Hiking Donner Canyon, part 3
Feb. 14th, 2023 11:54 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
canyonwalkerI didn't expect our hike at Donner Canyon last Sunday to stretch to 3 blogs, but here we are. The hike felt longer than expected, too. Mapping tools said distance was about 5.7 miles with 1,150 feet of elevation gain. I know we're kind of out of shape; partly a consequence of poor weather/conditions most of the past 4 months. The hike really kicked our butts. But we didn't mind (much) because in beauty we walk.
I remarked in my previous blogs (part 1, part 2) that while the attraction of this hike is the waterfalls it's also about the canyon itself. The upper canyon has plenty of interesting bits where the trail snakes along the side of steep mountainsides. You can see examples in the pictures above and below.
When hiking I always remind myself, "Check your 6." It's a military term meaning to look backwards periodically, as enemies or other threats may approach from behind. In hiking it means to look at where you've come from, not just what's ahead of you. Beauty lies in all directions.
"Check your 6" was key to seeing the two waterfalls in the picture above. Heading in the direction we were walking we could have missed them if we were only focused on putting one foot in front of the other and admiring the vista ahead.
Speaking of the vista ahead...
This view down across the town we started in, the cities beyond it, and the northeastern neck of the San Francisco Bay in the distance, can distract you if you're not mindful.
Also, it's like, "Dang, we hiked up from down there?!" It's going to take a lot of putting one foot in front of the other.
...But again, don't just put one foot in front of the other. While descending from the high reaches of the canyon on a different trail than we hiked in we spotted a quiet little waterfalls 50' into the forest.
We saw so many little waterfalls on this hike. I'm glad we chose to do it after several weeks of rain. And what a beautiful day for hiking, too. It was 70° (21° C) when we got back to the trailhead at 3pm.
I remarked in my previous blogs (part 1, part 2) that while the attraction of this hike is the waterfalls it's also about the canyon itself. The upper canyon has plenty of interesting bits where the trail snakes along the side of steep mountainsides. You can see examples in the pictures above and below.
When hiking I always remind myself, "Check your 6." It's a military term meaning to look backwards periodically, as enemies or other threats may approach from behind. In hiking it means to look at where you've come from, not just what's ahead of you. Beauty lies in all directions.
"Check your 6" was key to seeing the two waterfalls in the picture above. Heading in the direction we were walking we could have missed them if we were only focused on putting one foot in front of the other and admiring the vista ahead.
Speaking of the vista ahead...
This view down across the town we started in, the cities beyond it, and the northeastern neck of the San Francisco Bay in the distance, can distract you if you're not mindful.
Also, it's like, "Dang, we hiked up from down there?!" It's going to take a lot of putting one foot in front of the other.
...But again, don't just put one foot in front of the other. While descending from the high reaches of the canyon on a different trail than we hiked in we spotted a quiet little waterfalls 50' into the forest.
We saw so many little waterfalls on this hike. I'm glad we chose to do it after several weeks of rain. And what a beautiful day for hiking, too. It was 70° (21° C) when we got back to the trailhead at 3pm.
