Wilderness Quote

We get the nature calendar view of nature. We think wilderness is in Alaska, wilderness is the Himalayas, wilderness is some other place. And what wildness means to me is the possibility of states beyond the human and moments where we interact with species other than our own, in our normal lives. I always say my greatest nature moments have been on Cape Cod watching humpback whales off my home beach. And that's greater than any one I've traveled to South or Central America. There's something wild about it happening at home. Similarly, I've had wild moments where I was with my dad when he died, hearing his breathing slow, and I was with my daughter when she was born. And these are wild moments too. So for me, the key to wildness is its integration with our so-called normal lives. That it's not something we go to beyond our quotidian day-to-day lives.

- David Gessner on TTBOOK.

Trip Report Day 2: Pear Lake via the Watchtower

On Friday morning, we left Lodgepole Campground and drove to the Wolverton parking lot. The trailhead was fairly crowded, with several day hikers, two or three groups of backpackers, and one trail runner all heading out at roughly the same time in the morning. Along the trail, we played leapfrog with several of the other backpackers. Jess and I stopped frequently, taking breaks to filter water. Luckily, the mosquitoes were not nearly as annoying as they were in Yosemite a few weeks ago, so we could linger near the streams and enjoy the abundant wildflowers (e.g., Tiger Lilies and Indian Paint Brush) that surrounded each stream. We took the Watchtower Trail instead of the Humps Trail and were paid off with a spectacular vista at the top. Unfortunately, the Watchtower is closed much of the year, when snow and ice makes the cliff-hugging trail hazardous. When we reached Heather Lake, we couldn't resist diving into the crystal clear water and taking a quick dip. We hiked passed Emerald Lake and set up camp right next to Pear Lake. We tried our best to stay up and watch the stars, but I'm pretty sure we fell asleep well before sunset.

Trip Report Day 1: Bears at Sequoia National Park

Early Thursday morning, Jess and I drove south to Sequoia National Park. We left Oakland at 7:30 AM, so we could arrive in the early afternoon and secure two of the 25 daily first-come, first-serve Wilderness Permits for the weekend. Although we didn't need to get there quite so early -- we were the first two backpackers to register for the Lakes Loop and Alta Peak trails -- we made the most of our time by setting up our tent at Lodgepole Campground and taking the shuttle to the Giant Forest Museum. On the hike back to our campground, we encountered a few bears on the edge of Round Meadow. It was about 4 or 5 in the evening, and the bears were just waking from their afternoon nap. The cubs woke up first, eagerly exploring the edge of the meadow while staying close to the still sleepy big mama bear. Luckily, Jess and I just learned about the park's black bears at the Visitor's Center and thus were aware that these fellows were pretty harmless to visitors. They spend most of the day eating insects and berries, and take a nap during the heat of the day. But, my heart was still racing when the mama bear woke up and headed directly toward us. Thankfully, she had no interest in us and started clawing at a fallen Sequoia tree, foraging for insects.
The rest of the hike was beautiful, but not quite as eventful. The General Sherman tree -- the largest tree in the world by volume -- did not seem to warrant the hype and was a bit anti-climatic. We ended the evening by quickly cooking dinner back at our campground and attending a surprisingly informative and interesting presentation about fire by a park ranger.

Rattlesnake!

My brother Jeff, his girlfriend Danielle, my friend Joe and I went camping up at Lake George this past weekend. After two days of roughing it and camping in the wilderness, we decided to give ourselves a break and camp in a designated site. As soon as we pitched our tents, I heard my brother scream like a little girl and run towards the car. Usually I ignore my brother's screaming, but Danielle screamed too. So I took a look and here is what I saw:



The funny thing is, no one really freaked out. After the snake went along its way, we continued to pitch our tents with hardly a worry. If this had happened in 'the wilderness' (a site not designated for camping), we all would have insisted on a motel room.