High Sierra Topix

TR: Emigrant Again- July 1-5


Four trips were contemplated; Desolation from Loon Lake, Jack Main from Hetch Hetchy, North Rim in Yosemite, and Buck Lake from Crabtree in Emigrant. I probably picked the least likely to succeed, the last one. And fail, I did, when I came to the waist-deep Cherry Creek crossing end of the first day. So I punted, got another permit for Kennedy Lake because I had no other maps and I had been there a week before and had some unfinished business (day hike). This trip was mostly about making lemonade out of lemons; but you could not have asked for better weather and no mosquitoes.


July 1. Crabtree-Gianelli Road junction to Piute Lake: 8 miles, 5 hours, 1760 feet gain.


Closure of the last 0.7 miles to Crabtree TH is still in effect. So I parked on the side of the road and at 11AM, walked to the empty parking lot and then slogged up the trail. Weather was perfect, a light breeze and no mosquitoes. I ran into the same CCC trail crew that I met last week on the Kennedy Lake trail and had a nice chat with a few of them. The crossing of the creek from Bear Lake was a refreshing shin-deep wade.
All went well until I reached Piute Meadow, where I had a “brain fart” and instead of looking at my map, my mind’s picture was or Piute Lake where the trail goes north of the lake, not Piute Meadow where the trail goes south of the meadow. Snow also began as I dropped into Piute Meadow, and I splashed through wet meadow, crossed two side creeks, and finally, after wasting an hour intersected the trail. Realizing what I had done I decided to look at my maps more often in the future! Up another hill and then down into Piute Lake. The trail this time went north of the lake where I met a couple camped. It was late so I found a nice dry campsite up on the hill north of the lake. Later two fellows arrived and camped down by the couple. I walked down to nearby Cherry Creek for my before-bed hike and the water was over my head deep. The crossing is about quarter mile upstream, but things were not looking good.

July 2. Retreat to Bear Lake: 5.4 miles, 5 hours, 1540 feet gain.

In the morning a tall fellow stopped by my camp saying he had decided not to cross Cherry Creek. I think he wanted reassurance that he was not a wimp. I hiked up to the crossing and it was not as bad as he had conveyed, but still hip deep at the first step and probably waist deep or more before getting to the other side. It was deceptively calm on the surface but had that powerful underwater flow look to it. I too decided to retreat. Being short is not the greatest thing for stream crossings. I do not think I would have died, but could have floated away and had to jettisoned my pack, which is not a great idea. Fishing Buck Lake was not THAT important!

So I leisurely retreated, this time crossing Piute Creek in the proper place and it was knee deep with a moderate flow. I pretty much found the trail. Again I ran into the trail crew who were doing what they could, given that half of the trail was either covered with snow or under water. Instead of walking out, I spent the night at Bear Lake, which I had never been to. Surprisingly, it was basically empty saving one father and two small children and two other guys. I caught a nice fish for dinner and enjoyed a lazy evening.
July 3. Bear Lake to car; drive to Kennedy Meadows; hike into Kennedy Lake. 12.7 miles, 7.2 hours, 2000 feet gain (plus nearly an hour driving and getting permit).

I was back to my car at 10:00 and quickly picked up a new permit and drove to Kennedy Meadows TH parking. It was crazy crowded and all the trailers were driving into the upper campground. As I passed one someone was shooting a gun. After the piles of coolers, flags waving, generator humming hubbub the trail was surprisingly void of people.
I passed one large youth group who were going to Relief Reservoir, thank goodness. A day-hiking lady with two dogs hiked along with me for a while. Two horsemen were coming down the trail to get more ice for their camp up at Kennedy Lake. The creek was now low enough that the established campsites across were accessible and several large horse camps were tucked into the woods. I continued to the exact same campsite I was at a week ago and set up. One couple was camped nearby (almost on the trail). I went down to the inlet, surprised that I could get there with dry feet, and fished a bit. No luck. So I took a bucket-bath and washed clothes. It was a long day and I was glad to sit down for dinner at 7PM. At 8:30 the lake became alive with fish, but I was ready for bed! Kennedy Lake is situated for the late sunlight and the sun did not go down until 9PM.

July 4. Day-hiking and move camp to the old Cabin below Kennedy Lake.


