High Sierra Topix

WD,
My descent from Triple Divide Pass would put me on river mile 8, similar to the path that Rouge had taken. Is the descent to river mile 6 much easier? I will be returning via Pyra Queen so I'm glad to hear it is scenic (will try to remember to turn around for the view often). Thanks for the photo of route B.

Rockyroad wrote:I'm going to do the reverse of the itinerary I had previously posted and would like some feedback on 2 possible segments. I'm starting this day from Lion Lake, crossing Triple Divide Peak and coming down to the Kern-Kaweah River. At this point, I see 2 possible routes to the lake which I'm allotting 2 days for - maybe 3 days if I go to Red Spur Lakes too. What are the pros and cons of routes A and B?

I have done a variation on A. My group looked at Picket Guard Pass and it looked unpleasantly loose so we actually surmounted the ridge by taking our full packs right over the top of Picket Guard Peak via its north ridge (big solid granitic talus; class 2--great view going up this steep ridge). This wasn't a bad backpacking route except for a short section after reaching the ridge crest. At that point one is at the crest of a knife edge and there is a short class 3 section with some exposure on high quality rock (this is granitic rock, not the splintery metamorphic stuff so typical of the Kaweahs) to gain access to the class 2 slopes leading to the summit of the peak. I'm not sure, but I think the final class 3 part can be avoided if one steers a bit eastward just below the top of the ridge and doing so may also reduce the amount of excess elevation gain expended in going over the top (the extra elevation gain is one minus versus the pass) if one doesn't want to climb the peak en route. In any case we found the route rather enjoyable, but not everyone wants to do class 3 moves with a full pack.

There are two routes from Triple Divide Pass- per Secor, pg. 97. The longer but less steep route traverses the upper basin east, crosses a ridge at 12,000 feet and then drops to the Colby Pass Trail. This one would put you at the lower end of the upper meadow of the Kern Keweah. The other drops due south. I did not know which route you were taking.

I did not find Picket Guard Pass loose. Maybe I went a different way. I mostly zig-zaged on rock ramps. Only the upper headwall was exposed. Overall it looked a ton worse from below than it turned out to be. I often take off my pack on short sections of class 2-3 passes. I even had to do this on Longly which is class 1! If I am out 10 days or more, my pack is heavy enough to really pull me off balance when climbing so I find it easier to just take it off, tie on a short cord and haul it up after I climb up without the pack. The upper part of the route shown below may not be exactly right. The route became pretty obvious near the top. I did this 2006 so memory is a bit hazy about it. I do not recall anything class 3.

[rimg]http://i249.photobucket.com/albums/gg23 ... _Route.jpg[/rimg]

Nice photo WD. The pass looks so much more inviting in this light and the benches show up very nicely. It may have been the gray day and our similarly colored frame of mind (from being rained on intermittently at all hours for several days) that biased our judgment of Picket Guard Pass when we viewed it from a distance. In hindsight, though, I am glad we took the somewhat more off-the-wall route, even though I'd certainly go via Picket Guard Pass (after your description) if I was going in there again.

Regarding "exits" from Triple Divide Pass to the Kern-Kaweah R. I haven't done the southward one (ie the one that bypasses the Colby Pass trail and drops you higher into the drainage) but I have gone from Colby Pass trail to Triple Divide Pass. I'm not sure if I in fact followed the route described Secor, but I suspect I was pretty close. The only concern I'd have going eastbound (ie descending it) is that the most difficult part of the route is sort of "blind" (ie steepening downward)--it is the one steep spot you descend above the Colby Pass trail. Going up, you can pick the right combination of ramps and benches without too much trial and error, but I imagine that descending that part could be trickier for route finding because of the "blind" nature of this drop off. This step is steep class 2 if the best route is chosen, but if you miss the optimal benches and chutes it can easily get to class 3 and possibly worse.

Thanks GB and WD. Your comments are very helpful and gives me a lot to consider.

As I worked on scheduling more than long weekends for the summer, I realized that I'm not going to be able to be able to make these dates. If anyone is planning on a group get together over a long weekend (one day in, one day exploring from base camp, and one day out), I'd love to meet some of the other backpackers that hang around on this site.

Kathy, Jim & I are tentatively planning on hiking Taboose to Kearsarge Thurs 5/21 to Sat 5/23. We're attempting to leave early enough in the season to try & catch some snow on the passes, but the trip is entirely contingent on weather. If a high pressure system lines up, then we're off to the races. Here's our expected schedule, with the intent of camping within 1-2 miles under each pass. The plan is to get an early (7am) start each day to hit them while they're icy (we're taking spikes):

Thurs D1 12.7 miles - Taboose->Lake Majorie
Fri D2 15.5 miles - Pinchot->Rae Lakes
Sat D3 11.4 miles - Glen->Kearsarge

If you didn't want to do the entire hike, you could hike out of Onion and up to Rae lakes for a Friday meet-up, then continue exploring the area on your own during the week-end. Jim is a good back-country cook and always brings along some 'refreshments'.

For those who participate in the entire trip, I'm designing a small (i.e. lightweight, 2-inch circle) backpack embroidered HST patch. Free of charge - less the obligatory trip reports/photos. Ordering 100 of them so there will be some available for other people in exchange for a small donation.

That sounds cool Eric! Looking forward to seeing the design.


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Hey - just poking my head back into this thread to update that I won't be able to go. Once again work interferes (last year it was India, this year it is Germany). Instead I'll be getting out by doing a loop out of Kearsarge starting August 7 (up to East Lake, climbing brewer, then over Longley to Sphinx to climb FF, then back up to Vidette Lakes to do W Vidette on the way out) so if anyone is out there then give me a holler.