COVID SUMMER

Believe in them, for they are the mountain-principles and alter-piles of life. Breathe the air that is freshened on their heights. Drink of the streams that flow fresh from the channels in their sides. And in every season of doubt, temptation, or despair, lift up thine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh thy help. --- Thomas Starr King

A week after my from returned from my annual week-long trip to a rugged Sierra Nevada mountain lake east of Lake Tahoe, I'm still in a bit of haze, if not a funk. The kayaking and campout trek to Loon Lake's pristine cobalt-blue waters, textured granite shores, and awe-inspiring views was my most anticipated trip of the summer. Who wouldn't feel a post-trip blues leaving such a place of beauty and tranquility?

Scott MacGregor called it a happy-sad period. "Happy because dreams came true," he wrote in Paddling Magazine, "Horizons were broadened. Challenges crushed. Confidence boosted. Friendship strengthed. But sad because it is suddenly over."

Lingering at the boat access looking over the lake last week, I relived the highlights of the trips through my mind. Our first-class steak dinner, those amazing sunsets, those pesky bees, one awesome hike, and a spectacular view of the Perseid Meteor Shower while lounged along the rocky beach looking towards the heavens.
Packing up the boats and driving away, it was time to slip back to reality. My escape had only been short-lived. And while the trip might have changed and recharged me, I'd still be returning to all the real-life pressures and stresses the world has to offer, most notably the COVID-19 pandemic.

In truth, I didn't even escape the effects of the pandemic while on the trip into the wilderness area. I was greeted by mask-wearing hikers and witnessed people camping, where in the past years those camping spots were always vacated.
"It's COVID," said a member of my group, "Simply put, there is not much to do this summer, except go camping."

Since early summer when many of the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions were eased the great outdoors has been attracting people who are out using the beaches, forests, and mountains in unprecedented numbers. Experts say if proper guidelines are implemented the risk of exposure can be reduced.
“The risk is definitely lower outdoors,” says Kimberly Prather, Ph.D., an atmospheric chemist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, told Elemental, “The primary reason is there’s just such a large volume of clean air.”

Camping and dispersed camping is all the rage this summer as folks attempt to hunker down in the quest to flee COVID-19. Campgrounds have been full throughout the summer including even remote sites normally overlooked.
"We’re seeing a level of use well beyond a normal year,” Oregon Parks and Recreation Department spokesman Chris Havel told the Salem Statesman Journal, “It’s like having the crowds you see for a holiday weekend, except all the time.”
With no amenities, the National Forest Service in some areas is struggling this summer to keep up trash removal when the campers don’t pick up after themselves.

Public officials have also expressed frustration with people who aren't social distancing amid the pandemic who are overcrowding California's beaches and riverways. Last month, After 313 vehicles were counted along a road that had space for 12 cars, an Auburn area swimming hole has been made off-limits to motorists while several beaches around the Monterey Bay Area will be closing this weekend to reinforce social distancing and reduce large public gatherings, as cities anticipate large influxes of visitors.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said, "We're not minimizing mixing. It throws shivers up my spine. Here we are making all this progress, and it can be done away," during a press conference after mentioning the crowds along the Lower American River in Sacramento recently made it look like "spring break."

My thoughts at the boat access persisted even into the next day while working at the boathouse at Sly Park. The summer season is slowly winding down. Autumn comes without warning even when the days are at their warmest. There’s something about the fall season that signifies all things new and a fresh start. But this year, as I all suffer the symptoms of COVID-fatigue, all I really want is for things to get back to normal.

It's a little bittersweet to say goodbye to the mountain lake. Hopefully, I can pack away enough memories to get me by until next time.

We are always looking for guest bloggers to share the stories and pictures of their adventure.

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LOON LAKE REFRAIN

It's been one of those summers across California we are getting more and more accustomed too. As dozens of large wildfires are burning across the state, public health officials are urging people to seal off their windows and doors, change filters in air conditioning units and in some places wear masks.
A smokey haze has obliterated the clarity of the sky and blotting out the views of the mountains as well as the city's skyline, all while turning the setting sun into what the Washington Post's, deputy weather editor Angela Fritz,  called an unsettling shade of red.

On the road just past the Stumpy Meadows Reservoir another grim reminder of past fires. It's the charred and desolate remains of the King Fire that scorched over 97,000 acres in El Dorado County, California in 2014. Driving past, the smoke tainted toothpicks of trees that flicker in the sunlight between the plots of barren and bleak tree-less hills on along the highway.

