High Sierra Topix

Superb photos. Thanks.

As the old saying goes: "A picture is worth a thousand words."

I use the photos people post to get ideas for future trips; so I really appreciate the beautiful photos of your trip you have posted here.

Nice work, your photos are wonderful. I especially liked the shot of the alpenglow.

ryanoa,
As at least one other person noted, this was a very ambitious itinerary. As my mind's eye was walking up Copper Creek on day 1 with a full pack, it was clear that you guys were serious when you steamed right by Grouse Lake. And, you didn't let up the rest of the way; very impressive swath of countryside that you covered! At the same time, it looks like you had your gear pared down to the functional basics.
But, I was sort of curious why you went for Frozen lake pass versus the Dumbbell/Cataract col segment. And, there were a few clouds in some of your photos, but compared with what I was looking at in Big Pine Creek during the same period, you guys apparently managed to escape relatively unscathed. I'm also assuming that you took the standard westerly route out of Laurel Creek basin to reach Fish Creek via Shout-of-Relief. Just for my 5 cents on the topic, Grinnell Lake is sufficiently spectacular that it would be my preference to head that way and then traverse the ridge between Grinnell and Red and White Lake, but who's quibbling? Any way you cut it, it was an amazing trip.
cg

Thanks for showing the pictures. Not sure what you meant by "skipped Dusy". I did the Golden Staircase this summer for the first time and it is very scenic; I would still rate Barrett Basin and through Dusy as too spectacular to miss. When I did the SHR, ever time I got on the JMT, I absolutely hated it. It is just a shock to get on a crowded trail after being off trail for days.

There are pros and cons of going fast vs slower. If you are young and in good shape, at least you have the choice! We old retired folks, are pretty much in the slow lane, however with no deadlines to return to work we can do the route at a snail's pace. Just want to say to the slower hikers out there, no reason you cannot also do this route. The scenery is the same whether you do it in 10 days or 20.

Great photos. Thanks for the inspiration.

Long trail days with considerable vertical. Nice set of images, well done. Ought to add what photo gear you were using.

Amazing photos! Are they for purchase by any chance??

Thanks for all the comments...

cgundersen...I had considered Dumbbell/Cataract in the planning stages but didn't want to miss Frozen Lake Pass. We didn't run into any significant weather the whole trip. At least nothing that made us consider detouring. We took the standard route from Laurel Lake over Shout of Relief, but I totally agree with you...Grinnell is spectacular! I have visited it many times previously, so wasn't feeling the need to again on this trip.

WD...Going from sea level to the basin beyond Grouse Lake (11,000ft) in the span of 12 hours had some residual effects By the time we reached Palisade Lake on the 3rd day I was fighting a bit of nausea and decided that bypassing the Dusy Basin section would give me some time to recover. Definitely regret that move, but I plan on revisiting that section in the future.

SSSdave...I'm a little bit embarrassed to say that these were taken with a little Canon point-and-shoot. I couldn't even tell you the model. I just purchased an EOS M that I will be taking with me for the last 2 sections this July.

iHartMK...Thanks! No, they aren't for purchase, but I would be happy to send you an original of any that you like. Just PM me. Again...these are just from a piece of crap point-and-shoot that I doctored with Light Room.

One of the biggest factors in my decision to do the SHR north-to-south was to avoid that difficult first-day elevation gain. I ended up doing a weird flip-flop combination of: Twin Lakes to Mammoth, then North Lake to Mammoth, then Roads End to North Lake. It mostly boiled down to transportation logistics and accommodating my husband - he joined me the middle section and only had certain days he could help with transportation. By the time I did the big elevation gain Road's end I was totally acclimated; I reached Grouse Lake at 1PM and camped just below Goat Crest!

If I were to do it again, I would thru-hike it north-to-south. The best thing about north-to-south is that you can pick up food at Tuolumne Meadows, thus start with an amazingly light pack. I also prefer to go up the generally steeper north side of passes. North-to-south puts most of the harder parts at the end of your trip. In his book, Roper lists several reasons he prefers south-to-north. Roper is however, very sparse on logistical details.