Wandering North
From Yosemite, I headed into Plumas County with my friend Tom for several days without much interest in rushing from one attraction to another.
We boated Bucks Lake with the owner of Bucks Lake Marina. Had breakfast with Dixie, the "Grandma of Bucks Lake." Climbed Mount Hough and spent time with the Forest Service ranger working one of the region's most important fire lookouts.
We wandered through Graeagle, Quincy, Taylorsville, Crescent Mills, Greenville and Lake Almanor. We met brewery owners, lodge owners, locals and people who have chosen to build lives in these quieter corners of California.
Then the road carried me farther north into Siskiyou County, continuing a stretch of travel that has reminded me why I still enjoy doing Sierra Rec after all these years.
Sometimes the best way to understand a place is to quit trying to check everything off a list and give yourself enough time to wander.
There are a lot more stories coming from both trips.
The People Behind the Adventures
Something similar has been happening on the Sierra Rec Now podcast.
I've spent much of this year talking with people who have built businesses, written books, taken big adventures or simply rearranged their lives because of what happened when they went outside.
This week, we shared Courtney Rosiak-Quinto's story.
Courtney set out alone on the 174-mile Tahoe Rim Trail for her first solo thru-hike. We talked about the realities of traveling alone, long water carries, safety, the confidence that comes from doing hard things and why the Tahoe landscape keeps pulling her back.
Read and listen: Her First Solo Tahoe Rim Trail Thru-Hike
We also recently shared my conversation with Richard Campbell, founder of 10Adventures.
Richard spent decades hiking, cycling, skiing and traveling around the world before eventually building a company around helping other people experience those kinds of adventures. What interested me most wasn't simply how he built 10Adventures. It was the lifetime of experiences that came before it—and the belief that spending time outside can fundamentally change us.
Read and listen: How a Lifetime of Adventure Became 10Adventures
And there are some fascinating conversations still coming.
I've recently sat down with outdoor founders, writers, artists, travelers and people working to introduce the next generation to the outdoors. The more of these conversations I have, the more I realize Sierra Rec isn't simply telling people where to go.
I'm increasingly interested in what happens because we went.
The Fall Magazine Is Taking Shape
All of this is now finding its way into the next Sierra Rec Magazine, publishing September 30.
Rae Lakes. Cathedral Lakes. Plumas County. Siskiyou. The Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway. New gear we've been testing. And even a few adventures beyond the Sierra as the Sierra Rec story begins stretching into some new country.
It's becoming an issue about fall, certainly.
But I think it's also becoming an issue about curiosity.
The places we plan for.
The places we stumble into.
The people we meet.
And those moments when the route changes and we decide to keep going anyway.
That's been my September.
The map changes. The curiosity doesn't.
See you outside,
Charlie
Sierra Rec Magazine
