Owing to a very heavy workload (most overloaded spring semester of my entire career), I wasn't free until after Memorial Day. As per my recent habit, I had planned to do a solo trip, but Lee was strongly against me going solo, saying that I didn't know how I'd do on my first trip out on the Lupron + Abiraterone + Prednisone combo ("hormone therapy" for prostate cancer, my 3rd round of treatment of various sorts dating back to 2018). Whereas this was my first time backpacking with that specific regimen, I had hiked strongly leading my field class back in mid-April (treatment began in early Nov. 2024). I was more concerned with my general conditioning that had slacked off a bit after that week in the field with my class, owing to being overwhelmed with multiple of those "overdues". In order to fit Lee's schedule, we headed up on May 27-28 after Memorial Day. We had several options, but I targeted the Buck Island-Rockbound area. I hadn't been to that area since 1998 and hadn't been to Rockbound and beyond since 1994. One way or another, I really relished the rejuvenating elixir of the backcountry.
The drive from the Bay Area was fairly uneventful except I managed to hit the only pothole on the westbound Loon Lake/Icehouse road. I guess it had red paint around it but it was hard to see in the dappled lighting. Once at Loon Lake, we found the spur road to the wilderness parking closed so we had to hike from the boat launch parking, adding a few tenths of a mile to our hike. I advertised the hike as "fairly flat" (500 feet of gain) and 6 miles to Buck Island Lake where we planned to camp so as to be outside of Desolation Wilderness and be able to have a campfire (and not have to worry about a wilderness permit). The sign says 6 miles to Buck Island Lake at the start of the trail, whereas Robert Wood's super detailed and accurate Desolation Wilderness guidebook (long out of print) says its 6.6 miles to the trail junction above Buck Island Lake with the Rockbound Valley trail. From there to the SE apex of the lake (ie near lake level) is another few tenths. When one counts the few tenths added on for hiking from the boat launch, I figure we were somewhere in the 7-mile range. Lee was concerned about his training too (Dawn hasn't been training so this trip wouldn't work for her), but he hiked strongly. Nonetheless he felt this was a lot more hiking than he signed on for. "This is not a 6-mile hike, dad" and eventually, "I hate hiking". I think our time to target was reasonably fast (about 2.5 hours perhaps a bit less), even though we had a fairly long rest stop at the high point past Spider Lake (Lee tried out a few bouldering moves, but in regular hiking boots--didn't bring his climbing shoes).
- Lee descends toward Buck Island Lake. The country we hiked over was snow free, but snow lingers not too far above.
- Lee and I at our campsite.
- Lee enjoys dinner (one of his two Peak Fuel dinners) at our camp high above the lake.
Our second day, the wind had died and it became quite hot. It was forecast to get to 72F but I think it was warmer than that (probably 75) and at altitude this feels like 90. Oddly enough, even without a breeze the mosquitoes weren't much of an issue, even for me. We spent several hours standing on slabs in the sun fishing and that zapped quite a bit of hiking energy. When we hit the trail it was how it seems to always go: no breeze while ascending and a nice breeze when descending. We labored much more than the hike in. At first I thought we were blazing fast coming out---something around two hours--but then realized the clock in my car was a hour so our hike out took three hours. Lee did in fact say, however, that although the hike was longer and more strenuous than he expected he did in fact enjoy being outdoors. He said it was in fact really rejuvenating. Remarkably, we saw nobody the entire two days, except for some folks working on various construction projects around the Loon Lake campground. I think the lack of people was due to (1) it being early season, (2) it being in the middle of the week (Tuesday-Wednesday) and (3) there is a note on the Recreation.gov sight saying that the Loon Lake entry is closed all year.
- Lee and Loon Lake on our hike out.
Now for the usual asynchronous fishing report. Fishing was fairly slow. Over the two days of fishing Lee caught 4 rainbows of 13, 16, 16.5 and a whopping 19" (PR for Lee for rainbow). He lost at least two other large ones near shore. I caught 5 rainbows of 9, 14, 14, 14, and 15" and lost one really nice one after a brought it near shore and it did the classic rainbow jump and threw the hook. Lee hasn't fished for rainbows much, so he hadn't witnessed a big fish toss the hook that way. He was quite impressed.
- Lee's two best rainbows of 19 and 16.5". Back in the Bay Area our fish provided main courses for two dinners (cooked by Lee) and two additional lunches for me.
Harlens.
