High Sierra Topix

Hello all!

Never been to Iva Bell, but thought it would make a fun overnight this weekend (the wife said "let's visit a hot spring" ).

Have a few questoins...

1) best TH? I was thinking red's meadow, but we have a couple trail pups that will be going with us and I don't know how the logistics work for getting to there this time of year/i know it borders a No Dogs area (it is my understanding that dogs are legal the rest of the area tho).

2) is it worth it? As I stated, never been there.

as for the usual stuff:

Experience level: 4
looking for: hot springs, scenery, a good workout (big deal to the wife, as she is crazy), and fishing (a bigger deal to me, as I am sane)
Comfy doing 20+ miles per day.

Also open to any alternative suggestions that would provide a similar workout (14-20 + miles per day) and a hot spring.

Thanks!

oh, and a preview for an upcoming TR:

No dog issues (http://www.nps.gov/depo/planyourvisit/pets.htm) and the shuttle bus has finished for the season so you can drive in and park at the trailhead (obviously this prevents doing the Duck Pass loop). I think its a well worth a visit, and has great views apart from the last bit near the trailhead through the burned forest/scrub from the Rainbow Fire in the 1990s, though I haven't been there since the big blowdown a few years ago which apparently was quite bad in the Fish Creek drainage. This is our trip report from 2010: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=5344

Iva Bell is still my favorite hotsprings in the Sierra. You just have to hope there aren't a ton of people there. You never really know.

Although it's cool to see the amount of trees that had to be cleared it had little effect on the quality of hiking through Fish Valley. Not like a major burn zone does.

I agree about the lots of people thing and not because I avoid people. Once I was at KHS and both days there was a long line and long wait to use the hot springs. Once in the tub I didn't stay as long as I wanted because I feel it's rude when there are severl people waiting. I had read in Sierra South that when going there one should take a container that holds at least 21/2 gallons of water. Therefore I had one, and two trips to the Kern and (saint) Diane and I had a great time. I lent the plastic container to the groups behind me. I thought if they don't return it, it's not the end of the world. It was returned 1-2 hours later. It's hard to remember. This was on my longest trip ever, 16 days, Shepard, upper Kern drainage, Picket creek and the creek East of there. I posted a pic at HST of (saint) Diane pointing at Whitney from the back side. I wonder how many people in the world have that pic - maybe just me. We went to the canyon above Picket and the Kern to a little above Forks of the Kern in 1975. I did lots of fishing. I caught so many fish that I lost count (between one and two hundred I think).

Also I agree about the sane and insane thing but after all that's just our opinion. I think that to go packpacking (and my destinations were almost alway cross country) your working really hard. To work your a_ _ off geting there (because any backing is hard work) you've done enough of a workout. Most physical trainers would say that an easy backpacking trip is too much excersize. Your body is so stressed you can't build a good amount of muscle equal to a less intense excersize. After that it's better for your phsical health to go fishing. People who hike twice as much in one day as you or I probable are increasing there condition maybe 5-10% more that us. Realisticly maybe less. People who like to hike all day almost every day should do some research but I don't really think they would because there decision to hike so much probably isn't really a calculated decision. It might just be a compulsion. I think they are probably not analitacal thinkers (like 15%of the people) but are intuitive thinkers (85% of the people) I'm not saying 85% of the people want to hike a long ways. That's not logical.

I did the Duck pass Iva bell Loop in sept several years ago. Dropped the car at Reds and got a taxi to drive us to Duck pass trail head ($40 I think). We went after Labor day and during the week and had the place to ourselves. Those pools are very nice and there are quite a few so you can probably get one to yourself (higher ones are hotter). Sipping coffee in the pool in the cold AM was amazing. I would suggest the loop if you can since Duck Pass, Purple lake and fish creek were much more scenic than Reds to the crossing.