June 2021
Forward:
My good friend Pablo and I had an early season trip planned for 3 weeks ago at the end of May. It didn’t happen. With a very light winter in California we had planned a 60 mile loop in the southern Sierras. The first weather system in over a month decided to drop. Temperatures dropped into the 20s with wind chills around zero because of very high winds. We made the call the night before to cancel. We were both very disappointed but it was the right call. I already had a planned trip for myself for the first week of June. I always leave for a trip the day school ends. This year I had planned a 65 mile loop about 1/3 off trail starting and finishing at North Lake outside Bishop, CA. I invited Pablo. He had the right gear and mindset. I’m not sure if he knew what he was really getting into.
Forward:
My good friend Pablo and I had an early season trip planned for 3 weeks ago at the end of May. It didn’t happen. With a very light winter in California we had planned a 60 mile loop in the southern Sierras. The first weather system in over a month decided to drop. Temperatures dropped into the 20s with wind chills around zero because of very high winds. We made the call the night before to cancel. We were both very disappointed but it was the right call. I already had a planned trip for myself for the first week of June. I always leave for a trip the day school ends. This year I had planned a 65 mile loop about 1/3 off trail starting and finishing at North Lake outside Bishop, CA. I invited Pablo. He had the right gear and mindset. I’m not sure if he knew what he was really getting into.
Day #1
8.87 Daily Miles
8.87 Total Miles
2240 Ft Elevation Gain
866 Ft Elevation Lost
After a smooth 5 hour drive from Sacramento to the North Lake Trailhead, we set off up the trail, at 9281 feet of elevation, at 11:30 am. Crossing Bishop Creek twice on fallen logs. The trail starts out though an aspen grove and rapidly gains elevation becoming more and more exposed. We reached Loch Leven Lake soon enough at 10,743 feet and continued on to Piute Lake at 10,963 feet. We decided to take our packs off and have a break. Filtering water and having some snacks under the 12,600+ foot peaks above was stunning.
Continuing on, we reached the pass after some difficult granite steps put in decades ago at 11,473 feet. At this point we decided to take a detour and make our way southwest to Muriel Lake which sits at 11,336 feet in a beautiful bowl below The Great Divide and the Goethe Cirque. It’s an amazing place and I’ll be back in just two weeks with my daughter and her two best friends. We continued off trail from here by dropping down from the back of the lake into Humphrey's Basin. This is truly one of my all time favorite places in the entire Range of Light. The Basin measures about 3/4 of a mile by 3/4 of a mile and is ringed by the Great Divide the south, Mount Humphreys at 13,986 on the east, Four Gables on the north and it drops down 2000 feet on the west following Piute Creek. The center of this amazing area is dotted in many lakes and littered with granite erratics left over from the great glaciers that formed this treasure millions of years ago. We dropped in elevation and followed some "use" trails and the flowing water, down to Lower Golden Trout Lake where we found a spot, set up camp, nourished ourselves and enjoyed the beauty. We saw a number of day hikers going up the pass today and even a group of 3 backpackers. Once we hit the summit, the only other person we saw today was a man camped not far from where we are right now. The mosquitos are pretty bad in the early evening. An amazing day to start.
8.87 Daily Miles
8.87 Total Miles
2240 Ft Elevation Gain
866 Ft Elevation Lost
After a smooth 5 hour drive from Sacramento to the North Lake Trailhead, we set off up the trail, at 9281 feet of elevation, at 11:30 am. Crossing Bishop Creek twice on fallen logs. The trail starts out though an aspen grove and rapidly gains elevation becoming more and more exposed. We reached Loch Leven Lake soon enough at 10,743 feet and continued on to Piute Lake at 10,963 feet. We decided to take our packs off and have a break. Filtering water and having some snacks under the 12,600+ foot peaks above was stunning.
