Post Corral Meadow holds a special place in my heart. Many years, this was the first or last place we camped as we went into or out of the backcountry. Today we were just passing through. The meadow has grown in with trees over the years but the core of the grass remains. Across Post Corral Creek we saw the first people we had encountered in five days of hiking through the wilderness. This is why the John Muir Wilderness is special: you can go places where no other people will go for months or years. You can get away from everything and never see any signs of humans as long as you wish. You can be alone and utterly happy.
Camp on the North Fork of the Kings River
We made camp down on the North Fork of the Kings River for our last night in the backcountry. This is the last spot the trail parallels the river before heading up the hill toward Post Corral Meadow.
There are lots of great places to play in the water here although this time of year, most of the water is from snow melt. That makes it a wee bit chilly!
A huge pool that would be fun to play in if the water was 10 degrees warmer.
I did get my feet wet but only barely. The tumbled smooth granite feels good on my toes.
My dad found a little granite sliver and put it in the ground like an obelisk. I wonder what the next group of people to pass this way will think.
Our little campsite. There was plenty of wood here to have a fire in the evening.
Glaciated granite next to rough granite. It wasn’t that long ago in geologic timescales that this whole area was under a great deal of ice.
The sun setting on the North Fork of the Kings River.
Enjoying a fire on our last night in the wilderness. We were the only people for miles around.
Hiking Down Lower on the North Fork of the Kings River
We had to wade through many stream crossings on our way down along the North Fork of the Kings River. I think this might be the creek that drains Bench Valley.
Big granite bluffs parade down from the high basins into the river at regular intervals.
The little cable car at the gauging station that the power company maintains on the North Fork of the Kings River to measure water volume. The system is all automated these days but occasionally the cable car is still used to verify the measurements that the automated sensors take.
The cabin associated with the automated weather and stream monitoring equipment.
The stream monitoring station.
Heading across another creek. This might be Meadowbrook or Fleming Creek.