It's only going to get rougher

SA Guides: Bailey Bridge, Roaring River Falls, Hotel Creek/Lewis Creek loop, Grizzly Falls

One of my favorite places is Kings Canyon. In spring the lengthy drive along the south fork of the Kings River through the canyon can be exhilarating. I swear I get a rush every time we roll through with the windows down; listening to, inhaling, and feeling the power of the whitewater as we snake along the river on our way to Cedar Grove.

No one likes to see a cherished possession tarnished. And it was with mixed feelings that I recently discovered how my 1/300 millionth share of this place had been diminished by the huge Rough Fire in 2015. "Mixed" in part because even though I understand the ecological necessity of fire and recovery, it still felt like something I care about had been harmed. But also, and more consequentially, because I no longer have the confidence that, as used to be the case, these damaged forests will ever be the same again.

Laura and I drove up to Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park for a long weekend. We planned to camp in Grant Grove because the drive down to Cedar Grove was going to add extra road time to an already abbreviated trip. But after a huge (and chilly) bank of clouds rolled in we opted for what we hoped would be sunnier digs 45 minutes east in Kings Canyon. It turned out to be a good decision, and we gratefully grabbed one of a number of available campsites in Sentinel Campground. (It always amazes me that we have so little trouble getting a campsite here in this spectacular place - even midday Saturday - but keep that under your hat.)

After shaking off the rust of the drive by visiting Bailey Bridge on the Wood's Creek trail, then taking the short walk to beautiful Roaring River Falls, we headed back to our campsite for some dinner and a campfire. Unfortunately our plans were interrupted by a British couple in an RV who suggested that we were squatting on their campsite (actually, they were quite nice, and we later shared drinks and conversation around the fire). We haven't yet deduced the cause of the mix-up, but as best we can tell a ranger must have mistakenly removed their tag from the site before we arrived to claim it.

In the morning we packed up our gear and drove across the bridge to the Hotel Creek trailhead, where we wanted to repeat a hike we'd taken a few years ago. The Rough Fire's effects were apparent nearly from the beginning of the hike. A few yards in the trail begins a long series of switchbacks, eventually topping out about 1400' of elevation higher on a ridge overlooking the canyon. As soon as we hit this crest we had a panoramic view of this part of the burn area. We walked a little farther along there to a half-mile spur trail which takes the hiker to the Cedar Grove Overlook, a rock outcrop with amazing views of the river, the canyon, and the mountains to the west, south and east. This time, though, we were also greeted with tremendous views of the Monarch Divide to the north. So many trees were gone, and the ones left standing denuded, that we could easily see from the Overlook a vista which had been obscured a few years earlier.

The Monarch Divide is an inspiring sight. It was one of the reasons I wanted to hike this loop again. However in this case inspiration was faintly but perceptibly suffused with melancholy. I didn't expect to gain the Monarch Divide view until later in the hike. But there it was in all its glory, backdrop for a foreground of ravaged woodland.

We continued on, returning along the spur, then traveling north up and over a few ridges and finally connecting with the Lewis Creek trail. Laura thoroughly enjoyed the wildflowers that were erupting in the wake of the fire and the moist fullness of a wet winter. But as we trudged down the descending trail with the breeze rising we were sobered by the ash-infused dust raised with every footfall.

We spoke with a park official who explained to us the path and extent of the fire, and the extraordinary measures taken to avoid damage to life and property. He was effusive about this winter's abundant rain and hopeful that the alleviation of the drought would help improve the health of the trees and the conditions for regrowth. I hate to rain on any parade, especially this one, but I'm not so sure.

The drought is surely partly to blame. But the drought is not over - we're now in year sixteen - and it's looking as if it could last quite a bit longer. Drought is the product of a complex set of environmental and meteorological factors, and it is simply a fact that the meteorological factors in California, and everywhere else, are changing. Climate change is amplifying drought here, monsoon rains there, bitter cold and blizzard conditions elsewhere. To see the evidence of these changes in Kings Canyon merely requires a glance up to the hillsides pockmarked with rust-colored victims of the bark beetle - an infestation intensified by shorter winters and warmer average temperatures.

I hope to return to Kings Canyon often, and walk the Hotel Creek trail/Lewis Creek trail loop which was, and still is, a beautiful hike. But, at least for me, it's more than that now, it's also a cautionary tale. I've always escaped to the desert/mountains/chaparral/ocean to be surrounded by natural beauty and forget about the concerns of modern existence. I suspect that's a luxury we (environmentalists) can no longer afford.

Maybe each and every trip to the wilderness should in some way be about protecting as well as enjoying. Because if we think it's rough now...

Info:

Bailey Bridge: Distance - 4.7 miles, Elevation range - 239', Rating - Easy
Roaring River Falls: Distance - 0.3 miles, Elevation range 172' - , Rating - Easy
Hotel Creek / Lewis Creek loop: Distance - 7.4 miles, Elevation range - 1817' , Rating - Moderate-Difficult
Grizzly Falls: Distance - 0.1 miles, Elevation range - 83', Rating - Easy

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