Continuing on, we reached the pass after some difficult granite steps put in decades ago at 11,473 feet. At this point we decided to take a detour and make our way southwest to Muriel Lake which sits at 11,336 feet in a beautiful bowl below The Great Divide and the Goethe Cirque. It’s an amazing place and I’ll be back in just two weeks with my daughter and her two best friends. We continued off trail from here by dropping down from the back of the lake into Humphrey's Basin. This is truly one of my all time favorite places in the entire Range of Light. The Basin measures about 3/4 of a mile by 3/4 of a mile and is ringed by the Great Divide the south, Mount Humphreys at 13,986 on the east, Four Gables on the north and it drops down 2000 feet on the west following Piute Creek. The center of this amazing area is dotted in many lakes and littered with granite erratics left over from the great glaciers that formed this treasure millions of years ago. We dropped in elevation and followed some "use" trails and the flowing water, down to Lower Golden Trout Lake where we found a spot, set up camp, nourished ourselves and enjoyed the beauty. We saw a number of day hikers going up the pass today and even a group of 3 backpackers. Once we hit the summit, the only other person we saw today was a man camped not far from where we are right now. The mosquitos are pretty bad in the early evening. An amazing day to start.
Day # 2
12.45 Daily Miles
21.32 Total Miles
3002 Ft Elevation Gain
2326 Ft Elevation Lost
Woke up throughout the night many times. Some to use the bathroom, others just because. The mosquitoes were pretty bad off and on last night. We moved around between the lake and campsite to keep away from them. This morning at 6 there were very few out but by 7 they were out in full force. Eating breakfast around them was a bit of a skill. My guess is we will have to perfect this skill as the days go on as I don’t see them getting better.
Packed up and ready to go at 8:45. We started dropping down right away and continued for 1400 feet to French Canyon. Very dry conditions and zero snow left all the way down. We turned north at French Canyon and started to ascend. We soon passed through Hutchinson Meadow and then a few minutes later ran into 3 backpackers. They had hiked to Muir Trail Ranch for a beer only to find out that the ranch wouldn’t be open for the season for 3 more days. That was a long walk for no beer.
The next goal was the 1000 foot climb from the canyon floor to Miriam Lake at 10,932. It was a push on a use trail that was extremely steep and very loose. The meadows just before the lake were amazing and Miriam Lake, in a bowl of granite with a 50 foot waterfall filling it and it’s many sandy beaches, was heaven. We took an extended break swimming, washing, eating and drinking.
The next goal was the waterfall itself. We climbed a trail-less rise just to the east of the cascading water and crested the top in very little time. Next was a series of 3 unnamed lakes ending at La Salle Lake sitting at 11,582 feet. From the north end of the trail-less lake we ascended rock gullies until we were at a point that we had a straight shot at our high point for the day. Feather Pass had no discernable trail to the top and at this elevation our bodies were screaming. Finally, with much effort, we reached the top of the pass at 12,375 feet. We rested and took in the view to the north of the Bear Lakes Basin. The north side of the pass didn’t have as much snow as we were expecting so no snow gear was needed. We descended the talus, sand and snow along a beautiful creek as we got closer and closer to the lakes. Finally reaching Bearpaw Lake, we set up camp for the night. We only had about 90 minutes left of sunshine and knew it would cool down significantly after that. Camp was set up and dinner was being fixed as the last rays of the sun kissed the surface of the lake.Dinner was amazing. The sliver of a moon came out. I’m exhausted and barely getting this typed out.
12.45 Daily Miles
21.32 Total Miles
3002 Ft Elevation Gain
2326 Ft Elevation Lost
Woke up throughout the night many times. Some to use the bathroom, others just because. The mosquitoes were pretty bad off and on last night. We moved around between the lake and campsite to keep away from them. This morning at 6 there were very few out but by 7 they were out in full force. Eating breakfast around them was a bit of a skill. My guess is we will have to perfect this skill as the days go on as I don’t see them getting better.
Packed up and ready to go at 8:45. We started dropping down right away and continued for 1400 feet to French Canyon. Very dry conditions and zero snow left all the way down. We turned north at French Canyon and started to ascend. We soon passed through Hutchinson Meadow and then a few minutes later ran into 3 backpackers. They had hiked to Muir Trail Ranch for a beer only to find out that the ranch wouldn’t be open for the season for 3 more days. That was a long walk for no beer.
