Shasta Trinity Alps

We’d never been to the Shasta Trinity Alps, so of course, we had to check it out.The plan was solid: hit the Canyon Creek Lakes Trail, a 17-mile out-and-back hike that follows the creek all the way up to the lakes. We were going to camp at the lakes for a couple of nights and then hike out. Simple enough, right?

We kicked things off with a car camp session at Ripstein Campground—classic Los Boyz style. The tunes were cranking, beers were flowing, and Eric, our resident mixologist, was busy shaking up custom martinis. We were feeling good.

The next morning, as we were gearing up to hit the trail, Eric hits us with, “What side is your appendix on?” None of us really knew, but we did know one thing:Eric was in pain. So, we all piled into our cars and headed for the Weaverville emergency room. Turns out, it wasn’t his appendix, but a hernia. Definitely a wrinkle in the plan.

While Eric was at a hotel in Redding figuring out what his next move would be we pivoted. Instead of backpacking, we ended up day-hiking the trail and turning Ripstein into home base for 4 nights. And in typical Los Boyz fashion, we made the best of it. Exploring, downing beers, playing bocce ball, and, of course, sampling some scotch. And all the while our thoughts were hoping for the best for Eric.

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