Seeking some help planning 2024 Dusy and Ionian Basin Trek

[cjt93]

I did a very similar trip in August 2022 but going the reverse direction - started at North Lake and exited South Lake with a detour through Ionian. It was definitely a memorable trip with some challenging sections.

viewtopic.php?t=22746

[lostandfound]

I did a very similar trip in August 2022 but going the reverse direction - started at North Lake and exited South Lake with a detour through Ionian. It was definitely a memorable trip with some challenging sections.

viewtopic.php?t=22746

Awesome thanks for the link I’ve actually read your report before so it’s good to hear from you! It’s looking like I may actually also be heading out on my trek this year solo for the first time. I feel capable but also nervous.

Any specific advice on this trip after some distance from it for a solo hiker?

Thanks,

[cjt93]

I felt the same way when I went on this trip - nervous due to the Ionian Basin’s reputation of remoteness and ruggedness but cautiously confident based on years of personal experience and consuming many of the wonderful trip reports on this site.

Some advice after 1.5 years of reflection on the trip
- Bring along the satellite communicator for peace-of-mind
- Have a plan B for entry/exit into and from Ionian Basin (and really at any point in your route). I planned on Nietzsche Col originally, but decided on Plan B (Wanda Pass/Black Giant Pass) after in-person analysis. I was definitely more risk-adverse going solo and was thankfully able to adjust on-the-fly to my comfort level.
- I’m starting to embrace more of a basecamp/day hiking approach to trips, where I backpack into an area and then use it as a base camp for day-hikes in the area. I hope to use this approach this summer in the Upper Kern to explore the area without the added weight. This worked incredibly well exploring western Ionian Basin/Goddard and made it more enjoyable.
- With the exception of the 2 days in Ionian Basin, I never felt like I was backpacking solo. This section of the JMT between Evolution Valley and Dust Basin and even including the Lamarck Col primitive trail is very popular and I passed many people. I really enjoyed the random conversations along the way!
- Micro-navigation within Ionian Basin was not a huge challenge for me due to tips from previous trip reports and a feature of CalTopo that enables viewing other routes and tracks (Shared CalTopo Maps option). This gave me a little more confidence in planning a route through the area.

[lostandfound]

When you say Shared CalTopo Maps are you referring to a feature within CalTopo like overlaying publicly available routes in the area? Or from other users actually sharing their maps with you? I read the relevant pages in the Secor book and as many trip reports like yours that I could and have a pretty similar route in CalTopo currently mapped out. If there was a feature that was available in CalTopo to cross reference like that thought that would be awesome.

Funny what you said about changing course in the way you did. I also have deliberately chosen only class 2 and under passes going solo for this trip. So will go Black Giant and Wanda just in the opposite direction.

Thanks again for the tips

[Wandering Daisy]

Since there has been discussion of South to North Lake with Ionian Basin for this year's trips, my North Lake to South Lake, August 1998 trip is an interesting contrast. Call it an "ultra-heavy, low-tech, slow" trip. It ended up 15 or 16 days, 117 miles, including Enchanted Gorge and several climbs. I am uncertain if I took a layover at Barret Lakes after climbing Mt Sill. I also go the wrong date when I first posted this. It was 1998, a high snowpack year.

viewtopic.php?p=52827#p52827

Here are a few old photos.

Ionian1_cropped.jpg

Chasm_Lake_ALT.jpg

Enchanted_Gorge_ALT.jpg

Finger_Pk_ALT.jpg

Ionian4_ALT.jpg

MuirPass_Camp_ALT.jpg

Sill_summit_ALT.jpg

[papercup]

I have only been to the western portion of the basin, not the eastern portion, so I can't provide much guidance on the specific itinerary you're considering. If you do make it to the western side, though, Lake 11,818 was one of my personal favorite spots in the Sierra. It's a beautiful lake which from some places feels like an infinity pool looking out toward the White Divide. It's also a pretty easy place to find a reasonable campsite by Ionian standards.