The next goal was the 1000 foot climb from the canyon floor to Miriam Lake at 10,932. It was a push on a use trail that was extremely steep and very loose. The meadows just before the lake were amazing and Miriam Lake, in a bowl of granite with a 50 foot waterfall filling it and it’s many sandy beaches, was heaven. We took an extended break swimming, washing, eating and drinking.
The next goal was the waterfall itself. We climbed a trail-less rise just to the east of the cascading water and crested the top in very little time. Next was a series of 3 unnamed lakes ending at La Salle Lake sitting at 11,582 feet. From the north end of the trail-less lake we ascended rock gullies until we were at a point that we had a straight shot at our high point for the day. Feather Pass had no discernable trail to the top and at this elevation our bodies were screaming. Finally, with much effort, we reached the top of the pass at 12,375 feet. We rested and took in the view to the north of the Bear Lakes Basin. The north side of the pass didn’t have as much snow as we were expecting so no snow gear was needed. We descended the talus, sand and snow along a beautiful creek as we got closer and closer to the lakes. Finally reaching Bearpaw Lake, we set up camp for the night. We only had about 90 minutes left of sunshine and knew it would cool down significantly after that. Camp was set up and dinner was being fixed as the last rays of the sun kissed the surface of the lake.Dinner was amazing. The sliver of a moon came out. I’m exhausted and barely getting this typed out.
Day #3
10.65 Daily Miles
32.72 Total Miles
1759 Ft Elevation Gain
2736 Ft Elevation Lost
I only really lost it once today. But, more on that later. We planned for a shorter day today so we left a bit later, around 9 am. We started around the trail-less lake to the east and then continued between Bearpaw and Ursa Lakes. We continued trying our best to find the best route. For a while we did just that. But, upon reaching Gomez Lake (named by our small expedition of two) we were lured into continuing down a grassy gully. It was quickly obvious that we’d made a mistake and were in the wrong gully. Seeing two more gullies we tried some Class 3 slabs but quickly cliffed out and had to retreat. After an hour of searching for a workable route to descend, we decided to return to Gomez Lake and the correct shoot. In no time at all we had worked our way down to Bear Creek. We got some water and continued on a bit haggard. Not long later we got to an unnamed lake that Bear Creek flowed in and out of. With nowhere to really get around it, we picked a shallow arm of the lake and walked through the calf high sandy water. This is when the route started getting more difficult. There was an old, unmaintained trail that we would occasionally hit. For the most part we were finding paths through the forest, the talus fields, the river, and aggravating the willows. So aggravating, that once I kinda lost it, as willows are my second least favorite thing to come upon in the wilderness. But, this was not “the time” I lost it. We made our way down the canyon. I was watching the map to make sure we didn’t miss our route up the side bank and to Lou Beverly Lake. This was my mistake making moment that proved once again that even things that go “wrong” in terms of plans in the backcountry actually go right. I mapped an off trail route to the lake. I believed it was going to connect with a trail that was further down the canyon we were hiking. But in my mind we were taking the trail not the off trail route. I was frustrated we weren’t finding a trail but instead random cairns (stacks of rocks left to help others find a route). Finally we reached the river we were to follow but when Pablo and I discussed it I was still of the mindset that we were somewhere we were not. We turned the wrong way to follow downstream instead of up. After a few hundred feet we realized our error. Cue Adam losing it. I was not a happy camper and just started charging up the hill. After about 10 minutes I knew I needed a reset so I sat down to look at my map. Pablo joined me. As we both looked at our maps Pablo realized that we were indeed closer to the trail than we thought and that it was just across a double stream that connected and fell into an amazing waterfall. He called it the “scenic trail”. His map wasn’t loading properly and he couldn’t see the full name. It was the Pacific Crest Scenic Trail! The details of this mistake are impossible without a map so take my word for the fact that it had just changed the face of our trip. Just a few minutes before we had both lost hope of making it to our planned campsite tonight. If that had happened it would add hard off trail miles to a planned 22 mile tomorrow. A no go. We would have to cut the miles short and take a less scenic trail back.
