Trip Advice Early August Agnew Meadows Area
Posted: Tue May 10, 2016 6:16 am
I am going to be taking my family backpacking the second week in August with a 3-night wilderness permit for the Agnew Meadows Trailhead outside of Mammoth. My wife and I have done numerous backcountry backpacking trips (some in the Sierra) and are comfortable with trails and limited cross-country travel. We have also camped in bear country and have a bear canister. Our kids (10 and 13) have been car camping and been on longer hiking daytrips, but have not camped in the backcountry. We stayed near Mammoth mountain last year and did day hikes to Valentine lake and Lake Ediza. My older son and I also did a punishing 6-hour (roundtrip) summit of Mt Dana from Tioga pass.
Our plan for this August was (tenatively):
Day 1: Leave Agnew Meadows hike into Lake Ediza, set up camp and enjoy the views
Day 2: Dayhike from Lake Ediza with the following options:
a. Head up to Ritter pass
b. Hike up to Nydiver Lakes with possible trip traversing the base of Banner peak to Lake Catherine
c. Hike up to the Volcanic ridge for scenic views
Day 3: Pack up gear and hike to Cecile Lake via Iceberg Lake and set up camp
Day 4: Hike down to Minaret Lake and out to Devils Postpile area
Alternatively we could also set up at Ediza for all three nights with planned dayhikes and just head out the way that we came in. My questions to others on this forum are:
1. Are there any other recommended dayhikes out of Ediza? My older son likes to push himself and would love to bag a peak, my younger daughter likes to take pictures and be outside but won't want to do a really crazy-tough hike.
2. I would love to try to summit Banner or Ritter, but these seem like serious peaks, and most approaches involve glacier travel. I am not experienced enough to feel comfortable tackling terrain that requires an ice axe and crampons with my son no less. Is there an alternative hike that might be a challenge for my son that would come close to the views of Banner or Ritter? Secor says that Banner is Class 2 from the west side. Is it possible for a long dayhike to traverse Banner to Lake Catherine and go up from the west side? If we cannot do Ritter/Banner is it worth heading up to Ritter Pass, or the Volcanic Ridge as scenic viewpoints? Is one better than the other? Is the approach to the Volcanic Ridge better from the South via Minaret Lake?
3. For the third night would it be better to hike up to Cecile Lake or try to push on and attempt to reach Minaret Lake? If both are worth staying at, we could pack out on Day 2 for Cecile Lake and make Day 3 a hike to Minaret Lake with a possible side-trip.
4. In other posts I've read that there is significant ice and snow between Celile Lake and Iceberg Lake. As stated above, I do not want to do any technical climbing/packing over glaciers or permanent snowpack. We may have to wait to see what the conditions are, but is there a general consensus on what the trip from Lake Ediza to Cecile Lake are in early-mid August?
I know that Lake Ediza will be more crowded than most places. We are from the east coast and are used to lots and lots of people out on the trail and at campsites.
Sorry for the long post, but I look forward to any responses.
Our plan for this August was (tenatively):
Day 1: Leave Agnew Meadows hike into Lake Ediza, set up camp and enjoy the views
Day 2: Dayhike from Lake Ediza with the following options:
a. Head up to Ritter pass
b. Hike up to Nydiver Lakes with possible trip traversing the base of Banner peak to Lake Catherine
c. Hike up to the Volcanic ridge for scenic views
Day 3: Pack up gear and hike to Cecile Lake via Iceberg Lake and set up camp
Day 4: Hike down to Minaret Lake and out to Devils Postpile area
Alternatively we could also set up at Ediza for all three nights with planned dayhikes and just head out the way that we came in. My questions to others on this forum are:
1. Are there any other recommended dayhikes out of Ediza? My older son likes to push himself and would love to bag a peak, my younger daughter likes to take pictures and be outside but won't want to do a really crazy-tough hike.
2. I would love to try to summit Banner or Ritter, but these seem like serious peaks, and most approaches involve glacier travel. I am not experienced enough to feel comfortable tackling terrain that requires an ice axe and crampons with my son no less. Is there an alternative hike that might be a challenge for my son that would come close to the views of Banner or Ritter? Secor says that Banner is Class 2 from the west side. Is it possible for a long dayhike to traverse Banner to Lake Catherine and go up from the west side? If we cannot do Ritter/Banner is it worth heading up to Ritter Pass, or the Volcanic Ridge as scenic viewpoints? Is one better than the other? Is the approach to the Volcanic Ridge better from the South via Minaret Lake?
3. For the third night would it be better to hike up to Cecile Lake or try to push on and attempt to reach Minaret Lake? If both are worth staying at, we could pack out on Day 2 for Cecile Lake and make Day 3 a hike to Minaret Lake with a possible side-trip.
4. In other posts I've read that there is significant ice and snow between Celile Lake and Iceberg Lake. As stated above, I do not want to do any technical climbing/packing over glaciers or permanent snowpack. We may have to wait to see what the conditions are, but is there a general consensus on what the trip from Lake Ediza to Cecile Lake are in early-mid August?
I know that Lake Ediza will be more crowded than most places. We are from the east coast and are used to lots and lots of people out on the trail and at campsites.
Sorry for the long post, but I look forward to any responses.