The past few months have been pretty packed, but it actually got off to a slow start. Back in May Owen was working 24/7 between his regular job and planning annual training for the National Guard, so camping and weekend trips were off the table. Instead, Denali and I started exploring local parks. First we went for a hike at Loch Lomond (not the one in Scotland), which was a beautiful reservoir that I tried to enjoy as Denali dragged me around it. Our next two trips were trail runs, since that’s the pace we end up going whether I want to or not. Byrne-Milliron Forest was a funky park, with sculptures and art hidden in the trees and even a “Great White Redwood,” which had been bleached by the sun. The best discovery this spring with Denali was a secret entrance to one of my favorite local parks, with a trail that crosses a creek four times before ascending up into the redwoods.
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| Byrne-Milliron Forest |
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| Loch Lomond |
Memorial Day Weekend we finally broke the camping dry spell with a trip up to Mount Shasta in northern California. From what I could find online, it seemed like our only option to “hike” near Mount Shasta this time of year was to walk on the road. So I was pleasantly surprised when we got there and found a perfect dog friendly hiking trail that climbed up towards the mountain with lots of snow for Denali to play in. Once we got above treeline we even let her off leash for a bit, luring her back with cheese. The next day we explored some roadside caves, drove through Lava Beds National Monument, and made our way into Modoc National Forest, in the northeast corner of California. It felt more like Nevada or Wyoming than California. It was so remote that we had a campground almost entirely to ourselves that night, on a holiday weekend.
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| A happy pup at Mount Shasta |
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| Inside an ice cave |
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| Emerging from the cave |
Two weeks later, we were on the road again, this time all the way up to Oregon to check out a used first generation Toyota 4runner for sale. During the pandemic, Owen had become a little obsessed with old 4runners, eventually convincing the minimalist in me that it would be okay to get a second car. He showed me lots of used Forerunners the past few months and I’d just smile and nod, thinking he’d never actually find “the one.” This time, it felt more real. We took out a large sum of cash from our bank accounts and made the seven hour drive up to Oregon. When we pulled up and the seller had “Owen” tattooed on the back of his leg (his son’s name), I knew it was all over. 30 minutes later, the 4runner was ours.
We’re calling the 4runner “Little Red,” and it’s older than us if that tells you anything about it. It’s a stick shift, crank windows, no A/C. But Owen wanted a project car, something that would be good for gnarly roads in National Forests. So naturally, the first thing we did with Little Red was take it on crazy Forest Service roads! There was a lot of shaking, bouncing, and noise, but eventually Little Red got us to a secluded campsite in Shasta-Trinity National Forest and we spent the rest of the weekend checking out views of Mount Shasta and hanging out at a lake that the 4runner seller recommended.
Four days later, I was packing up and leaving for yet another trip, this time to backpack with a near stranger on the PCT for the weekend. Smart, right? And would you believe this was my mom’s idea? The near stranger was an old family friend who was thru-hiking the PCT, and I hadn’t seen him since I was about five years old. Jaeson would be backpacking the entire Lake Tahoe section of the trail that weekend with his friend’s dog, about 65 miles in 2.5 days. I knew there was no way in hell I could do that kind of mileage so I planned to hike with him as far as I could the first day, then retrace my steps the next day. The trail cut through the Desolation Wilderness and everywhere we turned there was another backcountry lake or spectacular view of granite peaks. But no plan survives first contact with the enemy, as they say, and we were no exception. In our case, the enemy was threefold: a rocky trail, crazy hot temperatures, and a tired dog. We made it about 16 miles the first day, which may have been a backpacking record for me but was nowhere near as far as Jaeson needed to go to catch his ride at Donner Summit in time. So we decided to hike out together the next day so I could drive him back into town. I managed to power through the 16 miles back, but my muscles were so tight on the drive home that I could barely hobble out of the car to get gas. Lesson learned: I’m in shape, but not in thru-hiker shape!
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| Desolation Wilderness views |
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| Lake Aloha |
Two weeks later, it was yet another holiday weekend: the 4th of July. Owen and I debated our options: we could stay home and rest, or we could go backpacking in the Trinity Alps Wilderness in northern California like we usually do over the 4th of July. It was a no brainer. We selected the Caribou Lakes Basin as our destination, which supposedly had a long drive on a rough road to get to the trailhead, perfect for the 4runner. What we failed to account for was that taking the 4runner meant we had no A/C, and temperatures were in the triple digits that entire weekend. Needless to say, the drive up was pretty rough and by the time we got to the trailhead on Saturday afternoon we were too tired to hike. Instead we crashed at one of the campsites there and started the hike the next morning, feeling slightly more refreshed.
The hike itself was magnificent. We wound past meadows, hung on to the trail as it traversed a rocky cliffside, and eventually dropped down into a backcountry lake which we had almost entirely to ourselves. We were excited to recover that night, but the local wildlife had something else in store for us. A small herd of deer wandered around our camp half the night, which Denali was not too thrilled about, and it took Owen and I both to hold her back from jumping right through our mesh tent.
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| Caribou Lakes Basin |
Less than 48 hours after we got home from Trinity Alps, we flew out to Colorado for Madeline and Evan’s bachelor/bachelorette party and wedding. It was four days of socializing, celebrating, eating, drinking, and dancing in Vail and Carbondale. After not interacting with anyone except our neighbors and a few friends for the past year and a half, it felt like going from 0 to 60 in 2.5. But seeing one of my best friends finally get married was the best initiation back into real life I could have hoped for.
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| Owen hiked to the Maroon Bells |
We got back from Colorado on Sunday and have been dog sitting our neighbor’s dog Benno since then while they’re on vacation. For two supposedly energetic dogs (our husky and their Rhodesian Ridgeback), I can’t believe how much they sleep every day! Benno was a bit fussy at night, but it wasn’t always his fault. At one point we turned on the light and Denali was sitting in his crate! Overall, there were no accidents, injuries, or escapes so I would consider it a successful week.  |
The life of the party
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That brings me to now. Now, we are frantically packing for another trip, one we have been trying to take for years. I am slightly sleep deprived, a little behind at work, and in desperate need of a Netflix binge session. But I’m so happy we’ve had the chance to get outside so much this summer and even more grateful we can start to see friends again.