But with this news, we could cross the creeks just before they merged into a waterfall and then only be about 300 yards from the PCT and then only a few miles from our planned campsite at Marie Lakes. It all worked beautifully. The crossings were delightfully easy, the 300 yards to the PCT even easier and then the PCT; it was like a paved highway after our first 3 days of hiking. We stopped for a swim and some water in Rosemary Meadow and before we knew it we were at Marie Lakes camped in just the spot I hoped to stay. I’ve been here 3 or 4 times and always wanted to camp on the back side of the lake. Tonight was the night. We were both beat, me more for sure. After some water and food I felt a ton better. It’s been a terrific night tonight and I’m just getting into my tent. Hopefully sleep comes easy.
10.65 Daily Miles
32.72 Total Miles
1759 Ft Elevation Gain
2736 Ft Elevation Lost
I only really lost it once today. But, more on that later. We planned for a shorter day today so we left a bit later, around 9 am. We started around the trail-less lake to the east and then continued between Bearpaw and Ursa Lakes. We continued trying our best to find the best route. For a while we did just that. But, upon reaching Gomez Lake (named by our small expedition of two) we were lured into continuing down a grassy gully. It was quickly obvious that we’d made a mistake and were in the wrong gully. Seeing two more gullies we tried some Class 3 slabs but quickly cliffed out and had to retreat. After an hour of searching for a workable route to descend, we decided to return to Gomez Lake and the correct shoot. In no time at all we had worked our way down to Bear Creek. We got some water and continued on a bit haggard. Not long later we got to an unnamed lake that Bear Creek flowed in and out of. With nowhere to really get around it, we picked a shallow arm of the lake and walked through the calf high sandy water. This is when the route started getting more difficult. There was an old, unmaintained trail that we would occasionally hit. For the most part we were finding paths through the forest, the talus fields, the river, and aggravating the willows. So aggravating, that once I kinda lost it, as willows are my second least favorite thing to come upon in the wilderness. But, this was not “the time” I lost it. We made our way down the canyon. I was watching the map to make sure we didn’t miss our route up the side bank and to Lou Beverly Lake. This was my mistake making moment that proved once again that even things that go “wrong” in terms of plans in the backcountry actually go right. I mapped an off trail route to the lake. I believed it was going to connect with a trail that was further down the canyon we were hiking. But in my mind we were taking the trail not the off trail route. I was frustrated we weren’t finding a trail but instead random cairns (stacks of rocks left to help others find a route). Finally we reached the river we were to follow but when Pablo and I discussed it I was still of the mindset that we were somewhere we were not. We turned the wrong way to follow downstream instead of up. After a few hundred feet we realized our error. Cue Adam losing it. I was not a happy camper and just started charging up the hill. After about 10 minutes I knew I needed a reset so I sat down to look at my map. Pablo joined me. As we both looked at our maps Pablo realized that we were indeed closer to the trail than we thought and that it was just across a double stream that connected and fell into an amazing waterfall. He called it the “scenic trail”. His map wasn’t loading properly and he couldn’t see the full name. It was the Pacific Crest Scenic Trail! The details of this mistake are impossible without a map so take my word for the fact that it had just changed the face of our trip. Just a few minutes before we had both lost hope of making it to our planned campsite tonight. If that had happened it would add hard off trail miles to a planned 22 mile tomorrow. A no go. We would have to cut the miles short and take a less scenic trail back.
