It was time to head out for my long distance trip this year! Last year I did the Uinta Highline Trail as my long distance hike, this year I would be tackling the Ruby Crest National Trail! The Ruby Crest Trail runs south to north for 40 miles and climbs over 10,000 feet in vertical gain. The Ruby Mountains are located in Elko County in the great State of Nevada! They are a 90 mile long mountain range which its top elevation is Ruby Dome at 11,387 feet. The Ruby Mountains Wilderness encompasses 90,000 acres. The Ruby Mountains get their name from the red garnets that were found historically in the range. I made the long drive to Elko, checked into my hotel, then met up wtih Chad, a local and part of the Friends Of The Ruby Mountains group who work towards conservation in this amazing mountain range! I then went across the street to Garibaldi's Mexican Restaurant for some amazing Carne Asada tacos with rice and beans! This is a great place to eat when you are in ELko and I highly recommend it for the quality of food, and the staff was wonderful! After a big meal it was off to my room for some sleep as I had a big day in the morning to dirve my Jeep to the Lamoille Trailhead and then down to Harrison Pass to start the Ruby Crest Trail!
We got an early start to head up Lamoille Canyon and parked the Jeep. It was very quiet and we headed out as soon as I got my boots on and loaded my pack in Chad's cart. We made the hour or so drive up to Harrison Pass. Chad took me up the 4x4 road about a 1/2 a mile before the road became impassible and I was on foot from there. We said our goodbyes and I would see him in two days at Overland Lake.
The first 2 miles or so of this hike are on a desert road that gradually climbs up to a ridge all the way to the official trailhead. You get a good look at where you are going from this road and it had many Mormon Crickets on it as I made my way. Once at the trailhead, the trail moves to a double track that looks like an old ATV trail for the next 4 miles. It wanders against the west slope of the range and pops in and out of the aspens as you move along. Once you reach the first pass the trail moves to single track. The views also begin to open up and you get to see the range begin to show itself! About a mile past the first pass the Wilderness Boundary pops up on the trail and you know you are really in it now! The trail bobs and weaves its way along these basins and crests a very large one that takes you down to McCutcheon Creek. I took a very nice break here for it has a reall cold water spring and it was nice to dry out the sweat and refresh on lunch and hydration.
After a great stop, I moved on as I had one more pass to climb this day before descending to camp for the night at South Fork Smith Creek. The climb takes you up a apline basin, which was filled with so many beautiful wild flowers! After a nice climb I stood on the pass to SOuth Fork Smith Creek! It was beautiful up here, but also showed me I had a steep descent to get to camp for the night. After some pictures, and some video, I made my way down the steepest part of the trail I have been on for the day into South Fork Smith Creek. There are some great camp sites and I made my way to one that fit the bill for the night. After getting camp set, I realized that I had left my stove at home! Ugh! I had to make a small fire to boil my water for my freeze dried meal. Its not an adventure until you realize you've forgotten something important! Chad was fortuantely coming in the next night so I would just have to make do. After finally getting my water to boil and eating dinner, it was time to turn in for the night.
Day 2 I awoke to clear skies and cool temps. I again heated up my water for coffee and breakfast by the fire, then packed it up and was on trail by 7:45 AM. I made my way across South Fork Smith Creek and up the ridge into Middle Fork Smith Creek. This area was so overgrown it was hard to see the trail and where to put your feet at times. I crossed the Middle Fork Smith Creek and ascended to the North Fork Smith Creek drainage. This was a very long drainage that climbs and climbs its way up into a alpine basin. There is one spring at the bottom of the massive switchbacks that take you to the ridge. I took a short break to hydrate and fill up my water then moved on. The wind was howling and it only got worse as I climbed.
After about an hour I was standing on the ridge looing east at Ruby Lake and the Ruby Valley. There was one more small climb and I was stading on the pass and got my first look at Overland Lake. The climb down to the lake was loose rock and a small stream running in the trail. After completing my descent I found a spot for camp and dropped my pack. There is a cabin at the lake and I went inside for a bit to get out of the wind. I made camp then went fishing. Right off the first cast I had one on. They were small but very fast action and I lost count at 20 on the Tenkara rod. I met a nice gentleman named Nicolas and he kept me company while fishing. His group showed up in the evening and Chad showed up shortly after that. We made dinner and enjoyed the sunset, then it was off to bed for a good nights sleep! Day 1 and 2 were a full on adventure on the Ruby Crest Trail. Enjoy the pics and check out my live action YouTube video from this trip below. More to come from this amazing adventure!
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