My buddy and I hiked to Allison Gulch Falls on Saturday. It was a relatively cool day for this time of year (low to mid 80s) and the water levels were still fairly high, thanks to the wet winter.
After driving through the garbage dump on East Fork Road, which seems to get worse by the year, we found a parking spot at the junction of East Fork Rd and Glendora Mountain Rd.
The trailhead was busy as usual but we encountered less and less people as made our way north along the river. The turnoff for Allison Gulch was easy to find. That's when the fun began.
The use trail is consistent for the first 1/4 mile or so but eventually disappears, reappearing and disappearing various points as game trails. The gulch is full of debris: rocks, fallen trees, brush, etc. Allison Gulch Creek was flowing well, and we crossed it many times, even hiking up it when the surrounding terrain was too dense. This was probably the most rugged canyon/gulch hike I've done, comparable to Piru Creek and Fallen Rocks Canyon.
Eventually we made it to the falls, which are in an extremely tall and narrow part of the gulch. The pool was small, quite a bit smaller than nearby Devil's Gulch Falls. Although the falls are taller than Devil's. And unlike Devil's, I'm not sure the effort is worth the reward, but I'm glad I did it.
On the way back down the gulch I got bit by a poisonous insect or punctured by a poisonous plant. I didn't feel it when it happened but eventually my ankle got really sore. I thought I twisted it scrambling over the boulders but then I noticed some sort of puncture wound. By the time I got out of the cool river and back to my car, my angle was even more swollen and painful -- I could barely walk on it. I ended up going to urgent care and they gave me antibiotics.
I usually wear pants when I bushwhack but I didn't on this hike because of all the water crossings. I think I'll wear pants next time, at least in the warmer months when the insects are out!
On a side note, something's gotta be done about the situation on East Fork Rd. It just keeps getting worse and worse. I've never seen public land so overcrowded, trashed, and abused. It's a damn shame, and for the first ever, I thought I might not ever return on a summer weekend.
Route: https://www.alltrails.com/explore/recor ... ls-56dc099
Allison Gulch Falls
Yeah, I'm glad I did it for the sake of crossing it off the list, but the falls don't justify the effort. Devil's Falls offers much better bang for the buck. Allison is terribly overgrown and very rocky. I had ants crawling all over me and obviously some gnarly spider got me. I rarely go to urgent care but the pain was intense and I could barley walk. I was worried I got bit by something potentially deadly. Next time I do a hike like this I'm bringing a pair of pants to throw on when the bush whacking begins.
The only signs of human activity we saw in that damned gulch were someone's shoe sole and trekking pole.
They're about .5 mi past the junction, which in that terrain, feels more like double that. The water was flowing strong, but there isn't really enough room to have a sizable pool. It's an extremely narrow section.
I would've liked to have met the mofo that ran that mine back in the day. Must've been a beast going up and down that gulch on a regular basis.
My next mission in the East Fork will be Ross Gulch Falls. Gonna make that one an overnighter though.
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Tom Kenney
- Posts: 351
- Joined: Sat Sep 29, 2007 7:51 pm
"I don't think we have scorpions around here do we?"
I got bit in the back by one near Mt Wilson (sat against embankment) and didn't feel much at first. By the time I got back to my car, my face felt weird itchy-tingly. I looked in the mirror and it was classic puff and pink...scary! Drove home and popped a Benadryl, all fixed up in a jiffy. I have a quarter-sized scar on my back where the flesh disintegrated over 3 or 4 weeks.
"We def have scorpions!"
...and not the wimpy boot scorpions, but serious full fat lobstrosities:
I got bit in the back by one near Mt Wilson (sat against embankment) and didn't feel much at first. By the time I got back to my car, my face felt weird itchy-tingly. I looked in the mirror and it was classic puff and pink...scary! Drove home and popped a Benadryl, all fixed up in a jiffy. I have a quarter-sized scar on my back where the flesh disintegrated over 3 or 4 weeks.
"We def have scorpions!"
...and not the wimpy boot scorpions, but serious full fat lobstrosities:
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- On Blue Ridge Road near Guffy CG at midnight.
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Tom Kenney
- Posts: 351
- Joined: Sat Sep 29, 2007 7:51 pm
OK, I'll see if I can allay your fears...
It was worse! There were dozens of these things marching about all over the road, and possibly a second species with long scissor-like pincers. They were milling about like a bunch of robots with scrambled control signals coming through. My 'lobstrosities' is a reference to the second book of Stephen King's Dark Tower series, in which our hero Roland awakens on a beach with 3m-long lobsters marching about with an eye to make him their lunch. They were 'speaking' stupid, almost-human phrases that made you want to edge closer to hear what it was.
