Trip Summary (June 1994): This was my first backpacking trip. It was in
June of 1994. This trip was to Big Spring in Redwood Canyon in Sequoia
National Park. I remember that once we got off the loop trail, there was a lot
of new growth and the trail wasn't very well defined. We got to our camp site
and there were a bunch of sinkholes everywhere. We set up camp and went over
to Big Spring. And from what I can remember, it was pretty big. This picture I
believe is the stream coming out of the spring.
There were also a lot of ladybugs in the area.
On the way out, I
think, we found a hole in the ground that looked like a cave entrance. I have
learned since then that Big Spring is an exit to Lilburn Cave, so that explains all the
sinkholes and that hole in the ground. I hope to go back there soon and see all
this again and take some pictures of it, if the area is still open.
Trip Summary (6/3/2006):
This was supposed to be a short and easy hike to warm up for the summer,
but like most hikes I go on, this turned out to be harder than we thought. We
got started around 9 am. The descent into the canyon was pretty steep, but I
had plenty of energy at that time. Most of the trip was uneventful. It was a
nice area to hike in. We passed a few people backpacking out. After an hour or
two, we came to a cabin. There is a cave near by, so cavers stay there. It was locked up; apparently they hadn't
been up there yet this year. We continued on and as we did, the trail got a
lot worse. It was still easy enough to see where the trail was, but it
definitely was poorly maintained. After another hour or two of hiking and
climbing over logs, we got back down to the creek and found Big Springs. The
plant life here was quite different here from where we started. There was a
lot of
oak and other plants that grow in the foothills. The elevation is about 4900
feet (about a 1300 foot loss). The rocks along the stream coming out of Big Spring were covered in moss. Just like the last time I went to Big Springs,
there were a lot of ladybugs in the area. However, not quite as many as the
other time. We stayed there for a little while and then headed back and
immediately I felt the effects of going uphill. It wasn't too bad at first,
but about the time we made it to the cabin, I was starting to get sore and I
was starting to feel the blisters on my feet. After resting at the cabin, we
continued on. We came across a hole that we passed on the way in and stopped
there for a while. I'm sure the cavers wouldn't be happy to know that we went
in it, but we did, just a little bit. After our stop there, we continued on
and crossed the creek again and started up the steep part. That last mile or
so killed my legs. I was beat by the time we finally made it to the parking
lot. That was a nice hike, but very strenuous and I don't plan on going on it
again anytime soon. I still would recommend it, just take a backpack or be in
shape before you do the full 12 miles (round trip), 1300 foot loss/gain.
