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Saturday the Rest of the Way
Jun. 17th, 2023 09:48 pmFriday night was Friday Night Halfway in Folsom so it follows that Saturday morning was Saturday The Rest of the Way. Nevermind that after driving 141 miles last night with 60 left this morning means we were well over halfway; "We're slightly over 70% there" doesn't scan very well and certainly wouldn't have made Bon Jovi's 1986 song "Livin' on a Prayer" such a classic hit. 🎵 Woooooah, we're halfway therrre! 🎵
In yesterday's blog (linked above) I explained all the benefits of our Friday Night Halfway technique, among them an good night's sleep, an easy morning departure, and getting to the trailhead well before noon. Alas, it didn't quite work out that way. First I stayed up like a stupid until 1am. Then my body wouldn't fall asleep until after 2 (when I said "fuck this" and took an OTC sleeping pill). I got up at 7:30 not wanting to let too much of the day slip by. But Hawk was even more wrecked than me (she was up most of the night) and we didn't leave the hotel until almost 9. Then with breakfast and a gas fillup we didn't get back US-50 up into the mountains until just after 10. Altogether we didn't start hiking on the trail to Bassi Falls until a few minutes before noon.
Getting there at noon wasn't all a result of things gone wrong. A few things went right! One of them was an unplanned stop.
This photo shows Bridalveil Falls along US-50 in Eldorado National Forest. It's just right there, on the roadside, as US-50 winds through the forest. Yes, that's the same US-50 that runs 3,073 miles from Sacramento, CA to Ocean City, MD. These falls are waaay closer to Sac, though, so don't try this from the beach. 😂
These falls will surprise you the first time or two you see them. In fact you may drive right past them because they aren't well marked. But they're at least 80 feet tall, and right now with spring snowmelt after a record setting winter they're flowing beautifully.
From the falls we continued up US-50 to the turnoff for Icehouse Road. Icehouse goes further up into the Sierras toward the Crystal Basin. Along the way we stopped at a ranger station to check information on trail conditions. Bassi and a few other things we wanted to visit are open; but the amazing Wrights Lake is still socked in with snow and might not open for another month.
Fortunately everything we want to do today is below about 6,000 feet elevation and is clear of snow. Though as we drove up into the mountains we could see the peaks of the Crystal Range beyond us still capped in snow. Still, it was an easy and pleasant drive through the basin. We enjoyed how the sky turned such clear blue as we ascended, contrasting with the green of the fir trees, the reddish brown of the earth, and the occasional yellow and orange bursts of wildflowers.
The photo above shows the trailhead for Bassi Falls at the end of a dirt road. This is one of (AFAIK) three trailheads for hiking to Bassi Falls. It's the hardest to drive to because the road can be rough. Though for our real 4x4 it was mostly a walk in the park. I didn't even activate 4wd mode until one little hill climb near the end where there were deep ruts in an alternating pattern. Still, our Xterra made such short work of it I didn't even have time to pull out my phone to shoot video. Maybe I'll get it on the way back.
For now, though, it's time to hike to Bassi Falls. Stay tuned for more!
Update: Bassi Falls!
In yesterday's blog (linked above) I explained all the benefits of our Friday Night Halfway technique, among them an good night's sleep, an easy morning departure, and getting to the trailhead well before noon. Alas, it didn't quite work out that way. First I stayed up like a stupid until 1am. Then my body wouldn't fall asleep until after 2 (when I said "fuck this" and took an OTC sleeping pill). I got up at 7:30 not wanting to let too much of the day slip by. But Hawk was even more wrecked than me (she was up most of the night) and we didn't leave the hotel until almost 9. Then with breakfast and a gas fillup we didn't get back US-50 up into the mountains until just after 10. Altogether we didn't start hiking on the trail to Bassi Falls until a few minutes before noon.
Getting there at noon wasn't all a result of things gone wrong. A few things went right! One of them was an unplanned stop.
This photo shows Bridalveil Falls along US-50 in Eldorado National Forest. It's just right there, on the roadside, as US-50 winds through the forest. Yes, that's the same US-50 that runs 3,073 miles from Sacramento, CA to Ocean City, MD. These falls are waaay closer to Sac, though, so don't try this from the beach. 😂
These falls will surprise you the first time or two you see them. In fact you may drive right past them because they aren't well marked. But they're at least 80 feet tall, and right now with spring snowmelt after a record setting winter they're flowing beautifully.
From the falls we continued up US-50 to the turnoff for Icehouse Road. Icehouse goes further up into the Sierras toward the Crystal Basin. Along the way we stopped at a ranger station to check information on trail conditions. Bassi and a few other things we wanted to visit are open; but the amazing Wrights Lake is still socked in with snow and might not open for another month.
Fortunately everything we want to do today is below about 6,000 feet elevation and is clear of snow. Though as we drove up into the mountains we could see the peaks of the Crystal Range beyond us still capped in snow. Still, it was an easy and pleasant drive through the basin. We enjoyed how the sky turned such clear blue as we ascended, contrasting with the green of the fir trees, the reddish brown of the earth, and the occasional yellow and orange bursts of wildflowers.
The photo above shows the trailhead for Bassi Falls at the end of a dirt road. This is one of (AFAIK) three trailheads for hiking to Bassi Falls. It's the hardest to drive to because the road can be rough. Though for our real 4x4 it was mostly a walk in the park. I didn't even activate 4wd mode until one little hill climb near the end where there were deep ruts in an alternating pattern. Still, our Xterra made such short work of it I didn't even have time to pull out my phone to shoot video. Maybe I'll get it on the way back.
For now, though, it's time to hike to Bassi Falls. Stay tuned for more!
Update: Bassi Falls!
