I just found a handful of new photos that my hiking buddy must've put onto my hidden zip drive. I looked at "New Posts," and didn't see any new TR's, so I thought I'd slip this in for summer inspiration. I am very keen to get back into the Goddard Creek country again. This week-long trip must've been 7 years ago. The route was: Florence Lake to Martha Lake-- into mythical Ionian Basin--up Black Giant-- across Muir Pass-- up Mt. Fiske-- down Evo. Valley-- up to an amazing lake due north of McClure Meadow-- back down, down to Goddard Canyon again, where I saw a very nice Black Bear-- and on to Flo. Lake and home.
Mount Goddard and Lake 12,200+ from the south.
Mt Scylla from Lake 11,818.
An Ionian Lake with Mt Solomons left, and Black Giant right. Another of the big lakes that sit just below the 12,000' contour in Ionian Basin.
View of the North Face of Mt. Charybdis-- such a wild mountain!
This doesn't feel quite right, but I believe this must be Lake 11,011 at the top of Enchanted Gorge, with the Three Sirens on the right.
Looking northwest from the summit of Black Giant, which I think of as one of the finest viewpoint peaks. You can just make out Muir Hut as the small black spot dead center, with Wanda Lake and Mt. Huxley lined up beyond. The favorite view east, across LeConte Canyon to the Palisades is missing-- I had to share my friend's fancy camera.
View south, with Mt McDuffie, and on down the Black Divide. Is that the amazing "Citadel" far to the left?
Looking north with Darwin and Mendel at the center, and Mt Humphreys in the shadowy distance.
My friend with a nice view of Davis Lake and Mt. McGee.
The upper basin of North Goddard Creek.
Back at Wanda Lake for sunset.
I remember this trip fondly, for the remoteness of Ionian Basin, the beauty of North Goddard Basin, The Black Bear who showed up just while I was cooking giant fish on sticks over a fire... all the Pika in the world in the rocks along the margin of the last Ionian lake- the one due west of Black Giant, and the brilliant view of Mt Charybdis from there! There was just one sweet and sour memory, and that was of the torrential downpour!, thunder and lightning that I escaped by racing down from Mt Fiske's summit along its very dicey east ridge-north slope, to the turquoise lake due north of Fiske. The huge raindrops/hail pellets were making the surface of that lake dance into a green foam! Such amazing sights and feelings that I almost didn't care that my tarp had blown off my sleeping bag, and now it weighed one hundred pounds or so! I rung it out, said goodbye to my friend, and hiked all the way down to 10,400' from Sapphire Lake, to make a big fire to dry out the bag. It worked out, and I slept fine. The next day the friendly McClure ranger invited me to fish at a secret lake only he knew of
. That was great, and then I saw the blackest of Black Bears, sniffing for my fish. Sorry bear. Good luck this summer!
Properly trained, a man can be dog’s best friend.
