At the Trail
head, my pack is 65 pounds and Mary Ann carries 35 pounds. After
21 days on the trail, we eat away half of that weight. This is
Boreal Plateau and Mt.
Whitney is behind Funston Peak, just right of center. More
links to Mt. Whitney here.
Tired Boots.
It feels good to
take our boots off! Looking west past Middle Crabtree Lake and
its lunker Golden Trout and past the 4,000 ft. deep Kern River
Canyon you see the 13,000 ft. Kaweah Mts. about 30 miles
away.
Varmint Al and a beaver pond full of Golden
Trout.
With Kern Peak
watching, I am catching Golden Trout in a pond that an
industrious beaver constructed on the South Fork of the Kern
River. This is at the upper end of Ramshaw Meadow where the rare
and tiny Abronia Alpina flowering plant is found.
Even a flower or two at Middle Crabtree
Lake.
Shooting stars
in August where it is still like spring at the 12,000 ft. Middle
Crabtree Lake. We
camped on the far side of the lake. It took us about 15 days to
get this far. The trout are still good, but we are beginning to
talk of ice cream, tomatoes, and draught beer.
Mary Ann gaining strength to climb McAidie
pass.
Just another 500
ft. to climb and practically straight up! Upper Crabtree Lake is
barren, but crystal clear and beautiful. It is frozen too much of
the year to support even the hearty Golden Trout.
The crystal clear blue waters of Funston
Lake!
Right at timberline, there is no inlet or outlet to this
beautiful lake. The air is as clear as the water.
A nice Golden Trout.
In the high lakes, a spinning rig works better for me than
a fly rod. Long casts with light line are needed to reach the
fish. For other sites that have information on Golden Trout,
click Here.
These tiny flowers grow in the bare sand of Ramshaw and
Tempelton Meadews. The trails have been moved and fences put up
to protect them from backpackers and cattle.
A hot bath sure feels good.
A concrete tub has been built at Kern Hot Springs on the
Kern River. Here we relax in the very hot water and rest our
weary bodies. You sure feel weak after 20 minutes in the
tub.
'Scientists?' Want to Play God on OUR Land and
Kill Our Trout!
.
