Dusy-Ershim September 9

Dusy-Ershim September 9 - 14 2004

Moose and Squirrel do "Dusty"-Ershim... OR... "Watch out for that tree!"

Dusy-Ershim... one of the truly great trails of the California Sierra Nevada! It is comparable to the famous Rubicon in difficulty and scenic beauty, but is over 3 times longer (33 miles).
Steve (Moose) and Mark (Squirrel) made a post Labor Day trip that spanned 5 nights and 6 days on this awesome trail. Originally 3 other rigs (Fred, Brian, and Guy) were planning on going, but had to back out for various reasons.

Click here to see the story of "Moose and Squirrel"

The trail can be done in 3 days (or even 2 very long days) but Steve and Mark wanted to take their time and savor the beauty and isolation of this incredible back country trail.

The weather was perfect (Mid 70's during the day, Mid 30's at night) and the bugs were nonexistent. The only problem with going late season was that the trail dust was very bad! Luckily, we were a small group. Unfortunately for Steve, his exhaust pointed toward the ground!

The following pages contain images and dialog meant to convey the essence and spirit of this great trail!
Click on the thumbnailed images for a larger view.
12 pages of thumbnailed images follow this one, with text describing the trail and our trip.
The arrows will take you to the next page/image, or to the beginning or end page.
The "up" facing arrow will take you from a large image back to a thumbnail page.
"Double Arrows" take you to the beginning or end.

Day 1: Courtright Reservoir to Thompson Lake
Day 2: Thompson Lake, hike to the top of Thompson Pass (10,281 feet) and the 2 overlooks on either end.
Day 3: Thompson Lake to Rodeo Meadow and a scramble/hike up Black Peak (9,772 feet).
Day 4: The base of Black Peak to Ershim Lake.
Day 5: Ershim Lake to near the end of the trail.
Day 6: Finish trail, Kaiser Pass to Huntington Lake, Fresno, and Home.


Begin Day 1: Voyager Rock	The view North up the trail from Voyager Rock, the domes above Dusy Meadows visible in the distance	Moose 2/3 of the way up Chicken Rock	Squirrel 1/2 of the way up Chicken Rock	A typical Dusy-Ershim obstacle- rocks that push you into trees (note the yellow scars on the tree...)

Awesome granite domes rise to the East above Dusy Meadows	This beautiful dome is visible for many miles as you travel up Dusy Creek	Crossing Dusy Creek at the North end of Courtright Reservoir, Dusy Meadows		Smaller meadows magically appear through the trees as we climb toward Thompson Hill

	A closer view of the un-named dome mentioned previously (can you see the face of a Mountain Man?)		Squirrel's only damage of the trip occurred when trying to back up and pull off the trail for lunch... just missed the tail light (thank God)	The offending tree (center)