R04 TR: Margaret Lakes TH 7/28-7/30 2016

[BufordT]

Sqeeuzed this trip into a hectic schedule and started out pretty tired, so I wasn't moving too fast. The Margaret Lakes TH is located near the end of the Onion Springs OHV, which originates at the High Sierra Pack station at Lake Edison. I drove the road in a stock Tacoma 4x4 and wouldn't have wanted to try it in anything that was a whole lot less capable - although a party did get a Honda Pilot to a point about a mile short of the TH before they called in quits.

General Route

I left Fresno at 5:00 AM and was walking a bit before 10:00. In addition to the OHV route, Kaiser Pass Road is pretty slow going. I had looked at topos and tried to find non-existent beta on a cross country route that paralleled the ridge across to Upper Saddle Lake. It looked doable on a map, but I decided that idea would remain tentative until I saw it in person. Turns out it's quite enjoyable class 1 most of the way. The final half mile turned to class 2 and route finding became a bit more challenging. In hindsight, I probably made it more difficult than necessary by trying not to lose elevation during that last portion.

Cross country to Upper Saddle Lake

Crossing over to Upper Saddle lake was easy, and I followed class 1/2 terrain down to Fern Lake where I camped for the evening. Route finding was pretty straight forward. At the lake, mosquitoes were a 5-7 out of 10 and the fish were aggressive.

Upper Saddle Lake

Lower Saddle Lake

Trout at Fern Lake

The following morning I headed over to climb Siver Peak. Seems this summit is more often done from Devils Bathtub. There appears to be no write up on this peak in the Peak Bagging Forum, so I'll save a detailed description for there. This is a shot of a cloud letting loose over the Silver Divide.

Silver Peak

Returning from Silver Peak, I broke camp at Fern Lake and headed on trail to Frog Lake, with the intention of staying there for the evening. Arriving at Frog Lake, I ran into another party (the first of the trip) and more mosquitoes. The fishing looked like it would have been excellent again, but due to time constraints and having had my fill of mosquitoes, I decided to press on to the ridge and dry camp on its south side. That way it would be a quick exit in the AM and I could escape the mosquitoes.

Arch Rock

Arch Rock is not depicted properly on the topos - it's actually ON the ridge. Very neat to see. I think the western end of the Silver Divide has some very unique rock formations - kind of reminds me of the Alabama Hills in places. The mosquitoes followed me all the way up there to camp about 1/2 mile beyond the rock, so that kind of backfired. But I did make a quick exit in the morning to go be an adult again.

[maverick]

Thanks for the TR and pictures (even the two upside down ones of Sadlers Lakes.
Always enjoyed seeing that Arch Rock, especially at sunset with a good Alpenglow present.

[justm]

Beautiful Pics, especially the rain clouds from Silver Peak !!! Thanks for sharing !!!

[BufordT]

Thanks for the kind words!

[Robo_Hiker]

Nice trip report! Amazing what some people will take up those roads!

[janky]

Great photos and review. Thx! I'm thinking of doing this trip with my 2 boys (aged 9 and 11) and my wife. I'm wondering if there's any place to stay that's close to Lake Edison that allows for us to get up in the morning and do a shorter drive and get on the trailhead. I know from reading that the drive is rough and I'm worried that it will take hours to get to the trailhead just to start the 5.7 miles to Frog Lake. From my research, I found one place called Vermilion Valley Resort - looks like an oasis for those backpackers on the Pacific Crest and John Muir Trails. Thanks for any info.

[CAchief]

I rolled in right after you did, I was there 7/31 - 8/3

[CAchief]

Great photos and review. Thx! I'm thinking of doing this trip with my 2 boys (aged 9 and 11) and my wife. I'm wondering if there's any place to stay that's close to Lake Edison that allows for us to get up in the morning and do a shorter drive and get on the trailhead. I know from reading that the drive is rough and I'm worried that it will take hours to get to the trailhead just to start the 5.7 miles to Frog Lake. From my research, I found one place called Vermilion Valley Resort - looks like an oasis for those backpackers on the Pacific Crest and John Muir Trails. Thanks for any info.

There is also a tent camping area that's close to the onion Springs Trail. What kind of vehicle do you have? The trail doesn't take hours to navigate but it's rough and some spots. If you search Onion Springs 4x4 on YouTube I uploaded a point of view from my vehicle of the whole Trail to give you an idea