High Sierra Topix

6/2 -6/4 at Cottonwood Lakes: 0, No repellent used and no bites.

Hi Jmiller72,

Welcome to HST! Thank you for contributing that report! Hope to read your TR soon.
When you get the time, please write up an intro: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=9329

Interesting - at Tuolumne BP 5 days ago, no mosquitoes seen - slept out cowboy style, (until it hailed later).

Next day, hiked up to Voglesang - the plan was one night each at Hanging Basket, Upper Townsley, and Evelyn ...BTW, Ice out must have just happened in the last few days above 10,000 - hungry fish...
Discovered that the damn mosquitoes Upper Rafferty area/Fletcher are now out in droves - a solid 5...rained every day around sunset, more hail storms too...not one other person seen up high until today, when coming back down, when getting closer to the Meadows. The reason I had to come down was that my stove (MSR Windpro) gave up the ghost last night - tried to buy another at the TM Gear Store, but bleak news on the re-stocking up there - see below.

Next plan is to try backside Saddlebag area after 2 days of art classes in the Valley starting Monday.

BTW, there is a new Yosemite FREE bus this year, route goes Valley (Curry, Wilderness Center, Lodge) - to Tuolumne...Except in TM, it only goes as far as the Wilderness Center - just 1 1/2 miles short of the TM store. (Why not all the way to the store? Who knows.) The small local Free Hiker bus handles the rest of the journey. Took the 1:30 PM bus from in front of Valley Wilderness Center - there are three free buses running daily schedules in addition to the $ morning YARTS...right now YARTS only runs weekends till July when it resumes the usual daily routes.
Expect road delays daily on 120, except weekends (30 min) around White Wolf (all buses still stop there, even though the HSC is seasonally closed), the delays for road re-surfacing on 120, but the free bus ride still got to TM around 4:00 PM. FYI, Currently, the TM store opens 9:00 - 5:00 PM...hours will extend a few hours longer, starting next month.
One other note, the TM Chevron is closing down (small Gear store there closing too - a parking lot proposed) after this, its last year open...all due to the implementation of Tuolumne River plan.

4 day trip to Humphreys Basin.
June 8 - Loch Leven - 1
June 9 - Upper Golden Trout Lake - range of 0-2 (depending on wind/rain)
June 10 - Piute Lake - 0 (windy/rainy)
June 11 - hike out - 1

June 11-13 Little Lakes Valley
1
I rarely saw any mosquitoes and the several I saw did not bite.

Gem Lakes at about 10800 were at snowline--there were still a few patches of snow around, so perhaps it was early for mosquitoes. I talked to someone who said she had been bitten lower down on the trail, which starts around 10200. Someone else said there had been more mosquitoes earlier in the week until the weather turned cold and rainy--he had camped at Box Lake and it sounded like a 2.

But as for me, not a bite and no Deet.

6/13-14: Minaret Lake

Before Johnson Lake: 0
Johnson to before Minaret Lake: 1-2
Minaret Lake: 2-3

June 12th- McGee Creek alongside the creek and near wet areas climbing up to the lakes -- 3
We did not want to stop long. Most put on Deet or Picardin at this point

June 13-14 Big McGee Lake -- 2
and the breezes sure kept them at bay

I ended up with about 12 bites on exposed areas before relenting and applying Picardin and they bit me through my lightweight wool shirt!

June 12>14 visited Desolation Wilderness areas from Wright's Lake at 6950 to Island Lake at 8100. Sunny fair weather balmy temps, light night breezes, calm thru mid mornings, increasing up canyon breezes to moderately windy afternoon. Backpack night hiked in and mosquitoes were a 1. Next morning about a 2. Afternoon with breezes 1 with most day hikers coming up just in shorts and t-shirts. Able to lay out in sun at lake edge after dip in water without any. Evenings 1>2. Wore full clothing and headgear and did not need to use repellent. Bitten once or twice all trip. Lots of water still draining down off talus and north-facing snow fields so plenty of standing water and potentially could get worse. Also plenty of standing water down in flats of Wright's Lake. However mosquito eating damselflies are already making an appearance.

David
http://www.davidsenesac.com/Spring_2015 ... 015-1.html

June 14. Kaiser Wilderness, George and Upper Twin Lakes. Lower area of the approach (north, Sample Meadows side)=3. There seemed to be little breeze blowing down there. Higher areas more like 2 owing to the fairly consistent breeze, with Upper Twin being breezier. George's swampy inlet side was about a 3, although even there things weren't so bad when the breeze picked up.

June 13-14

Saddlebag Lake 3-4

We arrived Saturday afternoon at 4 and left in the morning by 11, so I can’t say if they calmed down in the middle of the day, but during the daylight that we were there it was a constant annoyance. We all wore long sleeves, pants and head nets and while hiking you could see the guy in front of you with 5-10 sitting on his pack / hat / shoulders. There are still patches of snow and the ground in the entire valley is very moist from runoff.