But with this news, we could cross the creeks just before they merged into a waterfall and then only be about 300 yards from the PCT and then only a few miles from our planned campsite at Marie Lakes. It all worked beautifully. The crossings were delightfully easy, the 300 yards to the PCT even easier and then the PCT; it was like a paved highway after our first 3 days of hiking. We stopped for a swim and some water in Rosemary Meadow and before we knew it we were at Marie Lakes camped in just the spot I hoped to stay. I’ve been here 3 or 4 times and always wanted to camp on the back side of the lake. Tonight was the night. We were both beat, me more for sure. After some water and food I felt a ton better. It’s been a terrific night tonight and I’m just getting into my tent. Hopefully sleep comes easy.
Day #4
25.00 Daily Miles
57.72 Total Miles
4767 Ft Elevation Gain
3565 Ft Elevation Lost
We did some miles today. That’s for sure. We woke up at 5:30 this morning and picked up fast under a sky beginning to lighten up. We were camped directly under Selden Pass just 300 feet above us at 10,850 feet. We found a flat spot with an amazing view of Marie Lakes and had some coffee and breakfast. A cute marmot joined us for breakfast obviously looking for handouts and/or scraps she was use to getting from others.
Finishing up around 7:45 we began a descent that would take us past Heart Lake, Sally Keys Lakes and eventually the South Fork of the San Joaquin River at 7,895 feet. We had dropped a total of 2,955 feet. Our day would end, ?? miles later at 11,609 feet after a climb of 3,714 feet. Yes, it was a big day indeed. Over those ?? miles we walked south on the PCT and JMT for about 23 miles and in those miles the trail was indeed the freeway that I’ve read about. Over these miles we would see zero others traveling south either passing us or us passing them. But, coming towards us in droves were a total of 115 hikers. We stopped and had conversations with about 10 and all were very interesting people. Our guess was that at least 75 of them, and probably many more, were traveling the entire length of the 2,650 mile trail from Mexico to Canada. It was amazing to see such a migration heading north.
The mosquitoes were not quite as bad today as yesterday but I’m now confident I’ve got more bites covering my body than at any other time in my life. Passing both the John Muir Cabin and John Muir Rock, one built and one carved in honor of the man who the trail under our feet was named, we continued heading along the roaring river. Through Aspen Meadow, aptly named with its brand new leaves covering the trees and on to Evolution Valley and Meadow. Evolution has always been a favorite of mine both in the Sierras and on the JMT. Climbing out of the San Joaquin River drainage and along a raging series of waterfalls for about a mile and a half we reached the main Evolution Creek crossing. Most years in June, this crossing is much too dangerous to cross and hikers have to cross in the Meadow about a mile above. Today was an easy cross with water up to the knees after a dismal winter in the California high country. Putting our shoes back on, we battled the worst mosquitoes of the day for sure. Once we got going again, we were all but mosquito free through Evolution Meadow, McClure Meadow, Colby Meadow and then eventually to the 10,580 foot marker with a small unnamed and barely visible side trail continuing up towards Darwin Bench. We were both beat and took a rest before beginning the final leg of our day. After some water, snacks and discussion, we strapped on our backpacks and headed up once more. The trail was an un-maintained “use trail” and pretty easy to follow. We arrived at Darwin Bench, a small lake at 11,158 feet, and decided that with the sinking sun and our sinking energy levels we would cook some dinner before trying to make it to our destination. After a terrific hot meal under towering 12,000 ft peaks on either side we packed up for our last section. It was cold and very windy as we ascended into Darwin Canyon. At about 8:30 pm we arrived at the lower of four Darwin Lakes, in exactly the place we had planes to camp. We quickly helped each other set up each tent in wind gusts that constantly tried ripping our tents from our hands and sending them into the lake. We threw our gear into our tents and collapsed. And now it is 12:45 am on the day of our last section and once again sleep will not come. The wind is howling, but it’s no excuse as I haven’t slept well since the first night out here. Not sure why but I’m looking forward to some catch up sleep for sure once home. Just over 7 miles left tomorrow up and over Lamarck Col, another trail-less pass. Can’t wait for some greasy food.
