November 2007 - Posts
Happy Isles Trail Head to Half Dome Summit and Back [Pictures]
Distance: 16.4 Miles
Elevation Changes: 4,035 - 8,836 - 4,035
Half Dome is perhaps Yosemite National Park's most famous landmark. It is a granite dome that rises a shy under 5,000 feet from the valley floor. Half Dome appears as a complete dome that has been cut in half, but it is technically a whole dome; the half that is "missing" is just a steeper side that was, in part, made even steeper by glacial activity. Here is a picture of Half Dome from Little Yosemite Valley, which is about four miles and 2,000 feet up from floor of the Yosemite Valley. This is a view of the south face, which is less steep than the north face.
Half Dome is a favorite climbing site in Yosemite and has an assortment of routes that range in difficulty and duration - most routes take two to three days and involve camping while en route! Thankfully the summit is accessible to day hikers. A series of poles and steel cables have been installed for about a quarter mile up the least steep slope. You can see the route day hikers take in the picture above. We come in from the right side of the picture, moving left, first up the granite slope on the far right, then down into that notch, and finally up the final slope to the top.
We were slated to summit Half Dome during our 2007 bid of the John Muir Trail. Our plan was to hike from the Happy Isles trail head (the start of the JMT) to our Day 1 campsite (about 2.5 miles from the Half Dome summit), setup camp, and then meander up to the top of Half Dome and back. However, by the time we reached our campsite we were so pooped. It was hot out and, this being our first day on the trail, we were not in trail shape. Therefore, we passed on going up to Half Dome, and I'm glad we did because the last mile to the summit of Half Dome is steep and difficult and we would have likely been too tired to make the top anyhow.
In any event, having missed out on Half Dome during our JMT attempt, we were itching to summit the famous Yosemite landmark. In mid-October we learned that the cables were scheduled to come down for the season on October 15th, so we thought it might be fun to drive up to Yosemite and knock out Half Dome while we still had the chance this season. We left on Saturday morning and stayed overnight in the tent cabins at Curry Village. While Half Dome is a popular destination for tourists at Yosemite, it is not an easy destination to reach. From the Valley floor it's 8.2 miles and 4,700 feet up to the top. Needless to say, you need to start early in order to make it up to the top and back down before it gets too late. We started our hike at 5:30 AM and were back in the parking lot by 4:30 PM.
Here's another view of Half Dome that clearly shows both its north and south faces. At this point we've come about 7.5 miles and have maneuvered around to the east side of the dome; the north face is on the right, the south face on the left. All that remains is the hardest half mile of the day: the half mile up the granite slope and then the ascent via the steel cables.
When reading or talking to people about Half Dome, everyone mentions the steel cables. And, sure, that part is hard and can be a bit scary, but you never hear mention of the granite staircase that precedes the cables. And you should, because it is long, steep, and hard. In the picture above, the granite staircase is what leads you up about 80% of the way to the top. The stairs feel (and look) like the go up forever.
Then, as you near the top, you get your first glimpse of the cables and the ant-like figures inching up the side of the dome.
As the following picture shows, the climb is up a pretty steep cliff. Thankfully there are wooden planks to stop and rest at every 10-20 vertical feet, or so.
Going up is tiring, but other than that, it's not so bad. The cliff face is about three feet in front of your nose and it's easy to get good footing on the wooden planks. Of course, that confidence can quickly be lost if you turn around and look back down.
After about 30 minutes of trudging up the side of Half Dome, we reached the summit, which is broad and boasts spectacular views of the valley and other High Sierra scenery.
After spending a little over an hour at the top, we climbed back down, hiked back to our car, and drove back home. Mission accomplished! Hiking to the summit of Half Dome made for a long, hard day, but the scenery atop Half Dome is definitely worth the effort. Plus, it was late enough in the season that the weather was perfect - not too hot, not too cold, although it was a tad chilly in the early morning hours).
If you plan on hiking Half Dome in one day, I would recommend starting
early, no later than, say 7:00 AM. This will save you from the hottest
parts of the day and will ensure that you return to civilization before
sunset. On the way up and back from Half Dome you pass a lot of day hikers - the Half Dome trail is a popular route. On our way up we passed or were passed by hikers who clearly knew what they were doing. They were in good shape and were carrying good equipment and water and food supplies. Later in the day, on our way down, there were still plenty of day hikers heading up, but they were clearly less experienced and more out of shape, and I doubt many made it up to Half Dome, let alone made it back to the trail head before dark.
