TR: Taboose to Ionian Basin and back, 8/9-8/16, 2023

[Moonwalker]

Hey All!

My son Quinn and I went in at Taboose Pass trailhead to tour Ionian Basin during the wet second week of August. Lots of snow due to the record winter rains meant many of the routes were completely altered, usually making things easier technically, if sloppy later in the day. The JMT bits were less crowded than usual, and I felt strong bonds among the few people we met. Saw not a soul in Ionian Basin, which was unsurprising. Met a young couple doing the complete Roper High Route in Palisade Basin, just after Cirque Pass. Shout out to Caleb (happyfeet) and his friend who were doing the JMT.

We are both pretty stout hikers; I'm 64 and have been hiking off-trail in the high Sierra for many years, though I avoid exposed class 3. Q had just run the TRT 50 mile race a few weeks earlier. Appallingly, he wore his Hoka Clifton 8 running shoes. I wore a new pair of Altra Lone Peak Hiker 2's, which were perfect, like wearing moccasins. The slushy snow soaked our feet on most days, but these shoes dried quickly. We went stoveless, eating bars, cheese, jerky, and chews/gels. 2650 calories and 142 grams of protein per day. I gained a pound or two. My base weight was 15 lbs, 30 with food. I remember I once carried a heavy pack, and saw no downside, but now I appreciate the ability to hike basically all day without sore feet. We were glad we didn't bring microspikes and ice axes. Poles were useful. Didn't use my water filter even once, drinking without consequence from the side of the mountain.

Day 1: Taboose Creek was easier than it looked. We realized this after wasting over an hour poking around for a tamer looking crossing. None of the other water crossings on this trip required shoe removal, in fact. The bugs were intense down in the valley going up to Upper Basin. We camped just below Mather Pass, beautiful spot.

Day 2: Mather from the south is easy, though snow had erased some of the trail. On the north side the snow was hard in the morning, making it easy to cross.

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I was slightly worried about what we'd find going up to Cirque Pass, but the snow made everything much more straightforward than I'd ever seen. Actually went straight up the middle near the end instead of staying to the left. The chute on the north side was out of the question due to snow, but we found an island of rock that made the descent to Glacier Creek easy class 2. We camped early because it started to storm, and didn't want to get dumped on going up Potluck Pass. The lake was covered in snow.

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Day 3: Up over Potluck, Knapsack, and down into LeConte Canyon. The approach to Potluck took some thinking, because the snow was ice in the morning, and I didn't see how to approach. But by the time we got up there it was soft enough to take the usual route, which is on the southwest side. We avoided the exposed snow crossing near the top of the loose chute by passing above it, a move not obvious from below. Moved quickly through Palisade Basin, and dove naked into Barrett Lake 11468, finding the water delightful. The journey into Dusy Basin seemed to take a long time, maybe we were running low on calories. Those lakes though! I think you could spend weeks in Dusy Basin. It started to rain as we descended into LeConte Canyon, and we camped near the ranger station.

Day 4: Storm predicted! Our goal was Ionian Basin. We hiked from LeConte Canyon ranger station up to Helen Lake on JMT, and looked with dismay at the snow-covered basin leading up to Black Giant Pass. Is it doable? Looks steep... . We decided to try it, after Quinn found a possible route. We would turn around and go back at 1:30. It again was easier than it looked, and we were standing on the pass at 1:30. Now a storm looked likely, and we couldn't tell what lay ahead. What if Ionian Basin is buried in snow? What if we can't descend the outlet of Lake 11828? We decided we'd be okay in the worst case we could think of, and after a ritual sacrifice were favored by Poseidon, who held back the furious weather that hit later that night. Much of the hiking was on snow, big contrast to recent years at this time. The north side of the outlet to 11828 was fine. Camped northwest of Charybdis.

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Day 5: Started raining early. Our goal was to go over Wanda Pass, and I was apprehensive. But we went straight up the snow in Chasm Lake Canyon to Lake 11592! It has never been easier, just a walk on a highway of snow. The pass was straightforward, and in the rain the view of Ionian Basin to the south was dark and magnificent. Once down we traversed the south side of Wanda Lake to get to the JMT, a direction I had never taken. Met some nice Bay Area dudes at Muir Pass who were having a good time doing the North Lake-South Lake loop. We camped near Big Pete Meadow at the rock monster.

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Day 6: Early start, 25.4 miles up to Striped Mountain. Quinn basically ran up the Golden Staircase at 17 minute mile pace, leaving his old man grinding his teeth in the dust. We were light, feeling pretty good, so why not do a fitness trial. Had lunch at upper Palisade Lake, what a spot. And Mather Pass, one of the best views on the JMT. We proudly avoided removing shoes at all stream crossings, and pounded our way up to a lake below Striped Mountain before sunset.

Day 7: Raining early, up over Taboose Pass and out. Really nothing to report here. Sad to leave. Taboose is beautiful when it isn't 100 degrees and sunny. In the rain, it was freaking awesome.

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Great trip.

