driving and did not feel like driving all the way around on Hwy 3. The PCT from Scott Mtn ascends gradually through red fir forest. It skirts a partial cut on a square mile of private land then enters the Wilderness boundary. Blue grouse were on the edge of the cut. There's a lot of checkerboard private-national forest land around Scott Mtn Summit. We saw a lot more log trucks on the road down there than Whatcom and Skagit counties. This seems strange to me since our forests are so much more productive than the dry, rocky pine/red fir/incense cedar forests down there. Regional lumber markets, mills, competition with Canada, the recession,...it's complicated and I'm no forest economist. The PCT is adjacent to, then crosses a dirt road that cherry stems into the Wilderness Area. The dirt road goes to Camp Unalayee which is on a square mile inholding of private land within the Wilderness. Then the PCT gains elevation (gradually, of course) to the junction of Boulder lakes.

one of the Boulder lakes from the PCT in the Trinity Alps

North/west of Boulder lakes the PCT meets a scenic highlight. It's really nice through here. There's were still a few small strips of snow above feeding small creeks. Wildflowers were still blooming. Some of the rocks of the mountains were red. Off in the distance and nearby was granite.

flower in Trinity Alps early September

Trinity Alps from PCT

Trinity Alps from PCT

wildflower in Trinity Alps

PCT in Trinity Alps. Mt Shasta in background

Trinity Alps from the PCT

On this stretch of the PCT, I was able to add one more conifer species to my tree life list, the foxtail pine, a Sierran species. I introduced myself to this species with a handshake of the bough that someone thought was like the tail of a fox.

Foxtail pine on the PCT Trinity Alps

That night we camped at Telephone Lake. We could not find the trail to Telephone Lake on the south side of the ridge near the PCT. Cattle graze the meadow near the junction, tracks are common and we soon lost the trail so we bushwhacked up to the top of the ridge and united with the trail there. There's a humongous ratty old red fir near Telephone Lake. It was surprisingly difficult to find a place to hang a hammock at Telephone Lake. The trees were either too big or too far apart and/or blocked by little trees and/or branches.

We made a pizza in the Banks Fry-Bake pan for dinner. I've been getting sick of glops and glue stews so been experimenting with backpacking food that's a bit more substantial and civilized.

shrimp pizza in the Banks fry-bake pan in the Trinity Alps of northern California. At a camp while backpacking near the PCT. Sauce was from powdered tomato sauce.

I'm on the fence (as usual) if it's worth the weight. Depends on how much value you put on more normal food. The hike back up to the ridge from Telephone Lake wasn't bad at all since we were rested. We encountered 2 PCT thru-hikers "Ginger" and "Pro from Dover". Seems kind of late to be seeing thru-hikers this far south so late in the season. The Sierras got a lot of snow last winter followed by a wet-cool spring. I suppose that slowed a lot of thru-hikers down (?). Doesn't matter, got to keep slogging north anyway. There was a decent amount of water around Eagle Peak and Cabin Trail. There are also better views of the highest Trinity Alps like around Thompson Peak.

Thompson Peak area in Trinity Alps

Thompson Peak area in Trinity Alps from the PCT on the northeast side with a zoom lens

Then the PCT drops over to the north of the ridge and gradually descends to Carter Meadows. The trail has a nice look here. Can't elaborate but I was feeling it. We encountered a young bowhunter packing a massive packframe with huge bucket near the junction to South Fork Lakes. Not as many deer as there used to be, he said. Every big game hunter I've ever met says that. Maybe it's true? If so, what a shame. When we made it back to Carter Meadows, I hitched 2 rides back to Scott Mountain Summit to pick up the car. It took about an hour and a half. Most traffic at Carter Meadows on Hwy 93 was west bound, not down to Callahan. Once I retrieved the car and drove back to Carter Meadows to pick up Crazy J and Mrs. Yew, we camped at Klamath National Forest's Hidden Horse Campground. This campground rules. This is a horse-oriented campground. There are corrals and piped water in each campsite. The campground has recycling and garbage pickup. Picnic tables and outhouses, of course. And it's only $10! I don't know the etiquette for non-equestrians camping at horsecentric campgrounds but no one else was camped there so we grabbed a site. Dropped down to the low 40s that night. Awoke to clouds and dew next morning then dayhiked the 14 miles to Paynes Lake and out (link above). Mileage on the PCT was 18.5 miles. About a mile each way down to Telephone Lake for a total of about 21 miles on a 2 day hike. Next day, we drove the State of Jefferson Backcountry Byway from Yreka to Seaid Valley to Happy Camp, then north to Poker Flat Campground for a hike in the Siskiyou Wilderness.

[whitebark]

Nice view of Thompson Peak in the Trinities, which shelters a small but genuine glacier, the lowest elevation permanent icefield in California. I want to scramble up that peak sometime.

[yew]

When I was thumbing it down to Callahan from Carter Meadows, a guy in a Toyota 4 Runner said he bagged Thompson that weekend. He said he was driving westbound to try to meet up with friends who just bought some property near Sawyers Bar so couldn't give me a lift to the east. He said he has had to hitchhike in the Klamaths but said it could be tough. I love it down there. Much better than Washington! I like it much better down there than up here near the North Cascades. It's too rainy and cloudy here in western WA. Down there, still has the deep woods and some crags but not so soggy. That poison oak is awful but love the wild turkeys and mountain quail.

[Tom]

Nice lookin' pizza. Seems like you could order one at Telephone Lake. There are ways to cut down the weight. We make them out of Mission Sundried Tomato Basil Tortilla Wraps, Ragu pizza quick sauce, pepperoni, and 1 string cheese per tortilla. Green pepper made a fine addition on our last hike. Just fold it like a quesedilla and heat it on a pan on low heat, shaking and flipping frequently.

[ree]

Thanks for that trip report! I've done a bit of PCT hiking around Shasta, particularly the Castle Crags Wilderness. I never made it all the way to Trinity Alps, but I love that area... Nice and dry and the air smells soo good. I take it, this is SW of Shasta? I'm hankering to go back.

[yew]

Yep, they're southwest of Shasta. Maybe WSW. And northwest of Redding. Canyon Creek is the most popular area in the Trinity Alps since the scenery is so nice. We'd only go there on a weekday. I'd like to return and go to the Caribou area on a weekday. The Trinity Alps are very nice. We're used to scenery like North Cascades and Mt Baker and still found the Trinities impressive. Parts of the Trinity Alps are "horsey". They're comparable to the Lake Chelan-Sawtooth or Wallowas in terms of mountains, use and climate.

[belowfellow]

great to see a report on this area! I scrambled Thompson a handful of years ago. The Trinity Alps and Marble Mountains are truly fantastic areas.