Re: Cirque Pass page
Posted: Wed Dec 16, 2015 2:29 pm
For me, the crux of Cirque Pass, starting out from near the outlet of the lower of the Palisade Lakes, is the area not too far above the lake where one may be forced to decide between a circuitous route to avoid bushwhacking or a direct route that is likely to include a brief class 2-3 scramble. Finding a way down from Cirque Pass to Lake 11,672 ft (3558 m) is interesting, but not health threatening if one has patience. I haven't tried the far left or far right routes.
In 1979 I soloed Mt Sill from Barrett Lakes. I was surprised when I encountered Potluck Pass, and did not recall seeing it on my old Mt Goddard 15' quad. Looking down the pass there didn't appear to be a particularly tasty way down so I picked from the dishes on the table (pot luck). The length and rigidity of the aluminum frame of my nearly empty Kelty pack made things more difficult than they had to be to descend class 3 rock.
Recently I was pleased to find out why Potluck Pass is not mentioned by Francis P. Farquhar in his 1926 book, "Place Names of the High Sierra"; to confirm my suspicion for why the pass was named Potluck; and to discover why the existence of the pass surprised me that day.
--from Sierra Nevada Place Names (2011) by Peter Browning
In 1979 I soloed Mt Sill from Barrett Lakes. I was surprised when I encountered Potluck Pass, and did not recall seeing it on my old Mt Goddard 15' quad. Looking down the pass there didn't appear to be a particularly tasty way down so I picked from the dishes on the table (pot luck). The length and rigidity of the aluminum frame of my nearly empty Kelty pack made things more difficult than they had to be to descend class 3 rock.
Recently I was pleased to find out why Potluck Pass is not mentioned by Francis P. Farquhar in his 1926 book, "Place Names of the High Sierra"; to confirm my suspicion for why the pass was named Potluck; and to discover why the existence of the pass surprised me that day.
--from Sierra Nevada Place Names (2011) by Peter Browning
"Apparently named in 1927; perhaps because there is no obvious route down the southeast side, and one has to take pot luck in making the descent." (Letter, Thomas H. Jukes to Farquhar, Aug. 30, 1939.) It was added to the map by the USGS because of its use in The Climber's Guide. The pass is not named on the Mt. Goddard 15' quad.