Extreme poison oak!

[balzaccom]

On our hike up to the top of Stag’s Leap last week, we had a bit of a misadventure. The problem was, we didn’t know how much of a misadventure until more recently.
We followed the use trail, and it climbed straight up to the top of the ridge, then clambered over every single rock and hummock on the top of the ridge. That made for great view of the scenery, but we got a little tired of the constant up and down.

So on the return trip I suggested that we parallel the trail below the top of the ridge.

Now the West side of the ridge is sheer cliffs in many places, so we stayed on the East side. And the plan worked perfectly for quite a while. And then we came to a hillside covered with brush that lay between us and the final descent into the valley.

We poked away at game trails for a while, but like most game trails, they didn’t go where we wanted to go. And so I finally decided to break through the brush for about fifty feet, and did so. On the other side, the trail waited for us calmly.

Yeah, I thought about poison oak when I did it. And I knew that poison oak can affect you even in the winter, when it has no leaves. But this didn’t look like poison oak to me—at least most of it. And I also seemed to remember that poison oak was a bit uncomfortable, but nothing to really worry about. And besides, we were close to home, and ready to hop into a shower to soap up immediately after we got home.

So what have we learned?

I was right. Most of what we hiked through wasn’t poison oak. Thank God. Because a week later a few of those scratches on me were bad enough that I had to go see a doctor about getting some kind of help. The heavy use of Benadryl and Cortisone cream was making no headway.

And all the rest of that stuff I remembered about poison oak? Forget it. A quick and intensive session with soap and water did not prevent the poison oak reaction. And poison oak is a lot more than a little uncomfortable.

And yeah, yeah. I know. You told me so.

You can thank me now for NOT posting photos

[Dave Miller]

I can relate! It will go away eventually, so have hope. I now keep Zanafel or Technu handy in case I come into contact. Good luck!!

[orion]

poison oak is an allergy, albeit a very common one, that can increase in sensitivity over time. so you may be more sensitive than you had been before.

in the winter, it can be almost invisible. i've done trailwork where the roots were hit, and you can tell its poison oak by the tar black sap.

the only place i have seen it in Yosemite is one patch up above Hetch Hetchy. does anyone know what its uppermost range is? i couldn't imagine how much fun that would be in tandem with mosquitos.

the best, simplest relief i've come across (on the internet of all places) is to run the hottest water you can stand over it for about ten minutes. this releases all the histamine at once and keeps it from itching for about six hours until the body builds up more. worked for me, but you find yourself in the shower alot.

sorry you had to go through that! i'm getting itchy just thinking about it.

[Dave Miller]

I will agree with orion's suggestion about the hot water treatment. That gave me the best relief for the longest period of time. There is a myth that hot water will cause poison oak to spread, but that is all it is, a myth. It is the Urshiol from the plant that causes the reaction.

[bill-e-g]

The upper range is probably right around 5000 ft. elevation.
Around Yosemite it is found up to around that elevation along the Tuolumne and Merced Rivers.
This includes Preston Falls area, Poopenaut, Hetch Hetchy, Rancheria, and Pate all the way to
Register Creek.... and more copious amounts near Kolana (Hetch Hetchy).
Yes, I've seen PO in all those locations... and got smacked in v. early spring heading
north towards Swamp Lake from Poopenaut. (no leaves... got it on my nose... not fun)
Along the Merced... ALL along there including to Yosemite Valley... (but mainly south facing slopes)
(i.e. Rockslides if you really want to see it)... and up Tenaya Canyon/Creek (loads there too) until
near Watkins. Before park ... Moss Creek and Hite Cove are delicious areas for PO.
Can't recall much near Wawona though... even though it is well < 5K.