Frazier Falls — Dried Up
Sep. 28th, 2021 03:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
canyonwalkerGold Lakes Basin, Calif - Saturday, 25 Sep 2021. 4:30pm.
One of the challenges with appreciating nature's beauty is that nature has its own timetable. Come at the wrong time and it may be too hot, too cold, cloudy, smoky, snowed under, or dried out. Thus it was when we visited Frazier Falls in the Gold Lakes Basin today, after already doing a twofer of short hikes atop Sierra Buttes and at Upper Sardine Lake. Frazier Falls is a favorite spot for repeat visits when we're in this area. A short trail, about 3/4 mile each way, leads to a waterfall about 200' tall. Except today the waterfall is dry.
The fact Frazier Falls is dry right now both is and isn't surprising. It isn't, because this is late in the season when many California waterfalls slow to a trickle. And this year is a drought year. Waterfalls that run low flow in normal years could be no-flow right now. OTOH this is a bit surprising because we've come here late in the season before and still found water. In fact it was on a trip to this falls many years ago that Hawk and I got engaged, and Frazier Falls was beautiful then. That's why we're here this weekend, celebrating our anniversary.
On the plus side, we had the area totally to ourselves. After sharing other sites today with numerous other groups there was absolutely no one else on this trail.
One of the challenges with appreciating nature's beauty is that nature has its own timetable. Come at the wrong time and it may be too hot, too cold, cloudy, smoky, snowed under, or dried out. Thus it was when we visited Frazier Falls in the Gold Lakes Basin today, after already doing a twofer of short hikes atop Sierra Buttes and at Upper Sardine Lake. Frazier Falls is a favorite spot for repeat visits when we're in this area. A short trail, about 3/4 mile each way, leads to a waterfall about 200' tall. Except today the waterfall is dry.
The fact Frazier Falls is dry right now both is and isn't surprising. It isn't, because this is late in the season when many California waterfalls slow to a trickle. And this year is a drought year. Waterfalls that run low flow in normal years could be no-flow right now. OTOH this is a bit surprising because we've come here late in the season before and still found water. In fact it was on a trip to this falls many years ago that Hawk and I got engaged, and Frazier Falls was beautiful then. That's why we're here this weekend, celebrating our anniversary.
On the plus side, we had the area totally to ourselves. After sharing other sites today with numerous other groups there was absolutely no one else on this trail.
