R01 TR: SHR, Cartridge Pass, Window Peak Lake, 60 Lake Basin, Gardiner Basin loop (8/31 - 9/7, 2024)

[ebfm]

This was an inspiring read! I was wondering about the Lakes basin section as a first foray into Sierra xc, and this is super helpful. Plus yours and frozenintime’s photos from the area are spectacular. Still debating between a lakes basin route and one that hits deadman canyon / horn col / lonely lake, but both look amazing.

[SNOOOOW]

That was fun to read and follow along. That was an interesting route through a wide array of terrain. Thanks for posting

[Vader]

I think my dad and I crossed paths with you on the north side of Cartridge Pass above the steep scree/talus section. Thanks for the recon regarding how unstable that section was; while we were slowly descending we appreciated the warning.

Great photos BTW, I’m sure you noticed your AM photos turned out better than your PM photos due to the smoke from the fire.

[isaacr]

Oh yeah I remembered you guys too, there was the older gentleman right on your tails but I came across you two first (you were the first people I'd seen in like 2 days). One of you had the cool handkerchief that was like a topo map right? I need that!

And yup you're right the early AM photos were definitely affected by some lingering haze, though it didn't affect breathing. Some of the pics in the Gardiner Basin were just a little too hazy and took a lot of editing to make them presentable.

[Vader]

Oh yeah I remembered you guys too, there was the older gentleman right on your tails but I came across you two first (you were the first people I'd seen in like 2 days). One of you had the cool handkerchief that was like a topo map right? I need that!

My dad was the one who had the topo handkerchief. We didn’t use it for navigation (I always carry a Tom Harrison map of my route, along with using Caltopo for tracking), but they are nice to have when you need to cover the back of your neck from the sun. I bought a couple of those handkerchiefs myself after the trip. They’re from The Printed Image in Chico, CA.

https://printedimagechico.com/product-c ... -bandanas/