Kings Canyon National Park 06/2009

[Good Times]

Had a great time spending time away from civilization by going to Kings Canyon National Park this past weekend with a few good buddies!

Since everyone loves photos more than reading here's a few photos to start us off!
Boys will be boys showing who's number 1! :chair: The tent in the back is my latest addition to my camping equipment. It's a Mountain Hardware Casa 6 with the footprint and rain fly. Sleeps 6 and also has a great feature of being able to stand inside! It's pretty big and surprisingly it sets up a lot easier than my crappy 2 pole 3 person tent. I think it took Bob and myself all of a few minutes? Taking it down was just as easy too!
http://www.chaosedition.com/photogallery/images/kings%20canyon/2009-06-21/DSC_5499.jpg

What's a trip without showing the toys :P Each site had room for 2 vehicles so we had to get creative in making sure Chris' trailer fits. If you guys are wondering who's green 4runner that is... it's mine and it runs so don't even start mocking me that it's just a virtual truck that never hits the trail. See that dirt below! Trail ready baby! :flipoff:
http://www.chaosedition.com/photogallery/images/kings%20canyon/2009-06-21/DSC_5504.jpg

This trip was designed to be a weekend away from civilization. We had zero intentions of doing anything. When's the last time you got to do nothing away from home? The weather was great and well worth just relaxing. Chris got a new game so we had to give it a whirl. The game is called Bocce Ball. If you don't know what it is, it's a great game where you try to toss/throw/roll your ball closest to a golf ball sized market. The ball you throw is roughly the size of a softball. It's a great game and definitely killed some time :)
http://www.chaosedition.com/photogallery/images/kings%20canyon/2009-06-21/DSC_5508.jpg

mmm Friday night dinner! Shrimp while camping? Hell yeah! Yup we had to splurge! Found a great recipe on AllRecipes.com (http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Marinated-Grilled-Shrimp/Detail.aspx). I changed the recipe a bit by replacing tomato sauce with tomato paste and added some Worcestershire sauce, oregano, rice wine vinegar and some plain jane red wine. Just got lazy trying to mix up the exact recipe so I just threw everything I can find in the cabinet that was close enough to it. I didn't tell my victims on the fubar recipe but surprisingly it tasted damn good! :tapedshut: Boiled up some twisty pasta and it was a complete meal! O yeah we have some hot dogs for Jack and also some side fixings!
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9305.jpg

Nature at its finest...
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9308.jpg

I've seen black bears but never a deer! Way cool!!!
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9309.jpg

Saturday night dinner.... Linguica! Man this stuff was spicy but holy batman was it good! Not pictured here was Bob's sloppy joe. Sloppy joe for camp? yeah we're not normal :P we love to eat just about anything you don't expect while camping! It was awesome! Bob, thanks for the recipe!!! The 3 alum items were corn.... mmmm corn on the cob!
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9314.jpg

Bob doing.... (umm... work...) :confused: I'm glad all of my work requires a computer and internet. I was screwed cuz we had zero service out there :D If you look closely at the grill, we're heating up some apple pie. You know what they say about "warm apple pie" right? :chair:
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9315.jpg

That's where the two rivers meet! This was on the way out of Kings Canyon. Can you believe we were somewhere near the base of the river to the top right?
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9324.jpg

I think Jack spotted a black bear! o wait it's just Chris on the other side!
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9329.jpg

What's a trip out to the wild without hitting some dirt? This part was totally unplanned but we had a few curious campers nearby checking out of trucks. He came by with his wife to comment about a trail he hit with his ATV that we would enjoy. We checked out the details on our maps and determined it would be a nice short trail on the way out/home. The trail was located just north of Hume lake so it was pretty cool. The trail wasn't difficult but I'd rate it as moderately difficult. For the hardcore guys it'd be a walk in the park but for some stockers or mildly built rigs it'll be perfect! Lots of steep incline/decline sections that ranged between 30-35 degrees! A few rocky sections but nothing like a Rubicon trail. The trail was great overall with lots of nice backcountry areas to camp and also the view was spectacular! I think I need to paint my hood. The dull finish just doesn't look good. blah!
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9332.jpg

Tunnel Log...
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9334.jpg

Man I barely fit! (well maybe over-exaggerating but still it seemed like a few inches to spare!)
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9337.jpg

