Karl went hiking April 25, 2015 17 miles 4,750 feet gained

Oneonta-Nesmith Traverse

3

Gained a new appreciation for Nesmith Point yesterday, by taking a route less taken! We met at Yeon, the traditional trailhead, then drove one car back to Horsetail Falls. This allowed a fabulous ascent, gaining the 4000' summit over 12 miles rather than 4, all the while soaking in a glorious sun-dappled forest full of rushing streams, waterfalls, a bit of snow, and the threat of thunderstorms. (Which I was totally stoked up for, but failed to materialize!) The sun shone bright on snow-capped peaks to our north in Washington. We were alone virtually the entire day, probably due to the forecast. Oh! And Harleigh set new PRs for both mileage and EG! What a perfect hike on what turned out to be the perfect day for it!

Trail Talk

3 people have hearted this trip.

Pablo · April 27, 2015

Nice batch of photos (you have an eye for composition) and I like the route (I've done this as a bike n hike) but I don't think your gpsfly track matches the hike you described. Did you ford Oneonta Creek rather than take the bypass? The views just west of Nesmith Pt are always nice and better than Nesmith Pt IMO. Anyway, nice outing, thx...

--Paul

Karl · April 27, 2015

Yikes, good catch, Paul! I was looking at a friend's track, to see where they'd been, and cut/paste the wrong link originally. Fixed.

We definitely took the bypass, which is in fabulous shape. But then, a couple switchbacks up the ridge, we saw a group of four folks (in what seemed to be full packs) fording the creek east-to-west. We puzzled over that for some time, wondering just where they heck they were coming from and going to - at 11am - that would've possibly made them think that was a reasonable idea.

Totally agree, that to go to Nesmith, and not see what's just beyond, is really missing out. This is my new favorite route to be up there. Curious, someone just asked me about doing it as a bike shuttle, and whether there was a rack to bolt to at the Yeon end?

Thanks for the kind words!

Woodswalker · April 30, 2015

Looks like an awesome way to reach Nesmith!

Karl · April 30, 2015

It really is. Highly recommended.

More miles; more enjoyable. :-)