Day 6: Tilden Creek to Lake Hellen
10/11/2004: Up Tilden Creek, cross the border, traverse to Lake Hellen
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Sun up: wind's back. No peaceful breakfast to be had up here. Pack camp and head down. Georges country: granite slabs and trees. Find shelter from the wind and cook my breakfast on the short of Tilden lake. After breakfast I wonder up valley. Above the lake are open meadows. Further the valley narrows. I find a faint trail which helps me through the easy sections but abandons me when the going gets difficult. Upper basin, Mary lake, meadow on the far side, then the pass. |
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Instead of dropping down to Tower lake, from the pass I ascend talus to the west, turn the ridge crest to Tower lake basin, and make a level traverse across that to the ridge above Hellen lake.
I find a well sheltered camp among the small lakes, meadows, and trees west of Hellen. In the dirt of lakes I see foot prints of other hikers. In some lakes I see nets hung from floats - some kind of research project. The footprints look fairly fresh and I wonder if I'll actually meet someone up here.
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Day 7: Lake Hellen to the Falls
10/12/2004: Back past Tower Lake then up Kirkwood Creek.
Well, Lake Hellen and her sister's are not as beautiful as I hoped. The nights are long and cold and I'm lonely in the evenings. I pack camp and start heading back toward the trail head. I choose a different route out, around the outlet of Lake Hellen then east over the ridge. At Tower lake I pick up the trail, descend, then turn to the south east and follow an unnamed creek toward a pass to Thompson Canyon. This is a spectacular valley.
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As I near the head, following the stream, I come to a small falls. Below the falls are some nicely sheltered camp sites that have clearly been used before. I decide it can't get much better and camp here.
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Day 8: Exit
10/13/2004: Traverse over to trail and hike out.
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From camp I hike to upper meadows. There are a couple lakes up here, outcrops of trees, and wet meadows. More good camping (and signs that it has been used).
I cross into the head of Thompson Creek. Very different - a little dryer, more open meadows, fewer rocks. I head down this a short was then cross the eastern ridge, descend to Kerrick Meadow and pick up the trail. 8 miles later I'm back at Twin Lakes. |
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I pick up the car and drive down to Bridgeport. I experience the usual dislocation of moving fast in modern transportation. But what beautiful country. I look forward to flying over this country some time in the future.
The first motel in Bridgeport meets my set limit of $50 and I have myself a warm room for the night. I get dinner out then stay up _way_ too late watching TV.
Day 9: Bodie and Home
10/14/2004: Visit Bodie and return home.
Bodie is a California State Park preserving the ghost town of Bodie. Bode was an early mining community and was once the second biggest city in California. After most people moved out the state bought the land and is preserving it in a semi-arrested state of decay. One of the last residents was Marie's great grandfather so visiting is of special interest to us. Photography is best early in the morning. I walk around trying to take different pictures that I have before.
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After a couple hours I start heading north. I call Southwest and change my ticket to this evening and by 10 I'm back in Seattle.