Capturing Hiker Fashion at the VVR

One of the primary drivers for starting a VVR blog has been the desire to capture and showcase some of the incredible hiker fashion that passes through the resort. Pacific Crest Trail hikers tend to have some of the best fashion, despite carrying the least amount of stuff – so how do they do it?

I managed to snap a few photos last year (the one above is of Navi) but until now I haven’t had a venue for posting them. THIS year, however, we WILL be seeing hiker fashion shoots at the VVR and we’re inviting you to submit your own on our facebook page (www.facebook.com/vvr.edisonlake) and/or  our google+ page (Vermilion Valley Resort). We’ll put up a couple of albums and if we miss you on the trail but you want your hiker fashion included – send us a photo!

We’d also like to know the details – how much of your hiking fashion is dictated by functionality and how much by style? Are you willing to carry a little extra weight in order to have the perfect ensemble for zero days? How much time did you put into choosing your hiking attire? Backcountry fashion fans want to know! (By the way, above is Ithica from 2012)

We know Crocs are popular camp shoes thanks to their light weight and comfyness but we see flip flops and other shoes as well – which ones are fashion forward and which ones qualify for “What Not To Wear”? What about Buffs? Love ’em or hate ’em? Sarongs, kilts, bathrobes, or your raingear – what do YOU wear while doing laundry?

Personally, as a woman who lives in the mountains but loves fashion, I am thrilled to see colorful, original outfits on hikers. And I love it that companies are making functional yet fashionable gear for women and men. Men come through with some dynamite fashion as well and we’ll be looking for you gents this summer.

The PCT hikers are on the trail, so be on the lookout for fashion posts any time here on out. Feel free to comment and to send along your own photos. After all, anyone can be a fashionable hiker!

How to open a backcountry resort (part 1)

Jim is gearing up for opening – accumulating supplies, ordering stock, packing his gear. Opening up the resort varies from year to year, snowfall to snowfall, project to project. This year we have our priorities – finishing the bathhouse, planning for hiker shuttles if the lake is low – but we always have certain chores. I revisited last year’s photo album and think that it’ll be a similar process this year.

Opening of 2010 was quite a different story – we had an big snowfall year and an entire crew went in to dig out the store, motel rooms, and yurt. Working in those conditions is a challenge because there’s no water except snowmelt until the crew can get to the lines, valves and tank. Roy, Jamie, and John were a big part of getting the resort dug out, keeping the fires burning and the food coming, and making it happen for 2010.  2011 was even more of a challenge as it kept snowing through the spring and it was only because the dam at Edison Lake needed some attention that Kaiser Pass Road opened as early as it did. Again the VVR crew rallied to wrestle the forces of nature in time to get the resort open by Memorial Day.

Well, we won’t see that this year. Instead of digging into buildings we’ll be able to focus on projects, improvements, and pretty things. Rooms will get a fresh coat of paint, the store may get a remodel, and perhaps I’ll get my boat planter completed before opening.

*Something along these lines anyway* as this is someone else’s work of art and I have a fishing boat to work with, not a canoe, but I use this photo as a source of inspiration. We’ll have to do native plants so my choices will be penstemon, columbine, and manzanita instead of lettuce and other veggies.

Last year we experienced the big Sierra ‘blow-down’, with hundreds to thousands of trees uprooted. Jim and I took our first hike in mid-May last year and had to clamber over more than a few large trees that blocked the Mono Creek trail early season, and more than one hiker told us tales of the trees down on the PCT and JMT. Trail crews had their hands full and the Backcountry Horsemen groups did an incredible job early in the summer getting the trees off the trails.

It is always wonderful to be out in the Sierra when the melt is happening and creeks are rushing. Mono Creek carries water from the high Sierra into Edison Lake and is beautiful any time of the year but especially in late spring and early summer when the water is high and fast.

We try to make a point of getting out before the resort opens and after it closes as it can be very difficult to walk away during the season. Only important events like grandbabies and other milestone family events pull us away when we’re open. And even when I do drag Jim out for a hike or a ride he’s got his phone glued to his hip and is often in this pose:

What can you do?

All signs point to early hikes this year. My advice is to get into the Sierra early and often. You’ll see wildlife you don’t see later in the season, have the mountains nearly all to yourself, and extend a season that is often fleeting. We can’t believe how quickly it goes by once it is here.

This summer promises to be a long one with an early start and we’re working on bringing in music on mid-summer weekends, setting up a volleyball court out on the lakebed sand, and perhaps even hosting open-mic and game nights. Bingo in the backcountry, anyone?