High Sierra Topix

Planning a 10-day hike with my best friend in Sequoia NP, starting from Wolverton, at the end of July & early August. We've never hiked in SEKI, so I'm having a blast pouring over maps and online trip reports, trying to come up with an "ultimate" itinerary. We both love off-trail hiking, but neither of us is too crazy about long steep slopes of loose talus. Cross-country travel in the Kaweah Basin area seems to involve an inordinate amount of that, judging by others' trip reports. Oh well. We'll figure it out...

I'm also planning to take some lengthier solo hikes than I've done previously. I hiked over Isberg Pass last season, on the boundary between Sierra National Forest and Yosemite NP. Ended up going off trail to spend an afternoon at a beautiful unnamed lake. But I was frustrated to not have enough time off work to go a lot farther. I'd like to go off trail toward the SW side of Mt. Lyell and explore the myriad lakes, streams, meadows and cirques that I've seen on the map!

I'm also thinking about making another solo attempt at a ski ascent/descent of Mt. Shasta. Tried it about 12 - 13 years ago and had a great time, but weather was moving in and I had to retreat. I'll have to get in a lot better shape before I try that, though (speaking of knees not being what they used to).

I've been with my current employer long enough now to get an additional week of vacation time, so I'm going to make the most of it! Woo-hoo!

Plan some good trips! Read my stuff on "The Fishing Hole" or communicate with giantbrookie. I've written about lots of good place and should triple them before summer arrives and write me some replies.

I've been learning from this board for a long time now and decided it was time to post.

I'm planning a JMT/HST hybrid hike this September.
Plan now is to leave Tuolumne on or about Aug 29th and exit Wolverton Creek at the end of the High Sierra Trail on or about Sept 18th. I'll follow the JMT until the Lake South America junction. Leave the JMT and spend a night at LSA. I've heard this is a beautiful area so maybe a layover here
Then head down the Kern to the High Sierra Trail and follow it through to Panther Gap/Wolverton. I'll resupply at MTR and carry a lot of food to make the extra miles of the HST.
I've never done the JMT but have done Whitney several times (including a planned dayhike with my Mom this July) so have no issue skipping this part of the JMT. I'd rather see more of the Sierra and finish my aborted HST trip of 2005.
I'd love some ideas for favorite/less popular campspots through the trip. I will have a loose itenerary and campspots in mind each night, but will also keep it free enough to stop at a great spot or shorten/extend a day if the mood strikes.

I've heard that the Lake South America trail is no longer maintained. I've never seen the area so wondering if this is a concern or is it still findable enough?

Thanks all...
Bryan

bugsdad wrote: I've heard that the Lake South America trail is no longer maintained. I've never seen the area so wondering if this is a concern or is it still findable enough?
Thanks all...
Bryan

The headwaters of the Kern is indeed a great place to hike around. I don't know the state of the LSA trail spur, but I can tell you that hiking off trail in that area is very mild and easy if you need to do that (and if you don't mind a bit of off trail travel).

You 50+ crowd make me optimistic about the prospect of still being active...er...a fair number of years from now.

Here's my tentative itinerary for this summer/fall:

-Three days in Sabrina Basin
-Four days in Darwin Canyon and environs from North Lake
-Four to six more days in the Bench Lake (KCNP) area
-Six days in Humphreys Basin and French Canyon
-Six days visiting Bear Basin, Granite Park, and the Royces (a LLV-Pine Creek shuttle)
-As many overnighters and day trips to other lakes as I can manage.
-Probably a few fall weekends in Desolation

If time allows, I'd love to squeeze in a longer trip in the Mt. Whitney area as well. I'm finishing up with school in May (as you may have guessed from my proposed summer wanderlust), so I'm planning to take advantage of the confluence of both time (a brief window in which obligations to school, work, and family are likely the lowest they'll ever be) and space (I hope to spend the majority of the summer based out of the Bishop area; okay, I admit that this may not be an entirely coincidental correlation!) to spend as many nights as possible in the backcountry this season.

Matt

My kids want to give that Muir Trail Yo-Yo another shot - we'll be out west either starting the hike Jun 24 or Jul 3, but can't get the date nailed yet. Would prefer to start earlier, as we enjoy snow on the passes - makes it more interesting. I also prefer to be as far as possible from civilization on the July 4 weekend.

We'll do the yo-yo starting from Tuolumne Meadows, not one of the trail ends (permits, crowds), going from TM to Yosemite Valley and back first, then from TM down to Whitney and back to TM. We will be doing all sorts of alternate routes to keep the duplicate route as limted as possible. Slower than last year in the early days - 38 or 39 days total for the round trip.

Look for the 12-year-old twins on their third JMT...

fishmonger wrote:My kids want to give that Muir Trail Yo-Yo another shot -

Most 12 year olds don't want to hang out with their dad in the wilderness for 40 days. You're one lucky man...enjoy it.

The Other Tom wrote:

fishmonger wrote:My kids want to give that Muir Trail Yo-Yo another shot -

Most 12 year olds don't want to hang out with their dad in the wilderness for 40 days. You're one lucky man...enjoy it.

when their choice is 40 days with mom in the city or 40 days with dad on an epic adventure, the choice is clear...

I know that this may be the last time they are willing to go for this type of trip, so I am blowing a few year's of saved up sabbatical leave on this one. They did enjoy the trip last year, at least it appears so in this last-day photo:

fishmonger wrote: Look for the 12-year-old twins on their third JMT...

If you're coming back down Fish Creek in early August (we'll be at Iva Bell Hot Springs on the evening of 8/2 and between Island Crossing and Devils Postpile on 8/3) then you can encourage my 9 year old twins to aspire to a JMT trip in a couple of years.

tim wrote:

fishmonger wrote: Look for the 12-year-old twins on their third JMT...

If you're coming back down Fish Creek in early August (we'll be at Iva Bell Hot Springs on the evening of 8/2 and between Island Crossing and Devils Postpile on 8/3) then you can encourage my 9 year old twins to aspire to a JMT trip in a couple of years.

we probably will do Fish Creek southbound - one of my kid's favorite sections (and that was without ever going to the hot springs so far). Depending on start date, we'll either be in that valley on July 3, or on July 12. Early start time would put us past the finish line on 8/3 and the later date has us heading norhtbound on Muir Pass on that date - so even if we did head northbound there, we'd miss you.

but thanks for mentioning the hot springs - that's one thing I haven't even mentioned to them as one of the many things we can do to make the trip more fun this year, especially in the first quarter of the hike when we want to take it a little slower.