Two Decades of Backpacking

1969 to 1990

These stories begin with my two-month adventure to Canada in 1969, when I was 20 years old. Some folks were afraid that my friend and I were going to escape the military draft by escaping to Canada. The Viet Nam war was raging. But we were just intending to “check things out” – just in case. We had an unfortunate mishap while camping on the beach on the Pacific Ocean side of Vancouver Island. Our van got stranded in the wet beach sand, trying to help another stranded motorist. It’s an amusing story. But then we had to hitch-hike all the way back. At that point we were 1,100 miles from home.

Each of the backpacking stories includes descriptions of how to get to that particular trailhead, descriptions of which trails I followed during the hike, and where I camped each night. The stories include five hikes in the Los Padres National Forest; two of them were solo hikes.

The hike in Yosemite National Park was a short hike, aborted because of an encounter with a bear. The Grand Canyon hike in 1974 was, for me, my epic adventure. Five of my hikes included climbing several high mountain peaks of the Sierra Mountains of California and the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.

Pictures of the many vistas I encountered are included, but they cannot even begin to convey the thrill of being there, on top of a peak or cliff, looking out at miles and miles of rugged mountains or deep canyons.

Included as an appendix are photographs of my grandfather’s trek across the Sierras. In 1914, he and a large group went from Lake Tahoe to Yosemite Valley. The pictures tell the story – I was able to trace their journey using place names of the photos and topographical maps.

Introduction – Why These Memoirs

The Canada Odyssey – Spring 1969

Above the Big Sur Coast – Spring 1972

Cathedral Lakes, Yosemite – A Bear Encounter – Summer 1972

Salmon Creek, Highway 1 and a Lost Trail – August 1972

Ventana Wilderness near Big Sur – Solo Hike – August 1973

San Rafael Peak – Solo Hike and an Existential Moment – February 1974

The Grand Canyon of the Colorado – Hike with Sierra Club – April 1974

Short Hikes – Amazing Views – Los Padres, Sequoia, Colorado Rockies – Summer 1974

Sierra Wilderness – More Amazing Views – September 1975 and June 1976

More Photos from Silver Pass, John Muir Wilderness

100 Miles on the Pacific Crest Trail – July 1982