High Sierra Topix

Here is a link to my hiking trip reports. All went to my botany study area in the Dinkey Lakes Wilderness.
http://www.sierrahiker.com/Hikes2021/index.html

Nice work Bill. We love the Swede Lake panorama shot too! Your day day must sure made up for the May skunk trip-- Lewisia everywhere!

Bill, I enjoyed your trip report and photos. I like your description of a "western white pine desert." I never thought of it that way, but that's exactly what it is, a desert under the pines. I spent a lot of time as a girl camping in the Dinkey Creek area and Dinkey Lakes was a destination on one of my first backpack trips. If you don't mind me saying, don't call yourself "old," no matter your age.

Bill, thank you for the trip reports and the contribution to iNaturalist! We use it often for species identification and it's one of family's favorite.

oddtiger wrote: ↑Tue Sep 07, 2021 9:06 am Bill, thank you for the trip reports and the contribution to iNaturalist! We use it often for species identification and it's one of family's favorite.

You're welcome.
iNaturalist has provided a platform that is perfect for recording my Lewisa leeana mapping project. Also, I've learned a lot of botany from the site. I love the species ID feature at iNat. It seems to be right for my ID's more than 90% of the time.
The mapping project is my main hobby now that I have moved away from rigorous, cross-country exploration of the Sierra. It has allowed me to transition to a mellower way of enjoying our precious mountains.

SweetSierra wrote: ↑Tue Sep 07, 2021 5:43 am If you don't mind me saying, don't call yourself "old," no matter your age.

"Old" is not a negative adjective for me.
At age 76, I think I have gained experience, wisdom, empathy, understanding of others, that I had little of at age 26. Plus, I have grandchildren.
Unfortunately, aging brings disease, lessening of physical strength, and the realization and acceptance of mortality.
I can't do many of the things I used to take for granted, even ten years ago. But, I'm not ready to throw in the towel, because there is still joy in what I have left.
"Old" is not a negative term for me.

sekihiker wrote: ↑Tue Sep 07, 2021 10:15 am

SweetSierra wrote: ↑Tue Sep 07, 2021 5:43 am If you don't mind me saying, don't call yourself "old," no matter your age.

"Old" is not a negative adjective for me.
At age 76, I think I have gained experience, wisdom, empathy, understanding of others, that I had little of at age 26. Plus, I have grandchildren.
Unfortunately, aging brings disease, lessening of physical strength, and the realization and acceptance of mortality.
I can't do many of the things I used to take for granted, even ten years ago. But, I'm not ready to throw in the towel, because there is still joy in what I have left.
"Old" is not a negative term for me.

Okay, understood. Generally when I hear someone say "old," I think it can make them act old but I see that's not always the case.

Nice. I do not have your botanical knowledge even though I am into gardening as one of my hobbies and, like many mountain hikers, I very much enjoy wildflowers. I will have to keep an eye out for lewisia leeana when I'm hiking. I did two trips in Woodchuck Country which at least partly overlapped with the elevation range, exposure, and geology of where you hiked so I'd guess that I may have walked by it. I'll be more alert next time. I'm not sure what lewisia species it is, but one of my fondest memories of lewesia are hiking to one of my favorite lakes in the Klamath Mtns., Big Blue Lake in the Russian Wilderness in the late 1980s. I recall gorgeous clumps of lewesia in hanging gardens on steep slopes that I recall were north-facing and fairly moist. I remember coming home and looking through various wildflower books to find that the flowers were lewesia, but it has been long ago and I don't recall the species.

As for "old", speaking from the standpoint of someone who only one month ago became eligible for my first significant senior perk (National Parks senior pass) I hear what you're saying. There are undeniable negatives of "old" but there are some positives, too. I think many, including me, hope that we're still physically capable of backpacking to Dinkey Lakes Wilderness when we're 76. And, I think you are aware that there are many young folks that are chronologically "in their prime" that can't do a backpacking trip as you just did (includes a lot of college students, in fact). Sure, those amazing off trail routes you once did are off limits now, but you still have mobility to do some very enjoyable hiking in the High Sierra.

Speaking of "positives" I'm always mentioning to my students various perks that come with age. I tell them to enjoy and appreciate their youth, but not to dread older ages, because there are plenty of positives that come with the negatives. From a scientist/scholar's standpoint one of the perks of age is that one's pattern recognition library continues to grow with time. As a result the rate of data acquisition when I'm in the field doing geologic mapping has increased more than 10 fold even though my hiking speed has declined since my "athlete's prime". Of course the accumulated learning and the like is only one of the perks of age.

Btw, I was notified about your edit and reply on the old "tough hikes" thread which is a testimony to the extreme hikes you were doing 20 years ago (3-day Grouse-Kid-Glacier-Volcanic Lakes trip). Whew. No way I would have even considered trying such a hike in my mid 50s (your age when you did the trip and my age as of the time of that post) let alone now. Anyway I figure it's like being Nestor in the Iliad (he would always tell the younger warriors about what a bad ass he was when he was younger), except that you have documentation of your prowess in your younger years. But, like Nestor, you still get around pretty darned well!