Sierra Buttes

Although it was a crystal clear day, the thermometer hovered in the thirties as six of us stepped out of the cars for the shorter route we had all opted for.  Then it hit us:  a howling north wind with gusts strong enough to knock you off balance.  We donned as many garments as we had brought, some being more prepared than others and set off, heads down, coping.  The deafening noise combined with flapping nylon from hoods and other garments made for fast hiking to the base of the stairs.  Four of us made it up the stairs with pauses during the gusts to hold on to the cold railing and catch our breaths.  On top we found someone's waterbottle completely frozen, as we would be too if we lingered too long.  Huddling in the leeward side of the lookout, we laughed as we posed for pictures in the strongest blows which Dave estimated at 70 mph.  Going down the stairs was slightly more difficult as you couldn't lean over and the last flight of stairs nearly froze our faces off.  Our smarter compatriots were huddling in the lee of the cliffs as they waited.  Then we all quickly high-tailed it for the cars.  Too cold to stop for lunch.  We drove down to Sand Pond with it's windless, sun-drenched picnic tables and magnificent view of the Buttes. There was no sign of the windstorm from which we had emerged, unscathed but quite chilled.  After lunch we took a more leisurely stroll around the area on a boardwalk trail.  Craving hot soup, we stopped in Sierra City but our timing was off and the restaurant was closed.  The same was true in Downieville.  Oh well, home to HOT water, be it in a hot tub or shower.

The shorter route is about 4.5 miles RT with an elevation gain of 1600 feet.  We were all glad we had chosen this over the alternative longer route.  Enough is enough!

Sand Pond

Lower Sardine Lake

Depending on the weather, our group is considering one of the following hikes:  Pauley Creek near Downieville, or Island Lake counter-clockwise loop going cross country through the Crooked Lakes.  We will meet at 9.

The other group went to Malakoff Diggins.