[Pictures here.]

Since I didn’t quite finish Section 6, we came up with a plan that was light on hiking (for those with whining tendencies) but high on views and interest.

First we stopped by the Taylor Creek Visitor’s Center, to see if the salmon were running the stream yet.  The unique Kokanee salmon turn bright red and return to this creek to spawn each fall, and I thought we might see a few along the Rainbow Trail.  Alas, we were a few weeks too early for the salmon, and just saw a few trout and bluegill.

However, the path which winds through aspen groves punctuating a grassy meadow wasn’t without interest.  I was especially intrigued by the aspen bark, not just the old carvings scabbed over until many are unreadable and delightfully abstract, but also the natural scars associated with old branches, shaped like Count Olaf’s ankle tattoo.

After that, we drove up to Echo Lake to take the water taxi to the far end of Echo Lake, only to find that the season had just ended and the last boat was headed up the driveway towards it’s winter storage.  A helpful resident named Steve agreed to give us a lift to the far end anyway, and we had a nice walk back only the granite massif constituting the north shore of the lake, admiring the diminutive cabins (accessible by water only) tucked in around the shore.

Again the air, sky and light were pristine, the terrain exquisite, and the ancient flora fascinating.  I could go on and on, but you really just had to be there - or as a poor substitute look at the pictures.

After that I did the short bit left up from Echo Lake to Echo Summit, where I started the previous day, completing the entire section, plus a little bonus mileage.

[Mileage: 142.0 | 4.5 (not including the boat ;-)]

[Pictures here.]

Fall temperatures come quickly in the high country.  We managed to set aside three days to do the Echo Lakes to Barker Pass section (Section 7), in which the four of us would do 15 miles, and I’d do another 16 on my own.  But nighttime temperatures forecast around 13 degrees stretched the limit of our gear, and exceeded the limit of our enthusiasm (except for mine ;-).

In the end we opted to try for day-hiking only, taking on the shorter Section 6, from Echo Summit to Big Meadow.  I would start at Echo Summit, make good time around to Round Lake, where I’d meet the rest of the crew coming in for an afternoon hike.

My "early start" by the time we got going, got bagels, got there, got the trekking poles I noticed I’d left in the car three minutes into the hike, turned into a "midmorning start" (10:30).  I took off at a good clip, and quite quickly found that acclimatizing a month ago doesn’t do much good.  I was sucking air big time, nursing a headpounder, and going slower and slower for the first couple of hours.

Maybe it was my state, but the scenery wasn’t much to distract me, though I found a few amazing trees and rock formations.  And it all felt pretty much uphill.

After 5 miles or so though, the trail emerges from the forest into the broad bowl of the Upper Truckee River, surrounded by ridges of volcanic conglomerate, with rounded granite outcroppings bubbling up through the meadows and low willow stands.  Still a few snow fields along the rims, feeding rushing brooks that cross the trail at regular intervals - some sporting evidence of recent freezing activity.

Until this point, my photographs were excuses for a few second breather, but now, with head cleared and breath returned, I had to slow down to take shots every few hundred yards.  The air was stunningly transparent, especially after living for a week in the haze of the Ralston Fire.  The profusion of wildflowers present earlier in the year has largely given way, to mature grasses fading to a bronzy gold, and the terrain and vegetation changed every few dozen yards, the incredible variety keeping me, and my camera, moving along.

I came upon Showers Lake at 10 minutes to two (putting me an hour or two behind my overly optimistic schedule.)  Not expecting much from the rather lame pictures in The Tahoe Rim Trail Guide (I’ve become convinced the photos they chose are intended not to inspire with the prime scenes, but not to give away the "endings"), I found Showers Lake surprisingly beautiful.  Although most of the lakes I’ve encountered on the trail have something special about them, this is definitely one of the worthiest of repeat visits!

I twisted my knee slightly just before reaching the lake, but only allowed it a 10 minute rest since I was feeling time pressure.  So on I went, this time gently downhill for the next five miles, much of which was through the broad golden Meiss Meadows, largely golden at this time of year, with the Upper Truckee bordered by willow patches meandering through them.  At the southernmost part of the trail (and of the whole Rim Trail) are a couple of "Cowboy Cabins", apparently leftover from the days of running cattle in the high country for the summer.  Now that would be a great summer job!

I pulled up to Round Lake at 3:30, found my kids swinging from a tree, and had a snack and (finally) a bit of  a break.  My plan to spend the morning making mileage and the afternoon with the kids had gotten skewed pretty badly, as the sun was already slanting ever more steeply into the west.

I made good use of my trekking poles in favoring my knee through bouldery patches, as we wound back down through Big Meadow, with it’s remaining photo ops, and back to the camper.  Cleaned up a little and went out for fajitas - then made our way to a campground at Emerald Bay for a cozy night (the camper has a thermostat-controlled heater) of the game Settlers of Catan and a long sleep.

I can’t quite call this section complete without the Echo Lake to Echo Summit bit, but I plan to do that in the morning.

All-in-all, after well over 100 miles, I’m still amazed at the beauty and variety of this trail.  And I suspect the best parts, through Desolation Valley, are still ahead.

[Mileage: 137.5 | 15.3]

Wow, amazing it’s been over a month since my last post.  The end of summer and start of school have been jam packed with activity, making it hard to find time to do any writing.

Add to that the fact that my laptop gradually spiraled downward into an early grave, so we’ve had four family members competing hotly for computing resources solidly from dawn till midnight.  Only the essentials get priority!

But, I and my new laptop are back, with lots of summer news, photos and stories to belatedly post for my readers (or possibly reader, or possibly just myself.)