It’s a long report… thanks for your patience. I’ve tried to include some helpful information regarding expectations on this trailhead and route.
The plan was to start from Shingle Springs TH, walk up the Cherry Creek to Lord Meadow, take the Styx Pass trail to Boundary Lake and then return via Kibbie Ridge Trail. Groveland ranger station does not have self-issued permits. Which means they must be picked up in person or the night box. The route from Shingle Springs through Cherry creek to Lord meadow is 100% off trail and generally considered to have significant bushwack. Using satellite images and slope angle data, I carefully planned a route on as much granite surface as possible. Unsure of the road conditions, I opted to drive a high clearance 4x4 pickup rather than a typical SUV.
10/15/24 –The day prior was a federal holiday. So, I had to get the permit in person after the office opened at 8:30am the day of the hike. It was my lucky day because the office staff was using the “hard to find” map from the Ben Schifrin book which I was able to document and study.
The additional time it took to drive the Cherry Lake road (asphalt) and the Cherry Lake dam road (dirt) to Shingle Springs put me at the TH around noon. A typical SUV can make the TH but the last section is pretty steep with large potholes and protruding rocks. A high clearance 4x4 is a good idea on this dirt road.
My walk began by heading back down the dirt road to connect with a short spur road pointing in the direction of the creek. It was sunny and hot with no precipitation in the forecast for day 1. A brief exploration led to a small use trail which I followed carefully. The trail alternated between clear human use and a simple game trail. It contoured the steep terrain and every so often made significant descent toward the lake and then toward the creek feeding the lake. Eventually, I was on a large granite section directly above the creek. Essentially “cliffed” out, I had to navigate some prominent earthen domes, vegetation and dried blackwater ponds which then dropped down to the first large water hole on Cherry Creek.
(Cherry Lake From Cliffs)
Arriving at waterhole (38.05079, -119.90500) I met the only humans I would see for three days. Some young men had hiked in from the north side of the creek with lawn chairs, floaties and party supplies. They were enjoying the cool water, fresh air and variety of supplies during this hot day.Continuing up the creek, I found no running surface water but plenty of large pools, some clean and some foul. The route followed closely the center of the creek with several side digressions based on the gradients. It was amazing to see up close what is essentially the bottom of Cherry Creek. Many of the clean pools contained populations of small but active fish (<10”). Continuing up the creek, I found no running surface water but plenty of large pools, some clean and some foul. The route followed closely the center of the creek with several side digressions based on the gradients. It was amazing to see up close what is essentially the bottom of Cherry Creek. Many of the clean pools contained populations of small but active fish (<10”).
(Pools in Cherry Creek)
As I encountered the deep gorges, chutes, and waterfalls that the creek is famous for, I tried to pass through the gorges only to be rejected by radically steep angles leading to deep pools. Often, I was forced to retreat and skirt these features on steep angle but not treacherous granite which allowed me to peer down into these incredible features.(Dry Waterfall)
(Gorge)
This water carved landscape was amazing to explore and travel through. Much travel was directly over granite slabs with huge bowls carved into swirling rock. Some pool forms had subsurface connections (openings) between them.(Joined Pools)
(Granite Chute)
Due to the late start, I did not make Lord Meadow the first night. Instead, finding a pretty, little camp at a dry waterfall just before river mile 20. With the low water, I was able to avoid much of the legendary bushwack. Occasionally I did leave the creek bed and navigate rock, forest, meadow and brush.(Bushwack)
10/16/24 – Weather predictions for this second day included a 40% chance of rain but the am weather looked like it would be another warm, sunny day. This day’s goal was to follow the creek as closely as possible and to get through any steep granite slabs before the predicted rain began to fall. The rain did arrive… slowly. It started as mist and grew heavier over the course of three hours. Walking on the moist slabs was not too slippery if I avoided the, formerly, dry algae and the rivulets that began streaming in from the steep granite sides of the creek.
(Slabs)
(Creek bed)
As I approached Lord Meadow, the rain became heavier and it started to get pretty wet. Continuing up Styx Pass I missed to turnoff to Boundary Lake. It’s not well marked and was very easy to miss in the heavy rain. After walking ~¾ mi past the turnoff, I returned toward the Boundary Lk cutoff. With increasing rain and open granite, I chose a line strait up to the pass and went for it. In what seemed like 20 minutes, I was at the lake setting up my tent, in the heavy rain. It was ~ 3:00pm, a perfect time for a nap.
(Lord Meadow)
Rising just before dark, I explored the lake, made dinner and went for a brief night hike in the light of the full moon.(Full Moon Diamond Shrubs)
10/17/23The plan was to hike out mostly on trail with a side excursion to Mercur peak and then descend the ridge to Sachse spring. I had breakfast and lounged around the lake while my gear continued drying in the fine sunny weather.
(Boundry Lake)
A midmorning start had me finding the official trail and attempting to use that to return to Styx Pass trail. Again, in the clear morning it was very hard to stay on the Boundary Lake trail. It’s seems that this trail does not get too much traffic. In fact, most of the lakes in this remote area of Yosemite do not have established trails or many visitors. Whoops, was that supposed to be a secret? Those that come here likely prefer the off-trail nature of travel to these lakes and other features. I have to admit that the off-trail travel can be pretty easy. There are many slabs and easy walking without too much brush. I think the bigger challenge is navigating to the various lakes without getting “cliffed” out.Continuing toward the pass, the weather began to turn and by the time I reached a good location to climb Mercur, the weather was starting to look nasty. So, I bailed on the off-trail plan and just tried to make good time returning via the Kibbie Ridge trail. For the most part the trail was easy to follow and easy to walk. However, there were more than a few sections that heavily overgrown with very nasty thorn bushes. At one point, I stopped to put on hiking pants because the bushwacking was so bad. It was much worse than everything I had encountered on the off-trail route up Cherry creek. In addition, there were many blow-downs which required significant diversions (and bushwack) from the established trail.
I made it back to Shingle Springs around 3:00pm. So, it was something like 4.5 hours to walk from Boundary Lake DOWN to Shingle Spring. I would expect the reverse route to take longer.
My takeaways from this trip are:
1. The Cherry creek drainage is wild and beautiful. It’s an incredible sight when the water is at high flow and also when it’s dry. The risk factors are much higher in the early season but is still something amazing to witness.
2. The northwestern portions of Yosemite are scenic and uncrowded as the Emigrant is. These regions of Yosemite are worth further exploration, specifically Mercur and Bartlet peaks, Little Bear and Spotted Fawn lakes, and Nance peak.
3. Some new gear that worked out really well are a Toaks 750ml paired with BRS stove and FatCat wind screen. This kit is lightweight, packs in the pot and burns little fuel. It works well paired with a separate mug for tea. This really is a great solo option.
