Forum Index > Trip Reports > South Warner Wilderness backpack (N Calif.) July 4-8
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whitebark
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whitebark
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PostMon Jul 12, 2010 7:38 pm 
The 40 mile long loop hike in the Warner Mountain Wilderness of NE. California is a little known but classic backpack trip. Our group of 5 drove there in various cars on the 4th of July weekend and hiked the loop over 4 nights and 5 days. Fantastic scenery and fine weather made for a great trip. After drives from Seattle and Palm Springs, our motley crew somehow assembled at the right time at 6900' Pepperdine Trailhead at about 1 pm, then set out on our packpacking adventure. The Summit Trail wasted no time gaining the top of the mountain range; thick forest soon gave way to dry meadows and sagebrush covered slopes. Soon we were treated to vast views over the Surprise Valley to the east and the Modoc Plateau to the west. Colorful flowers dotted the meadows--basamroot, lupine, phlox and many others. A 2 mile climb brought us to the start of the loop; we veered left onto the little used Owl Creek Trail. Creeks and snowbanks nestled in basins under the north slope of Squaw Peak were a welcome sight after the long hot ascent. A long descent took us down to the valley of Cottonwood Creek, where we camped at a mediocre site (6 miles from the trailhead). Unfortunately, we were too tired to climb over the next pass and camp at Patterson Creek (camping is much better there).
South Warner Mountains, Ca
South Warner Mountains, Ca
Warner Mountain Summit Trail
Warner Mountain Summit Trail
The next day was long and hard, but spectacular. The poorly maintained and little used Owl Creek Trail wound through numerous drainages to the east of the range. Lots of ups and downs, blowdowns, and eroded tread made for a lot of hard work. The trail was so faint past Linderman Lake that part of our group was lost for an hour. But the views, especially toward the arid Surprise Valley and the vast open spaces of the Nevada desert made it all worth it. The weather was hot, but we could cool off at a number of creeks tumbing from snowy cirques above. As in Washington, the spring weather was cool and snowy, and there was plenty of moisture to keep the meadows green and creeks flowing. Late in the day and thoroughly worn out from the rough trail, we camped near one of the creeks tumbling down from 9700' Eagle Peak.
Lindberg Lake, Owl Ck Trail
Lindberg Lake, Owl Ck Trail
Warner Summit Trail
Warner Summit Trail
Day 3 was much easier, about 8 miles. We finished off the final spectacular section of the Owl Creek Trail, crossed the top of the range, then started heading north on the Summit Trail, more popular that the OCT but hardly crowded. Camped by Slide Creek which drains a glacier cirque on the north side of Eagle Peak. The sloping campsites where the trail crosses the creek are not the best; look for better secluded spots higher up in the cirque.
Warner Summit Trail
Warner Summit Trail
Basin below N side of Eagle Peak
Basin below N side of Eagle Peak
Day 4-- For 8 miles, we enjoyed the renowned scenery of the Summit Trail. The whitebark pine forests on the crest of the Warners are exceptional. I've never seen those trees growing so large and in such dense forests. Farther along, the trail follows the very crest of the steep fault block range, then surmounts a 9200' pass to get to beautiful Patterson Lake. We took a side trip to summit 9700' Warren Peak, a fun scramble. Even with the scramble, this was a short day and we had a lot of time to enjoy the scenic camp at Patterson Lake, still partly frozen.
Patterson Lake
Patterson Lake
Chuck, S End of Owl Ck Trail
Chuck, S End of Owl Ck Trail
Day 5. We hiked out the final 6 miles to the Pepperdine Trailhead. This part of the trail was equally fine. Spectacular views, but shadeless--use plenty of sunscreen. Pics from the Warner Mountain trip, and from a hike at Paulina Lake, near Bend Or afterwards: http://www.flickr.com/photos/72558696@N00/sets/72157624343023015/

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whitebark
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PostMon Jul 12, 2010 9:19 pm 
Whitebarks! love 'em

