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Sharksbaja
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5814
Registered: 9-7-2004
Location: Newport, Mulege B.C.S.
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Barry
I really do miss that part of the state. I think I fished every stream from Little Lake to Convict Lake.
Have you gone back into the White Mountains , up past the Ancient Bristlecones? I remember being in there for weeks and never seeing a soul.
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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Sharks------
Yes, we have camped out on Cottonwood Creek on the east side of White Mt. peak several times, as well as other places----that is really fantastic
country, and there are trout in Cottonwood Creek, and other tiny creeks up there. My son hunts that country every year.
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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More for Sharks-----
I got to thinking-----so many of us have limited time while still working for a living, so we often go to the places that others go to, and tell us
about. But one of the real advantages of being retired is that we have the time to seek out the places that folks DON'T go, that are less well known.
You mention Kearsearge Pass above Independence out of Onion valley-----lots of folks hike over that pass, and it gets really crowded all summer long.
But, last weekend my son and a friend hiked on a seldom used trail north from Onion Valley (before you get to Onion) and into Sardine Lake and the
Parker Lakes, and the Rex Montis abandoned mine------they saw nobody, and very little evidence of human use, and it was just great!!! They had to do a
little cross-country hiking but it was no problem. There are hundreds (1000's?) of places like this, off the beaten track, and very rewarding to
visit.
I have found that you can do the same in Baja-----i.e. go to places that few, if any, folks talk about, and you would think that you were the only
modern man ever having been there. It just takes a little immagination and map searching, and the will to go exploring.
I know that you, and the others on this board, know what I am saying here. I think we share that common ground.
Viva Baja-----Viva Alta California!!!!
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sylens
Senior Nomad
Posts: 584
Registered: 4-6-2005
Location: Ensenada
Member Is Offline
Mood: ando bajando
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guess it's time to fess up
husband and i bought our house in ensenada in 2000 and have lived here full time since may, 2004, and really cannot be considered baja nomads. we
really don't have the vagabond adventurer spirit i read so much about (and yes, envy). at first, i felt quite the impostor reading this message board
religiously and then taking the plunge and beginning to contribute. we live in ensenada, and hope to do so for the rest of our lives, because i was
born in mexico, df, moved to la california at age 6 and have always wanted to retire in mexico. because we still have relatives and friends on the
other side that we want to have easy access to, we chose ensenada rather than, say, guanajuato or morelia or guadalajara. i am addicted to mexico and
everything mexican. true, ensenada is pretty gringoized and will only get more so. i really see us as a suburb of san diego. nevertheless, it has
enough of the mexican heart and soul to keep me happy and extolling my incredibly good fortune at having my dream come true.
we plan to travel throughout mexico and also down the peninsula, but we discovered in may, when we took a bus trip to la paz, that we are not truly
baja people. we loved la paz. but we enjoyed our travels in oaxaca, puebla, guanajuato and zacatecas more than our time in san ignacio, santa
rosal?a and mulege.
so please forgive me as an impostor. it is not baja california that has captured my heart and soul. it is mexico. am i really the only one of those
on this board? 
lili
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Sharksbaja
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5814
Registered: 9-7-2004
Location: Newport, Mulege B.C.S.
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Barry A.
You mention Kearsearge Pass above Independence out of Onion valley-----lots of folks hike over that pass, and it gets really crowded all summer long.
I know that you, and the others on this board, know what I am saying here. I think we share that common ground.
Viva Baja-----Viva Alta California!!!! |
I knowprecisely what you mean! Funny though, I have always sought out the more "remote" places. Growing up in the burbs of L.A. I was elated
to seek solace. There were so many timesin the sierras when we wouldn' see other humans for many days, sometimes longer.
I remember "Onion Valley" . and the pretty little pink blossoms and sweet smell of the wild onions in bloom. I also remember the skunk-cabbage that
grows so well in the clear mountain springs I loved so much?
Thanks for the memories again!
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bajaden
Nomad
Posts: 496
Registered: 4-7-2005
Location: Ensenada
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Mood: vicarious
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Will you guys stop it. Your going to make me want to move to the Owens valley. Been to all those places. Hunted up above Bridgeport and caught golden
trout. Drove that desolate road from Big Pine to Death Valley more than a few times. I was there on memorial week-end when the big earth quakes hit.
We were susposed to be skiing on the mountain that morning but we changed our mind. A bunch of scouts got trapped at Convict lake.
Ahh the memories. Good times all.
At a feast of egos, everyone leave\'s hungry...
