Lunch at Devil's Punchbowl

Lori and I would often stop for lunch at this high mountain lake. Sometimes sun warmed granite would allow us a pleasant seat as we enjoyed sandwiches, chips, and (of course) HoHo's!

Work Duds

Hat and chinks are part of my working duds; the hackamore is for my horse, Tuesday. The bosel was made by a guy in Idaho; the marcarte by Mills of Kettleman City, Ca. Beautiful together.

Moving Cows

These corraled cows (behind the fence) provided us with a bit of extra work this season, making for some long days. My story, "New Cows"tells it all. 

Packer Quiz!

Can anyone identify the hitch on this load? 

A+ if you do!

Late Afternoon at Portal Lake

The late afternoon sun casts a pink glow on the mountains. Beautiful! Portal Lake is at the headwaters of the North Fork of the Kings River in an area known as Blackcap Basin. 
I recall sliding down a snowbank near here .... by the seat of my pants. How fun to scream like a kid miles from anyone else! 

Leaving Camp

Love it when the string of mules matches .... same color and very similar sizes. This is such a good string of stout easy-to-get-along-with mules. 

Outside Showers are the Best!

This is one of the many showers erected in the backcountry. Close to ten gallons of warm water overhead makes for a nice long shower. This time, we placed a mosaic of granite as a flooring. Gotta keep our feet clean! Needed a little more than usual privacy on this hillside, however.

Firewood haulin'

Sometimes we would use Filly to carry firewood to camp. Sure beats haulin' it ourselves! 

Critters

Where there is rock in the high country, there are rock marmots. This cute fuzzy guy enjoys life in Bench Valley granite.

Midway Lake

Follow the waterfall from Portal Lake, and this is what you'll find .... Midway Lake. From what I hear, fishermen can catch some Golden Trout here. At over 11,000 feet above sea level, feels like the top of the world!

Blackcap Basin

This is beautiful Portal Lake.  The head of the North Fork of the Kings River is located here in Blackcap Basin. Climbing hand over foot up giant boulders above this lake is Midway Lake. I'll give you a peek at that next blog!

Best Friends

Lori loves to read; horse Jim loves to graze. They both love spending time in the high country together.

Maxon Cabin's New Bottom Log

Mandy mule, this big strong gal, skidded this log to the Big Maxon cabin. After that, she got the remainder of the day off as the rest of the crew went to work measuring and shaping the log to fit.

Crown Pass

Lori riding Jim, her favorite horse, over Crown Pass. The pass offered us sunshine and great views on this trip.

Ventura County Customers ......

The Wharf, on Front Street in Ventura, just restocked Campfires Remembered. Each is a signed copy with a bookmark.
Thank you, Todd, owner of The Wharf, for supporting local writers.

Making it fit

The crew did a great job at cutting the log to the right length, then chiseling the ends for a snug fit. Can't get better than perfect!

Shorty Lovelace's Maxon Cabin

And that's why he was called "Shorty"!

Unloading Cows at Brush Meadow

We'll be seeing cows time and again this season as we push them from one area to another.

North Fork of the Kings River

Swift moving water cascades over descending layers of granite shelving. Beautiful, refreshing.

Available Locally!

Folks in the Ventura area can now purchase copies of Campfires Remembered at The Wharf in Ventura, and at Ventura Hay in Ojai.

Shooting Stars

These beautiful Shooting Stars are found in meadows supporting a good deal of moisture. These are my favorite mountain blooms. In the distance is Crown Rock.

Tool Mule for the Day

This is Dixie, who agreed to carry our tools. We're working outside of Wilderness boundary, as I can see the bar of a chainsaw and a gas can. In the Wilderness, its hand saws only. That's Lori who is securing them with a box hitch. Oh, Dixie, you're patient, kind, and strong!

Cowcamp at Big Maxon Meadow

Note that the bottom log to the right has rotted. At this time, I was just planning its replacement. 

From here, we have a great view of the meadow with the tall granite mountains of Blackcap Basin

behind. At about 9600', this meadow often freezes during the nights. Stock like to keep warm in the

denseness of the trees, huddling together for added warmth. Oh, and yes, that's Millie off to the right.

Devils Punchbowl area. From here, its a short but treacherous climb to Hell for Sure Pass.

We Did It! We replaced the bottom log in the cabin at Big Maxon. Should stand for another few decades now.

From, "Tracking Shorty"

“Time has come to a standstill here. We've walked in on a sample of the past, but feel like it could be the present.”

Taken from, "New Cows"

“Weaving between trees, jumping downed timber, and dodging tree limbs, Barbara's hooves snap piles of dry twigs and thunder against the ground on mounds of fallen pine needles.”

Lori and our string leave Helms Meadow. Nice profile of Buster, the whip mule, with the craggy Dogtooth stretching to the sky in the distance.

Mandy

This is Mandy. This beautiful mule easily skid a large log to the base of the cabin at Big Mason Meadow, a log that would replace the decaying bottom log supporting the cabin. Mandy is a fine riding mule, too. Such diverse talent!

Crown Pass

Love to be up this high. Can see the Minerets Wilderness to the north, and Blackcap Basin to the south. Beautiful.

Crown Valley

Crown Valley is still privately owned by the Johnsons, long time cattle ranchers who brought their cows to the mountains for summer grazing. Their main cabin is plush by backcountry standards, housing a large wood burning stove and pipe access to a spring nearby. The Johnsons have hosted me to several amazing meals, topped off by one of the best lemon meringue pies I have ever eaten. Wonderful people; beautiful country.

She's beautiful in diamonds; one on each side!

This Time of Year

Its time to start predicting when the snows will melt and packers can again have access to the backcountry. Tack oiled and ready to go? Horses and mules getting some extra exercise in preparation? Won't be long now!

My Dutch oven is perfect for baking tall, flaky, golden brown biscuits. Smothered with butter and honey, they go nicely with morning eggs.

This beautiful mule, Mandy, easily pulled this log. Now it will be our job to shape it for a perfect fit as a bottom log.

This is my favorite place in the Kings River District, Big Maxon Meadow.

Lori leading our string on the Crown Valley Trail.

From herding cows, replacing a bottom log on an old backcountry cabin, and riding through lightening storms, Campfires Remembered is a riveting autobiographical account of High Sierra times few ever experience.