High Sierra Topix

Hi, I took the described Desolation Wilderness hike (Schaffer or Woods) from Wright's Lake through Rockbound Pass and return by the Stock Driveway on 7/24. The day was mostly overcast, a few afternoon sprinkles. The hike to Rockbound Pass has some nice views of Crystal Range, as it passses over open granite country that was particularly dry. The pass itself was not as bad as some claim, but tops out in a narrow area, that limits views. The descent is into a different environment, it seems more Cascades than Sierra, reddish volcanic rock, fir/hemlock woods, with deep-soil hillside meadows. The turn-around point was Lake Lois, which still had some snow fields above and a flowing stream. The Rockbound Stock Driveway is a lightly used trail that traverses a slope that was showing a good wildflower display. The summit of this trail was a bit more open, and the view from a nearby point was good. Descended through some flowery meadows, then a steep hillside, that eventually flattened out to Red-firred flats that had the only troublesome mosquitos of the trip. The trail works along the base of the ridge to rejoin the original trail near Maud Lake.

Your flower photos are beautiful. I especially like the Lewis Monkeyflower and the L. pardilinum. I've always wanted to see Leopard Lily in the wild but have somehow managed to miss them (had them in my back yard for years when I lived in Hayward--it is one of my very favorite flowering bulbs). You did all that 7/24? That's a pretty long dayhike!

Thanks , the lily I'm inclined to identify as l. parvum, but a close call. The hike is supposed to be 15mi., and felt like it. Probably should have made it an overnight as the alpenglow of Crystal Range was terrific as viewed from Pollack Pines on the way home.

A beautiful set of photos. Looks like a fantastic time.

As an aside, the links work nicely to the photos. If you want them to display directly in your post, you can follow the flickr posting method here (scroll down to the flickr guidelines). No biggee though...cool photos again and thanks for sharing

will_jrob wrote:Thanks , the lily I'm inclined to identify as l. parvum, but a close call. The hike is supposed to be 15mi., and felt like it.

Ooops, you're right. L. pardalinum can have somewhat similar colors but its petals are longer and more strongly curve. 15 mi? I figured it was even further than that.

Nice photos!