TRIP REPORT: Panamint Valley, 12/20-21

[xL8 APEKSx]

We made it back from Panamint Valley! What a trip! Chris, Kelly, Jim and Donna from panamintvalley.com joined us for the run. We ended up running up South Park canyon, across the upper valley, and down Pleasant Canyon. Let me tell you…the pucker factor going up Chicken Rock in the snow is 9 out of 10. Holy crap!

There was so much snow, Chris had to winch himself DOWN a hill that was easily a 12-14% grade at one point. It was fresh powder hitting a good 2-3 feet deep in many spots. We could feel our diffs dragging quite often.

Briggs was occupied by a good group of guys...they let me shoot their guns, something I haven't done since I was little. I got to fire an M1 Garand, SKS, .45 Glock, .357 revolver, and a pistol grip 12-gauge. It was too damn fun, and now I might buy that .50 cal Deagle I always wanted. Haha!

We cozied up in Stone Cabin. Which, after my ghost encounter the last time I was at Briggs, is my first choice even if Briggs is available.

Lugnut had a good time playing with the local resident dogs Potlicker and Brownie...and on the way out, Lugnut decided to introduce himself to a wild burro. The burro was NOT amused.

Here’s some pics!

Link to slideshow:
http://s246.photobucket.com/albums/...Panamint Valley Dec 2008/?albumview=slideshow

Link to album:
http://s246.photobucket.com/albums/gg119/seanwilliams78/Panamint Valley Dec 2008/

Enjoy!

 

[ManBearPig]

looks like you guys had fun

 

[HawkZero]

Cool trip man. Got your PM too late to call.

 

[scottmcneal]

Looks like you had a great time

 

[mtngeronimo]

Hey All, I don't jump in here to post much since I am limited on time, but I have say those are some great pics. I've spent some time in the Panamints, been on the South Park/Pleasant loop a few times myself and can just imagine what the Chicken Rock route must have felt like, YIKES! Would love to hear more about the Briggs 'ghost' encounter. Great desert story to be sure. Thanks for sharing.

 

[karstic]

Did you guys make first tracks?

Awesome!

 

[Original_MudButt]

Beautiful pics man!!!:yelclap::yelclap:

Potlicker is awesome, isn't he?

 

[Oatmeal]

I too, would like to hear more about your ghost encounter!---------Hans

 

[xL8 APEKSx]

My ghostly experience in Briggs Cabin...

On a stormy evening on 2005 or so, our party settled in to Briggs Cabin to get some well deserved rest. We had been wheeling for hours and we were exhausted. There were 9 of us in total.

The rain was coming down hard; the snow level was just a stones throw above the cabin – you could see it from the porch. We got the furnace going and tucked ourselves into our sleeping bags. It was just after 10pm.

Suddenly, I’m startled awake by the loudest “crash” I can ever remember hearing. I could still hear the sound trailing away the first few seconds after I sprung awake. It echoed away slowly like a gunshot in a canyon.

But I didn’t just hear it; I FELT it. It shook my bunk. So much so, that I immediately looked to make sure all 4 walls of the cabin were still standing. My adrenaline was pumping from the moment I snapped awake. My first thought was that the heavy rain had dislodged a boulder on the hillside and it had rolled down into the side of the cabin. But, that wasn’t the case. All 4 walls were still there. So I needed a new way to justify such a loud sound.

Grasping to put my imagination at ease with a scientific explanation, I realize I’m running out of hypotheses. I glance at my watch, and make in eerie discovery. It’s 12:00 and 00 seconds the moment I look at my watch. I stare at it to make sure it’s really working as it rolls over…12:00:01, 12:00:02…the watch was working fine. Thinking this to be quite an odd coincidence that the spooky crash happened at the stereotypical Hollywood “witching hour”, I was suspicious that I may have dreamt the whole thing. Could it have just been the start of a nightmare? Maybe a big scary monster was about to burst in the door, making me scream in fear and then snap awake only to find none of it was real.

I started looking for clues that it was a nightmare – but nothing was out of place. No furniture in the wrong location, nothing upside down, no clues to suggest I was dreaming. After a few minutes went by, my heart rate started to settle. I realized that if this was a dream, something else would have happened by now.

Without a good explanation for the jolt I felt and the crash that I heard, I opted to try and ignore it and try to go back to sleep. I rolled on to my side, and pulled the sleeping bag up over my head to get the chill off my face. I took a deep breath to relax, and closed my eyes.

Just as I rolled over, I felt someone tap me on the shoulder, so I roll over to see who it was and what they wanted.

As I turn over though, I can clearly see that the entire cabin was fast asleep, and nobody was within reaching distance of me.

Someone tapped my shoulder with a finger tip – 3 times – and very firm. Nearly hard enough to leave a bruise. But it was not anybody in our party.

I stayed awake until daybreak – eyes wide open, ready to wake up the entire cabin if anything else strange happened. But nothing else did.

Who was trying to get my attention, and for what reason? I can’t say, but their method certainly worked. I have not stayed in Briggs Cabin since that night, preferring instead to stay at Stone Cabin next door. Perhaps someday I'll muster up the courage to return to Briggs. We'll see.

...on a side note, I have since spoken with a gentleman who claims to have seen the face of an old prospector looking into the window of Briggs Cabin twice on the same evening.

 

[karstic]

Great story a least it wasn't a burro staring you in the face.

 

[mtngeronimo]

Great cabin story, especially after the sun goes down