Cherry Creek Aficionados

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Sierra_Summits
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

Post by Sierra_Summits »

kpeter wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 8:36 pm As for Bourland I can't help you since I have not been in that way, but others here have and will chime in.

Last year I asked the same question you did about hiking along the south side of Cherry Creek from Styx Pass to Huckleberry Lake and was told it was possible and am thinking about trying it at the end of May. WD has done it near the river an on some snow as I recall, and some others do it via a high route over Bartlett Peak. I have been eyeing point 8151 and thinking it might be necessary to stay south of it rather than following the swollen creek too closely.

By the way, one of the reasons I like this area early season is how much you can do without crossing any streams, coming from Cherry Lake--most probably the Lake Eleanor trailhead since the road to Shingle Springs seems to be out all the time.

I have camped at what you have marked Camp 1 and Camp 4. At Camp 1 at Mercur Lake walk up to the ridge overlooking the Cherry Creek canyon for spectacular views. Actually, I camped a bit more on the mid northern shoreline of Mercur. Early season it is a challenge getting around Mercur since there is so much flooding. Camp 4 at Little Bear is delightful near the outlet. If water is flowing follow the outlet downstream just a little ways for some small falls and cascades. I found Camp 4 to be a delightful location from which to take day hikes and explore the area.

Camp 2 at Boundary looks high above the water. The west side has much more convenient access. There are camps on all the little peninsulas on the west, looking at some very pretty cliffs on the eastern side.


Here was one possible idea I had as a route into the upper sections of cherry creek. It goes from the inferno lakes down past point 8151. I was thinking of using the red route as it is shorter and less elevation changes. It seems like fro the trip reports I have sen on this area that it is easy to get caught up in lots of brushy undergrowth. I feel like the route over Bartlett might not have as much.
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Sierra_Summits
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

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grampy wrote: Tue Apr 13, 2021 10:36 am
Sierra_Summits wrote: Tue Apr 13, 2021 9:28 am
How are you able to figure out where each mile marker is? Is there a website that has them posted?
The “mile markers” are identified on topo maps;
for example USFS and USGS maps. Not on every creek, but on rivers and their major tributary creeks, in whatever way “major” is defined.

Caltopo shows them; map apps like Gaia show them if you display the appropriate map layer.
Doh! I see them now! Thanks!
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wildhiker
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

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Sierra_Summits wrote: Tue Apr 13, 2021 9:29 am
wildhiker wrote: Mon Apr 12, 2021 10:32 pm I used a different route from Bourland Meadow down to the West Fork Cherry Creek on July 4 weekend in 1994, as shown on the map below (best as I remember). I don't recall any problems with brush, but do remember lots of granite slabs. We didn't explore much up or down the creek, so I don't know if you can reach all the way upstream to your proposed camp.
-Phil

BourlandMdw2WForkCherryCreek.jpg
Interesting route! Was it class 2 hiking in there or 3? I may try it on the way out.
It was class 1 to 2. This was a family trip with our three children ages 10 to 15. I don't remember any difficulties.

-Phil
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rgliebe
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

Post by rgliebe »

I’ve hiked up Cherry Creek in early June in an above average snowpack year from the trailhead near the dam at Shingle Springs. It was over a decade ago, before the road to the trailhead was damaged and closed. My friend and I stayed on the trail the first day until the end of the day, when we climbed above Lord Meadow and camped on the top of the ridge near Boundary Lake. It was mostly to avoid the mosquitoes, which were swarming in Lord Meadow. It’s close to where your Camp 2 is, but we were on top of the ridge and had a clear view of Lord Meadow, not the lake, which was hidden by some rocks from our campsite. The second day we crossed the creek in Lord Meadow since that appeared to be the safest place to cross it, even though we picked up some bites. The creek widens out in Lord Meadow, so it was moving slower and it was comfortably below our waist but above our knees. We followed the creek on the side opposite the trail for a few miles, staying close to the top of the ridge on as flat of an area as possible. It is very doable with a full pack and no rock climbing, but it requires good route finding skills. After we got off the granite ridges and passed the old cabin we had to bushwhack our way through a wet field that had a number of things growing in it up above our waist. After a mile of this, we decided to cross the creek, which had been too dangerous to cross on foot for a long time (water over our waist, strong current). Fortunately my friend had brought his inflatable rowboat for fishing, so we used the small boat to ferry our packs and then ourselves over. After that we picked up the trail and followed it to Huckleberry Lake, our second night’s campsite. We eventually hit solid snow the next day before we climbed up to Emigrant Lake, our third night’s campsite.