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yew
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yew
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PostWed Jul 14, 2010 9:55 pm 
"God's Country"
What a paradise that place is! Way better than anything in WA. Thanks for the TR. It brings back nice memories of when I did forestry work down there, based out of Cedarville and Fort Bidwell. Never had the time to go backpacking when I was down there but I love the funky Great Basin/meets the northern California Cascades combo. In 1996, when driving from the Pine Forest Range in Nevada to the Marble Mtns near Yreka, we got jacked up pretty good (full patdown with hands behind the head, tore the car apart, surrounded, all for supposedly crossing the center line) by the redneck cops in Alturas. I don't know what the lady in the gas station told the cops. Although we looked scruffy after the Nevada backpacking trip, I guess we looked like criminals or fugitives. That country is not what most people think of when they think of California. Pretty rural ranch country and vast federal lands like eastern Oregon down to Susanville & Reno. up.gif Probably said this before - you have good taste in trip destinations.

"I aint jokin woman, I got to ramble...We gonna go walkin through the park every day." - Led Zeppelin
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kite
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PostThu Jul 15, 2010 8:46 am 
Wow, what a cool looking area!

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Man-inna-hillz
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Man-inna-hillz
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PostThu Jul 15, 2010 10:29 am 
Re: "God's Country"
yew wrote:
Way better than anything in WA.
Having hiked both the Warner and Washington State extensively, I can say with some authority that this is emphatically NOT the case

The God of language forgives all crimes. -W.H. Auden
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whitebark
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whitebark
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PostFri Jul 16, 2010 10:19 am 
Re: "God's Country"
yew wrote:
In 1996, when driving from the Pine Forest Range in Nevada to the Marble Mtns near Yreka, we got jacked up pretty good (full patdown with hands behind the head, tore the car apart, surrounded, all for supposedly crossing the center line) by the redneck cops in Alturas. I don't know what the lady in the gas station told the cops. Although we looked scruffy after the Nevada backpacking trip, I guess we looked like criminals or fugitives.
Yup, Alturus is pretty redneck allright. When we were there, the police had set up a roadblock right in the middle of town. They were stopping everyone to look for saturday night drunk drivers. So I had my own interaction with the Alturus police, more pleasant than your own to be sure, but still.... Of course, the bright side of being in redneck ville is that the motel owners don't care in the least if you bring a dog into your room smile.gif Looking at my own pic of Patterson Lake, I was struck by how fresh-looking the morraine debris was under 9700' Warren Peak. Surprising to think that there might have been a small glacier there during the Little Ice Age 100 - 150 years ago.

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yew
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yew
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PostTue Jul 20, 2010 5:57 pm 
Re: "God's Country"
Man-inna-hillz wrote:
yew wrote:
Way better than anything in WA.
Having hiked both the Warner and Washington State extensively, I can say with some authority that this is emphatically NOT the case
It should say "I like it way better than anything in WA". Although, that area of CA does not have the alpine grandeur of the North Cascades, I much prefer that area for it's climate, vast BLM sagebrush & juniper, proximity to the Great Basin (playas, sage grouse, pronghorns) and better accessibility combined with Western high mountain scenery in spots. The Cascades are too rainy and cloudy and only nice from mid July to end of September IMO. ------------------------------ Alturas Police - Looking for drunk drivers is good. They kept asking us over & over if we had any weapons or drugs. Esp. drugs. They probably figured (wrongly) that they'd shake a joint out of atleast one of us.
whitebark wrote:
Of course, the bright side of being in redneck ville is that the motel owners don't care in the least if you bring a dog into your room
Yep, that's a good thing. When I was working down there, I had Crazy J with me in motels in Cedarville and Lakeview for almost 3 months. 5 days for a backpacking trip is relatively long. Do you feel you got to see the whole wilderness area in that amount of time?

"I aint jokin woman, I got to ramble...We gonna go walkin through the park every day." - Led Zeppelin
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whitebark
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PostTue Jul 20, 2010 9:05 pm 
I think that five days is about right for doing the owl creek/summit trail loop, given the poor shape of some of the trails. This amount of time gave us opportunities for side trips to peaks, and lounging in camp. We saw most of the high altitude portion of the Warner Wilderness.

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