- Location
- Bakersfield, CA
Here's an update on the upcoming Sierra Fest trip. We'll run Dusy-Ershim Trail during the week and the annual Swamp Lake trip on the weekend. The schedule is to run Blue Canyon on Sunday Aug 5th, then run Dusy Mon-Thurs, Aug 6-9. Fri and Sat, Aug 10-11 we'll run Swamp Lake Trail, and Sunday we'll run Bald Mtn Trail. The Dusy trip will be 3 nights camping on the trail, and the Swamp Lake trip will be one night camping on the trail. All other nights we'll be staying at base camp at Dinkey Creek (directions are posted below). Runs will leave from either base camp or the Dinkey Creek Ranger station at 8:30 am.
There will be a raffle Sat night, Aug 11, in base camp, and we'll be serving burgers and hot links for dinner. Dinner will be $6 per person. We'll also do our traditional pot luck dinner Friday night at Grouse Lake on the Swamp trip. Camping along both trails will be at beautiful lakes, so you can fish, boat or swim as well as hike around or just sit and visit. Please post up if you are coming, and how many in your group, so we know how much food to get for Sat night.
Bring some firewood if you can, we can always use it. Since the camping destinations on these trails are popular, there isn't always much wood around there, and we can use some firewood at base camp.
The best place to gas up is in Prather, which is on Hwy 168 at the bottom of the big grade. There is also a Texaco station at the top of the big grade, but it closes early, like around 8:00 pm, so it's not good to count on it unless you're early. There is gas at the Dinkey Creek store, but it's expensive, and best used only for emergencies. There are also showers at the store. For those running Dusy, you'll come back through the town of Shaver Lake where there is gas and groceries, so you can re-stock before running Swamp.
It's best to use block ice, then fill in with crushed. If you keep your ice chest closed as much as possible, and drain the water off once or twice a day, the block ice can last most of the week. The Dinkey Creek store sells ice, so you can top off if you need to.
Here are directions. Take Hwy 168 heading NE out of Fresno/Clovis, towards Shaver Lake and Huntington Lake. The new freeway through Fresno turns into Hwy 168, so you can take it off of either Hwy 180 if coming from the north or Hwy 41 if coming from the south, check your map or Mapquest so you can see your route depending on which direction you're coming from. So, heading NE on Hwy 168, follow the signs to Shaver Lake, which is roughly an hour drive from Fresno. As you are coming into the town of Shaver Lake, make a right turn onto Dinkey Creek Rd, where there will be a sign saying Wishon and Courtright Reserviors. Continue on Dinkey Creek Rd for around 12 miles, and as you are coming into Dinkey Creek, look for another sign saying Wishon and Courtright Reserviors. Make a right turn at this sign onto McKinley Grove Rd......very important! If you miss this right turn, you will drive past the ranger station and the Dinkey Creek store and end up at Dinkey Campground. After making the right turn onto McKinley Grove Rd, immediately crossing the Dinkey Creek bridge, go for about 1/4 mile and look for the Camp Fresno sign on the left. At this sign, there are two roads that go to the left, the first cuts back sharply and goes to Camp Fresno, the second is road 10S36. Turn left onto 10S36 and immediately turn right into the trees, which is our camping spot. We'll try to have someone monitoring CB channel 4 if you get close and have trouple finding us. The camping is in the trees, but there is enough open space for trailers if needed. There is an outhouse down the road a short ways, and at the ranger station, and showers at the Dinkey Creek store.
This is always a great trip, hope to see you there, and please be sure to post up if you are going so we can get a head count for the food.
There will be a raffle Sat night, Aug 11, in base camp, and we'll be serving burgers and hot links for dinner. Dinner will be $6 per person. We'll also do our traditional pot luck dinner Friday night at Grouse Lake on the Swamp trip. Camping along both trails will be at beautiful lakes, so you can fish, boat or swim as well as hike around or just sit and visit. Please post up if you are coming, and how many in your group, so we know how much food to get for Sat night.
Bring some firewood if you can, we can always use it. Since the camping destinations on these trails are popular, there isn't always much wood around there, and we can use some firewood at base camp.
The best place to gas up is in Prather, which is on Hwy 168 at the bottom of the big grade. There is also a Texaco station at the top of the big grade, but it closes early, like around 8:00 pm, so it's not good to count on it unless you're early. There is gas at the Dinkey Creek store, but it's expensive, and best used only for emergencies. There are also showers at the store. For those running Dusy, you'll come back through the town of Shaver Lake where there is gas and groceries, so you can re-stock before running Swamp.
It's best to use block ice, then fill in with crushed. If you keep your ice chest closed as much as possible, and drain the water off once or twice a day, the block ice can last most of the week. The Dinkey Creek store sells ice, so you can top off if you need to.
Here are directions. Take Hwy 168 heading NE out of Fresno/Clovis, towards Shaver Lake and Huntington Lake. The new freeway through Fresno turns into Hwy 168, so you can take it off of either Hwy 180 if coming from the north or Hwy 41 if coming from the south, check your map or Mapquest so you can see your route depending on which direction you're coming from. So, heading NE on Hwy 168, follow the signs to Shaver Lake, which is roughly an hour drive from Fresno. As you are coming into the town of Shaver Lake, make a right turn onto Dinkey Creek Rd, where there will be a sign saying Wishon and Courtright Reserviors. Continue on Dinkey Creek Rd for around 12 miles, and as you are coming into Dinkey Creek, look for another sign saying Wishon and Courtright Reserviors. Make a right turn at this sign onto McKinley Grove Rd......very important! If you miss this right turn, you will drive past the ranger station and the Dinkey Creek store and end up at Dinkey Campground. After making the right turn onto McKinley Grove Rd, immediately crossing the Dinkey Creek bridge, go for about 1/4 mile and look for the Camp Fresno sign on the left. At this sign, there are two roads that go to the left, the first cuts back sharply and goes to Camp Fresno, the second is road 10S36. Turn left onto 10S36 and immediately turn right into the trees, which is our camping spot. We'll try to have someone monitoring CB channel 4 if you get close and have trouple finding us. The camping is in the trees, but there is enough open space for trailers if needed. There is an outhouse down the road a short ways, and at the ranger station, and showers at the Dinkey Creek store.
This is always a great trip, hope to see you there, and please be sure to post up if you are going so we can get a head count for the food.
