High Sierra Topix

balzaccom wrote:"62.jpg "Mt. Izaak Walton & Red and White Peak from Laurel Lake." Beautiful lake reflection well done! That meadow zone at 11,170 feet has been near the top my list for several years as a location to base camp at as the view you captured is one of the best peak perspectives in the Sierra though you are the first person I've seen with a picture of it. Most groups going north are too intent on reaching Grinnel or Laurel Lakes where the peak views are not as impressive."

We camped there are few years ago over 4th of July weekend, when the lakes themselves were frozen over, and the route to the lakes was a mess because of an avalanche.

Photos here:

https://goo.gl/photos/eAwCsWPWd8sSMgjT6

https://goo.gl/photos/XweY1vxJJtDNgMV69

Here's the whole album:

https://goo.gl/photos/FEgRzUZa5F5XiND8A

Great area.

Thanks for posting the links, I looked at the whole album (great photos!) and even though it was early July 2011 some look like late fall.

These are from in October trip in 2013. Very little snow but similar brown meadow:

Wow! What a trip. I followed along each day you described with caltopo.com and the high sierra maps of the passes. The pictures are incredible. Thanks so much for taking the time and effort to share with so much detail! I'll probably be reading this again in Jan/Feb '17 about the time Spring seems eons away.

Bluewater wrote:

Ballpeen wrote:Incredible trip! We were also captivated by those emerald pools earlier this summer. Probably my favorite swim spot of all time. I noticed the bottom of the creek was bleached white for its whole length in that basin. Similar to photos I have seen of nearby White Fork. Does anyone know the cause?

Thanks Ballpeen!

After seeing the large rust colored seam on the ridge at the headwaters I assumed it was sulfur, but maybe there is something else at work on those rocks. It might be worth going back there next summer to spend more time fishing etc.

I agree that rust colored erosional feature is the likely source. Not sure what is happening beyond that though. That area is definitely worth spending time in, but I didn't see any fish, or much other life in the water for that matter.

Got some service in Bishop so I figured I'd weigh in on the white color of the stream bed. The likely source as I understand it is a carbonated spring. Carbonated springs contain carbonic acid which will dissolve any time of carbonate and specifically a lime. The rocks that contain such things are types of limestones. Now, the whiteness won't dissolve out easily without a catalyst.... And that's the iron from any rust colored looking rock.

Fascinating geological processes still at work.

In terms of food... I honestly am not sure how much food I carry in terms of weight but I know I eat about 1500-1700 calories a day. That's considered to be more or less POW rations by probably most people. But... Somehow I make it. By Day 14 of a section I definitely am starting to struggle a bit. But after a ressuply of eating real food for a few days I can go back to eating the usual nonsense.

I have the first picture hanging on the wall of my kitchen along with 7 other HS pics.I look at them longingly on a daily basis.

Great to finally see your post, Andy! Absolutely stunning photos. Congrats on finishing and it was awesome meeting you on the trail!

- Nick, Frances, and Hazel

cloudlesssky wrote:Wow! What a trip. I followed along each day you described with caltopo.com and the high sierra maps of the passes. The pictures are incredible. Thanks so much for taking the time and effort to share with so much detail! I'll probably be reading this again in Jan/Feb '17 about the time Spring seems eons away.

Thanks cloudlesssky! I usually start digging through old trip reports around the same time each year

Cross Country wrote:I have the first picture hanging on the wall of my kitchen along with 7 other HS pics.I look at them longingly on a daily basis.

Thanks Cross Country! I have been enjoying your vintage photos from the Really Strange Trip.

notis wrote:Great to finally see your post, Andy! Absolutely stunning photos. Congrats on finishing and it was awesome meeting you on the trail!

- Nick, Frances, and Hazel

Thanks notis! It was great to meet you, Frances and Hazel in the backcountry this summer. I hope you had a good trip and I'm looking forward to reading about it (and seeing your photos from your trip). Did you get over Feather and into Bear Lakes Basin?

Yeah I'm hoping to finally put our recent trip reports up! And yeah, we went into Royce Basin. The boulder hopping in that basin beat Hazel's paws up pretty good, but it was beautiful. So pristine. Thanks for the extended blog post--learned a bit from it and from your website too. Glad to see you got over Snow Tongue Pass safely. We were wondering how the remainder of your trip went!