TR: 8/2-8/6 Desolation Wilderness reboot due to WX

[jillsocean]

I had a trip planned to Evolution Valley (out of Florence) with my daughter's Girl Scout troop for 8/1-8/6. I started watching smoke from the Oak Fire, then started checking the monsoonal pattern -- a smoke-lightning sandwich. On the Weds. before departure, the weather looked fine "north of Hwy 50" so I grabbed the only permit I could get in the southern end of Desolation Wilderness - out of Lyons Creek TH to Lyons Lake. Watched the conditions ... smoke disappeared, chance of rain/lightning went up for Evolution. On Sunday made the the call to depart for Desolation the following morning. Had to think about the goals of the trip - yes, teaching grit is good, but the number one goal is the girls continue to love the outdoors. Summer lake swims instead of the lighting safety position and managing wet gear won out, thankfully.

After an 8 hr drive, we camped at the lovely China Flat (empty on a Monday). Tuesday morning we hiked to Lyons Lake, with just one other party, and great swimming. Wednesday we day hiked Pyramid Peak via Sylvia Lake and returned to a completely empty lake. Thursday we packed up and went cross country to the trail just below Smith Lake. The descent was a bit tough, going through large boulders. We dropped our packs and went to Smith for a short and amazing swim. Then on to Grouse Lake, which was surprisingly empty. The girls slept outside until it started raining, then piled into tents. All tents stayed dry, including my new UL Gossamer Gear One (which I got in a seconds sale for $50!). Friday a day hike to Twin and Islands Lakes, returning just in time for another round of rain. It cleared up by bedtime, and we hiked out to Wrights Lake on Saturday morning. We dropped our packs, adults made a quick hike to cars, retrieved the girls, and drove home 8 hrs. It was WONDERFUL. Wildflowers throughout, very few mosquitos, no flies, and two marmots who did not outsmart us. Aside from the rain, we had mostly sunny skies. Walking on the talus, with and without packs, was a challenge for many.

Lesson learned - pivoting is the right thing to do, at times. The closest weather station to Evolution that I could find (High Sierra) received 2.7" of rain, including ~1.5" in one day.

Question - why are there dams on the lakes in DW? I haven't seen this before.

[wildhiker]

Question - why are there dams on the lakes in DW? I haven't seen this before.

The dams - for example on Lake Aloha - predate the designation of this area as an official Wilderness. In fact, the first dam at Lake Aloha went up in 1875, before the creation of National Forests. When congress debated a bill to establish the Desolation Wilderness Area in 1969, some objected to including the areas with dams since they were obviously not natural. But that would have cut out the heart of the area from protection, so the dams were included in the Wilderness as "grandfathered non-conforming uses" and the company that owns the dams is allowed to maintain them.

Sounds like you had a great trip. I was out that same week in Yosemite Park, determined to re-visit some off-trail places that I like, but I paid for my stubbornness by getting a daily drenching. Sounds like your flexibility served you well!

-Phil

[balzaccom]

Yes, the fans are being allowed to decline...

You made a great trip out of a difficult situation. Nice work!

The lake below Smith is Hemlock.

[jillsocean]

Thanks for the information about Aloha and the wilderness designation. Do you know the purpose of the dams on the smaller lakes, eg Lyons, Grouse, and Twin Lakes? I assumed it had to do with mining, but maybe it’s just recreation.

[jillsocean]

Yes, the fans are being allowed to decline...

You made a great trip out of a difficult situation. Nice work!

The lake below Smith is Hemlock.

Good to know that the dams on the smaller lakes won’t last forever. We passed Hemlock and stayed at Grouse.

[kpeter]

Thanks for the information about Aloha and the wilderness designation. Do you know the purpose of the dams on the smaller lakes, eg Lyons, Grouse, and Twin Lakes? I assumed it had to do with mining, but maybe it’s just recreation.

I do not know much about the check dams in Desolation, but there are 18 of them in Emigrant, and they have been controversial.

https://ezinearticles.com/?The-Battle-O ... id=4018575

I think a great many people would be shocked at how many fewer lakes and how much smaller the lakes will be once all 18 have been destroyed.

[jillsocean]

Thanks for the article - even if not about Desolation, the court decisions probably apply. Very interesting.

[Love the Sierra]

Thanks for the TR.
How old were your Girl Scout participants and how many of you? Sounds like they were real troopers able to make a good time out of it.
Glad that it went smoothly. I LOVE Desolation but it is always so crowded. Glad to know it was reasonably empty during the week.

[jillsocean]

Thanks for the TR.
How old were your Girl Scout participants and how many of you? Sounds like they were real troopers able to make a good time out of it.
Glad that it went smoothly. I LOVE Desolation but it is always so crowded. Glad to know it was reasonably empty during the week.

We had 5 girls, 14-17, mostly 14. Two adults, including one (not me) with dozens of boy scout trips and lots of off trail experience. We both have WFA. Sitting in my tent listening to them in the rain was a highlight - and thank goodness we did not have neighbors! We also played nature games between storms - Ninja, Eagle Eye and fox-walk (can't remember the name).

[TahoeJeff]

Desolation ... is always so crowded.

Nope