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Sharksbaja
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5814
Registered: 9-7-2004
Location: Newport, Mulege B.C.S.
Member Is Offline
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Don't fool yerself Den, you've made the grade.! Ying or Yang, it's all the same..................paradise!
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jrbaja
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4863
Registered: 2-2-2003
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Any of you guys
take any right turns off that road from Big Pine to Death Valley?
The first right goes into the north end of Saline Valley (bristlecone pines) and the second goes through Eureka Valley and comes out at the upper
warm springs in Saline Valley.
Both routes are a lot of fun, ghost towns, sand dunes, and especially fun in the snow! 4wd is a good idea but not mandatory.
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jrbaja
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4863
Registered: 2-2-2003
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1st trip to Saline 1970
Wating for trans. to be fixed in my 69 Bronco, in the Big Pine or Bishop ( I don't remember which) A and W, after limping out of Yosemite, this guy
asks if we knew about Saline Valley. Johnny Tequila sounds familiar.
My brother and other friends (from this board) go out there regularly. Still!
I think the road was called "Westgard Pass".
And I think it's pretty cool that those of us who know and love Baja, all had the same experiences to bring us here. Wierdos!!
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64479
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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Heck, my parents are the ones responsible for my life long case of 'Baja Fever'!
Fishing is what originally interested my dad, but soon other things Baja has became an attraction... We started to take various dirt roads on the
peninsula.. just because!
I loved the place from that very first trip to Gonzaga Bay in '65... then the entire 'main road' trip from Tijuana to Cabo San Lucas in '66... L.A.
Bay in '67... and there were dozens of shorter trips between the big ones to the San Felipe area, the Colonet area, etc.
To me it is the exotic desert land and beautiful beaches... the historic sites... connecting with the past... I almost can sense that I was there,
long ago, walking the Camino Real!
I found and scanned a few more old pictures of my parents and I in Baja, from the 60's: http://community-2.webtv.net/baja4me/album2/
Those will be eventually added to my main Baja album site: http://vivabaja.com/album
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jrbaja
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4863
Registered: 2-2-2003
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True
but, if you take the 1st road going to Saline Valley off the Westgard road, and then one of the branches off it to the right, there are also
Bristlecone Pines. Just not very well known and not as many.
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bajaden
Nomad
Posts: 496
Registered: 4-7-2005
Location: Ensenada
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Mood: vicarious
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Went on a jeep club trip through that area in the late 70's. I remember we found what used to be a town and what was left of an old mine. One of the
members went down into the shaft and found a keg of the old square nails.
Other than that the place was pretty picked over. Probably by you guys.
At a feast of egos, everyone leave\'s hungry...
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eetdrt88
Senior Nomad
Posts: 986
Registered: 2-20-2005
Location: Az/Ca/Baja
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we took grandma to see the bristlecone pines...
when i lived in Bishop and that is a pretty neat trip...sometimes we used to head up the 6 out of bishop and go to Benton,they have this little
casino/restaraunt there that is a scene right out of the "Twilight Zone" with some real interesting characters,along the way there is some real
interesting roads you can turn off onto and getl lost in a real hurry...good fun
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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Jr-------road from Eureka Dunes to upper warm springs-----
Last April, we came out of upper Death Valley driving north, and then west over the mountains into the Eureka Dunes (beautiful). We then headed for
Big Pine. I have long heard of that road to Upper Warm Springs from the Eureka Dunes, but never tried it as I understand you can only get thru in a
jeep, or similar size vehicle, because there are some narrow places that bigger vehs. can't get thru.
Is that so??
All that area (Eureka Valley, Saline Valley) is now inside Death Valley National Park, and maybe will be closed to vehicles soon-----tho I certainly
hope not.
You can also go right from the Eureka Valley road near the crest of the Inyo's, climb up the Inyo Mts. to the south, and then come down Mazourka
Canyon and into Independence------lots of nice country, and more Bristlecones.
Isn't this all Baja related----just sorta a northern projection, or something??
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Sharksbaja
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5814
Registered: 9-7-2004
Location: Newport, Mulege B.C.S.
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HIGH Sierras
Ok, who has also been up to "Thunder & Lightning Lake"? I think that's what it's called. Way up there and wasn't easy to get to. If I recall it's
up the mountain from "1000 Island Lake". God I love that country! It has that same "I'm special" feeling as Baja.
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jrbaja
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4863
Registered: 2-2-2003
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Barry
there's one or two narrow spots that would shame a hummer. We did it in a jeep with no problem. The worst part was rocky, rocky, bumpy, miserable
roads above the warm springs. The rest was easy.
