Palm Spring Aerial Tram Snow Day

DAY THREE HUNDRED AND FORTY ONE

I work with a bunch of guys from Minnesota and they don't get the excitement Californians feel about going to the snow. They never want to see snow again. I, though, grew up less than five miles from the beach so snow is still holds a certain novelty to me. Whenever snow falls in the local mountains, I'm there.

The Tram really needs to get some ice scrapers for their cars. It's really tough to see out but I get the impression that there's plenty of snow today.

Getting out at the upper station I find that no one has decided to go out and test the elements. Do they know something that perhaps I don't?

As I make my way down the ramp, the snow is coming down hard and the wind is howling.

I don't have enough time to go too far so I just take a hike around Long Valley. The interpretive signs aren't going to do me much good today, though.

Crossing the stream won't be much of a problem but it's tough to follow the trail. I keep tripping on logs and rocks buried under the snow.

I think about heading over to the Desert View Trail but there's no point. Visibility is a couple hundred yards at most.

I make my way around to where on a normal day there would be a view of the desert below; that's not possible today. I decide to make my way back to the Tram because it's cold, with the wind chill it's about 0º.

I get about halfway up the ramp and am passed by a Bobcat coming down to clear the snow. Thanks for deciding to do that when I'm done.

Out of the wind it's a balmy 24º. I almost feel like taking my shirt off.

All the decorations are up and with the snow it really feels like the holidays. There's no need to dream of a White Christmas. Just head up to the Tram.

Where The Heart Is

DAY ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY NINE

With the family still in San Bernardino, where we spent last night, I came home and went to work this morning. Harrison had a game at 2 p.m. and if his team won the game they'd have another at 8. Since his team hasn't won a game yet, I was fully expecting the family home early. So I headed up to the Tram and figured I'd go for a nice little 6 or 8 mile hike and then head home.

I get off the Tram at a little after 5 p.m. and am delighted to see the mountain covered in shade. I always come in the morning so it surprises me that it's shady this early. Of course, I then found out it is only due to this cloud blocking the sun.

I head down to Long Valley with the intention of hiking over to Willow Creek. I notice, however, that my wife called and so I instead decide to head over somewhere I can get some cell phone reception. I decide to take the Desert View Trail. Once I talk to the wife I can always come back.

I take the Desert View Trail over to where I get a view of the Coachella Valley and some cell phone reception. I call the wife and she's staying in Crestline. Harrison's team won their game by forfeit and will now be playing tonight. The funny thing is that they are playing Coachella. So they travel all the way to the mountains above San Bernardino and play a team from the city next door. At least it's cool up there.

It is also cool up here and with incredible views. I get a glimpse of Long View Dome over to my right and decide that I'll just head over that way instead of going back and then going to Willow Creek.

Long View Dome is this great big rock that can be seen from the Coachella Valley. It is several hundred feet high and has a fun moderate rock climb on it that I did years ago. From the upper side, it's little more than a class 3-4 scramble to get to the top and the views from it are tremendous.

I hike down Long Creek Canyon but realize that I went a bit too low and have to do some scrambling to get to where I can get to the top of the Dome.

In the process I get a couple of scratches on my legs but that's OK. My wife will know I had a great adventure.

The North Face of the Dome is steep and difficult but there are other easier sections. I find this ramp simple and it leads me to a little saddle where I get a nice view looking toward home.

From the saddle all I have to do is scramble up this little section and I'm on top. No biggie. I've done it before. Yet, today I just don't feel right about it. With the deaths of middle aged men dominating the news the past couple of days, I consider the risk. Also, on my FaceBook page this morning, I read about how one of the girls I taught in Sunday School about thirty years ago lost her husband to a heart attack just the other day. He was out surfing.

There is probably a .0001% chance that I'll slip and hurt something. But even if I just sprain my ankle, being out here alone, where no one knows I am, and with my family in another range of mountains miles away, I'd be in trouble. I decide to forgo the scramble, at least for today. This one time, having a surfeit of caution seems to make sense. I'll come back with a friend sometime and do the climb later.

I'll have to be satisfied with this view for now. I say a prayer for Kimmie and her family and head back. On any other day I'd feel like a wuss for not doing the final section of this climb but today I feel very much at peace. Doing the final hundred feet doesn't seem nearly as important today as getting home.