As I blogged about over several previous blog entires (enumerated below), in August of 2007 my in-laws, a family friend, my wife, and I all tackled the John Muir Trail, a ~220 mile trail stretching from the Happy Isles trail head in Yosemite and to the summit of Mt. Whitney, which, at 14,505 ft., is the highest point in the contiguous United States. We tackled the trail from north to south, starting at Yosemite. Unfortunately, we did not complete the entire length of the JMT; we bailed out about half way through the journey due to some severe blister problems.
Our initial plan was to hike the distance in 23 days, with 21 of those days being hiking days and two of them being rest days (one at Reds Meadow, the other at Vermilion Valley Resort. We ended up spending 14 total days in the wilderness, with 13 hiking days and one rest day (at Reds). We departed from the JMT shortly after Muir Trail Ranch (the half-way point), winding up Piute Creek and exiting at the North Lake trail head.
Even though we didn't meet our goal of completing the JMT, I am glad we made an attempt. Hiking the JMT requires a lot of planning and effort up front, from securing the appropriate permits to determining the necessary supplies and mailing or physically dropping them off at resupply points. Any sort of backpacking trip is physically trying since it involves carrying anywhere from 25-50 pounds on your back, and the trails in the Sierra Nevada are not without a degree of difficulty. The JMT starts at a mere 4,000 ft., but quickly elevates to 9,000 feet and then only drops to 8,000 ft. at a few spots (Reds Meadow, Lake Edison / VVR, and Muir Trail Ranch). 95% of the trail is between 9,000 and 12,000 ft., and three stretches in the southern half of the JMT exceed 13,000 ft. There's a lot of up and down each day, and terrain ranging from soft, yielding dirt to steep granite steps that are hard on the knees.
The hardest part of backpacking, though, is not the physical exhaustion, but just being removed from the creature comforts that we take for granted each day. Going to the bathroom means digging a hole and squatting over it. Dinner means dehydrated meals or trail mix or beef jerky. A shower means a quick dip in a mountain stream or lake sans shampoo or soap where the water temperature is in the 50s. What's surprising to those who've not done a lengthy backpacking trip is the amount of damage your hands receive. They are out in the sun and dirt all day long. They dry out, and crack, causing small nicks and cuts to form, and those sores can quickly develop into infections if you don't take care of them. What I've found works best is to wear lightweight glove liners day-round. You'll still get injuries, because there will be times the glove liners are off and you need to do something with your hands, but they help. When a cut forms, put some antiseptic on it and bandage it up; alternatively, you can encase any developing wounds with climber's tape, which will stay in place and protect against further damage for days.
Despite these hardships, backpacking is a lot of fun and definitely an activity I would encourage all to try. It's nice to get out into the true wilderness, where the nearest road or cell phone or computer or microwave is literally 25 miles or more away. Nothing clears the mind like hard, unceasing physical effort. After a day or two in the wilderness, thoughts about work or stresses from the everyday life are no longer a concern. They have been pushed cleanly from your mind, leaving one's consciousness unpolluted and in a meditative-like state. At night, the stars dance in the sky, and in the day the mountains and trees and meadows and lakes and streams provide an unspoiled scenery too few today get to enjoy.
If you'd care to learn more about our 2007 JMT attempt, you can read about the planning and the various days of our joinery at the following posts:
I'll close with some interesting statistics and links.
- Pictures from all 14 days
- Estimated Total Mileage: 140 miles
- Estimated Total Vertical Ascent: 26,600 ft.
- Estimated Total Vertical Descent: 21,300 ft.
- Highest Elevation: 11,423 ft. - Day 14 (Piute Pass)
- Lowest Elevation: 4,040 ft. - Day 1 (Happy Isles trail head)
- My Starting Weight: 165 lbs.
- My Finishing Weight: 158 lbs.