25.00 Daily Miles
57.72 Total Miles
4767 Ft Elevation Gain
3565 Ft Elevation Lost
We did some miles today. That’s for sure. We woke up at 5:30 this morning and picked up fast under a sky beginning to lighten up. We were camped directly under Selden Pass just 300 feet above us at 10,850 feet. We found a flat spot with an amazing view of Marie Lakes and had some coffee and breakfast. A cute marmot joined us for breakfast obviously looking for handouts and/or scraps she was use to getting from others.
Finishing up around 7:45 we began a descent that would take us past Heart Lake, Sally Keys Lakes and eventually the South Fork of the San Joaquin River at 7,895 feet. We had dropped a total of 2,955 feet. Our day would end, ?? miles later at 11,609 feet after a climb of 3,714 feet. Yes, it was a big day indeed. Over those ?? miles we walked south on the PCT and JMT for about 23 miles and in those miles the trail was indeed the freeway that I’ve read about. Over these miles we would see zero others traveling south either passing us or us passing them. But, coming towards us in droves were a total of 115 hikers. We stopped and had conversations with about 10 and all were very interesting people. Our guess was that at least 75 of them, and probably many more, were traveling the entire length of the 2,650 mile trail from Mexico to Canada. It was amazing to see such a migration heading north.
The mosquitoes were not quite as bad today as yesterday but I’m now confident I’ve got more bites covering my body than at any other time in my life. Passing both the John Muir Cabin and John Muir Rock, one built and one carved in honor of the man who the trail under our feet was named, we continued heading along the roaring river. Through Aspen Meadow, aptly named with its brand new leaves covering the trees and on to Evolution Valley and Meadow. Evolution has always been a favorite of mine both in the Sierras and on the JMT. Climbing out of the San Joaquin River drainage and along a raging series of waterfalls for about a mile and a half we reached the main Evolution Creek crossing. Most years in June, this crossing is much too dangerous to cross and hikers have to cross in the Meadow about a mile above. Today was an easy cross with water up to the knees after a dismal winter in the California high country. Putting our shoes back on, we battled the worst mosquitoes of the day for sure. Once we got going again, we were all but mosquito free through Evolution Meadow, McClure Meadow, Colby Meadow and then eventually to the 10,580 foot marker with a small unnamed and barely visible side trail continuing up towards Darwin Bench. We were both beat and took a rest before beginning the final leg of our day. After some water, snacks and discussion, we strapped on our backpacks and headed up once more. The trail was an un-maintained “use trail” and pretty easy to follow. We arrived at Darwin Bench, a small lake at 11,158 feet, and decided that with the sinking sun and our sinking energy levels we would cook some dinner before trying to make it to our destination. After a terrific hot meal under towering 12,000 ft peaks on either side we packed up for our last section. It was cold and very windy as we ascended into Darwin Canyon. At about 8:30 pm we arrived at the lower of four Darwin Lakes, in exactly the place we had planes to camp. We quickly helped each other set up each tent in wind gusts that constantly tried ripping our tents from our hands and sending them into the lake. We threw our gear into our tents and collapsed. And now it is 12:45 am on the day of our last section and once again sleep will not come. The wind is howling, but it’s no excuse as I haven’t slept well since the first night out here. Not sure why but I’m looking forward to some catch up sleep for sure once home. Just over 7 miles left tomorrow up and over Lamarck Col, another trail-less pass. Can’t wait for some greasy food.
