High Sierra Topix

It was my goal to go to that lake this year but no such luck. Maybe next year.

There is another photo of the lake at this URL (though the "name" is not called out):

http://www.chayden.net/Sierra90/Sierra90.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

...look about a third of the way down the page

Cross Country wrote:One more thing. Has anyone been to Lake 10236?

yes, stopped for lunch on the way to lake ~10900 about 1.5 miles west-southwest of marion pk. it's a great place to camp. and there is some nice flats to sunbathe on at the outlet. although i did not stay overnite.... i later regretted that i should have stayed. i was pushing on to get closer to marion lake & lake basin for a first time visit there. from the inlet side of this lake, it's a nice infinity pool almost looking north towards the outlet. btw, this is the place very near where ansel adams took these shots looking down into the middle fork - he climbed up the ridgeline maybe just a quater mile north northeast from lake 10236.... which is why i wished that i had stayed & explored. up on the opposite ridgeline, the park service has installed a relay station.




looking towards north palisade ("dumbell" creek flowing along right edge)

btw, up on the opposite ridgeline, the park service has installed a relay station.

i would venture to say that tunemah lake (and especially the lakes just below it to the east) are far more remote. there are a fair number of people now doing ropers high route over gray,white,red passes between horseshoe lakes and marion lake.

rambaud tarns....
(SW of rambaud pass)

for a different view up the enchanted gorge

I view "remote" as distance off trails and away from any human impacted structures. For me remote also means no communication- no cell phone coverage. I really do not feel there are many truely remote areas in the Sierra - just some are relatively more remote than others. Remote as a lot do do with your own experience. For most city dwellers, there ARE places in the Sierra that feel very remote. Places in Alaska of BC where you have to fly in by bush pilot (cannot even walk in because underbrush is crazy) are truely remote. Or areas that take many days to get to.

Areas on the Goddard Canyon map are far from trails and hard to get to as well as worth the effort to get there. But, if you happen to be there when several other groups are also there, it feels less remote.

Lots of area in the Sierra are remote in the winter. Those seeking remote should look into winter backpacking or ski mountaineering.

I agree with it's a state of mind. Can be anywhere. I've been to some far away places and some not so. Both were far away and remote in my mind.

I also think it is partly a state of mind, and distinctly seasonal. Some places feel much more remote than they are in a strict geographical sense due to being hard to get to and rarely visited.
And if you are out there in the winter/spring traveling over the snow, the feeling can be intense. For me, when I am on my backcountry ski tours I refer to it as feeling like I am "out there". I don't feel it until I am a few days out, in the sense that I am aware of being in a place that probably has not seen a human visitor in 4 months and won't see another for a couple more. And in some cases, being in places that have seen very few visitors ever at that time of year.
I have never had that feeling in the summer.

Your criteria of mileage makes answers simple and are already generally well known. Distance does not necessarily equate with remote. There are limited areas in the Sierra beyond 2 days normal effort backpacking from trailheads. Within those limited areas it is easy to figure out the furthest locations. North end of South Goddard Creek, southeast end of Kaweah Basin.

Far more interesting instead of mileage is difficulty or rarity in reaching. Those are places one can use the term REMOTE. Some places may be just a day from any trailhead but very few if any visit. I backpacked to Waterwheel Falls in peak after El Nino early summer flow. What! Of course that is right along a major trail just a day from Tuolumne Meadows? Well the trail is on the east side of at that time of summer a very much uncrossable torrent. Our trip was to the west side of the river which actually has much better views from bottom to top. And one cannot simply follow the west side of the river north of the Glen Aulin bridge because of aspen tangled huge talus. That required awkward offtrail travel down Cathedral Creek then a tricky topo analyzed route over Falls Ridge keeping difficulty class 2.

Here is a location a long one day or easy two days normal backpacking from the trailhead. Rarely visited, rather remote, and very much spectacular. Then why no visits? Because there are many spectacular worthwhile places in the Sierra that are out of the public discussion much less guidebooks. All but a tiny number of enthusiasts go places they read or heard about from others. But there is much more for those who explore especially if one does their homework with topo maps. I could write a book but then would have to burn it.

http://mapper.acme.com/?ll=37.40494,-118.87808&z=15&t=T" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This area in The Blackcap Basin felt very remote. This is looking south from Regiment lake toward Finger Peak/Pass in the distant right. I like the smooth granite, and solitude this area provides. August 2012

The Green Trinities (New River area) is very seldom used. Trails aren't maintained anymore and fires have burned most of it in the past 10 years. You can spend a week up their without seeing a sole. No lakes, blazing heat in the summer and streams you can't ford in the spring. Fall is the best time. What you will see are beautiful rugged canyons, huge trees, bear and remnants of the gold mining era