Since our JMT bid we have yet to take on any new backpacking trips, although we'll likely pick back up in Spring of 2008. We have, however, done two interesting day hikes. In October we drove up to Yosemite and hiked from Happy Isles to the top of Half Dome. Then, in November, we drove to the Grand Canyon and hiked down to the floor of the canyon and back. I'll blog about those trips in future posts...
Day 12 examined our jaunt from Marie Lake to Muir Trail Ranch.
Day 13: Muir Trail Ranch to A Bit Past Hutchinson Meadow [Pictures]
Distance: 11 Miles
Elevation Changes: 8,000 - 11,000
Today was our last day on the official John Muir Trail, a trail we had traveled for over 120 total miles, more than 23,000 total feet of vertical ascent, and over 19,500 feet of total vertical descent. Yet we were still two days from civilization, although the remainder of our trip was trail we had traveled last year in our week-long backpacking trip on the Classic High Sierra Loop. The path we were on today and the next would take us from the depths of Muir Trail Ranch
(about 8,000 feet) over Piute Pass, at 11,400 feet, and down to North
Lake, at 9,350 ft. Needless to say, these last two days were going to be hard.
The first part of the first day was the most exhausting because here the trail follows a sheer ridge line up Piute Creek, with a lot of steep up and down over rocky terrain. The following picture depicts this rocky path. You can see the Piute Creek below, and the rocky, steep ridge we are on. The trail follows along this ridge for about 4.5 miles, some points several hundred feet above the river, and at other times at the river's edge.
Although the trail was tough, it marked a return to the scenery I enjoy best - open skies, surrounded by mountains and rocks.
Today's portion eased up a bit once we reached Hutchinson Meadow. Hutchinson Meadow is a stretch of forest and streams along this trail that are a popular camping site. During normal conditions, the meadow is a haven for mosquitoes. Last year when we hiked through this area the cloud of bugs was so thick that we donned mosquito nets and long sleeves and long pants to reduce the number of bug bites. This year being so dry, however, there wasn't a bug to be seen. Many of the streams that criss-cross the meadow were only crossable with water shoes last year. This year, though, they were either completely dried up, or shallow enough to just walk through leaving our boots on. Here is a view of one such stream in Hutchinson Meadow this year. Note that there's just a trickle of water in the stream bed.
And here's the same stream from last year's trip.
From Hutchinson Meadow, the ascent to Piute Pass is long, but gradual. We knocked out a few more miles, rising above the tree line, before calling it a day.
Day 14: A Bit Past Hutchinson Meadow to North Lake [Pictures]
Distance: 8 Miles
Elevation Changes: 11,000 - 11,400 - 9,350
The last day is usually the easiest. Yes, your body is tired and your feet sore, but your brain knows that soon (soon!) you will be standing in a hot shower, getting cleaned up and ready to go eat high-calorie food at a restaurant. This enables your brain to dampen the soreness and provides sufficient motivation to push at a fast clip than usual.
We woke up and got out of camp around 6:15 AM and made it to Piute Pass by 8:30 AM. After a short break for breakfast, we started our four mile, 2,000 ft. descent to the North Lake trail head. This trail winds down past Piute Lake, the Loch Leven, along the Piute Crags, and down to North Lake. All but the last mile are above the tree line and offer nice views of steep mountainsides and pristine lakes.
As we continued on our way, it became clearer and clearer that we were nearing civilization. We saw a number of day hikers and those doing one or two-nighters. People with dogs, people carrying chairs, people who had clearly shaved and showered recently, who didn't smell. And most of these people we met were blown away when we told them we had started from Yosemite. That we had been thus far walked 138 miles and had just two miles left to our final destination.
We made it down to the North Lake trail head a little after noon, and immediately found a hiker who was heading out of North Lake and was kind enough to drop us off at South Lake to pick up the car. By early afternoon we were all back in Bishop, checked into a hotel, and scrubbing the dirt and grime and sweat that had accumulated over the past 14 days.
UPDATE: Read the hike wrapup.
Day 11 examined our travels from Quail Meadow to Marie Lake.