Day #5
7.4 Daily Miles
65.12 Total Miles
2004 Ft Elevation Gain
3585 Ft Elevation Lost
We “woke up” to winds as ferocious as they’d been the night before. We packed up and moved ourselves to an area about 100 years from where we camped that offered a bit better protection. We took some time to make breakfast and coffee.Then it was time for our final section and our final ascent. We walked on dirt trail at times surrounded by blooming pink Mountain Heather and other times over talus as big as small cars. We passed one, two, three of the Darwin Lakes. The entire time, the wind gusts slammed us from all directions and did its best to knock us to the ground. Finally, it was time to start heading northeast and up, up, up. Lamarck Col was the goal. A col is a bit different than a pass as a col is the low point between two peaks and a pass is the low point on a ridge. There were multiple cols and it was important to look at the map frequently. Even doing that, we started aiming for the wrong low spot. When we stopped and looked carefully, we could see the Sequoia National Park Boundary sign in the actual col. Once we confirmed the right spot, we finished the last 20 minutes to the top. Immediately coming over the top we saw a guy coming up at us who was smiling and cheering a little. Turns out that he had tried coming up the col from the east the day before but couldn't find the right notch either. He had tried different routes for hours and finally turned back and set up his tent just below the col. The same winds that hit our tents all night hit him even harder. One gust even bending his tent pole. He then packed up and hiked back down 1,000 feet to where the wind was a bit less powerful for the night. Today was his second attempt and even on the route he was currently on, not until he saw us come over the top did he really know that he was indeed on the correct route.
We said our goodbyes and we started our very long descent back to the trailhead. The east side of the divide is so very different in so many ways. Geologically, the rock is a rainbow of colors ranging from deep reds, to greys and blacks. One ridge running into another creating a colorful collection of textures. Lakes appeared over and between these ridges as we continued. The section was beautiful. We passed two more people on the way down. One was a trailrunner and one was a peakbagger with a massive backpack headed into Evolution Valley to climb as many peaks as he could.
We were back at the car at 1 pm and washing in the Middle Fork of Bishop Creek soon after. It was so amazing to be clean and put on clean “car clothes” for our 90 minute drive to Bridgeport and The Barn. My favorite after trail greasy spoon.
And that’s a wrap. This was an amazing experience filled with physical demands that pushed us to our limits. It served as a good training hike for the two other really big trips I have planned this summer. More soon!
7.4 Daily Miles
65.12 Total Miles
2004 Ft Elevation Gain
3585 Ft Elevation Lost
We “woke up” to winds as ferocious as they’d been the night before. We packed up and moved ourselves to an area about 100 years from where we camped that offered a bit better protection. We took some time to make breakfast and coffee.Then it was time for our final section and our final ascent. We walked on dirt trail at times surrounded by blooming pink Mountain Heather and other times over talus as big as small cars. We passed one, two, three of the Darwin Lakes. The entire time, the wind gusts slammed us from all directions and did its best to knock us to the ground. Finally, it was time to start heading northeast and up, up, up. Lamarck Col was the goal. A col is a bit different than a pass as a col is the low point between two peaks and a pass is the low point on a ridge. There were multiple cols and it was important to look at the map frequently. Even doing that, we started aiming for the wrong low spot. When we stopped and looked carefully, we could see the Sequoia National Park Boundary sign in the actual col. Once we confirmed the right spot, we finished the last 20 minutes to the top. Immediately coming over the top we saw a guy coming up at us who was smiling and cheering a little. Turns out that he had tried coming up the col from the east the day before but couldn't find the right notch either. He had tried different routes for hours and finally turned back and set up his tent just below the col. The same winds that hit our tents all night hit him even harder. One gust even bending his tent pole. He then packed up and hiked back down 1,000 feet to where the wind was a bit less powerful for the night. Today was his second attempt and even on the route he was currently on, not until he saw us come over the top did he really know that he was indeed on the correct route.
We said our goodbyes and we started our very long descent back to the trailhead. The east side of the divide is so very different in so many ways. Geologically, the rock is a rainbow of colors ranging from deep reds, to greys and blacks. One ridge running into another creating a colorful collection of textures. Lakes appeared over and between these ridges as we continued. The section was beautiful. We passed two more people on the way down. One was a trailrunner and one was a peakbagger with a massive backpack headed into Evolution Valley to climb as many peaks as he could.
We were back at the car at 1 pm and washing in the Middle Fork of Bishop Creek soon after. It was so amazing to be clean and put on clean “car clothes” for our 90 minute drive to Bridgeport and The Barn. My favorite after trail greasy spoon.
And that’s a wrap. This was an amazing experience filled with physical demands that pushed us to our limits. It served as a good training hike for the two other really big trips I have planned this summer. More soon!