June 16, 2011 - Lovers Leap

This week we had just five Geezers, Loren Gray, Sherm, Vern, Glenn and Larry, and one guest, Joseph (Larry's son-in-law). Perhaps the name Lovers Leap, or elevation gain discouraged some of the regulars or perhaps many were on vaction, who knows? Lovers Leap is in the Camp Sacramento/Twin Bridges area. The trailhead started at Strawberry on the south side of Rte 50 and went about 2 miles east to the top of Lovers Leap. There was an elevation gain from about 5800ft to 6944ft, about 1150 feet with patchy snow on the trail. Note the picture of the perfect snow bridge. As a bridge engineer, Sherm noticed it had all the requirements to be an arch bridge as all aspects of the bridge were natures best. If you didn't go on the hike, can you guess who belongs to the legs in the last photo??
Also included is a photo of Lovers Leap from the bottom. Vern showed us the base where he rock climbs. After seeing lovers leap from here, Sherm's interest in rock climbing was confirmed.
It was a great day of hiking the group rated it as a moderate hike.

June 10, 2011 - Lake Natama & Folsom Bike Trails

This week, twelve Geezers started out from the Lake Natoma Aquatic Center. Sherm planned our route around the south sie of Lake Natoma, then up through some new bike trails before stopping for an early lunch outside Rayleys in Folsom. Our return trip took us up and over the new dam road and back along the north side of Lake Natomas. Well, that was the plan, but we lost a few riders on the return when some (without permission) decided to take the south side of the lake while others took the north side. This wasn't the first time a few of us couldn't figure out where the main pack was! John Hebner, where were you when we needed you? Sherm did guarantee it would be less than 50 miles and for once he was right, it was just 21. It wasn't a long ride (in miles) but it was a great workout due to the many long uphill grades. The fellowship was great as usual. What riders, and what a team. Tour de France next up!



A Gaggle of Geezer Ducks welcome us.

June 2, 2011 - Sugar Pine Reservoir

On a cool June morning at 41 degrees F, nine Geezers hiked around Sugar Pine Reservoir in the Auburn State Recreation Area. Sugar Pine Reservoir is located near Foresthill and was about 4.5 miles around the lake at elevation 3500'. The terrain was mostly level with a few slight grades and quite easy. We stopped for lunch at one of the main river inflows to the lake. After arriving back at our cars, four Geezers, Merrill, Wayne, JD and Roland headed for home (via Auburn Foster Freeze) while five geezers (Dominic, Glenn, Larry, Loren S. and Sherm) survived the windy Iowa Hill Road and the Windy Point Trail. The trail began about a mile up the road from the crossing of the North Fork of the American River. The trail started out fairly level, but quickly began descending in toe jamming fashion toward the river below. About a mile of decending nearly 500 feet we crossed a creek coming from a side canyon with a rope stretched across the creek used by all for balance. Another 100 feet of elevation loss brought us to the river itself. After a brief rest and some pictures, we began the return trip up and up. The 600 foot climb required frequent stops to catch our breath. The wildflowers were past their prime, but there were a few left. We were certainly glad that the temperatures were in the 60's and not the usual 80's.
We were rewarded for our efforts with an ice cream stop in Colfax.

May 26, 2011 - Coloma State Park

Eight Geezers had a wonderful day today with a short hike in the historic Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park. The hike did include some up hill portions but they were short and only moderately strenuous. The high point on the hike offered great views of the surrounding area.
After the hike, we walked around the park's historic buildings, two churches and cemetery followed by lunch along side the south fork of the American River. Watching rafters drift by in icy cold water was our days entertainment. Before leaving for ice cream in Folsom, we visited the always popular park museum.