Courtright Reservoir 2018

Dale Matson

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Courtright 25mm Zeiss Batis

For the particulars on Courtright, I have included a link from my 2016 posting

http://midsierramusing.blogspot.com/2016/07/dinkey-creek-area-and-courtright.html

        

         So why write about Courtright Reservoir again? And again, as I have said about other multiple postings, “The mountains are never the same and I have used different cameras and lenses yearly.” This year I used my Sony A7R3, Zeiss Batis 135mm 2.8, Batis 25mm 2.0 and Sony 100-400mm GM. The sharp Sony 100-400 GM is the first native long lens for the Sony e-mount and better than the adapted Canon 400mm DO lens I used last year. The GM is great for wildlife when combined with the 1.4X TC.

I assigned a custom button on the camera to "crop" or APS-C mode which increases the image size. So, some images are about 35mm for the Batis 25, 200mm for the Batis 135 and 800mm for the 100-400 with 1.4X TC.

         The Road to Courtright was opened again on May 25^th and these photos were taken soon thereafter. This year I went in the afternoon to optimize the light for photos looking east from the vista point above the reservoir. The vista point is before you actually descend to it. Because of this I didn’t stop at the McKinley Grove of Giant Sequoias along the way.

         My time down by the reservoir was also shortened so I did not see any raptors to photograph this year. I believe there is at least one Bald Eagle and one Osprey nest near the lake. Last year I got shots of each bird.

         Courtright is a beautiful place and in the summer, at about 8,000’, much cooler than my home town of Fresno. There are great places around the lake for camping, and fishing and a boat ramp too. The Maxon Trailhead across the dam is the beginning of hikes east into the Sierra and Kings Canyon National Park. Two hikes include Black Cap Basin and Red Mountain Basin. I have backpacked as far as Disappointment Lake and done a day hike from there to Hell For Sure Pass that overlooks Goddard Canyon in Kings Canyon.

https://midsierramusing.blogspot.com/2016/08/courtright-to-red-mountain-basin.html

         The water source for Courtright is Helms Creek but Courtright serves as both a reservoir and as a forebay for Wishon Reservoir downstream. During periods of low electricity demand, water is pumped back up to Courtright from Wishon. (The water source for Wishon Reservoir is the north fork of The King’s River. The Helms Project is one of the largest hydroelectric projects in the world. 

 Bald Mountain Lookout From Dinkey Creek Road 560mm

 Leconte Divide From The Vista Batis 135mm

 Mt. Goddard (13,563') Far Right

Mule Deer

Day Hike To Nellie Lake 2018

Dale Matson

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Hike Route

For more particulars on this annual hike see my posting from 2014 here:

http://midsierramusing.blogspot.com/2014/05/day-hike-to-nellie-lake.html

         This hike is about 9 miles round trip with about 2,000' of gain overall. This year, I was surprised by the lack of snow on the trail that has a lot of shade. The recent hike to Twin Lakes at about the same elevation nearby had more snow around the trail and some snow on the trail. If you look carefully, you can see a tree with a sign on it used for the snow survey at about 8,000’.

         The Sierra National Forest crew had already cleaned up the winter deadfalls and debris and both trails were in good shape. This year I spotted fresh bear scat on the trail. My son Ben, who had hiked ahead of me didn’t see the scat outbound and I suspect the bear came along the trail between us.

         At the time of this writing there are still two seasonal creeks flowing across the trail for water resupply if you have a means to filter or purify it. Of course, Nellie Lake is also available for water if filtered or purified. The mosquitoes were not too bad either but bring insect spray. Keep an eye on the signage at the junction of the Kaiser Peak and Nellie Lake trails.

         I have not fished Nellie Lake but have seen fish strikes there. There are also nice camping sites away from the lake. The overnight wilderness permits are available at the junction of Highway 168 and Kaiser Pass Road before Huntington Lake.

         These annual hikes are warm ups for mid to late summer hikes and backpacking in the eastern Sierra Nevada. Usually Kaiser Peak (10,300’) is the last of the early hikes. It is a hike with 3,000’ of gain and about 12 miles round trip. Here is my 2016 trip report. If you can do this hike you are ready for an overnight in the eastern Sierra.

http://midsierramusing.blogspot.com/2016/07/kaiser-peak-hike-2016.html

         Each annual trip to Nellie Lake is different because of the weather and snow conditions. My camera equipment also changes. This year, I used the Sony A7R3 (my best camera yet) and the Sony 16-35 GM 2.8 lens.

         Finally, the outlet to Nellie Lake is Home Camp Creek which flows south into Huntington Lake.   

 The Only Time Ben Was Behind Me

 Snow Measurement Location

 Bear Scat

 Recently Cleared Part Of Trail