Moro Dome... Who's dumb idea was this? I forget the details but it's a few hundred steps up and I must say it's a really long way up. I overheard it's 4-500 steps? Regardless it was painful!
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9338.jpg

But when we got to the top.... man what a view!
http://www.chaosedition.com/photogallery/images/kings%20canyon/2009-06-21/DSC_5522.jpg

http://www.chaosedition.com/photogallery/images/kings%20canyon/2009-06-21/DSC_5525.jpg

We all brought our mountain bikes so we had some great time riding. We didn't ride far but did get to explore other camp grounds so we can plan for next year's trip! We relaxed by the rivers while we were there, throwing rocks and even playing in the chilled water. The river was moving swiftly so I'd say it's probably not "swim" friendly when we were there. I'm sure as the summer rolls around it'll be better.

This place rocks! We loved it so much that we're definitely going to do this again!

Thanks for checking out our vacation!

[Robinhood4x4]

Nice pics lance.

[DHC6twinotter]

I hate this forum. Every time I see threads like this, it makes me wish I lived out there. :D

[4x4mike]

Looks like you guys had a good time. I'm jealous. I'm sure that by next year we'll be good to go.

[RobG]

Looks like a great trip but then again I've never had a bad trip to Kings Canyon, one of our favorite places.

Thanks for sharing.

[Good Times]

If you guys are planning to visit Kings Canyon NP and want to stay at Cedar Grove, we recommend the following campground sites:

Sentinel Campground (4600ft elev)
#19 - 95% shaded and features a flat surface for multiple tents
#20 & 21 - 80% shaded and has a generous amount of flat areas for large tents similar to #19
Both sites are right by the river so it's really sweet! Don't recall where the facilities and the water faucet was located but the site itself was so awesome we didn't care!

Sheep Creek Campground (4600ft elev)
#59 - 40% shaded and has a generous flat area for 2 large tents.
$60 - 60% shaded and has a few generous flat areas for multiple tents.
The river is about 75 yards away. Has a water faucet nearby for collecting water for general usage around the camp site(s). The facilities is about 150 yards away from #58.

The site we stayed at was Sheep Creek #58.

The above info is all based on my crappy memory so hopefully Chris will post up with additional info :) Next time we go back we plan to try and get that Sentinel site.

[slosurfer]

We had a blast! Jack had fun and didn't want to leave.

I'm going to have to put a mountain bike on my xmas wish list now since I borrowed a bike (thanks David) and we rode around the campgrounds. It was a lot of fun. I also took our Burley so I was towing Jack around too. Surprisingly I wasn't as sore as I thought I would be. I haven't been bike riding in about 6yrs.

Sitting around doing nothing was awesome! Bocce Ball was fun and I'll definately have that out to play at the Pismo Jamboree.

The food was definately one of the highlights! Lance made some awesome shrimp and Bob made a mean sloppy joe. We didn't get a pic of our big breakfast, because we were all busy cooking it and eating it. :D Eggs, Bacon, Tortillas, Fried Potatoes w/ Vidalia Onions :drool: Probably my favorite meal of all time. Of course the bacon is done first because you need all that lovely grease to cook the rest. :thumbup:

Kings Canyon is cool because there is so much to do on your way home if you leave early enough. Just the drive into and out of the canyon is an adventure in itself.
Hwy 180 heading out of Kings Cyn:
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9321.jpg

I had promised Jack a hike and he did great on Moro Dome. I was fully expecting to have to carry him for some of it, but he did the whole thing and didn't complain at all. I thought for sure he would be tuckered out and sleep for the ride home. Nope! he fell asleep for about 30mins when we were almost home. I listened to the same damn kids music cd the whole trip. :flipoff: It was worth it though. :thumbup:

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e113/slosurfer27/Trips/Kings%20Cyn%20NP%20June%2009/IMG_9339.jpg

The little trail we did was fun and scenic and just enough hard stuff thrown in to keep you on your toes (especially while towing a trailer). Hardest part was finding our way back to the hwy since my map didn't have all the NF roads labeled so it looked like the way out was the wrong road. By process of elimination and a few crazy uturns with the trailer and we figured it out. :laugh:

Can't wait to go back. It would be cool to do a week and do a few days down in the cyn and a few days up on top in the Sequoias.