Day 12: Marie Lake to Muir Trail Ranch [Pictures]
Distance: 8.8 Miles
Elevation Changes: 10,550 - 10,900 - 8,000
Like the Day 10's hike over Silver Pass and down to Quail Meadow, today's hike started with a short uphill to Seldon Pass, and then a long descent to Muir Trail Ranch (MTR). From MTR, we planned on heading up the JMT through Evolution Valley (Day 13), over Muir Pass (Day 14), and to LeConte Canyon (Day 15), at which point my in-laws and the family friend would depart over Bishop Pass and head down to South Lake, where our car was waiting. The plan was for my wife and I to continue another seven days to the summit of Mt. Whitney, the terminus of the John Muir Trail.
That was the plan, at least.
Over the past several days, my wife's blisters had become exceedingly worse, to the point where there were prominent blisters on virtually every toe and on the sides and bottoms of both feet. She was spending more than an hour each night re-bandaging her blisters and was clearly pained with each step of the way, especially in the morning when starting out, or whenever we'd resume from a break. We had talked previously about whether it would make sense to throw in the towel. The trail from MTR to Mt. Whitney is the toughest portion of the JMT, with three passes exceeding 13,000 feet and many days involving a 2,500+ ft. ascent in the morning followed by a 2,500+ ft. descent in the afternoon. The average elevation exceeds 10,000 feet, whereas our average elevation thus far was probably closer to 9,000 ft. And the last third of the trail is the most distant from civilization, requiring two or three full days to of hiking to get to the nearest road. And if that wasn't enough, according to our schedule the last seven days called for an average of near 12 miles per day. Granted, we had knocked out more than 12 miles on Day 6 and Day 8 and lived to tell about it, but the past few days we had put in around 9 miles today and were feeling utterly exhausted.
So we needed to make a decision - bail out of the trail after MTR or try to push on to Whitney? And if we decided to bail out, where would we do that? From MTR it's 4.5 miles west to Florence Lake, which has a resort and road access, but that's on the east side of the Sierra Nevadas and nearly a full day of driving from our car (even though our car was about 25 miles away, as the crow flies). Another option would be to push on to South Lake, as originally planned. Alternatively, we could shortcut to North Lake. North Lake is a lake about 15 miles from South Lake, but the two are connected by road and both are popular hiking and fishing spots, meaning there's often people coming and going in the summer months. While the two lakes are not far by car, they are about six or seven days apart hiking due to a few mountain chains that are in the way. (In fact, we spent a week hiking from North Lake to South Lake in the summer of 2006.) From MTR, one can stay on the JMT for two to three days and then spend another day hiking to South Lake, or they can hike in a slightly different direction for two days and reach North Lake.
Needless to day, we had some big decisions facing us as we started off on our trek this day. As we started, my wife and I discussed our options and decided it would be smart to bail out. This was a hard decision for my wife to come by. She is a very hard working, determined person who likes to finish what she sets her mind to. She spent countless hours over the past year planning and preparing for this trek. But she came to the right decision. How enjoyable can hiking be when you're in constant pain? And at what cost does one incur to finish the JMT? And what if her blisters became so bad that she couldn't continue once we were in the deepest parts of the wilderness, days from the nearest resupply point?
Long story short, we decided to call off our JMT bid and to exit at the North Lake trail head. That didn't impact today's schedule - we still were going over Seldon Pass and down to MTR - but it meant that tomorrow we would depart from the JMT and hike the 20 miles from MTR, over Piute Pass, and down to North Lake.
We had been debating this decision for the past several days, so once the decision was made a weight was lifted from our shoulders. Instead of having another 100 miles to go, we had less than 30. The end was in sight, which raised our spirits. It also meant we could start reflecting on the experience thus far rather than worrying and thinking about what was ahead.
This decision was made as we packed up our campsite and trekked up to Seldon Pass. This stretch, and the first few miles down the other side, provided the best scenery for the day - mountain peaks, lakes, and blue skies. Here is a picture of us approaching Seldon Pass. That's Marie Lake in the background.
A couple of miles south of Seldon Pass is Sally Keyes Lake, where we stopped for breakfast.
After Sally Keyes Lake, the trail starts its steep descent, first through a thick forest and then down the side of a ridge. The views from both stretches were rather nondescript. By late afternoon we reached the bottom of the valley and made our way to Muir Trail Ranch (MTR), which is about a mile off the trail. MTR is a ranch that provides pack animal services and has accommodations and ranch-related activities for guests. Guests usually arrive on horseback from Florence Lake, which is 4.5 miles west of MTR. MTR also serves as a very common resupply point for JMT hikers. MTR is the half-way point of the JMT. For hikers going south to north, it is the first resupply point that is accessible with only a short detour off the trail. For north to south hikers, it is the last easily accessible resupply point.
