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Sierra City to Belden
Friday, July 7: Saddle at 1210.2 — 18.7 miles
We made a late departure from town after a good breakfast, a quick visit to the Post Office, a couple of phone calls, and a chat with Rockfish while I braided his hair. (Thick, long, and curly — am I jealous!) The initial climb out of town was an easy 1500’ of switchbacks on good trail through forest, but it was followed by another 1500’ climb on open slopes with lots of loose scree. It was interesting to see how the vegetation has changed. The land is really dry, so there is manzanita and live oak as well as the more usual high country White and Douglas Fir. We met a southbound PCT section hiker named Dudley, who is out for the summer. We chatted with him for quite a while. He was happy to meet thruhikers who were willing to take the time to visit. Most won’t take the time to say hello. I don’t know why they’re in such a hurry – we’re not.
The afternoon was gentle walking up and down along and around ridges. There were some great views of the Sierra Buttes, rising dramatically behind us, and of the many lakes around there. Above the lakes (and there were a lot of very pretty ones) there was also forest: dense red firs, some heavily logged sections, and some that had a lot of dead and downed trees — quite a mixture. It stayed cold and cloudy all day, but never rained. There were a lot of new wildflowers, including yellow lupine, which I’ve never seen before. I enjoyed today, despite the usual post-town malaise (ate too much, packs too heavy, ankle hurts, etc.)
We lost Molson and Rockfish at the side road up to the fire tower. As interesting as it looked, I really wasn’t in the mood for an additional 1400’ climb, with an extra three miles added to the day. So far, I don’t regret sending home our ice axes. It was nice to lose the extra pound off our packs. We had only one big snow patch, and it was flat. There are some weekenders camped on the other side of the pond, but they seem quiet and friendly.
Saturday, July 8: Chimney Rock — 24.5 + 0.25 (1234.7)
Heavy dew soaked us overnight, so lunch was in a sunny spot by a small creek where we spread out our tent and sleeping bags to dry. It was a somewhat frustrating morning, with lots of winding trail, blowdowns, snow patches, and heavily overgrown stretches to slow us down. The forest has huge tall trees, and there were some nice views early in the day. It’s very peaceful, with constant birdsong, blue skies (at last!), butterflies, and frequent side streams not listed in the guidebook. This afternoon is supposed to be dry as we wind westward back up on the ridge. I’m a bit worried about doing big miles through here. I feel like we have to because of the Post Office situation. In Belden, the PO is only open 9-12 M-F and in Old Station it is only open from 12-2 on Saturday, the day we were due to arrive. If we miss either we’ll be stuck in Old Station until Monday. So we’re trying to do 92 miles in 4 days. Yesterday’s late start meant we only hiked 18 miles. With today’s late start (8:00!) it will be very hard to do the 26 miles we had planned. I hate feeling pushed like this. It makes me grumpy and very impatient with every extra unnecessary switchback or dead tree. There have been a lot of those, and a surprising number that we’ve had to crawl under. Jim lost his glasses at one of those yesterday. We went back and found them, only a little the worse for wear.
The afternoon hike had less up and down, but fewer interesting views. We did a side jaunt to get water and decided to cook at 5:00, then keep hiking until 8:00. We didn’t make the 26 miles, but then, since we had water, we didn’t need to. We’ll make it to Belden, one way or another. Old Station is still uncertain.
Sunday, July 9: Creeklet at 27 miles (1261.7)
Another warm and sunny day. The morning was spent mostly descending to the Middle Fork of the Feather River, while the afternoon was spent climbing back up. It was a 3000’ elevation change in each direction. It was a rather nondescript morning: no views and lots of overgrown trail. There was one stray guy on a bicycle out where he had no business being. They aren’t allowed on the PCT, though there are few signs to that effect. Jim and I were too surprised at seeing him to say anything. Given how bad the trail was, he may be sorry he didn’t stick to the jeep roads. We saw a sign saying the PCT was closed because of fire danger, but since it was dated last August, we assumed it was no longer in effect. Part of the trail was badly burned above the river and along another stretch that we walked later in the afternoon, so there obviously was a real problem through there. There was a wide variety of vegetation as we climbed this afternoon and as we rounded the ridges to areas with more or less sun. What surprised me the most was seeing maple saplings, dogwood, and daylilies. One of the dogwood trees was still in bloom. A young rattlesnake with big brown spots hurried off the trail as we approached, as did a big garter snake. We ended up going farther than expected. We got water at a creek, then couldn’t find a good campsite so we kept going and going and going. First we were too close to a road, then we were in a buggy meadow, then in a fern forest, then the trail was narrow sidehill on a steep ridge with nothing flat for about two miles. Finally we created a small “desperation” site downhill from the trail. According to the map, the next three miles are the same kind of steep country, so we were glad to find even this not-so-flat spot. Until the end, we were doing well. The views from Lookout Rock weren’t exciting, but at least there were views. The fire damage and clear-cutting were very evident, but mostly we saw tree-covered mountains spread out for miles. We met two dayhikers, but no other backpackers.
Monday, July 10: Belden — 21.4 miles (1283.1)
It took a while for our sore feet to quiet down (they talk to us when we overdo it) but eventually we slept, despite the lumps in our narrow campsite. The morning hike was pleasant, with easy contouring around a mountain, followed by a gentle climb up Spanish Peak, then easy up and down with nice views eastward. There were lakes below us and occasional meadows, with lots of lupine and other wildflowers. The afternoon was less interesting as we made a long descent into Belden, a small “resort” with a few cabins, trailers, a small store, restaurant, and saloon, plus a laundromat and shower. Just what we hikers need! We reached Belden around 4:00, where we met Brad, Kathy, Tak and Allan -- a section hiker who started just a week ago. Brad is waiting for his girlfriend to join him for a couple of months on the trail. It’s kind of a hard stretch to start a long hike. Molson strolled in about an hour later. We all ate dinner together, except Tak who was fishing. He’s a Japanese hiker who started at Kennedy Meadows. It was a hot day, but mostly pleasant. The long descent (3500’ in 5 miles) was fairly steep, but shaded. Worse was the poison oak along the trail. I know I react to poison ivy, and Jim is very allergic to it, so brushing against it constantly is worrisome. There’s no way to avoid it though when the trail is overgrown. We met two maintainers along the trail, cutting blowdowns. Unfortunately, few maintainers seem to bother with the brush out here.
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