• Resting spot in the sun

    Resting spot in the sun. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Day Three – Brunch by the lake

    Brunch by the lake. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Mountain House Southwest Breakfast Skillet and a cup of tea (PG Tips), enjoyed against the backdrop of the lake.

  • Pelicans at the end of the day

    Pelicans at the end of the day. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    I’ve seen huge flocks of pelicans on Truman Lake, but these are the first I’ve seen here. Just four stragglers. And that low line of bluffs catching the evening sun in the distance is where I went swimming today, and intend to spend a good part of my day tomorrow.

  • A screen of trees

    A screen of trees. They let me see out, and stop people from seeing my campsite. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Meanwhile back at camp

    The last time I was here these trees were in the water. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Scroll down for a comparison between the lake level in July 2020 and now (September 2022).

  • No one at home

    It looks like the hot weather and receding lake have not been kind to the turtles. I found two empty shells on my hike.

  • Looking west towards Piney Creek

    Looking west towards Piney Creek. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Exploring east along the northern shore of the arm of the lake, I found that two of the ‘hunting’ camps I’d discovered here in 2018 had either been dismantled and removed or had fallen apart and been consumed by the undergrowth.

    Back in July 2018…

    Leave No Trace … Unless you think you can get away with it.
    Leave No Trace … Unless you think you can get away with it.
    Leave No Trace … Unless you think you can get away with it.

    Unfortunately, the plastic chairs and tarps were still there, four years on, but I have no practical way to pack this trash out.

    Leave no trace

    It is very scrubby near the shore, but there are several game trails running east-west that make for easier bushwhacking to get to this point. Looking at possible camping spots and assessing the strong wind blowing onshore, I decided it wasn’t worth the trouble and time relocating.

    The good news was that the lake here is deep enough for swimming, as I found out by accident.

    Standing on the edge of the bluff in about two feet of water, I was just about to push myself off for a swim when I stepped off the edge and went in well over my head! Good. I was looking for deeper water to swim in, and I’d found it.

    My new plan for the next day was to return with my chair and some food to enjoy the view and go swimming whenever I got too hot.

    Looking west towards Piney Creek. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
    Looking northwest towards Piney Creek. The bluffs here drop down a long way. Even with the lake low I couldn’t touch the bottom. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Table Rock Lake at Piney Creek Wilderness, looking east

    Table Rock Lake at Piney Creek Wilderness. Looking east. The lake is usually at the top of these six-seven foot bluffs. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Last year I was up to my neck in water standing on these bluffs. Now I know why there was a sudden drop-off!

    The line of bluffs in the distance — well ten-minute hike from here — is the target for my exploration today. Even if there is nowhere to camp, the water should be a good deal deeper there.

  • The lake was low, very low

    The lake was low, very low. Looking to the southwest, with Buck Hollow opposite. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
    The lake was low, very low. Looking to the southwest, with Buck Hollow opposite. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    At the lake’s normal level all of this area is underwater.

    The morning brought good news. With last night’s rain came a westerly wind and it has blown all the scum and silt out of the creek into the lake, so I won’t have to hike back to Piney Creek ‘proper’ to get water.

  • Hammock camping at Piney Creek Wilderness

    Hammock camping at Piney Creek wilderness – No one has been here since my last visit, July 2021. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Day Two – Hammock camping at Piney Creek Wilderness

    Hammock camping at Piney Creek Wilderness – No one has been here since my last visit, July 2021. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    It rained overnight. Not enough to make any difference, but it was nice to hear the pitter-patter of rain on my tarp.

    It’s good to be back, even if the lake is too low to be practical for swimming here. I tried swimming last night without a lot of success, it was very shallow and I got covered in mud. I have a plan to deal with not being able to swim … I’m going to explore eastwards and I’ll check for alternate camping spots and places where the swimming will be better. The lake should get 10-20ft. deeper as I head east (according to the map). We’ll see if the map is right.

    It looks like no one has been here in the past year. Apart from being filled with dead leaves, the fireplace is exactly as I left it.

  • Cloud formations

    Cloud formations – Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Day One – Piney Creek Sunset

    Piney Creek Sunset – Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Day One

    Three nights, four days relaxing by the lake in Piney Creek Wilderness. Except, someone has stolen the lake, it is very low. I’ve not visited this wilderness in over a year and the lake is around thirty feet lower today.

    My plan for this trip is simple. Do nothing. I just want to sit and enjoy the view for a few days. We’ll see how that plan pans out.

    I didn’t leave home until one pm. I’d booked the car in for a service this morning, and that threw everything out. It wasn’t until two-thirty that I got on the trail, and I didn’t arrive at my campsite until four-thirty. When I got to Piney Creek I decided to hike along the creek bed rather than hack my way across the briar and (in my imagination) snake-filled ‘Cat Briar Meadows.’

    When I arrived at Table Rock Lake, it was a lot lower than I expected.

    I may have to hike a bit to get water as the lake water here is very scummy and full of silt. Fortunately the creek was running, and that is a good nearby(-ish) backup water source.

  • Journal: Four days at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022

    The lake was low, very low. Looking to the southwest, with Buck Hollow opposite. Solo backpacking at Piney Creek Wilderness, September 2022. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    It’s been over a year since I’ve spent a few days relaxing by the lake at my favorite campsite in Piney Creek Wilderness. It was time to put that right.

    Journal & Photos
    Photos

  • Jim in the workshop

    Jim in his workshop. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
    Jim in the workshop. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Damascus steel knife

    Damascus steel knife. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Jim tried his hand at making a Damascus steel knife blade.

  • Brass Canon

    Brass Canon. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

    Yes, it works!

    Brass Canon. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • In a corner of the workshop

    In a corner of Jim’s workshop. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Kaleidoscope

    Kaleidoscope. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.

  • Looking out

    Looking out – past the forge. Copyright © 2022 Gary Allman, all rights reserved.
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