Adams: Crystal Lake via PCT/Riley loop (100% snow) Nov 8
Posted: November 10th, 2020, 8:54 am
Pretty straightforward hike: Up PCT from Road 23 (Williams Mine TH), up to the RTM junction at Horseshoe Meadow, on to the PCT/Riley junction, down Riley to the connector trail that runs roughly parallel to Road 23, and then the final stretch of PCT back to car. Oh, and the little jaunt to Crystal Lake and her two neighbors.
First time this season I've walked on snow right from the trailhead. It was a slooooow day. Looks like it was around 12 or 13 miles, 5:15am to 6:09pm. One mph isn't a bad pace for me, except for one thing: This was a trail hike! Well almost entirely. The snow was never all that deep, maybe around 6-8" from the meadow to Riley, but that really slows you down. I wanted to do more exploring up high, and I could see the ridgecrests were wind-scoured and easy to travel, but just getting from PCT to the alpine zone would be terrible. Still, maybe I should have. The scenery on that stretch of PCT was poor, not worth the work.
Weather was a big surprise. NOAA said sunny, should have been a beautiful day. As it started to get light, I saw dark clouds, and snow started falling. At Horseshoe Meadow, there was some brief clearing. The view of the mountain was nice, if you don't mind some clouds and trees in the way. That was the last time I saw her. Clouds dropped, snow fell some more. I wasn't watching the temp, but around 1pm I noted it was 22F. There was a little new snow on my car when I returned. I really didn't mind the weather too much. I wanted to see Adams from Crystal Lake, but other than that, I enjoyed the eerie somber mood that comes with a cold cloudy day, and the sub-freezing temps kept things dry. I'm really glad there was virtually no wind. That could have ruined the day.
Getting to Crystal Lake was harder than expected. For starters, I departed PCT too late/low, a little above Sheep Lake. I don't recall why. Maybe my side trip to Crystal Lake was an extemporaneous thing. I found her little neighbor to the west first. Crystal Lake was very close, but still took some looking. If you weren't looking for it (if you didn't know there was a lake there) you could walk right past it. Not because it's tiny, but because it's tucked away strangely. Funny though, on the way down, I stumbled into the lake NW of Crystal, with no intention of finding it. (No, I don't mean I literally stumbled into the lake. That wouldn't have ended well.)
On a hike like this, I'm always confident I won't see anybody, but I had a surprise. I was just getting started down the Riley trail, and paused to sort some gear, change layers, drink a beer, etc. So I was slightly off trail and silent. Thought I heard footsteps. Sure enough. She must have nearly jumped out of her boots. She knew there was nobody else ahead of here (because snow), so imagine her surprise when she realized there was some guy standing in the trees ten feet off trail! She didn't ask, but I said I was doing a loop, which she probably would have figured out eventually.
Almost forgot to mention, I saw a pack of coyotes in the dark, when I was just getting started in the morning. They scattered when they saw me. I was surprised, I figured they would stick together. At least a couple scurried towards the McMenamins at 15th/Broadway, while one or more ran deeper into Irvington.
First time this season I've walked on snow right from the trailhead. It was a slooooow day. Looks like it was around 12 or 13 miles, 5:15am to 6:09pm. One mph isn't a bad pace for me, except for one thing: This was a trail hike! Well almost entirely. The snow was never all that deep, maybe around 6-8" from the meadow to Riley, but that really slows you down. I wanted to do more exploring up high, and I could see the ridgecrests were wind-scoured and easy to travel, but just getting from PCT to the alpine zone would be terrible. Still, maybe I should have. The scenery on that stretch of PCT was poor, not worth the work.
Weather was a big surprise. NOAA said sunny, should have been a beautiful day. As it started to get light, I saw dark clouds, and snow started falling. At Horseshoe Meadow, there was some brief clearing. The view of the mountain was nice, if you don't mind some clouds and trees in the way. That was the last time I saw her. Clouds dropped, snow fell some more. I wasn't watching the temp, but around 1pm I noted it was 22F. There was a little new snow on my car when I returned. I really didn't mind the weather too much. I wanted to see Adams from Crystal Lake, but other than that, I enjoyed the eerie somber mood that comes with a cold cloudy day, and the sub-freezing temps kept things dry. I'm really glad there was virtually no wind. That could have ruined the day.
Getting to Crystal Lake was harder than expected. For starters, I departed PCT too late/low, a little above Sheep Lake. I don't recall why. Maybe my side trip to Crystal Lake was an extemporaneous thing. I found her little neighbor to the west first. Crystal Lake was very close, but still took some looking. If you weren't looking for it (if you didn't know there was a lake there) you could walk right past it. Not because it's tiny, but because it's tucked away strangely. Funny though, on the way down, I stumbled into the lake NW of Crystal, with no intention of finding it. (No, I don't mean I literally stumbled into the lake. That wouldn't have ended well.)
On a hike like this, I'm always confident I won't see anybody, but I had a surprise. I was just getting started down the Riley trail, and paused to sort some gear, change layers, drink a beer, etc. So I was slightly off trail and silent. Thought I heard footsteps. Sure enough. She must have nearly jumped out of her boots. She knew there was nobody else ahead of here (because snow), so imagine her surprise when she realized there was some guy standing in the trees ten feet off trail! She didn't ask, but I said I was doing a loop, which she probably would have figured out eventually.
Almost forgot to mention, I saw a pack of coyotes in the dark, when I was just getting started in the morning. They scattered when they saw me. I was surprised, I figured they would stick together. At least a couple scurried towards the McMenamins at 15th/Broadway, while one or more ran deeper into Irvington.