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Sunday, November 17, 2013

Saddleback Butte Hike/Camp - "The wind was howling"

 It was the middle of November and that meant it was time to hike to the top of Saddleback Butte.
 A small group of determined Explorers, braving strong winds and cold temperatures, gathered at the trailhead.
 After the photo we started hiking toward the peak.
 The wind was howling as we approached our objective.
 I stopped to take a photo of the group on the summit.
 Another photographer was behind me with the same idea.
 Hiking up the last section of trail I noticed an object in the rocks ahead of me and familiar name.
 It seemed that Spencer really wanted to summit Saddleback Butte and wasn't going to let a trip to Disneyland stand in his way. He had climbed the peak six days earlier.
 Panoramic summit photo courtesy of Peter Choi.
After our summit photo we hiked toward the sunset and returned to the trailhead.
 Back in camp we soon discovered that Mike was the only person who brought firewood.
 Sitting around the fire preparing to continue a tradition. It was a surprise to most and fun for all.
 Lighted restrooms with flush toilets and sinks, Jan's type of camping.
 The next morning the moon was setting in the west.
 As the sun was rising in the east.
Leaving Saddleback Butte State Park just after sunrise.
We enjoyed our visit and will return next year.

4 comments:

  1. I'm with Jan, that's my kind of camping too. My husband is watching the weather, it's cooled off so now he's started talking about trips to the Mojave again. Oh boy...

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    1. Hello Beth, I agree it is now the season to head to the desert. Maybe it will be a good rain year and the desert will have a wonderful wild flower spring.
      Thanks for posting.

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  2. What beautiful pictures! We wish we could have made the journey to the summit with you all, but Spencer was singing at Disneyland. So we made the trek to the peak by ourselves, signed the logbook at the summit, and left the "Kweskin Rules" flag in a canister for Mr. Johnson to find on his final ascent to the summit. We worried the canister would disappear or that we would be fined for leaving it there and are so happy that you found it! We 'll be laughing about this for years to come and hope we will be able to join you all on your next adventure in California!

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    1. Hello Kathy,
      It was a fantastic surprise to find your canister near the summit. The Kweskins are exemplary Explorers.
      Thanks for posting.

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