High Sierra Topix

Wow, sounds like a fantastic trip.

Where does that trail take off, anyway? I've seen the valley from the Gorge of Despair, but I've never been down in it. Looking at Topozone, it appears that there's a trail from somewhere in the middle of nowhere on a dirt road that goes south from Wishon -- is that where you started?

BSquared wrote: Where does that trail take off, anyway? I've seen the valley from the Gorge of Despair, but I've never been down in it. Looking at Topozone, it appears that there's a trail from somewhere in the middle of nowhere on a dirt road that goes south from Wishon -- is that where you started?

Aye, thats pretty much it. You drive across the Wishon dam and follow the road to the Rancheria Trailhead. Follow the trail to Crown Valley and then hang a right and down down then DOWN to the valley you go...about 15 miles in all, give or take.

krudler, thank you for the trip report. This is an area I've always wanted to visit.

Look at that dome! I'd love to see that first hand. The bit about the pictographs was interesting. I like finding stuff like that.

Hey, I LOVED the video, very well done with some top-notch fishing perspectives! Whoever did the camera work on that one has some talent! I'm sorry to hear there weren't 26" browns in every hole, I was thinking that since it's so remote, and browns spawn in the fall, and big browns lurk in the lower reaches of the S.F. Kings, that it might be paradise in Tehipite for fall browns. But those rainbows looked fat and healthy and the action looked good... and what scenery! Whew baby! Excellent adventure! I wonder if some of the brush on the trail down retreats a bit in the fall, or if they've cleared the trail in the last year or so, because when I've been down there in the spring/early summer it's very overgrown and a bushwack at times. One time I broke the tip off my fishing rod plowing down a bad stretch of the trail, and it was an Ugly Stick which is tough to break, ha! I take it you didn't see any bikini girls down in there? Great report... I hope you get some more images up soon, the ones above are great!

Buck- I'd like to thank you and the people here for helping us plan our trip. You (and the others here) were kind enough to point us in the right direction and keep us motivated.
I'm glad you liked the video, I shot nearly 5 hours of footage, and plan a "Special Edition" dvd for all the members of our trip. I will probably post that video as well.
As far as the Tehipite reputation, well, it wasn't as "bad" as I/we feared. The entire group only saw 3 rattlesnakes the whole time, and as Krudler mentioned, he spooked a sow and two cubs. We must have happened along just after that, because we treed the two cubs as well.
The hike was tough, but not as bad as I had feared- I had planned on stopping near Hay Meadow on the first day, but it was early enough and I felt good enough to continue.
The hike out was difficult as well, but I got a real "runner's high" from the climb, and just cooked along the rest of the way.

A few pics to add:
Snakes:


Silver Spray Falls:


Other misc inhabitants:


I did a panorama, you can view it here. Warning! It's huge! But a pretty cool perspective on the sheer volume of the valley.

Once again, Buck, my sincerest thanks for all the info you had provided our group. We very much appreciated the voice of experience guiding us on.
Matt

Very cool, Matt!

Welcome!!!