Donohue Day Hike
Posted: Mon Jun 22, 2015 6:57 am
We just got back from a perfect weekend of weather car camping in Yosemite. Every year I drive up wondering if it's really as nice as I remember, and every year it delivers. As is our custom these days, we forgo the Valley and stick to Tuolumne. Even so, the line at the east entrance was backed up almost to Tioga lake. There aren't any secrets anymore, and with perfect weather forecast, everyone had the same idea.
On these kinds of family trips, I usually get to squeeze in one pseudo-backcountry hike; on this occasion I decided to day hike 12.5 miles up to Donohue pass on Friday (6/19). I had toyed with just hiking on through to Agnew meadow, but the logistics of returning via shuttle from Mammoth would have added a few more hours. Since my brother was driving up from the Bay area to visit, and I had general camp chore obligations, I needed to be back by 3pm. I figured 10-11 hours total would be a good time budget to allow for lunch, etc, so I took off @ 4am.
The first 3 hours (2 with headlamp) were a nice, quiet, peaceful walk through Lyell canyon. I kept my down jacket on without breaking a sweat, and carried my trekking poles in one hand while keeping the other warm in my coat pocket. I was really hoping to see some wildlife, but alas the bears, deer and cougars were off somewhere else (or quietly watching me pass by). The trail begins to climb @ mile 9 around Kuna creek and the real hike starts - off came the jacket, fleece & windshirt, and now the huffing, puffing and sweating began.
But of course there's a point to all this, and here is the first impression after crossing the bridge and walking by the small tarn:
I briefly chatted with two bedecked climbers that were going to hit Lyell, and recalled my brother soloing it back in the 80s in typical young dude dvmbass fashion ie no equipment. Speaking of dumbasses, there were 3 guys camping with a dog a little further in - each of them looked like they could have been cast as Shaggy from Scooby Doo. I figured they had hiked in from the south, and had wanted to get off the pass.
Anyway, nearing the pass, the view of Lyell just gets more impressive:
After reaching the pass, I ate my lunch while chatting with a PCTer and two JMTers who showed up a little bit later. I had passed some PCTers along the way while hiking, but because it had been pretty early, and they were so close to Tuolumne, many were still sleeping. It's been said many times before, but the contrast between the two types of hikers is extreme. After 800+ miles, the PCTers look sort of like the weathered, emaciated White walkers from Game of Thrones, whereas the JMTers (who are just getting started) look like they are plump & fresh from REI.
The ability to quickly distinguish who is who came into play as I was descending the pass. From around 200 yards below I spied a 20-something walking towards me ie southbound, who was bearded, skinny and moving uphill fast. An early season SOBO PCTer? As we neared each other, I jokingly said "hey, you're going the wrong way", to which he quickly replied, "nah, I'm just flipping Tuolumne to Reds". (In PCT parlance, flipping means doing a section of the trail in opposite order.)
The next reaction between the two of us was a classic trail experience - we each recognized the other from Kearsarge pass 3 weeks previous. At the time, he was re-entering the PCT after re-supplying in Bishop, while I had hiked up to help get acclimated for Whitney (viewtopic.php?f=14&t=12829). At that time, we had chatted a bit about the mountaineers route (he had done it last summer), the JMT, weather options, etc.
So, when we re-introduced ourselves (his trail name is Par 3), we settled into a nice little bit of catchup with this as our mountain backdrop:
Turns out his crew had quite a time crossing the major passes during the last series of storms to finally arrive in Mammoth. Since one more storm was forecast, and he had some business to take care of, he bailed off the trail for 7 days and headed to SF. After getting a ride back to the Sierra, he got dropped off @ Tuolumne where he began SOBO to Reds where he had gotten off. He had a shuttle arranged that would take him back to TM and thus resume his regular NOBO PCT hike.
With smiles on our faces, we each bid adieu and continued on our merry ways. After once again reaching the meadow in Lyell canyon, I looked back to get this shot to remember yet another perfect day in the Sierra:
On these kinds of family trips, I usually get to squeeze in one pseudo-backcountry hike; on this occasion I decided to day hike 12.5 miles up to Donohue pass on Friday (6/19). I had toyed with just hiking on through to Agnew meadow, but the logistics of returning via shuttle from Mammoth would have added a few more hours. Since my brother was driving up from the Bay area to visit, and I had general camp chore obligations, I needed to be back by 3pm. I figured 10-11 hours total would be a good time budget to allow for lunch, etc, so I took off @ 4am.
The first 3 hours (2 with headlamp) were a nice, quiet, peaceful walk through Lyell canyon. I kept my down jacket on without breaking a sweat, and carried my trekking poles in one hand while keeping the other warm in my coat pocket. I was really hoping to see some wildlife, but alas the bears, deer and cougars were off somewhere else (or quietly watching me pass by). The trail begins to climb @ mile 9 around Kuna creek and the real hike starts - off came the jacket, fleece & windshirt, and now the huffing, puffing and sweating began.
But of course there's a point to all this, and here is the first impression after crossing the bridge and walking by the small tarn:
I briefly chatted with two bedecked climbers that were going to hit Lyell, and recalled my brother soloing it back in the 80s in typical young dude dvmbass fashion ie no equipment. Speaking of dumbasses, there were 3 guys camping with a dog a little further in - each of them looked like they could have been cast as Shaggy from Scooby Doo. I figured they had hiked in from the south, and had wanted to get off the pass.
Anyway, nearing the pass, the view of Lyell just gets more impressive:
After reaching the pass, I ate my lunch while chatting with a PCTer and two JMTers who showed up a little bit later. I had passed some PCTers along the way while hiking, but because it had been pretty early, and they were so close to Tuolumne, many were still sleeping. It's been said many times before, but the contrast between the two types of hikers is extreme. After 800+ miles, the PCTers look sort of like the weathered, emaciated White walkers from Game of Thrones, whereas the JMTers (who are just getting started) look like they are plump & fresh from REI.
The ability to quickly distinguish who is who came into play as I was descending the pass. From around 200 yards below I spied a 20-something walking towards me ie southbound, who was bearded, skinny and moving uphill fast. An early season SOBO PCTer? As we neared each other, I jokingly said "hey, you're going the wrong way", to which he quickly replied, "nah, I'm just flipping Tuolumne to Reds". (In PCT parlance, flipping means doing a section of the trail in opposite order.)
The next reaction between the two of us was a classic trail experience - we each recognized the other from Kearsarge pass 3 weeks previous. At the time, he was re-entering the PCT after re-supplying in Bishop, while I had hiked up to help get acclimated for Whitney (viewtopic.php?f=14&t=12829). At that time, we had chatted a bit about the mountaineers route (he had done it last summer), the JMT, weather options, etc.
So, when we re-introduced ourselves (his trail name is Par 3), we settled into a nice little bit of catchup with this as our mountain backdrop:
Turns out his crew had quite a time crossing the major passes during the last series of storms to finally arrive in Mammoth. Since one more storm was forecast, and he had some business to take care of, he bailed off the trail for 7 days and headed to SF. After getting a ride back to the Sierra, he got dropped off @ Tuolumne where he began SOBO to Reds where he had gotten off. He had a shuttle arranged that would take him back to TM and thus resume his regular NOBO PCT hike.
With smiles on our faces, we each bid adieu and continued on our merry ways. After once again reaching the meadow in Lyell canyon, I looked back to get this shot to remember yet another perfect day in the Sierra: