Big Sur: Day 2

   At 6am in the Fernwood campground there was a low laying fog on the ground and the sun was starting to peak through the trees.  I slowly got out of my extremely warm sleeping bag and left Sarah to catch a few more z's.

Before I continue, I have to point out that the Starbucks instant coffee has to be my favorite camping item.  It ready when the hot water is, there is no clean up, and it tastes delicious black.  SO, after packing up the car, a couple cups of coffee, and a  bowl of blueberry oatmeal, we were off to Andrew Molera State Park.


The hike we set out to do was called the Andrew Molera Loop.  The 8.8 mile loop takes you along the Bluffs, Panorama, and Ridge trails with lots of ascents and descents.  We started off in the parking lot of Molera SP and found the trail. We were instantly greeted with a river crossing, without any bridges in sight. It was a chilly morning, probably in the 40s.  Neither of us had waterproof shoes on, so I took off my shoes and socks and had Sarah jump on my back. Then across the river we trekked.  Let me tell you, I don't recommend crossing a river barefoot in the middle of winter at 8am.  IT WAS FREAKING COLD!  That didn't stop Sarah (who was nice and warm and hanging on my back) from laughing all the way across.  The first part of the trail takes you to a secluded beach with a great view of the coast line.  From there you travel across the bluffs and through some amazing wildlife.

We happend to get really close to a fawn and got to watch it eat breakfast.

Fawn

After you get to a bench, the turn around spot, you head back along the ridge of Molera SP through a canopy of redwoods.  It's truly an amazing hike so make sure to bring your camera and plan lots of time.

Halfway!

The Panorama Trail

As we headed back to LA Sarah made me pull off on the side of the road right before the Hearst Castle.  There laying across the beach, like hundreds of giant slugs, were elephant seals bathing in the sun.  These guys are huge!!!  It's really cool to watch them interact with each other, grunt, and flip sand on their backs.

After all the adventures we were exhausted, so we started the loooong drive back to LA.

Big Sur, CA - Day 1

For the Thanksgiving weekend, Sarah and I were off to Northern California to visit family and devour mass quantities of food.  On our way back home we decided to spend a night camping in Big Sur.  Coming from Monterey, we drove down highway 1 stopping at look out points all along the way.  The drive is so beautiful that you feel like your in another world.

The campground we ended up choosing was called Fernwood.  Its a privately owned campground off the 1 that also has cabins you can rent.  As you drive down the road to the camp spot your surrounded by huge redwoods and the sound of a gentle creek.  Since there were so many trees, it seem like it stayed a little cooler in the campgrounds.  Sarah and I quickly set up our camp and got ready to get a hike or two in before sunset.

McWay Creek cascading into the ocean

We headed down to Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park to do a small hike called the McWay Waterfall Trail.  Its extremely easy hike and you are rewarded with a view of McWay Creek cascading into the ocean.  It's a spectacular site.  Dont forget to check out Big Sur's Coast line on the north side of the viewing area.  It's just as spectacular.

Big Sur's coast line

At the main parking area there are 2 more hiking trails you can explore.  The Ewoldsen Trail is a 4.5 mile loop full of old redwood forests and ocean views.  When we were there this trail was closed, but I have heard you can still hike it.  The other trail is called Canyon trail and is a great short hike with some  creek crossings up to a waterfall.



        

Sunset

After the short hike we headed up north and had coffee at Big Sur Coast Gallery Cafe.  It's located off highway 1 with an amazing view of the ocean.  As it was getting close to sunset we decided to get a better view and headed off to find a place to watch the sunset.

Sarah painting with light

We found a great area to take some photos of the sunset then headed back to camp for some dinner and a camp fire.

Check out more photos of the trip here!!

Escalante

    After a morning hiking in Bryce, we were headed to Escalante National Park. We had reserved our campsite at Escalante State Park Reservoir. Scotty wanted to go swimming but I did not allow it since they informed us they had some gross parasites in the water that gave you “swimmer’s itch”. No thanks! We then decided to hike to the Escalante “Natural Bridge”. We realized that average hikes are now going to seem boring after doing Angel’s Landing and The Narrows. We didn’t realize that the trial led you back and forth over a river where we had to keep taking our shoes off to wade across. That got old quick, so Scotty took one for the team and just gave me a piggy back ride across. Eventually we got to the bridge, which was pretty cool.

            That night I was stoked because we could actually have a campfire.  We bought way more firewood than we needed and had dinner, a bonfire, and s’mores. As we were going to bed we both realized that the fly was on backwards, so we actually could see directly up to the sky, which was kind of neat at the time…. until 2 am when we woke up to rain smacking us in the face. After we turned our sleeping bags around, we fell back asleep and had a soggy cleanup the next morning. It wasn’t the best case scenario, but all the people who we ran into that day were happy to have their first day of rain in 3 months. 

