Wherein I Join Trail Guy on a Mineral King Hike

White Chief as it appears in the coloring book "Hear t of Mineral King"
White Chief as it appears in the coloring book “Heart of Mineral King”

Coloring books will be available again on July 1, 2016. You may order, but it will involve a wait. Thank you for your patience.

Mineral King
Languid Ladies in the foreground; Chihuahua Creek in the distance. I don’t think this has flowed for the past 4 summers, and Trail Guy thinks it will last through the whole month of June this year.
Mineral King Trail
Steps on a trail look friendly and helpful to me. Trail crew builders accuse step-builders of “making monuments to themselves”. Thank you, Monument Makers.
Mineral King
Looking back toward Timber Gap, with patches of snow still on Empire to the right of Timber.
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This is sort of a boring photo of Indian Paintbrush, (red), Western Wallflower (yellow), and a bit of Larkspur (sort of bluish). I just got a little excited to see the 3 primary colors all together.
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We saw 2 of these mylar helium balloons. Partiers down in the valley (not Mineral King, but the San Joaquin Valley) don’t realize that when they let go of the strings of their balloons, they are littering.
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Oops. Tree failure.
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This tree is not a failure. It is a juniper, and it is Trail Guy’s favorite tree. It is a sign that the steepest part of the trail to White Chief is over. It is still steep, just not the steepest part.
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Here is an example of Phlox in all the variations of its whitish-purplish-pinkish glory.
White Chief
Hello White Chief! The peak is square topped and this is where you first see a glimpse of the canyon, which our 2 new trail friends called “enchanting”. (Hi Dean and Dave!)
White Chief
Enchanting canyon, to be sure, but where is the sunshine now?
White Chief
I tried to find the exact scene that I used in the coloring book drawing, but someone moved the logs or something. Some years they tilt the trail steeper than others, but this year they just messed with the logs. Who is this “they” and where is the sunshine??
White Chief
White Chief has many natural caves and several sinkholes.
White Chief
Love the dramatic lighting, but I think we might get wet.
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Not Trail Guy. He’s not getting wet with his high-tech poncho. He sort of looked like Moses, if he had pulled his arms out of the garbage bag and held his walking stick like a staff.
White Chief
Look at all this water! I’m outta here.
White Chief
See you later, White Chief.

 

 

Mineral King, Because it is Friday

After a harrowing week, most of which doesn’t not belong on a public blog on the World Wide Web, I ran away to Mineral King for a much needed respite.

It was overcast and a bit rainy. That’s fine. We have a wood stove for cooking and heat, and I always have my knitting.

In between, there were some walks around the valley floor. Strolls, really.

In gardening, it is tricky to find blue flowers. In Mineral King, that is one of the main colors of the early season flowers.

blue lips
The aptly named “Blue Lips”.
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“Sierra Bluebells” are also called “Languid Ladies”.
forget me not
Sierra Forget Me Nots look just like the Alaskan state flower, same name minus the Sierra part. Duh. Sometimes these come in pink. So do the “Languid Ladies”. Weird, but maybe they are like hydrangeas and depend upon the make up of the soil. These are also called “Sierra Stickseed” because when they go to seed, they stick to your bootlaces (or the velcro on the straps of your Tevas, if you are like me in your hiking footwear).
honeymoon cabin
Wonderful flow of water, here in the east fork of the Kaweah River next to the Honeymoon Cabin. If you are in Mineral King, you can learn about some of the history in this little building. You might need to bring glasses and a flashlight if you are over 45.
Farewell Gap
The evening is looking hopeful for a good hiking day tomorrow. This is the alpen glow on Farewell Gap.
Mineral King
Oh yes, a bright clear day for hiking to White Chief!

To be continued next Friday. . .

Coloring books will be available again on July 1, 2016. You may order, but it will involve a wait. Thank you for your patience.

Mineral King in Early Summer

What do I mean “early summer”? It isn’t summer until June 21!

Oh yeah? It’s been in the high 90s and low 100s for a couple of weeks around here. That qualifies as summer, despite the calendar’s report.

Trail Guy is back out on the trails in Mineral King. I’ll get there, just hang on. Meanwhile, please enjoy his photos with my photo editing and explanations.