While MTR is a great place to mail and then pickup your resupply packages, that's pretty much all it's good for. They don't offer any services to non-guests - no trash service, no bathrooms, no food. There is ice cold spring water you can drink, and they have a very simple store with common hiking items, but that's it. However, many hikers send far too much stuff to MTR, and end up leaving a lot of items. Or, they may be carrying too much stuff and drop off excess in an attempt to shed weight. So it's a great place to replace some of your "regular" food with something new.
Speaking of sending too much stuff to MTR, we had shipped 10 days of supplies since we were expecting to continue all the way to Whitney, but now with our exit a mere two days away, we had grossly oversupplied ourselves. We had actually mailed two resupply cannisters to MTR. We ended up mailing one of them back and then took what we needed from the second one and then donated the rest. The following picture shows a couple of JMT hikers pecking through their excess supplies and the available donations.
After getting our supplies in order, we left MTR and headed back to the JMT trail, where we set up camp for the night.
On Day 13 we departed the JMT and started on our premature exit to North Lake. It took us two-days to go the 20 miles from MTR to North Lake. I'll cover these last two days in a future post. Until then...
UPDATE [2007-11-17]: Read about Days 13 and 14.
Day 10 examined our travels from Squaw Lake to Quail Meadow.
Day 11: Quail Meadow to Marie Lake [Pictures]
Distance: 12.5 Miles
Elevation Changes: 7,870 - 9,920 - 8,960 - 10,550
Today's hike started with a 2.5 mile, 2,100 foot climb up Bear Ridge. The trail starts with a gradual ascent through some of the lushest forest regions on the JMT, with many birch trees and lots of cool shade. This was definitely the coolest and wettest portion of the JMT trail we had seen to date. Unfortunately, many of the birch trees have been defaced by hikers who have carved their names into the trunks. There is literally several dozen birch trees along a short stretch that all have very large engravings.
The gradual ascent gives way to a series of long and unrelenting switchbacks. This stretch of trail is under the cover of trees, which helps with the temperature, but obscures the view. Eventually, we crest Bear Ridge and stop for a snack around 9:00 AM. The trail then follows the ridge line for a bit longer before descending nearly 1,000 feet into a valley.
The descent was not easy. It was under the sun during late morning and much of it was on hard rocks, which can be hard on the knees. Thankfully we were rewarded with nice views of the surrounding mountains.
After reaching the floor of the valley, the remainder of the day was a fairly gradual incline of 1,600 feet to 10,550 ft.
Tomorrow's goal was another near 11,000 ft. pass (Seldon Pass) and then a sharp descent to 7,600 ft. to Muir Trail Ranch, a popular resupply point on the JMT. Initially, we had planned on hiking only to Rosemarie Meadow, which is 2.9 miles before Seldon Pass and sits below 10,000 feet. However, upon reaching Rosemarie Meadow we felt energized enough to push on to Marie Lake, another 1.5 miles closer to the pass and 600 feet high (at 10,550). In retrospect, I'm glad we pushed on, as it made Day 12 a tad easier, but I think we all overestimated our energy, as the final climb to Marie Lake from Rosemarie Meadow was very tiring.
When hiking over high elevation passes in the High Sierras, it is important to be over the pass by early afternoon at the latest. The High Sierras frequently get rain and lightning storms in the early afternoon (although we did not experience a single drop of rain our entire JMT trip). Clouds usually start forming around noon, and by 1:00 or 2:00 or 3:00 there's rain and lightning. By late afternoon, everything has (usually) cleared out. These storms can appear quickly and if you attempt to tackle a pass during the early afternoon you may get caught in a potentially dangerous situation. Consequently, in our planning we always tried to end our hikes near a pass so that we could knock them out in the early morning. Not only did this alleviate lightning concerns, but it also made the hike easier, as in the morning it's cooler and you have more energy.