Zion: The Narrows

After renting our canyoneering gear the night before, we were all set for a day of hiking the Narrows. Zion Adventure Company has a great deal where you can rent a hiking stick, hardcore water shoes, and little sock booties for $21. When you put the shoes on, you feel as if you are an astronaut, but they are well worth it after a few hours of hiking in the water. Also, they are good about giving you some pointers and letting you know if it’s a good day to do the hike (and no flashflood warnings are present). We also made sure to use dry bags so that we could get our backpacks wet for the inevitable swims that we would encounter.

The Narrows isn’t like any hike we have done before… It is actually walking, wading and swimming through the Virgin River down an amazing 1,000 feet deep canyon that is only about 24 feet wide at some points. I have done this hike once before in October, but I was looking forward to seeing the differences in temperature, water level, and amount of people. It was even more beautiful than I had remembered. Zion was about 100 degrees that day, but in The Narrows it was much cooler which was nice to have a break from the sun. Along the way we were surrounded by hanging gardens, various colored sandstone rock walls, waterfalls, creepy narrow caves, and gorgeous green and blue water. Scotty’s favorite parts of the hike included: Lunchtime when he finally got to eat his PB & J sandwich and Gushers, exploring Orderville Canyon (a side slot canyon, where we had to climb a old log to get up and over a waterfall), and floating down the river on the way back. 

Zion: Angels Landing

    After an exhausting 2 days in Vegas we were relieved to set up in our quiet campground.  Here is a few things we have learned about Utah so far.  1. Campfires are not typically allowed this time of year, but that was ok with us as it stayed 100 degrees out till around 2am.  2. At 2am the temperature drops 40 degrees and the winds get ferocious.  3.  Apparently Utah is on mountain time and it doesn't get dark till 9pm.  4.  You will see some of the most beautiful views of your life here.

Today was our first full day in Zion so we decided to wake up early and tackle Angels Landing.  Sarah tried to do this hike before but wasn't able to finish the last half mile of the hike due to her inherited fear of heights.  The route to Angels Landing involves hiking up a series of steep switch backs which leads to narrow ridge where support chains are anchored intermittently for you to hang on to for dear life.  Round two was a success for Sarah as she stared at my boots and refused to look down or stop the whole way up.  The views at the top were well worth the 1500 ft of elevation gain it takes to get to the finish.


We finished the day with a swim in a nearby creek and  battle with the local squirrels. 

View of Angels Landing from the bottom

Switch Backs

Scotty climbing the chains to the summit

Sarah using her death grip on the chain

We made it to the top!!

Checking out the views

Planning: A Camping Trip Through Utah

For the past month or so, Sarah and I have been planning a road trip through Utah.  After going back and forth about where we want to go and how much time we have, we finally have a plan!!  Although Sarah has been to a couple of the parks before, it wasn't hard to get her to agree to go again.  We will be spending most of our time camping in the upper 90° weather with the exception of Vegas and Bryce Canyon, where we will stay in hotels.

Here is our plan:  
Thur 28^th - Prepack Cars

Staying at home

Fri 29^th - Drive to Vegas and party/ relax

Staying in vegas hotel

Sat 30^th - Drive to Zion

Staying at Watchman Campground

Sun 1^st - Go explore Zion and the area, maybe mountian bike 

Staying at Watchman Campground

Mon 2^nd - Hiking The Narrows, all day like a boss

Staying at Watchman Campground

Tues 3^rd - Angels Landing, then drive to Bryce

Staying at Bryce Canyon Resort

Wed 4^th - Explore Bryce canyon

Staying at Escalante Petrefied Forest SP 

Thur 5^th - Drive to Moab and check out awesome places on the way  

Staying at Devils Garden Campground

Fri 6^th - Arches/ mountian biking or Colorado River Raft

Staying at Devils Garden Campground

Sat 7^th - Moab/ mountian biking

Staying at Devils Garden Campground 

Sun 8^th – Check out moab/ Driving home

I have been doing a lot of research about hiking, camping, and biking in Utah and have learned some very important things so far.  1. You don't have to worry about any bear attacks, but there are coyotes, foxes and snakes to worry about.  2. Bring your booze in with you.  The Mormon population makes it hard to get alcohol.  That brings up a good question.  Do the Mormons in Utah have awesome full suspension bikes to ride around on?  3. Make sure to bring lots of water and a knife on your hikes with you (I knew I shouldn't have watched 127 hours). 4. Stay away from anything that even resembles poison ivy/oak/sumac/poodle dog bush. It took a week and some strong drugs to get Sarah to stop itching from her last run in. 