So it's a feeling of elation when I climbed the road up further. Past the burnt-out trees and away from the low hanging orange cast smog to the blue skies and crystal clear waters of Loon Lake.

"The air is singularly searching and strengthening." wrote Unitarian minister and orator Thomas Starr King after visiting the area in 1863,  "The noble pines, not obstructed by underbrush, enrich the slightest breeze with aroma and music. Grand peaks rise around, on which the eye can admire the sternness of everlasting crags and the equal permanence of delicate and feathery snow. Then there is the sense of seclusion from the haunts and cares of men, of being upheld on the immense billow of the Sierra, at an elevation near the line of perpetual snow, yet finding the air genial, and the loneliness clothed with the charm of feeling the sense of the mystery of the mountain heights."

Starr King loved being in the air of the Sierra wilderness. Best known for his role in keeping California in the Union during the Civil War. He traveled throughout the state speaking in churches, town squares and mining camps spreading the messages of his faith and preserving the Union. Spiritually moved by the splendor and beauty of Yosemite, three years even before John Muir saw it, Starr King advocated for protecting the area and encourage lawmakers and President Abraham Lincoln to pass the Yosemite Grant. Signed into law on June 30, 1864, it marked the first time the U.S. federal government specifically set aside parkland for preservation and public use setting up a precedent for the creation of Yellowstone, our first national park.

"A wearied frame and tired mind what refreshment there is in the neighborhood of this lake!" he would write of Lake Tahoe, Loon Lake's famous and much bigger neighbor to the east, where visitors have come for years to admire the cobalt blue of the lake.

At 6,378 feet, Loon Lake sits about 100-feet higher than Lake Tahoe in the northern section of the Crystal Basin Recreation Area.  A popular recreation destination, the reservoir created in the 1960s by the Sacramento Metropolitan Utility District with its three campgrounds and the boat ramp provide areas perfect for camping, hiking and kayaking.

Encompassed by the textured sun-bleached granite shore and a mixed/conifer forest of fir trees and Huckleberry Oak, the lake's pristine blue-green hued waters are a perfect venue for a classic late summer adventure.

Last week, Current Adventures Kayak School and Trips hosted its annual two-day overnight one-of-a-kind camping and kayaking experience at the lake. By day we explored the coves, bays and islands slowing meandering around glaciers exposed granite boulders dotting the lakeside eastern half including a trip inside the Buck-Loon Tunnel. While at night, we reclined along the rocky beach looking towards the heavens to view the Perseid Meteor Shower streaks across the skies. Interwoven in our awed responses of, "Oohs and ahas and There goes one!" and our laughter of "Where? Oh, I miss it again," our little group bonded by the lake under the stars.

Starr King and places like Loon Lake inspire us to see the world from a higher point and feel the everlasting presence of God.
"Believe in them, for they are the mountain-principles and alter-piles of life," he said in sermon Lessons from the Sierra Nevada, "Breathe the air that is freshened on their heights. Drink of the streams that flow fresh from the channels in their sides. And in every season of doubt, temptation, or despair, lift up thine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh thy help."

If you want to go Current Adventures Kayak School and Trips 
PHONE: 530-333-9115 or Toll-Free: 888-452-9254
FAX: 530-333-1291
USPS: Current Adventures, P.O. Box 828, Lotus, CA 95651
info@currentadventures.com
owner Dan Crandall dan@kayaking.com

A Federal Judge Reinstates the Clean Water Rule for 26 States

Last week, A federal judge issued a nationwide injunction on the Trump administration's order delaying the Clean Water Rule, making the Obama-era regulation applicable in the 26 states that have not blocked it, E&E News reported.
The United States District Court in South Carolina found that the Environmental Protection Agency had violated rule-making procedures in delaying the regulation, also known as the Waters of the U.S. rule, which protects wetlands and tributaries under the Clean Water Act. Previously, a federal judge ruled in favor of states seeking to get out of these regulations.
Environmental groups call this a huge victory in their lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s attempt to suspend the Clean Water Rule. American Rivers President Bob Irvin wrote on their website, "This was a tremendous win for protecting rivers, wetlands and clean drinking water nationwide. The court made clear that the Trump administration cannot ignore the law, science, or the views of the American people in its rush to undermine protection of rivers and clean water."
The federal district court’s decision is not the final word. The Trump administration or industry will likely appeal the decision, other litigation is ongoing, and the administration will undoubtedly continue its efforts to repeal and replace the Clean Water Rule.