Hike Beyond The Hills - #HikeBeyondTheHills

06/22/2025

And we’re off! Meet and Greet Hike of my Patagonia crew as we commenced our training for the 5-days 50miles W Trek backpacking in November. This was probably the only time we will all be in the same state. Two of our crew hail all the way from Maryland!

06/21/2025

⛰️Mount Islip (8,251’) has been on my list and we finally made it. It was gorgeous day on the trail with lots of wildflowers🌷🌼 in bloom! It was steady climb all the way to the top. It also got hot 🥵 on our way down.
Mount Islip via Windy Gap Trailhead.
Total 8.72 miles, total elevation gained 2,402’, total 1,484 kcal burned.

10/29/2024

Detoured to Alabama Hills in Lone Pine before drive home. What gorgeous day to also get a glimpse of the majestic Mt. Whitney 🏔️! Then lunch at . .

10/27/2024

☑️ . I needed Fiona🐎 to get this one done. (Not really, but it was more fun this way).😅
Lake Crowley Columns is a unique geological formation in the Mammoth area at Lake Crowley, off Hwy 395. It was a thrilling 4WD to TH, then a steep 1/2 mile hike on loose sandy terrain down to the beach area where the columns are.

**Crowley Lake Columns are made of volcanic rock and were formed over 760,000 years ago as a result of a massive volcanic eruption. The columns are up to 20 feet tall and connected by high arches, and they have been compared to the ruins of an ancient Moorish temple. They had been buried and hidden for eons until the reservoir’s pounding waves began carving out the softer material at the base of cliffs of pumice and ash.

The volcanic blast was 2,000x larger than the 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens, which created the Long Valley Caldera, a massive 10-by-2-mile sink that includes the Mammoth Lakes area. It also covered much of the eastern Sierra Nevada range with a coarse volcanic tuff, or ash fall.

The columns began forming as snowmelt seeped into the still hot tuff. The water boiled, creating “evenly spaced convection cells similar to heat pipes,” according to the study to be presented next month in San Francisco at an American Geophysical Union meeting, the world’s largest conference in geophysical sciences.

Analyses by X-rays and electronic microscopes of samples of the columns found that tiny spaces in these convection pipes were cemented into place by erosion-resistant minerals.”

#395

10/26/2024

Chased some Fall colors 🍁🧡🍂 in the Sierras.

10/24/2024

We spied the comet 👀 💫
C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS). A once in a lifetime sighting.
NASA: “As of October 14, 2024, the comet’s path may take it out of the solar system altogether.” 😲
📸

10/02/2024

We embarked on a 4-days camping adventure and wellness getaway on Santa Cruz Island and invited some of my favorite adventure women. My sister Angel , a therapist in Seattle, led our daily circle of reflection. Afterwards, I shared my knowledge as a nurse on self-care focusing on our often neglected “roots” which are our feet 👣 that carry us for miles and miles as hikers.

My goal was to create fun and immersive experiences in nature, and instead made paths to beautiful strong sisterhood connection and healed our broken hearts 💔. Our lives are full of disappointments and hurt, and this was exactly what we all needed to be whole 🩷 again.

09/25/2024

Hi Guys,
This is the latest update on trail closures per USFS. The Angeles National Forest has issued a Bridge Fire Area Closure Order from September 21, 2024, through December 31, 2025. 😭
https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/angeles/alerts-notices/?aid=90800

09/04/2024

Our road trip from Mt. Rainier NP to Leavenworth, WA (quaint German-themed town) to hike to an alpine lake, Colchuck Lake (5,570’)—one of the two gateways of the infamous The Enchantments in the Cascade Mtns. Backpacking The Enchantments is on my bucket list. So this was kind of a beta test for that. The final ascent to the lake is steep and ROUGH (check out the rock strewn trail pics), but worth the spectacular scenery.
Total 9.5 miles round trip with 2629’ elevation gained.

08/25/2024

Meanwhile back in …
Summer travels took us back to the beautiful Washington state. We explored 2 days at . It was our first time here. This mountain makes her own weather. You’re lucky if she shows up. Alas, it was foggy, cloudy and cold when we hiked. Nevertheless so beautiful with all the wildflowers and plenty of sweet wild Huckleberries to snack on during the hike. We did see 👀 the glorious Mount Rainier from above the sky.✈️
Day 1: Skyline Loop, total 6.5 miles with 2000’ total ascent.
Day 2: Naches Loop, total 4.5 miles with 1000’ total ascent.

07/13/2024

📣‼️Hi Guys, FYI trail closures due to per order of NF effective July 12 through Oct 31, 2024 including Mt. Baldy, Cucamonga Peak, Ontario Peak, etc. See below link for details. 😢

Please see the link regarding closure of Forest for Mt. Baldy

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd1188943.pdf

07/04/2024

Oh Colorado, you got me living my mountain life ⛰️.

Checked a ☑️bucket list to climb the infamous vertical climb of The Manitou Incline—no joke, it is straight up! It is recently ranked #2 on the Forbe’s Most Physically Demanding Tourist Spots in the world! It is training ground for seasoned incliners, Olympic Athletes (US Olympic headquarter is nearby) and for military training for Army and USAF.
Athletes’ record to climb incline is 23 minutes, but avg people take 1-1.5 hours. The climb start at elevation 6,500’ and end at 8,600’, with total elevation gained 2,001’ in 0.88 mile, total 2,768 flights of stairs. Its average steep grade is 45% (24°) and steepest at 68% (34°). Literally using all 4 to climb steepest parts.
Temp was hot when I did it, in the upper 80s (cooler as I got higher elevation). It took me 3 hours round trip, total 4.2 miles, burned 1,223 total kcal.⛰️💪🥵
The Incline was originally a funicular, built in 1907, as a tourist attraction. There was a summit house at the top but burned down in 1914. It was rebuilt and remained until it was dismantled after the Incline’s closure. The funicular operated until a rock slide in 1990 washed out the rail bed and the Cog Railway decided to not repair the tracks. It has since grown in popularity as a hiking trail and fitness challenge. In 2014, massive repair and maintenance were done to allow for safer hiking condition.