[cgundersen]

Ok, I get the Moonwalker avatar: you guys were moving as if gravity was not holding you back/down. That's a mighty impressive slice of the Sierra in a short time frame. And yes, I've been seeing plenty of folk on trail in Speedgoats, but Cliftons? Thanks for the inspiring report! Cameron

[Harlen]

Moonwalker and Sunrunner-- Fantastique!

What a great route you guys pulled off. We were out in comparatively pedestrian Humphreys Basin on the same days as you.* You guys got hit by the weather that left us alone, but we sure do envy your exciting route. Cheers, Ian and Lizzie.
[*TR: Humphreys Basin in Perfect Stormy Weather! 8/9 - 8/15 https://www.highsierratopix.com/communi ... hp?t=23176]

[Moonwalker]

Ok, I get the Moonwalker avatar: you guys were moving as if gravity was not holding you back/down. That's a mighty impressive slice of the Sierra in a short time frame. And yes, I've been seeing plenty of folk on trail in Speedgoats, but Cliftons? Thanks for the inspiring report! Cameron

Haha thanks Cameron. I subscribe to the theory that if I don't see it, it isn't there. But having my boy absolutely kick my butt on the golden staircase left me pondering.

The fact that one can hike off trail in these types of shoes has been a revelation, and made me regret all those years wearing heavy boots. Quinn got a pebble in his shoe a time or two, but otherwise we were perfectly fine, and we went through scree, boulder fields, snow, and pretty rough trails. The top of my foot is exposed to a heavy rock event or something, and I couldn't have done any technical climbing, but the lack of support or whatever for a 7 day trip seemed not to have consequence.

[cgundersen]

Moonwalker,
My friendly gerontologist abides by the rough rule of thumb that muscle mass and strength drop by about 1% per year after age 40. And a quick internet search reveals a slightly different expectation (this one from the National Institutes of Health):
"One of the most striking effects of age is the involuntary loss of muscle mass, strength, and function, termed sarcopenia [1–3]. Muscle mass decreases approximately 3–8% per decade after the age of 30 and this rate of decline is even higher after the age of 60 [4,5]."
By those criteria, and judging from the trip you just took, it's no surprise that Quinn could pedal-to-the-metal while you were left in the rear view mirror. The consolation here is that maybe 1% of the contributors to HST would even think of doing an itinerary like you guys just finished, so I think that puts you in rarefied company. Just getting up Taboose is an accomplishment and then stringing in Mather, Cirque, Potluck, Knapsack, Black Giant and Wanda before pounding it back to the finish line; all I can say is wow! Cameron

[giantbrookie]

Wow. You do justice to your screename, walking as if on the Moon. I took one look at the TR title (Taboose to Ionian and back) and figured this was no ordinary backpacking effort. I am also 64, but I seriously doubt I can execute that route at anywhere near your pace, although the caveat is that I have never backpacked with a light pack (can't think of time I set off on week or longer trip with <50lbs) so I really don't know how my body would react to it.

[Moonwalker]

Moonwalker and Sunrunner-- Fantastique!

What a great route you guys pulled off. We were out in comparatively pedestrian Humphreys Basin on the same days as you.* You guys got hit by the weather that left us alone, but we sure do envy your exciting route. Cheers, Ian and Lizzie.
[*TR: Humphreys Basin in Perfect Stormy Weather! 8/9 - 8/15 https://www.highsierratopix.com/communi ... hp?t=23176]

Thanks Ian, and thanks for the link! Great photos for the Humphreys trip. The weather in Ionian Basin wasn't bad on the night of 8/12, just rain and a few gusts; lightning and thunder safely separated by a count of 10-15. But we talked to a couple (Jim and Jessica) who spent that night on Bishop Pass (!), and they were still slightly shell-shocked. We were lucky with the weather overall, but the mere threat in these high places definitely moved us along. -Eric

[CAMERONM]

How nice to have an opportunity to hike with your son.

[kpeter]

It sounds like a beautiful trip on top of the world! And how wonderful to do it with your son. When I get a chance to pack with one of my children, it is extra special to me.

I also hike in Altra Lone Peak--I have to wear women's sizes to get them narrow enough for my feet, but they fit wonderfully and they have essentially eliminated my blister problems as well as being as light as trail runners. One problem with them--I wear out a pair every year--they are not durable.

[Moonwalker]

Wow. You do justice to your screename, walking as if on the Moon. I took one look at the TR title (Taboose to Ionian and back) and figured this was no ordinary backpacking effort. I am also 64, but I seriously doubt I can execute that route at anywhere near your pace, although the caveat is that I have never backpacked with a light pack (can't think of time I set off on week or longer trip with <50lbs) so I really don't know how my body would react to it.

Thanks John. The light pack has made a big difference for me. I used to carry in ~65lb, which can make what should be a stumble into a crash. And the joint-strain! I laughed at a guy I met who sawed off the handle of his toothbrush to save a few grams (he regretted this), and was drinking vegetable oil for calories. His eyes got wide when he saw me take an entire copy of Secor's High Sierra guidebook out of my pack; I think he was thinking, what are you insane? But now, I can hike much longer with much less pain than I could 20, even 30 years ago. I don't even bring Advil anymore. I also train more regularly, and lost about 30 pounds. I feel great now, fingers crossed. Thanks for the comment! -Eric