I am now more afraid of bugs than I am of mountain lions. (checks zipper on bivy sack)
It was worse! There were dozens of these things marching about all over the road, and possibly a second species with long scissor-like pincers. They were milling about like a bunch of robots with scrambled control signals coming through. My 'lobstrosities' is a reference to the second book of Stephen King's Dark Tower series, in which our hero Roland awakens on a beach with 3m-long lobsters marching about with an eye to make him their lunch. They were 'speaking' stupid, almost-human phrases that made you want to edge closer to hear what it was.
I am now more afraid of bugs than I am of mountain lions. (checks zipper on bivy sack)
I saw a few of the fat claw ones the other night near Windy Gap. I'm used to the skinny ones, I dunno if they're the same and maybe the chicks have big grabbers and the dudes are skinny and go fast or some shit I'm not a scientist for fuck's sake stop asking me. Sexual dimorphism, yet another inequality arachnids must overcome before they can buy lots of shit they don't need and post on social media before their country collapses and the relearn the value of running around pinching and shit.
Allison would be a bit of a pain in the ass to go up just for the lower falls. The upper falls just below the mine in there is real pretty, as you descend through a narrow canyon and rapp down into more 'chill' terrain.
FWIW with regards to your bite, might've been a deer fly? We have more of those nowadays. Faster and lighter than horse flies, and brown. Super annoying little bastards. I don't swell up from much of anything (sex joke in there somewhere) but I do get bitten by those bastards a lot. Might cause swelling. Doubt a plant would do it and I think scorpion stings are much more serious. TK, that's wild that you took a Benadryl and were mostly fine. I'd probably go to an ER... where they'd make me wait for 3 hours before giving me 800mg of Ibu for my drive home to eat a benadryl or two.
As for the trash in East Fork, yep! Gets worse every year! Really pisses me off. July 4 weekend is the worst. Big families party all along EF Road and leave a shitload of garbage everywhere. A lot of folks don't even know how to open the trash can lids. Riding a bike along the road is the best way to experience this as you see a whole lot more and you get to smell it, too!
Allison would be a bit of a pain in the ass to go up just for the lower falls. The upper falls just below the mine in there is real pretty, as you descend through a narrow canyon and rapp down into more 'chill' terrain.
FWIW with regards to your bite, might've been a deer fly? We have more of those nowadays. Faster and lighter than horse flies, and brown. Super annoying little bastards. I don't swell up from much of anything (sex joke in there somewhere) but I do get bitten by those bastards a lot. Might cause swelling. Doubt a plant would do it and I think scorpion stings are much more serious. TK, that's wild that you took a Benadryl and were mostly fine. I'd probably go to an ER... where they'd make me wait for 3 hours before giving me 800mg of Ibu for my drive home to eat a benadryl or two.
As for the trash in East Fork, yep! Gets worse every year! Really pisses me off. July 4 weekend is the worst. Big families party all along EF Road and leave a shitload of garbage everywhere. A lot of folks don't even know how to open the trash can lids. Riding a bike along the road is the best way to experience this as you see a whole lot more and you get to smell it, too!
There are falls above the mine too: allison-mine-to-iron-mountain-t8026.html
Have you rapped those, Taco? I remember you talking about it
Have you rapped those, Taco? I remember you talking about it
Good work Anthony! Sounds like those falls put up a pretty decent fight for you. That is a serious neighborhood for exploration... I don't think you can get much deeper into the San Gabes then that. Yucca can leave painful red swelling, particularly for some people, but by the looks of your foot it was probably more serious than that.
I've never had a fly give me this much swelling and pain, but I suppose it's possible. I'm also like you and don't swell up from bites.Taco wrote: ↑I saw a few of the fat claw ones the other night near Windy Gap. I'm used to the skinny ones, I dunno if they're the same and maybe the chicks have big grabbers and the dudes are skinny and go fast or some shit I'm not a scientist for fuck's sake stop asking me. Sexual dimorphism, yet another inequality arachnids must overcome before they can buy lots of shit they don't need and post on social media before their country collapses and the relearn the value of running around pinching and shit.
Allison would be a bit of a pain in the ass to go up just for the lower falls. The upper falls just below the mine in there is real pretty, as you descend through a narrow canyon and rapp down into more 'chill' terrain.
