After riding through the open valley below I find myself ascending quickly towards the peak. The grass along the hillsides is still present as a flowing green over outstanding views of the canyon below. The timber along the upper reaches of the peak are all but burnt due to the fires of the past few years …. sad actually… as these timber stands used to represent a healthy section of forest. We’ll see what the coming years hold for recovery?
I climb only to find the gate closed and locked. Tire tracks and a view of the Lookout confirm that it is presently manned. I’m not surprised, but disappointed. I enjoy visiting the lookouts with no one around … mainly due to the fact that a lot of present day attendants are not as friendly towards visitors as they once were?
I decide to park at the gate and hike up the next few hundred yards to see what view can be had on the other side.
SW towards Mountain Home
A bit more to the Southeast from the same vantage point
Swinging over to view the South Fork Canyon
back down the road to the Northeast (Prairie)
The attendant stayed tucked away in their cabin, so I ventured no further up, but rather hiked back down to the bike to continue my day.
The road off Danskin Peak, don’t miss a turn…. you’ll end up in the river
Lookout Rd below … I remember a hunting camp we set up in the drainage to the left about 15-20 yrs ago. The area looks very much the same except for the burnt trees …
I descend the Lookout Rd rapidly and get back on course to Immigrant Rd, my connector to Hwy 20
Full throttle ….
….. to be continued (luggage by OBR ADV Gear)