Re: TR June 15-26, 2014--Days 5-7
Posted: Sat Dec 05, 2015 2:46 pm
Day 5, finally a little warmer. A moving day, around Harriet to the sw corner, thru the saddle down to the next lake, w over the ridge to the next lake, then sw to the High Trail , then when it starts to head up plunge off trail to intersect the Triple Peak Fork trail just s of the intersection of the Red Peak Pass trail. This route eliminates 300 feet of uphill and 2 extra miles of trail travel.
A few hundred yards below the Red Peak Pass trail along the Merced Peak Fork are several seldom used campsites. Most travelers don’t go far off the trail to camp and it seems most are also intent, in this area to go from Ottoway to the Triple Peak Fork, at least, on their trips thus missing the best of the area in my opinion. The many deep pools, the undulating granite of this little valley is magic, and if you go up the side and downstream a bit at sunset the view to the ne can be as good as it gets. Day 6 Edna. A day hike. A mother dog, as always, that last few hundred feet, but what a lake. 3rd place highlight of the trip! Matt always says, “Dad, you know me, it’s catchin’ not fishing that I’m interested in.” Well we both had packrafts and after each of us kept our first fish for dinner (Edna can be fickle!) then catch and release after catch and release etc for the rest of the day. Fishing Edna from shore has always beaten me up but not having to climb over cliffs, edge along ledges, cross suspicious snowfields, and clamber over talus fields made fishing a pleasure in an incredible setting. It is always good when you can lead your son to his best fishing day ever! Upped my best fish here to 18” but the reputed 20 incher still eludes me. This turned out to be highlight #3 of the trip. Day 7 On to Adair! Over the ridge and down to Red Devil Lake then nw to the Red Peak Fork and the route markskor and I took in 2012--Down the Red Peak Fork to where the river starts to drop off steeply then head due n up the line of trees to the top of the ridge then angle down the easy talus to the drainage of lake 9705, then sw over the ridge and down the gulley to Adair. To be continued, time to watch football! (edhyatt, we're talking real football where the players don't fake injuries unless they wimpy California teams playing Oregon!)
Mike
A break at the ford/intersection to prepare for 2+ mile, 700 ft climb to top of the ridge before dropping down to the Merced Peak Fork and our camp. Maybe it is because I usually do it in the afternoon, maybe because the scenery is not outstanding but this 2 miles always seems almost interminable to me, I’m sure markskor will agree with me as he bitched the whole way when we did it together! The Red Peak Pass trail has been written up so much it was the one part of the trip where we met several people each time we traveled on it.A few hundred yards below the Red Peak Pass trail along the Merced Peak Fork are several seldom used campsites. Most travelers don’t go far off the trail to camp and it seems most are also intent, in this area to go from Ottoway to the Triple Peak Fork, at least, on their trips thus missing the best of the area in my opinion. The many deep pools, the undulating granite of this little valley is magic, and if you go up the side and downstream a bit at sunset the view to the ne can be as good as it gets. Day 6 Edna. A day hike. A mother dog, as always, that last few hundred feet, but what a lake. 3rd place highlight of the trip! Matt always says, “Dad, you know me, it’s catchin’ not fishing that I’m interested in.” Well we both had packrafts and after each of us kept our first fish for dinner (Edna can be fickle!) then catch and release after catch and release etc for the rest of the day. Fishing Edna from shore has always beaten me up but not having to climb over cliffs, edge along ledges, cross suspicious snowfields, and clamber over talus fields made fishing a pleasure in an incredible setting. It is always good when you can lead your son to his best fishing day ever! Upped my best fish here to 18” but the reputed 20 incher still eludes me. This turned out to be highlight #3 of the trip. Day 7 On to Adair! Over the ridge and down to Red Devil Lake then nw to the Red Peak Fork and the route markskor and I took in 2012--Down the Red Peak Fork to where the river starts to drop off steeply then head due n up the line of trees to the top of the ridge then angle down the easy talus to the drainage of lake 9705, then sw over the ridge and down the gulley to Adair. To be continued, time to watch football! (edhyatt, we're talking real football where the players don't fake injuries unless they wimpy California teams playing Oregon!)
Mike