Part VI, October 26th 2009 SMB Forum meet “The final day???.
Stump Springs Road to Auberry:
Last day of the meet and greet was finally upon us. Most of the group had left the day before, and it was time for us to finally head out. I could stay here for another month and be happy but I had to get back to work and even though Don is retired, his wife might not appreciate me hi-jacking him any longer. Or would she? All good things must come to an end even for those who are married 🙂
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October 25th 2009 “ Lost Meadow Trip report???.
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Sunday we woke to a brisk 28 degrees morning at Sample Meadow CG but with the sun out, it actually felt much warmer than many of the foggy 45 degree days I experience in California’s Central Valley. Most of the Forum members were packing up to leave. Don and I still had one day to explore before we would head home on Monday. Craig and Cindy as well as Rob and Ning had plans to go off on their own to look over the two big lakes or possibly the hot springs. We talked Craig and Cindy into taking a short trip up to the Mount Tom Fire Lookout which was very close to our camp. Unfortunately the lookout closed two days prior, so we all missed out on some great views (See part one of this trip report). After they were off on their journey, we decided to head down the hill to possibly run Granite Gorge which is the most scenic 4×4 run in the area IMO. As we drove into Shaver, one of the restaurants reached out and pulled us right off the road. It wasn’t long before we had a burger shoved in our face. After eating food that is really bad for Mankind’s health, we headed back out of town with smiles on our faces and our bellies full. Before we knew it, the time had shot by so fast that we decided Granite Gorge was not going to be possible to run before night would close in on us. But Lost Meadow was close by…we had a plan.
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October 24th 2009 SMB Forum Bear Diversion Dam OHV Trip report.
(See part one for the trip overview)
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The Bear Diversion Dam is part of the Southern Cal Edison Big Creek Hydro-Electric Project. The Power Company maintains the trail to some extent but it’s fair to say the 2.5 mile one way OHV Jeep path is rough and changeling enough to make it a good run for a 4×4 vehicle. Saturday morning Charlie asked if we had still planned to do the trail. I have been on this route several times over the years and was more than willing to run it with him. After breakfast and beaucoup espresso to help wart off the evil spirits of the night before, I was ready for a drive. Everybody else had plans, so it was just Charlie and his dog Ozzy in his rig; Don and me in mine. There is some good fishing above and below the Dam, but Don and I were more interested in the drive on this trip. It had been a couple of years since I had been back into this area so it felt nice to revisit the site. Taking Kaiser Pass Road from Sample Meadow CG toward Edison Lake takes you to the trailhead.
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October 23rd 2009 SMB Forum Bald Mountain Trip report.
(See part one for the trip overview)
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On Friday a few of us decided to take a trip up to Bald Mountain Lookout. We headed out of Sample Meadow Campground fairly late but I figured we would have plenty of time to finish the route before dark. Andrew and Jacques teamed up with Charlie for the run.
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(Please note that Part one is a summary of the entire 2009 SMB Forum Meeting and the remaining parts are detailed postings of individual days during the meet)
On the second day of our trip to the Kaiser Wilderness and the eventual SMB Forum meet at Sample Meadow Campground, we decided to take a look at a few 2WD routes that I had never been on. The early cold snap had moved the Fall colors to the lower altitudes, so after setting up the rest of our camp we headed out of Sample Meadow’s and back down the hill below the community of Shaver Lake to check it out.
Peterson Road Drive:
Looking at our maps, Peterson Road seemed like a reasonable route to start out on. The plan was to drive all the way down to Pine Flat reservoir and return via Trimmer Rd, but after a late start we opted for a short loop back to Dinkey Creek which in a round about way is accessible off end of Peterson Rd. After leaving Shaver we traveled about 5 miles back toward Fresno on highway 168 to Toll House Road located close to the top of the steep grade out of Prather.
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