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Sierra Fest 2015 Information and discussion thread

Bryan C.

NAXJA Forum User
NAXJA Member
Location
Antioch, CA
On behalf of the Sierra Chapter BOD, and with their blessing, I would like to announce the dates and location of this year's Sierra Fest.

We are going back to the site of the very first official SierraFest run, circa 2007. Shaver Lake, CA is home to some of the finest trails that the Southern Sierras have to offer. We will be holding the event near Dinky Creek, about 25 miles from the town of Shaver Lake. The dates for the event are August 10th - 15th, 2015.

The main trail we will be running is Swamp Lake. We have tentatively planned to run that trail mid-week. The plan is to spend 1 day wheeling the first half of Swamp Lake and setting up camp at Grouse Lake. Day 2 will be spent relaxing, hiking, swimming, and enjoying the area. Day 3 we will wheel the 2nd half of the trail and return to the Dinky Creek area.

Saturday the 15th we will be running the Bald Mountain trail. This is an easy trail with many optional obstacles to play around on. The actual trail itself can be run with a 2wd vehicle. We will break for lunch at the top of Bald Mtn, and head back to Dinky Creek for the BBQ dinner and raffle.

There will also be day runs on Monday and Friday on yet to be determined trails. Due to the high elevation of this area, approx 9000 feet elevation, the trails are subject to seasonal closures and will only open when clear of all snow. So unfortunately we don't have any set trails for the these days until we know for sure which trails are actually open. Most likely it will include Red Lake/Coyote Lake trails, and Brewer Lake trail for the day runs.

The BBQ and raffle will be held on Saturday night, August 15th.


Q&A:

Where the heck is Shaver Lake. It is in the Southern Sierras east of Fresno. Follow Highway 168 into the town of Shaver Lake and to Dinkey Creek Rd, turn right and follow the road for approx 24 miles for the meeting area near McKinley Grove rd. Specific directions to the staging/meeting area will be posted as the event gets closer.

What about tow rig parking and camping? The normal meeting area has plenty of free camping and tow rig parking.

Wow, that seems far away. From the Bay Area it is about a 4 hour trip. For comparison it takes me 3 hours to get to Hermit Valley from the bay. Sacramento area people will have a similar drive time of 4 hours.

What about showers, gas, ice, and supplies? The general store in Dinkey Creek has has gas (although it is very expensive), pay showers with plenty of hot water, ice, and plenty of food. They do close early so if you want a hot shower you need to get there before closing. The town of Shaver Lake is about 30 to 45 minutes away from Dinkey Creek and has full service supermarkets, restraunts, and gas stations.

How hard of a trail is Swamp Lake? Swamp Lake is similar in terrain and length to the Rubicon. While many rigs with open differentials have run this trail with some difficulty, at least one full locker and 31" tires is recommended. If running with 31" tires it is also recommended that rock rails and skid plates be installed. If you have stock axles and steering it is highly recommended that you bring spare parts and the tools required to replace them.

What about the other trails? If your rig has one full locker and 33" tires you won't have many issues running any of the trails in the area. Bald mountain is a very easy trail to run with many optional obstacles. If you choose only to run the trail you will still have a great time enjoying the scenery, and watching other rigs try their luck on the fun stuff. The lookout at the top of Bald Mountain gives you a really nice high perspective of the area.

Is there anything else to do other than wheeling? Shaver Lake is a winter resort community but during the summer it turns into one of the premier outdoor recreation locations. The town of Shaver Lake has many cabins available for weekly rentals. There are also boat rentals and biking & hiking trails around the lake. Near the meeting area in Dinkey Creek there is a large grove of Giant Sequioa trees that are impressive to see. Along Dinkey Creek Rd there are numerous trailheads for scenic and challenging hiking trails. Town is about 30 to 45 minutes away from the meeting area.


Check out the 2007 event forum for some insight into what the event will be(closed to new posts): http://www.naxja.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=186
 
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I have never wheeled trails in this area and am very much looking forward to it!

I asked my buddy from Fresno how long the drive from Reno would be and he said normally 5 hours. But I will be towing and with the 55 mph limit it will take me even longer. So don't feel bad about the drive!
 
I am stoked for this.
 
never been out there.
is the trailer parking at the campsite & close to the trails?
 
never been out there.
is the trailer parking at the campsite & close to the trails?

Yes, the main campsite has room for trailers. Many large spots in the trees. Most trails can be accessed from this spot via decent roads that pass between Dinky Creek Road and HWY 168.

Other suggestions for activities: About an hour drive (southeast) from the main group camp sites, on the North Fork Kings River and along the steeper parts of south Dinky Creek, are some phenomenal deep canyon swimming holes, with waterfalls and deep pools about every 100 yards.
 
Doing dusy ershim that Saturday through Monday would be awesome.. I know a few of us are really wanting to do that one!

I'd be up for running Dusy before Sierra Fest.
 
gonna put this one on my calendar.

the socal guys usually do a run on swamp around that time, it may be worth it to try and coordinate with them. unless that's already happening backchannel
 
never been out there.
is the trailer parking at the campsite & close to the trails?


I mentioned this in the first post. The camping/main BBQ area is similar in size, or even bigger than Hermit Valley. The tow rig and camping situation should not be of any concern at this point.

As far as being close to the trails, yes the main gathering point is centrally located. The out from Swamp Lake is similar in distance to the drive from Slickrock to Hermit Valley. The majority of time we will be driving on forest service roads as opposed to the main highway.
 
gonna put this one on my calendar.

the socal guys usually do a run on swamp around that time, it may be worth it to try and coordinate with them. unless that's already happening backchannel


Any NAXJA member from so-cal is certainly invited. I plan on talking with Richard about still having the so-cal run the last weekend on July to keep the size of our run manageable. I may tag along with the so-cal trip to scout out the areas and trail conditions for the SierraFest event.


Not to put this on you or anyone in particular, but the Sierra Chapter runs are very much a family friendly event. I will be bringing a young kid with me, as will other members. If anyone's idea of a fun weekend includes loud music blaring in the campsite all day and all night, hard partying until 3 AM, or any sort of drunken shenanigans then this isn't the run for you. We as a chapter have a very low tolerance for this sort of behavior. Simply having your own campfire at the other side of the campsite does not exclude you from these rules. The Grouse Lake camping area isn't that big and noise carries pretty far around there. This trip is a vacation for most, if not all, of our members and their (our) right to have a quiet and relaxing trip to the lake should not be infringed upon.
 
Ive been wanting to wheel this area for a long time. Cant wait for this trip now!!!
 
A lot of distances posted as "similiar to" other places some of us have never been.

From camp, how far to/from trails in miles, and how much of that is pavement and dirt?

I have to balance not only quasi street legality with my ride, but I have to carry enough fuel to last the entire week at 3-4 MPG. ;)
 
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