Upon reaching Rosemarie Lake, we pitched our tents, ate dinner, and crashed hard. The scenery was beautiful, but we were all too tired to enjoy it for long. Seldon Pass was visible from our campsite (although it is not shown in the picture below).
Tomorrow's hike took us from Marie Lake, over Seldon Pass, and down, down, down to Muir Trail Ranch. I'll cover that leg of our journey in a future post. Until then!
UPDATE [2007-11-15]: Read about Day 12.
Day 9 examined our trek from the Duck Lake junction to Squaw Lake.
Day 10: Squaw Lake to Quail Meadows [Pictures]Distance: 8.3 Miles
Elevation Changes: 10,200 - 10,895 - 7,870
Today's hike was easier than most, seeing as the sole ascent was a mere 700 feet and would occur first thing in the morning. We "slept in" today, delaying our exit from camp until about 7:00 AM. Prior to starting the JMT, we had planned on ending today's leg at Vermillion Valley Resort (VVR). In fact, we were schedule to take a rest day here, much like we did at Reds Meadow on Day 7. VVR is a popular rest spot and resupply point along the JMT. It has a restaurant and cabins for rent (as well as locations for tents).
What makes VVR unique is the mode by which JMT hikers reach it. VVR is at the west end of Edison Lake, while the JMT runs about a mile east of the east end of the lake. While there is a trail from the JMT circumnavigating Edison Lake, the lake is several miles long. Consequently, the VVR staff operates a ferry from the east end of the lake to the west end, which runs twice a day at 10:00 AM and 4:00 PM.
While we had initially planned on stopping at VVR and enjoying a rest day there, we decided to skip VVR in its entirety for a couple of reasons. First, we were hiking with my in-laws and a family friend, and the family friend needed to be off trail by a certain date that was fast approaching. Second, due to the dry conditions the lake was not as deep as usual, meaning that the ferry could not arrive at its usual location. Usually JMT hikers have to hike one mile off trail to reach the ferry pickup, but now that was extended to two miles. So, for the above reasons, we decided to instead lay up at Quail Meadow, a campsite at the junction of the JMT and the trail to the VVR ferry pickup point.
The first stretch of the day's hike - from Squaw Lake up to Silver Pass - was rather easy and uneventful and offered some great scenery. The picture below shows the view looking westward from our ascent to Silver Pass. The mountains in the distance are the backsides of Mt. Ritter and Mt. Banner, which we passed in front of back in Day 5.
After climbing to Silver Pass, the remainder of the day was a 3,000 foot descent to Quail Meadow. Here is a picture of yours truly atop Silver Pass, surveying the upcoming descent.
The descent to Quail Meadow is more challenging that we initially expected. Granted, going downhill is far easier than going uphill, but a steep downhill can be challenging in its own way. And this was a steep downhill in many places. What makes it challenging is that it is hard to go down a rather steep incline at a controlled speed when you are tired and you are carrying 45 pounds on your back. Thankfully, the majority of the descent provided exceptional mountain scenery, and the vistas helped erase some of the physical pain.
We reached Quail Meadow in the early afternoon and considered pushing on. However, the next leg of the trail is up Bear Ridge, which climbs close to 2,000 feet in a few short miles. Tired from today's incessant descent, we decided to call it a night and utilized the extra time to bathe and do laundry. We also ran into some other JMT hikers who we had leapfrogged a number of times in the past 10 days, including one hiker who used to live in San Diego and was a regular at Cowles Mountain (more of a small hill than a mountain, really; my wife hikes up and down Cowles once or twice a month). In any event, these guys were headed to VVR.
My wife asked if it would be uncouth to ask them to take our trash and dispose of it at VVR. I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask, so I did, and they kindly accepted; the gentleman from San Diego was, in fact, so kind as to share with me a snifter of the top shelf whiskey he had brought along. That is one thing that I really enjoy about backpackers - almost every single backpacker is outgoing and kind and willing to help. If you're resting and say hi to just about any person in the back country (who is obviously there on a long haul), chances are they'll stop and strike up a conversation, sharing with you their trail experiences so far, interesting things they saw or experienced on trail, and a bit about their lives off trail. Compare that attitude to the attitude you usually find amongst day hikers. With day hikers, half of them won't even make eye contact, but the other half will smile and say hi and stop and chat (I like to think this latter half of day hikers are also backpackers).