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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Thanks, Jr-----"thunder and lightning lake"
Sharks-----"Thunder and Lightning lake" is west, and above, the Baker Lakes on the western edge of the huge Coyote Plateau west of Bishop, and NW of
Big Pine. Been there many times. You can hike in easily from the end of the jeep road at the foot of Baker Meadow-----wonderful place where hardly
anybody goes, and a great place to camp.
When I was 16, I went on a 400 count cattledrive up from near Keohes Hot Spring on the Owens Valley floor to the Coyote Plateau----what a great
experience. Started at 2 in the morning and got the cattle into camp at 11 PM the same day---altitude gain 6000 feet, or so. Yeeeeeeeee Haaaaaaaaa!!!
If you check out the old "line-cabin" up in Coyote, you will see me and all my relatives names carved on the front of the cabin. My relatives built
that cabin, and it is still there, but in pretty bad shape. Some of my original relatives settled in Owens Valley before LA water and Power took
everything over. They sold out to the City of LA, like almost everybody else did.
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Skeet/Loreto
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4709
Registered: 9-2-2003
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Bishop-1965 to 1968
Westgard pass left to White Mtn Peak-Beautiful!! did you know that the Unviersity of Calif. had an Experimental Staion at the Peak, They were rasing
Sheep and other animals in High altitude an studing the effects.
Piaute Trout in the Creed. And did you know there is a College at Big Springs, or there was in the 6o's.
Hiking out of south Lake to Amphitheather lake at 11,ooo Feet.
Caught a 3Lb. 3 Oz Golden Trout at Bloody Lake, I have it Mounted and on my Wall.
Tecopa Springs, Mammouth Hot Pools, I shall never forget my 3 years . It still tugs at my Heart when I think of dropping off at 6,000 ft in a Glider,
catching a Thermal going to 14,000 then being dropped out ant looking at mt whinney on one side and White Mtn peak on the other.
Yes very much the same as Baja.
Skeet
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Barry A.
Select Nomad
Posts: 10007
Registered: 11-30-2003
Location: Redding, Northern CA
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Mood: optimistic
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The line cabin on the Coyote plateau------
I am embarrassed to say that I really do not know much about the history of that cabin, even tho it was constructed by my distant cousins (or at least
that is my impression). First time I saw it was in 1954 on the aforementioned cattle drive. It was in pretty sad shape even then, but it was livable,
and still had it's wood stove, and cooking utensils. We all slept in it------all 7 of us----and it was crowded. It snowed that night, so glad to be in
the cabin. All the corrals were in excellent shape in 1954, which is not the case now.
My cousins were Partridges and Moxley's, and my name is Ashworth. I think only these names are carved, but I have not been back up there for about 4
years, so who knows. Anybody else carves their names in that cabin and they can expect to be gut-shot from a long ways away. We watch it
constantly!!!!
The Bishop area is still full of Moxley's and Partridges. The only "Ashworth" still in the valley, and alive, is my son.
Skeet-----there is still a college at Deep Springs Valley (your "Big Springs"??). As far as I know the Experimental station on White Mt. is still
there. That Deep Springs Valley college has got to be the most remote college in the country----there is no civilization for many miles all around
it-----in fact it is wilderness.
But, like JR says, it is hard to get a good Taco up there in that country. But, things are improving as energetic and entrapreneural Mexican's are
moving in, and bringing their good food with them. I like that!! There is a supurb Mexican restaurant in Lone Pine----cannot remember the name, tho,
but it is centrally located in town, on the east side of the street. Really good.
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Sharksbaja
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5814
Registered: 9-7-2004
Location: Newport, Mulege B.C.S.
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Cabin fever
is what I'm gettin' right now!
I've been to that cabin!
I have also caught my fair share of Goldens on the Kern Plateau when getting in there was a two day affair.
Remember Toms' Place?
My dad finally bought me a Fenwick after I embarrassed him with my plug-casting setup with a hand-tied yellow jacket by landing the biggest trout.
My folks were literally "backpack addicts" and took us poor kids every month for years. I can still feel the leg-aches I got as a 8 year old witrh a
30 lb pack. I had some sore shoulders with those packs. We would outfit ourselves down near 9 th & Beacon St at the Army surplus store each time.
We hiked in surplus paratrooper boots. OUCH! Some of my fondest memories were sneaking up on beaver ponds and tossing out a fly!
I also loved the glacially carved lakes with the Golden Trout and crystal clear waters below the monolithic towering granite peaks still frosted in
snow.
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