Sarah and I are both extremely excited about this trip and cant wait to switch up the scenery.  We will be taking lots of photos, and documenting cool tips, and advice about the area we are in.  If you are planning a trip to Utah soon and have any questions let us know!!  If you just came back from a trip and have some tips let us know in the comments below!! 

Angeles National Forest - Chilao Campground

Our first post!!!!!!

This weekend Sarah and I decided we wanted to check out a local campground and some hikes.  I have always been apprehensive to go the the Angeles National Forrest as I have heard a few negative things about the rowdy campers, but I figured we would give it a whirl.  We packed up the car Thursday night, then Friday I took the bus to work with a plan of leaving straight from Burbank.  The drive from Burbank takes you up the winding Hwy 2 and drops you off an the campsite in about an hour, which is where you completely lose all cell phone service. (Including some crappy LA traffic).  We stopped at the only restaurant/ shop in between La Canada and Palmdale to see if they had any batteries for sale and learned that you need to pack EVERYTHING you will need on your trip before driving up the 2.  Some really nice guy gave us some batteries and told us that the campground we were originally going to stay at (Buckhorn) was full and that we should check out Chilao Campground, Manzanita loop.  We were fortunate as you don't get service anywhere up here.  We headed the campground where Sarah scooped out a few spots and picked the perfect one.

A view from our campsite

Chilao campground, Manzanita loop is full of single, double and quad camping spots.  They all have a fire ring, picnic table and tent area.  There are a bunch of faucets with potable water and even one in our campsite (26).  The bathrooms are vault toilets and can get pretty stinky and full of flies. That is, unless you are lucky enough to have someone place incense inside them, like we were.  There are no showers but plenty of places to hang a portable shower.  Some of the campers sounded like they were having somedrinks and lots of fun, but it wasn't anything too rowdy.  We both agreed that the best sites were on the upper loop because of the views.  We were able to see amazing wildflowers and sunsets over the mountains.

HIKING DAY 1:

Well, we were going to start off with a nice Mt. Bike ride but I rolled right into a huge angry bush 2 minutes into the ride and popped my tire.  With no spare tubes (dummies), we looked into a local hike and decided to hike  the Burkhart Trail from Buckhorn Campground.  There is a small parking lot for day hikers near the trail head along with a single bathroom.  The hike follows the mountain down to a creek then follows the creek to a small waterfall with a pool.  After that you will contine to follow the creek until you meet up with the Pacific Crest Trail.  Past this point the hike becomes more desert like and continues to Devils Punch Bowl.  We turned around at about 7.5 miles into the hike and came out doing 15 miles.  While on the last portion of the hike we met a trail blazer and his two horses.  His horse conveniently named Rascal had his bags stuck on a part of the mountain, and refused to move any further. So I helped take them off and became a pack horse myself by carrying them for a quarter mile up the road.  All in all it was a really pretty hike but I think next time we will turn around at the PCT.

After a long hike it was nice to get back to the campsite, take a shower (from our portable shower with our neighboring campers peering in) and relax.  We popped open a bottle  of wine since it happened to be our 6 month anniversary of dating, and took some photos while watching the sunset. Beware of the beautiful, but poisonous, poodle dog bush! Later that night we munched down some fajitas and some s'mores for dessert.

Checking out the sunset

HIKING DAY 2:
After a slow morning we were packed and heading to our second hike, Mt. Waterman Loop.  The entrance is on the right hand side right before the Buckhorn Campground.  Park in the lot across the road (there are no bathrooms here)  You will see a big silver sign but nothing is really legible on it.  From the sign you continue left and follow the trail through beautiful views, trees and rock gardens to a trail crossing.  If you head right, go 3/4 and stay right you will head up a steep incline to the top of Mt. Waterman.  This is an amazing lunch break spot.  You can head back down to the sign and continue the hike but we decided to head back down the way we came as we didn't have a map.

Climbing some of the granite

Funny shaped rock

Scotty and Sarah

This was such an awesome trip for something thats so close.  We can't wait to go back!

Some things to think about before you go:

No cell service (bring maps and backup campground info)

Sites are $12, bring cash

No stores for miles, make sure you bring enough food and batteries :)

No ranger stations are open nearby, bring hiking maps

If your going Mt. Biking the plants are angry, bring spare tubes
Watch out for Poodle-dog Bush

- Scotty and Sarah