In any event, after bathing and laundering, we ate dinner and went to bed early, anticipating our tough climb over Bear Ridge tomorrow. I'll detail the trip up Bear Ridge in a future posting. Until then...
UPDATE [2007-11-13]: Read about Day 11.
Day 8 looked at our journey from Reds Meadow to the Duck Lake junction.
Day 9: Duck Lake Junction to Squaw Lake [Pictures]
Distance: 9.5 Miles
Elevation Changes: 10,480 - 9,080 - 10,200
Day 9 started bright and early and with a steep ascent out of our campsite up to the next ridge. We continued along for over two miles, descending gradually to Purple Lake. The scenery today was leaps and bounds over yesterday's. The ridges traversed from the Duck Lake junction to Purple Lake, and from Purple Lake to Lake Virginia, provided ample mountain scenery that we had been unable to enjoy in several days.
While the scenery was eye-catching, it was still of the low alpine variety where there are still plenty of trees and grassy fields, and the mountain peaks are lower and more gentle. Personally, I prefer the desolate fields of granite, the jagged mountain tops, and the quite hum and cool touch of the wind at such elevations. In short, I longed to return to mountain scenery reminiscent of the first half of Day 5. Although the lower alpine scenery is still rather amazing, as the picture above illustrates so vividly.
We stopped for breakfast upon reaching Purple Lake and were there in time for the fish enjoying their breakfast as well. Seeing the schools of tasty looking trout meandering around the surface of the lake, periodically popping up to grab a fly, made me wish all the more that I had a fishing pole. That and the fact that my body had quickly acclimated to high-calorie, greasy food from Reds Meadow, and was now back on a diet of nuts, beef jerky, and dehydrated foodstuff.
After breakfast we continued on our way. From Purple Lake, the trail climb up about 400 feet to another ridge and then follows that for nearly two miles to Lake Virginia, a popular fishing destination for weekenders starting from Reds Meadow. I don't know if Lake Virginia boasts better fishing than Purple Lake, but I imagine that fishermen prefer it over Purple Lake in part because it is more accessible to campsites. Purple Lake is surrounded by fast rising mountainsides and thick forest. Lake Virginia, on the other hand, has many flat rocks and meadows around the water's edge.
Following Lake Virginia, the JMT rises briefly then levels out for about a mile before dropping rapidly into Tully Hole. The trail literally winds down the side of a mountain, taking hikers from over 10,300 feet to below 9,600 feet in a series of switchbacks. The picture below shows the view of Tully Hole from the trail shortly before it begins its dizzying descent.
By the time we reached the floor of Tully Hole our feet and shins were burning - it's amazingly how much hard work is required to go downhill! Still, it beats going uphill. The optimal backpacking topology and conditions is a very slight decline where the trail is composed of a giving dirt, not one that's too dusty, but neither one that's too hard. With such conditions, you just lean a bit forward and let gravity do the rest. For hikers coming from Mt. Whitney to Yosemite, there are a couple of these types of days - from Duck Lake junction to Reds Meadow, and along Lyell Canyon. While there are segments of these optimal stretches for southbound hikers like ourselves, they are far too infrequent.
The worst type of trail topology and conditions is on hard granite going virtually straight up, as such conditions zap the energy and life force out of your body with each step. The trail from Whitney Portal to the summit of Mt. Whitney is a prime example (or so I'm told).
In any event, once we reached Tully Hole we followed the river pictured above downstream for about a mile and then crossed it, found a spot in the shade, and enjoyed lunch and a well-deserved break. At this point we were near 9,000 ft. Looking forward, our next obstacle was Silver Pass at 10,900 feet. We decided to make as much progress as we could, and started our climb.
After a little over two miles we reached Squaw Lake and decided to call it a day (you can see me utterly pooped in the picture below). At 10,300 ft, Squaw Lake was a short climb to the pass and was only 1.2 miles away. Throughout this trip we had always performed our best in the morning hours, so we were confident that we could make it up to the pass and over in record time. And from after Silver Pass, it was all downhill to our Day 10 campsite.
