R04 TR: Florence Lake-Selden Pass July 2017

[brianA]

First of all, the one lane road from above Huntington Lake to Florence Lake is mislabeled. It's 27 miles, not 20. Depending on traffic it takes 80-90 minutes. Because of my miscalculation, or theirs, we missed the 10:30 ferry. Because of the difficulty of Selden, we didn't want to walk the extra two miles around Florence Lake, so we waited for the 12:30, and started at 1.

Great hike with views of Shinn, and Ward on the way. 4 minor creek crossings, with some boggy meadows. Started the 3500 foot climb near Blayney Meadows. Because of the steepness, and the late start, camped a mile short of Sallie Keyes Lake, on a beautiful ledge (many campsites) overlooking a southern mountain group. Left early the next morning heading for Selden Pass. The mosquitos weren't bad. They're a lot worse at Mosquito Flat going up to Little Lakes. There were a couple of interesting water crossings at Sallie Keyes, but doable without water shoes. The snow crossings started at Heart Lake, and it was hard to pick up the trail in several spots. At that point you can see the slot up to the pass, so just head up, and you'll eventually run into the trail. There's a giant steep snowbank just over the pass (see pic). If you climb to a higher point southeast of the pass, also in the pic, there's an easy way to climb down, avoiding that huge snow bank altogether. The view from above the pass is my 2nd favorite wilderness view of all time (Sunrise at Thousand Island Lake #1).

Than back down to the ledge to break camp, and start back down. Camped near Muir Ranch, with an easy hike out the next morning to make the 9:00 am ferry. I also have to say that the outhouse above the ferry phone is the best I've ever seen in the wilderness. There is no door, so it has a lake view. Luxury at its finest.

[cgundersen]

Hi Brian,
Dang, you had some spectacularly clear days; great photos! But, yes, the road up to Florence/Edison is sufficiently vexing that it takes me several years to build up the courage to tackle it. But, it sure does serve as a great portal to some amazing areas that are harder to reach from the East, so it's that trade off that always gets you. cameron

[Harlen]

Welcome to HST Brian, and thank you for the nice trip report. It sure has changed a lot since we were in there in the beginning of July. I can easily imagine that the interminable drive to Florence Lake is more than 20 miles. Our trick for the scary one lane parts is to get behind another car, and use them as a blocker for our little car. Re. the distance around Flo Lake, we always thought it was between 3-4 miles? Perhaps because it comes at the very end of long trips.
Nice photos, you caught two of our favorites: Sierra penstemon, and "Mountain pride"- P. newberryi- nice pics! Cheers, Harlen.