I’ve also hiked up Cherry Creek late in the summer, in August, and found it easy to cross where the trail goes through (if you can find the trail) or somewhere nearby. The trail is hard to follow in a few places above Lord Meadow. It’s just the early season when the snowmelt is near its peak that you need to be careful where you cross and come prepared for the worst.
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frozenintime
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

Post by frozenintime »

@rgliebe, how easy to follow is the "trail" from shingle springs up cherry to lord meadow?
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kpeter
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

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The regular trail from Shingle Springs to Styx Pass on Kibbie Ridge is not bad. There have been some fires through parts of it resulting in deadfall across it but they have cut out the deadfall from time to time. One trip I had to step over 80 deadfall, a few years later half a dozen--so it varies depending on when they last maintained the trail. Early season always has some deadfall since they don't send out a trail crew until later.

There are a couple of places where you have to route find. The trail through Sachse Spring area can get lost in the wet, and over the open granite west of Styx Pass it is easy to lose the trail. But in both places you just go where you know you need to, and the trail comes back to you.

All that said, it is not the most interesting trail until you get past Sachse Spring. It is just a fairly unremarkable forested ridgetop trudge--the price you pay for getting to more interesting sights.

Be aware that the trail will probably start not from Shingle Springs but from the Eleanor trailhead a couple of miles further down given that the road to Shingle Springs has been closed. I actually thought the trail from the Eleanor trailhead to Shingle Springs was pretty nice--more interesting actually than the next couple of miles. But it makes every trip to this area longer.
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frozenintime
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

Post by frozenintime »

thanks kpeter, but i believe i was asking about the “trail” up cherry creek from shingle. i assume it’s mostly over granite and through brush, so not much of a trail at all. just curious what their experience was!

is shingle still closed from the rim fire? or another reason?
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

Post by Wandering Daisy »

I do not think there is any trail up Cherry Creek below Lord Meadow. It is an off-trail route described very well in the Emigrant Wilderness Guidebook. There may be a short use-trail from Shingle Springs over to Cherry Creek, but that's all. The author of the guidebook says descending Cherry Creek from Lord Meadow is the finest route in Emigrant Wilderness. But it is difficult, best to do when you can easily cross the creek when needed. He does not recommend doing it early season. It is on my list of routes to do.

The real "trail" up the ridge to Styx Pass has been in various conditions throughout the years. It gets overgrown quickly. I did it just after the fire and it was a mess- hard to follow and wading through half a foot of gloppy ash. I also did it the year after a CCC crew worked on it, and it was good. Last time I did it 5/30-6/4 2016, many sections needed some work. The drop down to Lord Meadow is in fair shape, mostly on broken granite. Lord Meadow is quite brushy with lots of little use-trails.

rgliebe's reference is to the trail from Lord Meadow upstream. It crosses the creek above Lord Meadow. There should be a use-trail that stays on the south side- I did it when it was totally covered with snow so cannot say what shape it would be in, if it even is a trail.
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frozenintime
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

Post by frozenintime »

thanks as always WD.

rgliebe says "I’ve hiked up Cherry Creek in early June in an above average snowpack year from the trailhead near the dam at Shingle Springs. It was over a decade ago, before the road to the trailhead was damaged and closed. My friend and I stayed on the trail the first day until the end of the day, when we climbed above Lord Meadow and camped on the top of the ridge near Boundary Lake."

he's probably using the word "trail" generously. :)
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Re: Cherry Creek Aficionados

Post by Wandering Daisy »

Shingle Springs is NOT anywhere near the dam. It is a couple of miles up the road, far above the reservoir (Cherry Lake). An early June trip actually along Cherry Creek above Cherry Lake would be quite an undertaking. I think he means that after a day's hiking, they were at Styxt Pass, and the trail drops nearly to Lord Meadow, before you hit the junction to the trail that goes "above Lord Meadow" to the ridge above Boundary Lake.

Perhaps rgliebe could chime in and explain this to us, since we obviously are a bit confused.
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