High Sierra Topix

Thanks for the update, I'm glad you made it through the storm OK!

The storm did have plenty of consequence for me. I slipped in one of the many flooded creeks on Saturday which soaked a lot of clothes I was wearing. Drying them out was not an option.

Then, yesterday after forgoing vvr I got stopped at the second ford of north mono creek. Pretty much the last ford of the whole stretch. I had to setup camp at 2 in the wet forest and sit it out. That was a huge bummer. I had to hike my ass off today to get into town.

The "Real Deal" is showing how it's done!

Boots or runners?

Thanks for carrying our trash out:


I'll update our TR, but this is a note we left on our last day for Tenacious D, our Czech compatriot. We thought he was behind us, but he had hiked on ahead the night before, determined not to let us get past him the next morning. He missed our first note with an arrow pointing to our campsite, as it was 11pm. Worried we might still be ahead, he hiked half-way up Glen - in the dark - to bivy in the ice & rocks. Needless to say, it was a happy re-union the next morning; a PCTer had mentioned he was there, but we kept wondering where (how high). Finally, as we began a 45 degree climb up the mixed ice/rocks, he popped his head out of the rocks.

I'm wearing my normal hiking shoes. I need a very wide area for my toes so I'm sticking with the usual. The shoes are meant to be breathable but not as much as trail runners.

That said, my feet are a bit blistered. It seems inevitable if you want to do big miles in those conditions. Yesterday I was deadset on getting in town, hiked 25 miles over silver pass in snow and didn't have time to dry feet, switch socks, manage hotspots etc. Gtx socks might have been a good idea but it's all good.

schmalz wrote:Gtx socks might have been a good idea.

Trust me, GTX socks are worthless in those conditions. Andy & I both had a pair, and while they're initially nice, once they're wetted out (not really from the snow, but the constant flowing streams across the trail, down the trail, and of course the fords), they're just big, wet, heavy weights.

I thought mine where bad, but Andy had to periodically take his off and pour water out of them - at least I could wring mine out. Seems at a certain point, the water is kept in and the air out. LOL

Next time, I would take wool socks - same effect, but better quality. I had two pairs of light syn/cotton for the hot marches through Le Conte, Woods & Kearsarge.

Glad to read you are okay Brian! Your weather will be breezy and a little cool for the next several days. This is the forecast for Tuolumne Meadows:

Today Sunny, with a high near 58. Breezy, with a southwest wind 15 to 20 mph.

Tonight Clear, with a low around 31. West southwest wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.

Wednesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 52. Breezy, with a southwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.

Wednesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 28. Breezy, with a southwest wind 15 to 25 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.

Thursday Mostly sunny, with a high near 53. Southwest wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph.

Thursday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 26. Southwest wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.

Friday Sunny, with a high near 58. South southwest wind around 10 mph.

Friday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 29. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 15 mph.

Saturday Sunny, with a high near 64. South southwest wind 10 to 15 mph.

Saturday Night Clear, with a low around 32. South southwest wind 5 to 15 mph.

Sunday Sunny, with a high near 72. South southwest wind around 10 mph.

Sunday Night Clear, with a low around 35. Southwest wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 15 mph.

Monday Sunny, with a high near 78. South southwest wind 5 to 10 mph.

Have fun!

Pics have been added to Calitrails Facebook. Link is in my signature. I don't think you need a Facebook account to see them.

When will you be in Tuolumne Meadow?

Wow, what happened to the snow on the south side of Mather? The steep north side of Glen looks about the same, as does the north side of Mather. One week of intense sun is all it took to wipe out the south sides of both Forester & Mather.

We used our ice axes 3 times: ascent of Lamarck, ascent/descent of Mather, and ascent of Glen. When there was still snow on Mather south side, it was pretty steep. In fact, there was a very nice cornice section. That being said, I thought Glen was the most difficult - maybe comparable to Whitney MR alpine conditions.

Jimr wrote:When will you be in Tuolumne Meadow?

Passing through on Thursday I think. I read the campground and grill are still closed. Lame.