FWIW with regards to your bite, might've been a deer fly? We have more of those nowadays. Faster and lighter than horse flies, and brown. Super annoying little bastards. I don't swell up from much of anything (sex joke in there somewhere) but I do get bitten by those bastards a lot. Might cause swelling. Doubt a plant would do it and I think scorpion stings are much more serious. TK, that's wild that you took a Benadryl and were mostly fine. I'd probably go to an ER... where they'd make me wait for 3 hours before giving me 800mg of Ibu for my drive home to eat a benadryl or two.
As for the trash in East Fork, yep! Gets worse every year! Really pisses me off. July 4 weekend is the worst. Big families party all along EF Road and leave a shitload of garbage everywhere. A lot of folks don't even know how to open the trash can lids. Riding a bike along the road is the best way to experience this as you see a whole lot more and you get to smell it, too!
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Tom Kenney
- Posts: 351
- Joined: Sat Sep 29, 2007 7:51 pm
"Yucca can leave painful red swelling..."
Hmm...good call. I've had similar mild reaction from a yucca stab. That's a delicate part of the body, and if you puncture a ligament or something not muscle, it can get very bad.
Good luck, Anthony. That's 'gonna leave a mark' as they say. Hope you didn't have to cut the boot off! ?
Hmm...good call. I've had similar mild reaction from a yucca stab. That's a delicate part of the body, and if you puncture a ligament or something not muscle, it can get very bad.
Good luck, Anthony. That's 'gonna leave a mark' as they say. Hope you didn't have to cut the boot off! ?
I thought about that happening. The section where the falls are is one of the most narrow sections of a gulch I've ever been in. I thought to myself, 'this would be a terrible place to be when there's an earthquake.'
you'd prob get buried alive.
I've been in that gulch once and didn't like it. Too much leaf litter over the rocks when I was there made it less safe. I lost the trail quickly and didn't go very far before turning around. It was a side excursion so I had better things to do. I will say that I got hit with an agave thorn that left my foot and ankle like your photo. Very painful. At first I thought maybe it was a snake bite. It calmed down overnight. I would imagine a good yucca poke could do the same. I hope it wasn't a spider or scorpion.
Nice photos. Thanks for posting so I don't need to go back in there!
Nice photos. Thanks for posting so I don't need to go back in there!
Update: I woke up this morn nearly a week after Allison Gulch and my ankle was still killing me. The pain was intense and I could barely walk on it without painkillers. I went back to urgent care and the doc said I most likely had something stuck in my ankle. She started digging, and after about 10 long minutes, found a decent sized spine from a plant. I don't think it was a yucca though; I've never seen their tips break off. Either way, whatever got me was a mofo. I asked the doc for whiskey but she gave me lidocaine!
That is harsh. Sorry you had to endure that. Worse than any of my close encounters. You aren't alone. Reminded me of David Stillman doing self surgery to remove a thorn:
http://davidstillman.blogspot.com/2012/ ... on-of.html
Get well!
http://davidstillman.blogspot.com/2012/ ... on-of.html
Get well!
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Girl Hiker
- Posts: 1297
- Joined: Fri Apr 04, 2014 7:46 am
Thanks for posting the Route. A few years ago I tried to find Allison gulch with no luck. I thought the route to descend below the bridge.
There was also lots if debris so I turned back.
Anyways, nice pics and sorry to hear about your painful ankle.
There was also lots if debris so I turned back.
Anyways, nice pics and sorry to hear about your painful ankle.
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neostrifeX
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Tue Jun 20, 2023 10:14 pm
I visited the waterfall on 6/25/2023, but luckily I wore long pants and didn't get bit or stung by anything. Hope your ankle is recovering!
I had loppers and a hand saw when I went expecting debris and overgrowth, so I went full bushwhack for awhile to stay dry. I got tired of that real fast though and basically walked through the creek the rest of the way to the waterfall. Not a hard hike in my opinion, just really annoying with the amount of debris and overgrowth.
Here's a photo of the falls on 6/25/2023; there seems to only be a little bit more water than when you went.
I had loppers and a hand saw when I went expecting debris and overgrowth, so I went full bushwhack for awhile to stay dry. I got tired of that real fast though and basically walked through the creek the rest of the way to the waterfall. Not a hard hike in my opinion, just really annoying with the amount of debris and overgrowth.
Here's a photo of the falls on 6/25/2023; there seems to only be a little bit more water than when you went.
If that's from The Dark Tower it's a good thing one of them didn't take a couple of your fingers off.Tom Kenney wrote: ↑ ...and not the wimpy boot scorpions, but serious full fat lobstrosities:
"Argue for your limitations and sure enough they're yours".
Donald Shimoda
Donald Shimoda