Lone Peak - July 14, 2021

[scatman]

It's belated because I was up at Bear Lake, and although Idaho really does have cell service these days, I was blissfully unconnected while the mosquitos munched on my ankles and I gazed at turquoise blue waters.

Happy Birthday!

A brief synopsis of my peanut adventure:
It's too bad that I was a day early, not knowing you shared the birthday with Bastille day, so I broke away from watching The Tour, packed up a single 12oz bottle of water, 7 moon pies, and a full bag of circus peanuts, and started on my way a day too early. Then, at about 5000' under the first mahogany tree, I had to eat the first moon pie just to do quality control while I chased a grouse up the trail.
At 6200' in a beautiful patch of maples I sat in the shade, started to take a nap on the trail, and was rudely attacked by four trail runner pirates with lulu lemon leggings, tutus and eye patches that demanded ransom for my survival, since I was sleeping in their shade. I offered them some moon pies and they tore out about half the bag of peanuts, scattering them among the wild sweet pea flowers and next to a rattlesnake. They only eat and drink sugar substitutes, like ones that start with diet, and so they were not happy. Once they finally passed downhill I gingerly gathered a few peanuts, dusted them off and crawled up the trail.

At 7349' precisely, I sat down and ate the other half dozen moon pies that I had previously frozen for freshness, had successfully kept from my attackers, and had been using to ice the wounds left by the hoka shoe prints that the lulu lemon pirates left on my back. After I had eaten, I had thought to go on, but was puckered out. So I gingerly tied the peanut bag to a passing coyote who says he swore off sugar, and he must have dropped them where you found them. Either that or they were not the peanuts I left you at all!
How did you feel after you ate them?

Then I crawled back home and woke up at Bear Lake.

Next year though, I will get it right and carry some Swig drinks and cookies as offerings to the lulu lemon pirates, and I will be waiting wherever, with a banana moon pie for your birthday. Just give me the right place and I can remember Bastille day. I will be waiting before 7am.

Thanks for the birthday wishes @Ugly.

Loved your response. Trail runner pirates with lulu lemon leggings, tutus and eye patches - cracked me up! Do you know if these pirates roam the whole Wasatch, or do they just stick to the Lone Peak/Lone Peak Wilderness area?

So the true peanut story is this: My daughter likes to crochet, and two weeks ago she ran to Michaels to get some more yarn for a blanket she is making. When she got back she said, "Guess what they sell at Michaels?' I said, "I don't know, what?" She said, "Circus Peanuts!" Why a craft store would sell them, I'm not sure, but I told her that we had to go back and buy a bag so that we could take some up Lone Peak with us. I took most of the peanuts out of the bag ( I think I left eight), because I didn't want to haul the whole bag with me on the hike. We each ate one each at the Outlaw Cabin (might be why upper willow creek was so tough on me ), and on the summit, again where the connector trail intersected with the Cherry Canyon Logging Trail, and the last two when we got back to our car at the trailhead.

 

[Ugly]

Loved your response. Trail runner pirates with lulu lemon leggings, tutus and eye patches - cracked me up! Do you know if these pirates roam the whole Wasatch, or do they just stick to the Lone Peak/Lone Peak Wilderness area?

They are spreading... I saw some at the Crack in the Wall trailhead on my way out last year. They did come from my neck of the woods though, so maybe they were tracking me down even then.

Nice on the circus peanuts!

Also, for the trip report itself, sorry that you missed out on the spring at Bear Canyon, it is flowing, and you could have gone lighter on the water bottles- which was probably contributing the head of Little Willow pain.
Isn't that little break in the canyon wall you pictured at the top of Little Willow awesome? and then on the way out it's like granite slickrock. Dropping too fast and missing the trail is common, I have done the same.
Glad you got to see a different path up that mountain.

 

[scatman]

They are spreading... I saw some at the Crack in the Wall trailhead on my way out last year. They did come from my neck of the woods though, so maybe they were tracking me down even then.

Nice on the circus peanuts!

Also, for the trip report itself, sorry that you missed out on the spring at Bear Canyon, it is flowing, and you could have gone lighter on the water bottles- which was probably contributing the head of Little Willow pain.
Isn't that little break in the canyon wall you pictured at the top of Little Willow awesome? and then on the way out it's like granite slickrock. Dropping too fast and missing the trail is common, I have done the same.
Glad you got to see a different path up that mountain.

Yes, that is a great view and worth the steep climb to get to it. Thanks for recommending Trail of the Eagle.

 

[Bob]

Take the week off from hiking.......... or I wont be able to keep up with you up here......

 

[scatman]

Take the week off from hiking.......... or I wont be able to keep up with you up here......

Clearly you have never backpacked with me @Bob . My pack will be twice as heavy as yours, I stop and take pictures every couple of minutes (both @TractorDoc and @Jackson can vouch for that), and I've got a bum left knee that has been a little sore after Lone Peak. So stop and wait for me every once in awhile if you would please.

 

[Bob]

And Im almost 70............

 

[ridings82]

Awesome way to celebrate and great pictures. Jacob's Ladder is relentless. I hope to make it back up to Lone Peak myself someday. Perhaps for 57...

 

[WasatchWill]

Congrats on 57! That's a good one! The summit that is. I have no experience with being 57 yet. Scariest scramble I've ever done for a summit actually. Thought it would cure my fear of heights once I was on top, but it didn't.

 

[scatman]

Congrats on 57! That's a good one! The summit that is. I have no experience with being 57 yet. Scariest scramble I've ever done for a summit actually. Thought it would cure my fear of heights once I was on top, but it didn't.

I'm pretty sure that I was a little more cautious at 57 than I was at 48 or 32 on the scramble section.