Mineral King
Looking upstream toward Farewell Gap with the early grasses. This is a good flow of water in the east fork of the Kaweah with much more snow to melt.
Mineral King
Just after crossing the bridge (not my favorite bridge but the Mineral King bridge – don’t get confused here) heading into the parking lot. This is the end of the road, and it’s all up from here, all on foot. 
Mineral King
This is the view from the trail to Timber Gap. Or maybe it is to the west of Timber Gap. Closies count.
Mineral King
Decent patch of snow up on the ridge that Timber Gap is part of. Nice photo, Trail Guy!
These are phlox, an early flower that comes in subtle shades of lavender, pink, white, pinkish white, whitish pink, lavenderish white, whitish lavender, pinkish whitish lavender, etc.
These are phlox, an early flower that comes in subtle shades of lavender, pink, white, pinkish white, whitish pink, lavenderish white, whitish lavender, pinkish whitish lavender, etc.
Can you pick out Sawtooth Peak from this angle?
Can you pick out Sawtooth Peak from this angle?
This is the view that the Mather party had 100 years ago. There is a photo, a book and a pencil drawing commemorating that event.
This is the view that the Mather party had 100 years ago. There is a photo, a book and a pencil drawing commemorating that event.
Mather party book cover drawing
Remember this pencil drawing? When the Park wanted to reprint the book on the Mather party (group of people on an excursion, not group of people drinking and dancing–but how would I know? I wasn’t there), they commissioned me for a cover drawing redo. That mule heiny was a challenge, but Cowboy Bert took photos of his mulz (that’s how he spells it on his license plate) to help me get it right.

 

And More Mineral King

During a mostly overcast weekend in Mineral King, we had a few moments of sun. A standard simple walk is to go down the road and back up the Nature Trail (Yes, I know it is a stupid name – “Wildflower Walk” seems more appropriate once summer arrives.)

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Manzanita in bloom near a seasonal creek coming off Timber Gap
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The appropriately named “Five Spot” wildflower, about the size of a nickel.
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An unknown little white flower. I think white flowers are boring, but any flower will do this early in the season.
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Not too many wildflowers along the nature trail this early. The aspens aren’t leafed out yet, so you can see Empire with its snow.
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Sierra Bluebells, or Languid Ladies. . . it is one of the early flowers in Mineral King.
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Great flow on the East Fork of the Kaweah!
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This is the only time I had a view of Sawtooth. It is still holding snow.
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A drawing similar to this appears in my latest coloring book, “Heart of Mineral King”
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These are a version of Chinese Houses along the Mineral King Road on the lower section. The wildflowers are still very good along the road, mostly the yellows with a few purples. Worth a drive if you are into wildflowers.

More Mineral King

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Back yard early in the season.
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Favorite cabin on Memorial Day. Nope, not my cabin!
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Farewell Gap in the sunshine.
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Learning about catch-and-release fishing from the bridge.
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Mineral King – 7807′ in elevation
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Rock outcropping of Empire, good water flow on Monarch Creek.
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Hello, Farewell (Gap)!

Why I Am Not Painting the Oak Grove Bridge

  1. Because I am painting 5 little paintings of Farewell Gap/Mineral King.
  2. Because I am working on a new coloring book!!

Anyone want to guess the subject?

It is time for me to reorder Heart of the Hills, my original coloring book, AGAIN.

It is time for me to reorder Heart of Mineral King. WHAT?? I’ve only had it one week!

Hurry, hurry, step right up, order your copy today!

mineral king coloring book
Heart of Mineral King coloring book, $12
Heart of the Hills
Heart of the Hills coloring book, $15

Mineral King Coloring Book Has Arrived!

Yesterday, the Mineral King coloring book arrived. Heart of Mineral King is the title, and it has 12 pages to color, plus some wildflowers on the insides of the covers. (One of the 12 pages is the title page, and 4 of the pictures are from the previous book, Heart of the Hills.)

mineral king coloring book

A friend called me when I gave her a sample page of wildflowers from Heart of the Hills, because she wanted to know what color to make each one of the flowers. This made me laugh, because she had been coloring in another book, decorating owls in purples and pinks.

