Rose Peak – Tarweed and water

It was a hot but beautiful day on the Ohlone Wilderness trail. Although the ranger claimed that the trail from Backpacker’s Camp is gated and locked, it wasn’t, and we trekked up the hill. The infamousTarweed others mentioned on logs here was everywhere, and left a sticky resin on my pants and poles. Some research can help you figure out how to remove the mess. The heat made this a difficult climb. We expected max 84, but apparently temps hit 90. I had enough water but my hiking companion didn’t, which made the descent impossible to complete. I supported her for about 45 minutes, then thanks to a couple of high school boys she made it down to about 2 miles shy of the parking lot, where ranger and fire truck intercepted us and checked her out. A stressful few hours at the end of an otherwise glorious day. Even though I only hiked 18 miles, I’m logging anyway. After all, 5,500 ft elevation gain has to count for something, right?