Tehipite Dome pictographs

[Bernard]

Back from Tehipite trek 2024 - Sept. 22-27
Note - My last trip there was 18 years ago (via Crown/Rancheria).

Will post more but for now, here are some points that may help anyone thinking of going:

- Grazing has rendered the trail very worn and dusty up to Crown Valley - hikers best distance themselves between one another
- Numerous good water sources the entire way to the valley edge
- TONS of fallen trees and beetle+burn damage. On a windless night we had a massive tree fall within a few hundred feet of our mid-point camp.
- These fallen trees mean a LOT of "hurdles" we stopped counting at over 120 esp. between Crown and the valley edge. Many of these are hard to avoid unless one does a substantial detour. This does not count smaller logs that one could step over or circumnavigate. Total workout "up to 11"
- Generous amounts of bushwhacking (curiously, no ticks this time) and we mean GENEROUS BUSHWHACKING
- No one in the Valley although we ran into a TSX crew en route as we exited

In the valley:

- Blackberries galore = GREAT addition to our oatmeal
- Weather was great (warm) and water still very chilly - perhaps due to recent upper elevation weather events
- Bear scat everywhere but no sightings
- Only one rattler sighted. Numerous harmless water and garter snakes
- Wind every night in the valley. Dead calm on the plateau
- Nighttime temps - very comfortable

TSX? See: https://tsxchallenge.com/trek-dates/tehipite-valley/

B.