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Hot Times in Mineral King

When it is Really Hot down the hill, it is just hot in Mineral King in the sun and on the trail. Sitting in the shade isn’t too bad, if you are covered in bug spray, the kind with a lot of DEET. When the heat is on, the biting bugs are very very active.

Independence Day

We raised the flag on Independence Day at the neighboring cabin with the tallest flagpole.

Work

Several mornings, I worked on another neighbor’s cabin trim, just until the hot sun hit.

before
after

Trail Guy was Road Guy before he retired, and he regularly uses many of his skills from that era for the benefit of Mineral King. Together, we pruned a very brushy section of road.

Before
during
during

I was too hot to take a decent “after” photo. Just wanted to go back to the shade and swat some biting flies and mosquitoes.

Crystal Creek Goes Rogue

One day we walked to Crystal Creek. I was shocked to see that it has changed channels.

The first section of stream has always (in my lifetime) been the strongest. (photo from 2021)
Now the first section is dry.

Keep walking—you will find the water.

Since I walk in my Crocs and my feet are numb, I am the one who gets to wade into the stream and toss rocks and logs around. Trail Guy and the Farmer put together a “bridge” so non-Croc-wearing folks who aren’t fond of cold water can cross with dry feet.

The flowers were great, as they always are in the beginning of July, even when the heat is ridiculous.

wild blue flax
blue-eyed grass and a dandelion
This larkspur was blue instead of purple

lots of baby’s breath

The trail was thick with lupine, and Spring Creek was roaring across the valley; good thing the bridge was up, because “EVERYBODY” goes to Eagle Lake.

Nature Trail

One afternoon, Hiking Buddy and I went down the road and then trudged up the Nature Trail in the humidity and bugs. This was a necessity, since there was way too much eating going on over that stretch of days.

I am not complaining, because compared to what the weather was down the hill, this was very pleasant. Besides, look where we were!

We didn’t stop to put our feet in because the biting bugs were ferocious.
When passing through this swampy area, a branch whacked me on the brim of my hat and knocked off my sunglasses. We looked several times, but they apparently have turned invisible.
Lupine never photograph as beautiful as they look in person. (Me either)

This post has gotten too long. How about if we continue on Monday?

6 Comments

  1. Thank you for sharing these photos of our beautiful mountain valley and the community efforts that make being there such a special time, Jana. For those of us who can’t be there , your efforts mean alot! I’m looking forward to Monday’s edition. 🙂
    Louise

    • Thank you for reading, enjoying, and commenting, Louise!

  2. Thank you, as always, for your beautiful pictorial essay of your time at Mineral King! You even included my favorite spot on the Nature Trail, although there’s a lot of whitewater there now!

    Someone will find your sunglasses, maybe 4-5 years from now. Keep checking the Ranger Station.

    Bugs? Really? Hmmmm, me no likey. I’ll have to stock up on Deet before I come up!

    I didn’t see any snow in your photos, but I assume Bear Patch is still intact?

    • Sharon, we call it Bearskin because it resembles the shape of a bear skin rug. I understand that you speak a slightly different dialect in your neck of the woods. Yes, it is still there, or at least it was last weekend.

      • I too appreciate so much the photos and commentary since I cannot be there either. Oh how I remember escaping the valley heat and breathing a sigh of relief once we got to MK for a brief reprieve! Bugs? Hmm. Don’t remember. Everything is relative yes? So many bugs in the Midwest! And humidity? Well it’s 93 now and feels like 107! Yeesh!

        • So nice to hear from you, Debbie! Summer is summer, some of it pleasant, some of it unpleasant. Rarely is any place perfect.

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