[pct-l] Hat Creek Rim Hike

[Hootie Martin]

This past weekend I headed up to Old Station to hike between Old Station and
Burney Falls State Park.  A couple of friends that previously attempted a
thru-hike needed this section to complete California and I decided to join
them for the 2 day trip.  The weather was perfect with 70-75 degree temps
and only minimal breeze, unlike the temps I experienced on my thru-hike in
2006 when temps exceeded 100 degrees.

As I knew the area well, I pre-staged a couple of water caches as we did not
want to rely on any other water sources on the Rim.  Proved to be helpful as
the water that we found at Cache 22, I would not have wanted to touch
without treatment.  We ended up covering the distance in 1.5 days and really
enjoyed the hike.

The conditions have changed significantly since 2006.  The 2009 fire that
destroyed what was left of tree cover at the southern end of the rim was
more devastating that I had expected.  What was even more surprising was the
fire damage on the north side of Highway 299.  I am not certain when this
area burned but I would guess it was likely 2010 or possibly early this
year.  There were a number of blowdowns in this area and with the fragility
of the burned timber stands, I would guess this will continue to be a
problem unless this area is harvested of burned timber soon.

This trip was much different than the 4 days I spent in Section P earlier
this summer, but the Hat Creek Rim has a certain beauty all its own.  The
views of California's two most prominent mountains (Lassen and Shasta) are
spectacular and each has already established early coverings of snow from
the storms earlier this month.

All in all a great weekend on the PCT.