TR: 1000 Island Lake Dayhike

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gplhiker
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TR: 1000 Island Lake Dayhike

Post by gplhiker »

Now that the weather is starting to turn (and hopefully snow massive amounts,) I figured it was time to add a few of my summer trip reports to the board. While I was down in the Lee Vining area in early July, I had the chance to head out on a pretty long (18+ mile) dayhike from Agnew Meadows north on the PCT "High Trail" to 1000 Island Lake, and then back south on the JMT for a good 6 miles before cutting down to the river trail from Shadow Lake and finishing up the loop back at Agnew Meadows.

I have wanted to check out 1000 Island Lake and the area for years, and I was not disappointed. This was one of the highlights of my summer, as it was a new area for me, a spectacular location, and I got to talk with a good number of people hiking the PCT. Living near the Tahoe area I have run into many PCT hikers in the past, and they are always filled with amazing stories and anecdotes from a journey that I doubt I will ever have the time to undertake.

One of the tips I had been told by friends familiar with the area was to get to the trailhead before 7am, as that is when they cut off vehicle access into the area and you would then be required to take the hiking shuttle to and from the trailhead. This allowed me to grab a good parking spot at Agnew Meadows. It also gave me a very fortunate chance encounter with another guy there ready to dayhike toward Lake Ediza. He had been a ranger in the past, and pointed me to the PCT High Trail rather than the river trail I had GPS tracks for. I ended up being extremely happy with this change, as the High Trail offered some amazing views early on, and it was not during the heat of the day where I would have been out in exposed sun.

Within the first few miles is a good climb up to an area that will be pretty level for awhile, and offers spectacular views across to the west toward Shadow Lake and the JMT.
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The full panorama view to the NW wasn't bad, either.
PCT_Panorama.jpg
On this stretch of trail I ran into at least 10 thru hikers, all trying to get to Tuolumne Meadows by the end of the day. As we neared 1000 Island Lake and the junction where the PCT and the JMT come together on the journey north, the trail dropped down into a forested area, and the junction of the river trail, which I would have originally taken to this point (about 8 miles in.) I'm sure it would have been nice, but the way I was directed by my chance encounter was spectacular!!

About 10:30am the three of us who had been hiking for about 3 miles parted ways, as they headed north toward Canada at 1000 Island Lake, and I pulled up a rock and enjoyed a quick break with Banner Peak towering over the area.
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The only people I met heading south on either of the trails today came by at this point, on their way to Emerald Lake not even a half mile south of this spot. They suggested this was a much less-crowded camping location in the area with 1000 Island Lake a heavily travelled destination.

The next segment of this hike headed south on the JMT, past Emerald and Ruby Lakes, and then dropped down into another lake as beautiful as 1000 Island Lake, Garnet. There was a good climb between these two beauties of 800-900 feet or so, and dropping down into the Garnet Lake basin was the only frustration on the day, as I knew just past the lake I would have to make all of this elevation back up and then some. But, the views were outstanding, like just about everywhere on the trail.
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After crossing a sturdy log bridge over the outlet at the eastern end of the lake, I started back up a good climb to the next high point, just over 10K feet for the second time in the day. At the top of this pass was a nice open view to the south, well past where I would be heading on this day, but notable as there was some new trail routing in this section through the rocks and you could see where it had been previously on the other side of a small creek which headed down to the south.
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About 15 miles into the hike I came to a junction with the Lake Ediza trail, which I was tempted to check out only a mile away, but that would have added 2 miles to my route and I still had a couple of day hikes left to do over the next few days. So, I headed left to Shadow Lake, which I had seen early on from the High Trail across the canyon. Navigating around the north side of the lake, the trail immediately drops down to pick up the earlier mentioned River Trail, paralleling the waterfall which flows out of Shadow Lake all the way down on your right. Unfortunately, however, you can't see it for most of the way.

Hitting the River Trail and turning north is pretty much just 'finishing the trip' type of hiking, although over one rise there is a pretty nice look at Mammoth Mountain further to the south, near where the hiking shuttle would take you if arriving after 7am.
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In summary, this hike, which I had on my bucket list for a number of years did not disappoint. Due to schedule and family commitments and the like, I have mostly limited my outdoor adventuring to day hikes over the past 6-7 years with one longer backpacking trip thrown in just to keep it interesting, so this was a little long for a day hike and I was definitely tired at the end of the day. However, it was one of the most spectacular locations I have ever experienced, and would do a hike in this area again in a heartbeat. In fact, I have already planned a dayhike for next year to Lake Ediza, Iceberg Lakes, e.g.
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maverick
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Re: 1000 Island Lake Dayhike TR

Post by maverick »

Hi Greg,

Beautiful day hike, great pictures of one of the best section in the Sierra, thank you for sharing it. :)
Professional Sierra Landscape Photographer

I don't give out specific route information, my belief is that it takes away from the whole adventure spirit of a trip, if you need every inch planned out, you'll have to get that from someone else.

Have a safer backcountry experience by using the HST ReConn Form 2.0, named after Larry Conn, a HST member: http://reconn.org
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Re: 1000 Island Lake Dayhike TR

Post by SSSdave »

Well done gplhiker! Quite the challenge that on such an enjoyable route one may replace the drudgery of effort with an absorption of visual wonders. Enjoyed your images and indeed the High Trail was a good change to your plans as that allowed you to see the full range in best light while you hiked through that area early in the morning. I will relate below how the backpacker that rises early to wander and not the day hiker nor the backpacker that rises late can experience ideal prizes of the Ritter Range.

Trails on the popular east side of the Ritter Range route on the eastern sides of its famous lakes. During early mornings looking westward from those trail side locations, sun rising in the east illuminates with frontal lighting across those lakes with the spectacular metavolcanic peaks rising behind. As morning hours wane beyond about 10am, the sun has rotated higher in the sky and more directly above that decreases the saturated color of all elements westward and contrast generally increases harshness thus decreasing scenery aesthetics.

By time day hikers that left trailheads early in the morning reach Minaret, Ediza, Shadow, Summit, or Thousand Island, the sun is at that harsh mid time of day. If they left trailheads later in the morning, and arrive mid afternoon when the scene is back lit, the dark geology peaks lose much of their detail becoming dark and shadowy. Their graphic grandeur still exists though is but a weak echo of the peak scene that existed at 8am. Further as is the case on many Sierra Nevada days, the early morning hours are often calm or with only gentle breezes allowing magnificent reflections of peaks in quiet lake waters while their liquid surfaces are dimpled by rising trout. And in the quiet early morning air one can hear sounds about of many birds and chirping little creatures that later in the day are muffled by wind.

The many groups that camp in the "city" above the northeast side of Thousand Island Lake and then sluggishly rise at mid morning only interested in continuing along the thru trails also miss all of this. As if just being able to later relate they visited the famous lake satisfied all of their interests. Thus the wisdom of early to bed early to rise and then get out and actually wander for those at Thousand Island Lake...one of the grandest scenic places one might experience on our planet.

http://www.davidsenesac.com/images/print_05-Q-14.html
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Re: 1000 Island Lake Dayhike TR

Post by Cross Country »

Except for early season, low elevation places I almost never had a destination on trail. Still I wish I had gone to thousand Island.
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