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May 23rd-28th, 2022

 

The plans for the trip were that we would spend 3 days at the cabin that we visited in 2019 travel and explore some of the surrounding area next to and in the Ishi Wilderness.

 

The flight from Minneapolis to Sacramento was smooth and Mike was there to pick me up at the airport. We went to his house, and I was greeted first by two golden retrievers, Finn and Emma, and then by Mike’s wife, Lauri.  We had some snacks out by the pool since I hadn't eaten since early morning, and then had a delicious barbecue later in the afternoon.

 

Later, we packed for an early start the next morning. We headed toward Chico to pick up Richard and bought some food and supplies on the way. From there we headed for the little town of Cohasset, close to the road and trail that leads to the cabins of Floyd and Bob.

 

We all gathered at Bob’s house in Cohasset and headed to the cabins in two vehicles.  The group consisted of Bob and Floyd, who own the cabins, Mike, Richard, and me, as well as Phillip and Robert, who are also Cohasset residents.

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The “road” to the Ishi Wilderness is hard to describe.  If you get motion sickness, this is not the road for you, because the vehicles are continuously going up, down, and side to side.  Progress is slow because of the slow speeds, so the trip takes a long time.

 

 

 

 

 

We finally got to Bob’s cabin and got all the food and supplies unloaded.  Bob said that just a couple days earlier his little dog had gotten bit by a rattlesnake very close to the cabin.  Luckily, the dog must have gotten a small dose of venom and was recovering. Phil rode his three-wheeler to the cabin.

 

 

 

It was a warm day with plenty of sunshine. The view from Bob’s deck is shows the wilderness and Mount Shasta in the background.

 

 

 

We decided to go for a hike that afternoon down to a creek.  We took the vehicles part of way on “roads” that Floyd had either made or improved, but soon it got so rough that they parked the vehicles, and we started down on foot.  The loose rocks on the declining slope made it a bit treacherous to walk, and I did take one slide where I went down backwards on my rear. 

 

We walked quite a while and finally came to a creek bed with lots of nice shade. Most of the group wanted to continue up and over a rise, but I was not used to the heat and steep hills, so I told them I was going to climb back up and wait for them. 

 

Bob offered to come with me, so we slowly climbed back out of the valley. It was just as tricky going up on the loose graA tree with pink flowers

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 The wildflowers were beautiful.

 

Richard had stayed back to rest while we went on the hike, and he awoke upon our return. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After everyone was back, we pulled out a few snacks, and visited and looked at various sites around the area.  For the evening meal, the grill was started, and we had a variety of delicious things to eat. 

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After the meal, Richard surprised everyone by bringing out a box that had a cake in it, and my photo was made of frosting on the top!

 

It was delicious, and a nice surprise.  Richard said that I was the catalyst for the trip and the reason we were there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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At just before sunset, we took a small trip to an area that Bob and Floyd had set up as a dedication to the Yahi Indians. They have a plaque, a mortar and pestle, and people are encouraged to bring trinkets and small objects to leave in their honor.  Mike had some wild tobacco, so he spread some of that. I had brought some trade beads that I left there.

 

 

 

 

Soon, we started to get A picture containing text, stone

Description automatically generatedready to retire for the evening.  I was out on the open deck with a futon mattress and a sleeping bag, and the wind and the mosquitoes as was Richard and Phil.  Richard got up about 2:30 A.M. to go to the outside privy, missed a step and took a terrible fall.  He hit is shoulder and head and scraped his back and left arm.  Everyone was up and about quickly trying to help.  Ibuprofen and peroxide were used, and with some time, he started to feel a little better.  Bob and I ended up staying awake with him through the night just in case he took a turn for the worse.  (Richard did go to the doctor a few days later and had a CAT scan and an X-ray of his shoulder.  There was no concussion and no broken bones.)

 

 

 

 

 

Richard felt good enough that he did not want to leave early, so we waited for an archeologist named Greg to come back with Floyd, who had gone home for the night.  Greg is going to be responsible for examining a part of the Ishi Wilderness for formerly inhabited historically important sites, and he knew the folks in that room were some of the most knowledgeable.  He also is quite familiar with the area, having grown up close by. 

 

We went back to the area where there was a good overlook of the area, and after a long discussion, decided that we would leave that afternoon and cut our visit short a day to get Richard back to civilization.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The drive out was rough and bumpy.  Bob did his best to keep it as smooth as he could for Richard’s sake, but I could tell the trip was hard on him.  We got all our gear into Mike’s truck and soon we were on our way to Oroville, where Richard lives.

 

We had a couple of bites to eat, dropped Richard off at this house, and headed toward Sacramento, about an hour and a half south. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Because we had an extra day, we went to Indian Grinding Rock State Historic Park, a fascinating place with many mortars ground into the bedrock, hundreds of them.  It was a beautifly kept park with hardly any other people there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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That evening, Lauri and Mike and I met Bob Price, who I have known from my first trip out in 1996, at a German restaurant in Sacramento called “Katherin’s Biergarten”, and had a very nice visit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The next day, we drove back to toward Chico to attend a gathering of people who had a common interest in the story of Ishi and the Ishi Wilderness at Dianne’s ranch in the country.  There was a wonderful potluck variety of delicious foods, and lots of good conversation on a variety subjects. I had met most of the folks on previous trips.

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Pete and Peggy Moak handed out books of Pete’s poetry written over the years.  The Moak family has been in the same location for many generations, and that is reflected in some of the poems.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Soon, it was ready to go back to Mike and Lauri’s.  There was one more person I wanted to see.  I had met Karen on my last trip, and really enjoyed visiting with her.  She is totally blind, and lives alone in an apartment. She gave us some delicious treats, and a cup of tea, and we had a nice visit. She told a very funny story about her encounter with a wild turkey.

 

Soon it was time to head back to Mike and Lauri's, and pack for the trip home. I had to be at the airport at 4:00 AM, so it was a short night, but I was able to nap on the plane coming home.

 

It was another memorable trip.

 

MORE BELOW

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This I believe was my 21st trip to California in the last 26th years, all related to the Ishi, the Last Yahi, and the Ishi Wilderness.

 

 Here are links to my earlier trip summaries:

 

How and Why: The Long Journey to The Ishi Wilderness, 1996

 

Ishi Wilderness, 1997

Ishi Wilderness, 1999


California 2000 and Meeting the Daughter of Ishi's Doctor

Ishi Wilderness 2001: Graham's Pinery...Never Again! 

California and the Ishi Wilderness, May 2003

Ishi Wilderness, Northern California, 2004

Ishi Wilderness, Kingsley Cave, 2006

 

2007: Carmel and The Ishi Wilderness

 

Glass Mountain, Gold Country, Visit to Saxton Pope's 101-Year-Old Daughter, etc.  May, 2009

 

Bay Tree Village by Helicopter, June, 2010

The Moaks and Murder Rock, May, 2011

 

Deer Creek, Ishi Wilderness:  May 2-4, 2012

 

2013 Trip to the Back Country of Ishi,

 

Deer Creek, Ishi Wilderness:  October 14-20, 2014

 

Bodie, Bishop, Lone Pine, and More:  October 22-28, 2015

 

Chico Country, June 10-15th, 2016

 

Grizzly Bear’s Hiding Place, September 30-October 7, 2017

 

Oregon, 2018

 

Ishi Wilderness, May, 2019