I awoke to frost and went down to the inlet to fish, only to have my reel break. I now had a wad of line with no way to reel it back up. So I fumbled around a bit, but no fish caught. I then cooked breakfast only to have my stove not work. Not a great start for the day. Forget cooking, forget fishing, there was plenty of day-hiking to be done. The weather was perfect. At least my camera worked!
I had wanted to hike up to the pass between Kennedy Creek and Kennedy Canyon last week but it was still too snowy. I headed up giving myself a noon turn-around. The raging side creek a short distance above my camp was now a two-step ankle deep wade. The trail switch-backs up the steep scree hill to a flat at about 8700 where there are nice spots to camp as long as the snow-melt rivulets are running. The main creek has cut a canyon so getting water from it would be difficult. As I continued, snow began. I saw one person’s footsteps. I continued up to the next meadow at 9100. It was 11:30 and I knew I would not make the pass, so turned around and went back to camp (5 mile, 3 hr, 1200 feet gain hike).

I then moved down below Kennedy Lake with intentions of fishing the outlet stream and soaking in the views, which are actually better below the lake. I was hoping for a campsite where I could see into Soda Creek so I walked down to the confluence. The only dry campsites I found were huge horse and cow dung over-used sites. So I trekked back to a site I had spied only to find horses grazing nearby. I turned downstream and found a nice spot near the old cabin on a bluff above the river where there was a nice private spot on the river to bathe. I fished the stream with a wad of line in my hand, not getting one nibble. (3.5 mile, 2 hour fiddling around).

Cows have now been brought in, so the evening was noisy with bellowing; lovely pre-cow season at Kennedy Lake was over. Although the dryer meadow was nice for walking, all the tiny yellow flowers were gone.

July 5. Return to Kennedy Meadows TH. 8.6 miles, 3 hours, mostly downhill.


I got up early, ate some trail food and walked out in 3 hours reaching my car at 10:30. The crowds were going in! There were tents all along the trail above the bridge over Kennedy Creek, evidently those who tried to get into Kennedy Lake last evening. Cows were on the trail. What a zoo at Kennedy Meadows.
I had a beautiful drive back over Sonora Pass, Monitor Pass and Echo Summit. There was surprisingly less traffic than I had anticipated. Monitor Pass was beautiful with wildflowers at peak.

Thanks for the update , I'm heading out there tomorrow. I'm going for the lower route via Pine valley and will search out some logs to get across Cherry creek, and hopefully on up to Hyatt.

I went to Big Lake July 22 2011 and this was my route. I found a mellow but deep wade shown on the map going in and then found the old trail to Rosesco Lake. Coming back I found a mangled log jam upstream that I used. Those logs may not be there now. There was snow at Rosesco Lake and between Big Lake and Pingree Lake. Hope this helps.

WD, at the bottom of your map, are you indicating that hyatt was wet/swampy in july 2011? i’m planning on heading to the hyatt/big/pingree zone as well in a week, and am curious if hyatt is a bad idea during a big melt. thanks! your reports are so helpful.

Nice report, Daisy. And quite a contrast to our own hike nearby, but at lower elevations. BTW, we saw a total of two mosquitoes in three days on our hike!

The Hyatt Lake inlet is brush-choked and swampy early, so if you come in from the south side of the creek, you have to cross a very muddy wet area. There are dry areas to camp if you stay away from the inlet creek. Probably better to come in from the north side of the creek. Same with Lake 7727 valley- very wet. Last year I traversed about 50 feet above the valley floor on the southeast side. No need to not go, just be prepared for a lot of wet areas. Also, the trails are hard to follow early in the season.

Ah brings back many memories. I had been into Louse Canyon and then Rosasco, Pingree and Big Lake I believe 3 times, but all in the 70's, including some big snow years. I remember always worried about crossing the creek in Louse Canyon, but always finding a reasonable way, including log crossings. I confess that was 40-50 years ago. I remember an old timer horse packed a rowboat into Pingree Lake. I never fished Pingree, but I remember that they went to a lot of trouble to bring a rowboat in. Big Lake has some wonderful camping on the north end.

Nice to see your early season report!

thanks as ever, WD.
i assume the inlet you're referring to is emanating from lake 7727 (and not the inlet-ish stream slightly north/west of there that dumps into the northernmost corner of hyatt)?

Thanks for the report and great photos!