[Scuba]

Psstt, Hey, Pssst.
Thanks for the invite guys :flipoff:

Im assuming it was sorta a get together and plan some shiat for pismo..

Looks like a great time guys :bling:

[slosurfer]

Hey Bob, how did your pics turn out? hint-hint :laugh:

[YotaFun]

I hate this forum. Every time I see threads like this, it makes me wish I lived out there. :D


Thats how I feel Dan...

[Bob98SR5]

I dont know what you two gaylords were taking pics of, but I got one of Inga from Sweden? Norway? Awe who knows, but here she is:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/ingafromsweden-1.jpg

Ok so back to the beginning. Lance let me borrow his cot. Damn dude, I'm getting one of these. I slept so well. In fact, for about 3 weeks prior, I hadn't slept more than 5 hrs each night b/c of work. This cot was the cure:
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/cot.jpg

My wife's sloppy joes. Not the canned version, but Rachel Ray's version w/ less sugar since she found it too sweet and I am trying to cut back on the white stuff:

http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/sloppy.jpg

So I took a little vid shots here and there. Listen to the heavy breathing (not me, I'm in reasonably good shape unlike Chris and "Heavy Pantin'" Lance, but also listen to the very end. Had we only known what happened to our good friend from Sacto:

<embed width="448" height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" src="http://i176.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/prettypatethic.flv">

We found a little mud pit with decently steep up and downs. Looked like the Iraqi Army set up some burms here! Not to worry, our former Marine here took his 3.0Slow and his military trailer through this and conquered this beotch:

<embed width="448" height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" src="http://i176.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/thebeast-7128.flv">

And here's Lance's creaky green boat going through the same pit:

<embed width="448" height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" src="http://i176.photobucket.com/player.swf?file=http://vid176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/lancethrumud7130.flv">

All in all, it was a great campsite and great company as always. Lance: thanks again for rearranging your schedule to accomodate me. I really needed the break from work. Until next time...

[slosurfer]

.... Lance and I shared his cot.... I slept so well...
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/cot.jpg


I still can't figure out how you both fit in that one sleeping bag. :laugh: :flipoff:


Thanks for taking a vid of the trailer in action. :thumbup: Didn't realize how near vertical the trailer got coming out of there. :laugh: I had a lot of fun and can't wait for the next trip. We'll have to work on our Bocce Ball rules for next time.

[DHC6twinotter]

Well, I think Bob wins the best picture award. :D

[YotaFun]

.... Lance and I shared his cot.... I slept so well...



you took the words out of my mouth lol!

The vid of Chris with the trailer was sweet!

Lance did you get your suspension dialed up in the rear yet?
Also, your still running no mufflers aren't you?

[Good Times]

Went thru another round of revalving. I don't have much time to test so it'll be me some time before it's truly dialed in. Figure 10 years? haha.

As for the muffler, I threw on a Tacoma exhaust so it's nice and quiet. Sits down really low but it's a good fix for now. :)

[slosurfer]

Here are Bob's vids. Damn newbs don't know how to post links. :flipoff:


4runner and trailer
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/th_thebeast-7128.jpg (http://s176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/?action=view&current=thebeast-7128.flv)

Lance in the "tank trap"
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/th_lancethrumud7130.jpg (http://s176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/?action=view&current=lancethrumud7130.flv)

Top of Moro Dome and Lance lets Paddlenbike know what he's missing (at the time we didn't know that he was in the hospital)
http://i176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/th_prettypatethic.jpg (http://s176.photobucket.com/albums/w177/bob98sr5/Kings%20Canyon%20-%206-2009/?action=view&current=prettypatethic.flv)

[YotaFun]

Went thru another round of revalving. I don't have much time to test so it'll be me some time before it's truly dialed in. Figure 10 years? haha.

As for the muffler, I threw on a Tacoma exhaust so it's nice and quiet. Sits down really low but it's a good fix for now. :)


That works.
and yeah you time frame is somewhat realistic lol

I think I give at least the same for the Ultimate Adventures Tess lol.

Do you guys do this trip often, well at least once a year?

[Good Times]

Avy, anything I do is a slow progress :) Plus with the trailer I recently picked up the 4runner will definitely slow in terms of r&d.

We may try to do this annually. Haven't decided on what our ultimate goals are but we are definitely keeping our options open for other locations/events. :)