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  • #1287810
    Frank H.
    BPL Member

    @porker110

    Locale: Oregon

    I'm planning on an overnighter to the Big Sur/Ventana Wilderness area in the end of April.

    Never been there before. I've that the trails are some what overgrown, lots of poison oak and ticks. Sometimes very hot.

    I'm looking to do a extremely leisurely trip. Around 15 miles round trip, or around ~6 miles each day. Easy to Moderate. No crowds would be nice.

    If anyone has any suggestions let me know.

    -Frank

    #1859288
    Keegan D
    Member

    @nageek18

    Locale: Bay Area

    you can try the Cruickshank-Salmon-Buckeye Loop Trail at Silver Peak Wilderness

    This might be a little further south then you would like but each camp is about 4-6 miles apart, but there are very little amount of people during these months.

    http://www.ouachitamaps.com/Silver%20Peak.html

    #1859290
    Kattt
    BPL Member

    @kattt

    Pine Valley is very nice. From China camp, near Tassajara road to Pine Valley it's about 6 miles. We did an in and out. In is mostly downhill and out is uphill. There are some beautiful waterfalls and a very, very cold swimming hole.

    #1859429
    Frank H.
    BPL Member

    @porker110

    Locale: Oregon

    Thanks Kat and Keegan. I'll check those out.

    -Frank

    #1859648
    Frank H.
    BPL Member

    @porker110

    Locale: Oregon

    Kat,

    How is the road to china camp. Is it a dirt road with a bunch of pot holes or a little bit better than that?

    And is there plenty of places to fill up on water??

    -Frank

    #1859677
    Kattt
    BPL Member

    @kattt

    Tassajara road is not a good road, not in summer and definitely not in Winter. I think it's around 6 miles of steep, rutted, pot holes. It usually gets worked on in April and then it's still a rough road. I have made it fine with an old Ford Ranger and in winter with an AWD. Definitely go slow, but it's doable.
    Water..From the trailhead the first for sure water is about 4 miles down. After that there is plenty, although it can be rather slow moving right at Pine Valley, depending on the season. Right in Pine Valley you will find a hand made cabin and hopefully the old man that lives there is still alive. I forgot his name but he is very happy to have some company and will gladly share his water and coffee with you. Just talking with him is worth the trip in my opinion. He built the cabin with his wife and he still has her ashes in a box and lots of pictures of their adventures in Alaska.
    From Pine Valley it's a bit of a hard mile to find the swimming hole, but it's a gorgeous emerald pool at the bottom of a steep shoot.

    #1859711
    Frank H.
    BPL Member

    @porker110

    Locale: Oregon

    Thank you very much Kat. I appreciate your information.

    I'll keep a look out for the nice old man and his cabin.

    -Frank

    #1859715
    Kattt
    BPL Member

    @kattt

    Jack English. He makes beautiful Violin bows.

    Jack

    Jack

    #1859736
    Travis Leanna
    BPL Member

    @t-l

    Locale: Wisconsin

    Kat, you wouldn't happen to know a ballpark price on his bows, do you?

    #1859737
    Frank H.
    BPL Member

    @porker110

    Locale: Oregon

    Kat,

    Do you remember the trail being hard to find or really overgrown?

    -Frank

    #1859746
    Kattt
    BPL Member

    @kattt

    @ Travis. I don't know. He inlays them with abalone and I think he mainly makes them for his son. He is 93. Maybe Frank can find out….?
    @ Frank. It may be a bit overgrown but myself and 3 teens had no problem finding it. I would say it is an easy trail to follow.

    #1859749
    Travis Leanna
    BPL Member

    @t-l

    Locale: Wisconsin

    Thanks Kat. My violin was made in 1943 by a man named Carl Becker. His son, who is 90, still continues to make violins in a small town in the Wisconsin north woods during the summers. He winters in Chicago. I need to go visit him at his cottage before it's too late. Since I spend a lot of my time in the woods up there, its kinda cool to look at the trees and know my instrument came out of that very same wood.

    P.S. Sorry for the thread drift.

    #1859750
    Kattt
    BPL Member

    @kattt

    Great story Travis. Thread drifts can be great : )

    #1859932
    Nico .
    BPL Member

    @nickb

    Locale: Los Padres National Forest

    An acquaintance hiked out there a few weeks ago. Jack English is still there and still happy to have guests.

    #1860604
    Harald Hope
    Spectator

    @hhope

    Locale: East Bay

    Tassajara road can be driven up in any car, but you have to drive carefully. And watch for overheating of the engine. Drive it slow and steady and steer around the gullies and so on and you'll be fine, try to just drive up it as if it were paved, or using the wrong (too high) gear, and you might not be fine. If your engine starts to overheat, drop the gear to a lower one, the one you should have already been in that is, and slow down. If it won't drop temperature, stop and wait, then restart, and don't try driving it in a high gear and too fast. It's not unlike the road into the lost coast, except the lost coast in winter can't safely be done in any rear wheel drive vehicle.

    I've driven up that in the worst beater, shot suspension, etc, and it made it, but you do have to drive with awareness. Given that the zen center is at the base of the climb, a bit of mindfulness should be in order anyway.

    #1860608
    Frank H.
    BPL Member

    @porker110

    Locale: Oregon

    Harold,

    Thank you for tips on driving along this road. I've driven on plenty of dirt roads, but there are not two that are alike.

    -Frank

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