I joined Gary Gellin and Jim Moyles for a point-to-point adventure run along the wild Carmel River in the Ventana Wilderness. The route starts at China Camp along Tassajara Road (rough dirt road) and finishes below Los Padres Reservoir. The first 3.5 miles is along the Pine Ridge Trail with great views into the Tassajara Creek drainage and the rugged Santa Lucia Mountains, including Junipero Serra Peak (the highest point in the range at 5,862 ft) and Ventana Double Cone. Evidence of the huge fires two seasons ago was evident, but the vegetation is coming back and I even spotted small pine saplings.
At Church Divide, we turned onto the Carmel River trail and soon after descending from the pass we found the headwaters of the Carmel River. A trickle quickly grew into a stream and by the time we reached lovely Pine Valley, the stream was flowing nicely. The fall colors in this section were gorgeous with maples and sycamores displaying bright orange and yellow leaves. This area is also heavily populated with madrones, which are adorned with so much red fruit that the trees appear red from a distance. At Pine Valley, we stopped for tea at Jack English’s cabin. Jack English is 90 years old and has lived in relative isolation in Pine Valley for over 35 years. Supplies and food are brought to him via horseback. It was great to meet Jack and hear about his experiences and history of the region.
After Pine Valley, we temporarily left the Carmel River and climbed up to another pass to enter Hiding Canyon. Hiding Canyon was very brushy with numerous blowdowns and other impediments obscuring the trail for a couple miles. A small climb out of hiding canyon signaled the end of the brush and we were treated to great views of the upper Carmel River canyon. Next, we descended down the Carmel River and began over two dozen river crossings. These crossings are necessary because travel on either side becomes blocked by rock walls that descend all the way into the river. The trail connecting the river crossings is nothing more than a use path and was often nonexistent due to brush and dirt slides, but the objective is simple, follow the river downstream.
More after the jump!

