A few weeks ago, I drove down to El Dorado County for the annual Passport Event, which is essentially a tour of many of the area's wineries. Just south of South Lake Tahoe on US-50, the road curves around a big bend and offers a view of a tall waterfall coming over the ridge. This is Horsetail Falls, which forms as Pyramid Creek runs out of Lake Aloha and a couple of smaller lakes before coming over the tall ridge. With the massive amounts of snowfall this winter, the water was raging and I felt like I needed to visit this mighty waterfall this year more so than any before.
Driving down to the area early, I arrived at the trailhead parking lot, which was still closed for the winter when I was here a few weeks ago, but luckily was now opened. There were a few other cars in the area, but not many. I threw my small day pack on my back and started up the trail, which initially follows along Pyramid Creek. Large sections of the trail at this southern terminus have large puddles of melted snow that must be detoured.
I'm soon joined by a couple that are having similar difficulties, but eventually, the three of us find a route. As we pass through a lightly forested area, we are forced to do a number crossings of the small streams running off the mountainside and into the creek below. Normally, these are probably no more than a trickle, but with all of the water, most are fast-flowing, broad and deep. Luckily, we are able to find a way to cross in all cases, be it a fallen log, a series of granite rocks, or some combination of the two. That's not to say the crossings are easy, quite the contrary, but we make our way precariously across.
Leaving the forested area, we enter another open granite covered area. A small group resting here indicates that they have searched a bit for another path up to the base, but gave up and have decided to turn back. I'm not so easily turned and while the couple I was traveling with head to the north looking for a path, I decide to head up a snowfield to the south. Unfortunately, my 'route' ends in thick brambles with no clear path. I turn back and just as I arrive back at the resting group, a couple of guys who claim to know the path offer to lead the way.
The way back turns out to be just about as difficult to follow and I loose the trail a number of times as I make my way down the valley. As I mentioned before though, it's not really possible to get lost here, as the creek and the valley itself funnel everything towards the trail head. I finally arrive back a the jeep. I covered nearly 4.4 miles, but with all of the rock scrambling, stream crossings, and path finding, it was quite an adventure.
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