30 August 2022
Mount Rose Summit to Brockway Summit
(19 miles, +2,800/4,400 feet).

A few years ago I tried to thru-hike the Tahoe Rim Trail. But the trail was completely covered in snow, making travel more difficult and water sources harder to access than I expected.

I got completely dehydrated by the end of the second day and I decided to end my hike there.

Well this time the plan is to start at the same place I started last time, but head the other direction around Lake Tahoe. That will eventually put me back on the Pacific Crest Trail which I will follow until Yosemite.

I’m calling this the “Tahoe to Tuolumne” hike.

Yippee!

I got a great start this morning with an early flight to Reno and a quick Uber ride up to the trailhead. It was beautiful but a little warm. I hoped to be done with the climbing part of the day before the afternoon.

The first part of the hike circles Tamarack Peak with great views of Mount Rose before reaching the very -pretty Galena Creek Falls.

After Galena Creek I went off trail to make the ridge at a saddle between Mount Houghton and Relay Peak. It got pretty steep towards the end but it helped me find some neat flowers I haven’t seen near trail today.

I took a snack break at the ridge and enjoyed the thought that the climb for today was already almost over. Then I continued on trail, following the ridge around a radio tower north of Relay Peak.

There were ladybugs everywhere at the top!

As I rounded the ridge above Ginny Lake I got my first open views of Lake Tahoe.

It has been so dry that I was a little worried that my first planned water source would not work out. But there was just enough of a trickle that I could partially fill a couple of water bladders for the rest of the day.

It was all downhill this afternoon but it got kind of boring once I was below treeline. I grabbed some cached water at Brockway Summit and continued climbing briefly to look for a campsite that was mentioned on my FarOut app. Sure enough, it was very nice and even had a partially-obstructed view of the lake.