It also made me think that perhaps people would appreciate a hint. So this inside back cover page has a hint on the wildflowers.

MK 27 inside colored list

Here is a peek at a brand new drawing. This is Empire Mt. (actually it is just the rock outcropping which is very visible but isn’t the peak) with some of the very charming Mineral King cabins.

Empire

Heart of Mineral King is available at the Three Rivers Mercantile and Kaweah River Trading Co. in Three Rivers. It is also available here on my website, and if you see me around, from the trunk of my car. On Memorial weekend it will be available at the Silver City Store, 21 miles up the Mineral King Road.

This one is smaller, so it is $12 rather than $15. Such a deal – a custom coloring book of everyone’s favorite mountain place in Tulare County. (Unless your favorite mountain place is Wilsonia)

 

Early Spring in Mineral King

This week Trail Guy went to Mineral King to see how things look in early spring. Yes, I know May is not “early spring” down here in Three Rivers, but things are different at 7800′.

Mineral King cabins

These folks have some melting and shoveling to do.

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The classic view of Mineral King, probably the most photographed, and definitely the most drawn and painted scene by this Central California artist. It looks wrong to me with the tall red fir gone. That remaining tall tree is a cedar juniper (Thank you, Trail Guy. The reason I mix these 2 up is that those are the names of 2 similar green colored pencils.) Farewell Gap is more visible this way.

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Daffodils are not native flowers, but they are a welcome sight.

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These folks have some melting and shoveling to do.

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They can use the door on this side of the cabin instead of fighting all the snow off their deck.

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The sunny side of the valley is where Trail Guy spent many an afternoon when he wintered in Mineral King. (I didn’t know him then.)

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There is plenty of snow in the shade and on the north facing slopes. It just makes it fun for kids to make snowballs, and slippery for adults who want to walk a bit.

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More daffodils. Thanks, Van and Mary, for planting these. Isn’t this a cute cabin?

Thanks, Trail Guy, for your early spring reconnaissance trip.

The road will be open to the public on Memorial Day weekend.

Coloring Book Report

Whole lotta reporting going on this week.

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While preparing for the Redbud Festival, I decided to add a few more oil paintings and finish the giant painting of the Oak Grove Bridge. Then I wisely decided my time was better spent elsewhere.

So, I began working on a new coloring book design. No telling how long this adult coloring craze will last, so I’d better make hay while the sun shines.

Here is the cover, version #1:

heart of mineral king

This is too hard to read, so I redesigned the cover.

MKcolorcover

Then, I finished all the crazy-making computer work, and sent it off to be printed.

NEW COLORING BOOK COMING SOON!

It will have fewer pages and thus will cost less than Heart of the Hills. THIS ONE WILL BE CALLED HEART OF MINERAL KING.

Please excuse me for shouting at you. This is very exciting and fun.

It should be available in two weeks.

New Coloring Book!

Are you aware that coloring books for grownups is a huge fad?

Huge! HUGE! Written up in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and even the Visalia Times-Delta. . . I have friends telling me they love to color. These are adults. And just over the weekend, the subject was in the Fresno Bee.

I hesitate putting the word “adult” in front of “coloring book”, because the word has been, well, adulterated. The word “adulterate” sort of means the same thing as polluted. You probably don’t need an explanation about this.

My new coloring book is pure and unpolluted. The title is:

Heart of the Hills

Why? Because I have hidden a tiny heart in every picture.

See if you can find it in this one:

first drawing

Hardly fair, is it? This is too tiny! Guess you’ll just have to wait until it comes out and get one.

Details for Heart of the Hills

  1. 19 drawings of Three Rivers, Sequoia and Mineral King
  2. Will be available around April 15.
  3. Suitable for colored pencil or marker
  4. Printed one side of the page only.
  5. Before tax price: $15
  6. Will be available on my website and at Kaweah River Trading Co. in Three Rivers
  7. Might be available for pre-order but. . .

.  . . I haven’t figured out why a person would want or need to pre-order.

If you think that would be a helpful method of ordering, please comment and share your opinion.