Jisun and I found a secluded spot at Squaw Lake and took a bath as best we could. The water was cold, but we got used to it after a while. The lake's bottom was not very appealing, so we ended up standing on rocks in about two feet of ice cold water and washed ourselves the best we could. It felt good to get some grime and sweat off.
By this time in the trip Jisun's blisters were really becoming an issue. I first noticed how greatly they were impacting here back at Reds Meadow, and the one rest day was, unfortunately, not a long enough rest for the blisters to heal. By this point she was clearly in more pain and was in the most discomfort when starting a hike for the day or after a rest. Her naked feet were a sight to behold - large, protruding blisters emanating from virtually every toe and from the bottoms and sides of her feet. In a word, gross. I was very lucky and did not have a single blister, although my feet were surely sore through much of the days' hikes.
Tomorrow's hike took us over Silver Pass and then dropped us down to Lake Edison. The highest point - Silver Pass - stands at 10,800 ft., while tomorrow's terminus was below 8,000 ft.! Did I say that going downhill is not easy? I'll highlight this portion of the trip in a future entry. Until then...
UPDATE [2007-11-12]: Read about Day 10.
Day 6 and 7 examined our trek from Garnet Lake to Reds Meadow and our stay over there.
Day 8: Reds Meadow Resort to Duck Lake Junction [Pictures]
Distance: 13 Miles
Elevation Changes: 7,580 - 10,480
After a calorie-laden day with no backpacking at all, we were well rested and ready for the next leg of our journey. Rather than start out bright and early, we decided to first enjoy one last civilized meal at the restaurant and slurped up some greasy eggs, bacon, hash browns, and orange juice. Yum!
At 7,580 feet, Reds Meadow is one of the lowest points on the entire JMT. Not surprisingly, the trip out of Reds is a pretty constant uphill. Due to its low elevation, the terrain around Reds Meadow - and most of today's hike - was through tall trees that hid any sort of mountain scenery, making today one of the least scenic ones of the entire voyage. In addition to the lack of scenery, there are few water sources along this portion of the trail. From Reds Meadow it's about 5.5 miles to the first water source. And after that, it's another 6 miles to the next water source, making this one of the driest stretches of the entire JMT.
About a half mile out of Reds there is a stretch of forest that was set ablaze by lightning back in 1992. The forest is still in the process of regrowing, providing some views of the mountains in the distance.
This morning's hike was a bit hindered by some sort of cross country training. There were probably a couple hundred high school students running on this trail toward Reds Meadow. I assume they started at Reds Meadow bright and early, had ran to some way point, and then doubled back, seeing as the nearest road is about 30 miles further along on the JMT, and then another 5 miles off a side trail, and that road is a one-way gravel road at that! In any event, the runners were a little annoying because the trail was not wide enough for two people coming both ways at the same time. Invariably, one of us had to stop, and we usually pulled aside for the runners. But that wasn't too bad; the real annoyance was the dust that these runners kicked up. In short, we were inhaling dust the first mile and change of our hike this day.
We made good progress in the morning, but began slowing down in the afternoon as we tired from the hot and continuous uphill trail. Eventually we broke through the forest cover and were rewarded with some classic Sierra Nevada mountain and valley views. From the picture below you can see our route for the next two days. It's hard to describe without being able to point at the picture, but the JMT winds along the ridges on the left until close to the horizon and then drops down into a deep valley known as Tulley hole. It then traverses a river for a mile and change, and then comes back up the mountains in the distance and over Silver Pass (elevation 10,895).
Around 4:00 PM we reach the Duck Lake Junction, one of the places we had considered setting up camp. Our ideal destination was Purple Lake, another two miles beyond the junction, but one that entailed a steep climb and then a sharp descent. By this point we were pretty pooped and since this junction was the last water source until Purple Lake, we decided to pitch camp here and call it a night.
Today's hike was long and tiring, and whatever energy reserves we had accumulated from our rest day at Reds Meadow were now spent. After pitching our tents, we eat, do some laundry, and are fast asleep by 8:00. Tomorrow's hike took us past two scenic lakes (Purple Lake and Lake Virginia), down into the impressive Tulley Hole, and up to Squaw Lake at the base of Silver Pass. I'll cover this leg of the journey in a future post. Until then...
UPDATE [2007-11-07]: Read about Day 9.
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