TR: Tunemah 6/24-6/29
Posted: Mon Jul 07, 2014 8:42 am
Ever since I first learned about Tunemah Lake and its supposed giant trout I knew that I had to get there – of course that is no easy task. I penciled out a challenging 6 day, 62 mile off trail loop from Courtright Reservoir that would visit some prime destinations: Blue Canyon, Tunemah, Lake 10,232, Goddard Canyon and Red Mtn Basin. Part of the allure of this trip for me was the fishing: I love exploring unknown lakes and the challenge of getting there.
As with all my trips it seems, there was a lot of anxiety leading up to this trip. I had been incredibly busy at work, traveling a lot and not exactly sure I should leave civilization at the moment. On top of that a weather system was scheduled to hit that predicted wind gusts to 50mph and potentially some rain. But as I realize every time I venture in the wilderness – I really needed the escape.
Day 1 – Maxson TH to N Fork of Kings River. 17 miles - 8 - 2400’ elevation gain
A 4am start from the Bay Area had us geared up and ready to hit the trail at 10am. With 40 lb packs we were a little heavier than I wanted to be but manageable. The first 10 miles of the trail were forested with minimal views but the miles ticked away quickly. At about 10.5 miles the views opened up where the North Fork carves its way through solid granite and creates wonderful little swimming holes and water slides. We stopped to swim at these pools and regretted not being able to stay the night there. If I had more time, this would make a wonderful stop for the first day. We continued on up the North Fork through mosquito hell at Big Maxson Meadow and past 2 Outward Bound groups of 10 kids or so coming back from a 7 day trip into Bench Valley and Blackcap Basin. I was impressed to see young kids doing such an adventurous trip – very encouraging! At 6pm we rolled into our planned destination near where the trail crosses the North Fork. I briefly considered fishing the creek, but decided against it and took refuge from the attacking mosquitoes in the tent. A long first day for sure and sadly no views to enjoy at the end of the day.
Day 2 –N Fork of Kings River to Blue Canyon. 7.8 miles - 2800’ elevation gain
Almost immediately we said goodbye to the trail (and people) for the next 4 days, and headed cross country up Maxson Basin. We skirted the shallow lake in the basin which was actually prettier than expected and had a nice view of Blackcap Mtn to the North. The mosquitoes were thick as we ascended to the ridge at about 10,600 where we got a light breeze and enjoyed wonderful views of Crown Basin and down to the Middle Fork of the Kings. The descent off this ridge was a little trickier than expected but not too bad and we made good time across Crown Basin and up to Hummingbird Lake and Mantle Pass. Again mosquitoes were thick in this area until we hit the pass where a breeze would knock them back. From Mantle Pass we made a sweeping traverse to the twin lakes at 10,320+ and made our way over to Lake 10,401 sitting at the back end of the canyon. Views from 10,401 were fantastic although we struggled with finding a flat campsite for our tent. We settled on some semi-level granite on the north end of the lake that had a good breeze to fend off our bloodsucking enemies. After setting up camp I spent about 15 minutes fishing, and deemed it fishless (saw no signs of life) so we scrambled down to the twin marsh-lined lakes 400’ below. These lakes indeed had plenty of rainbows, running to about 12” or so but the mosquitoes were almost unbearably bad. We fished until we could not bear them anymore and scrambled back up to camp. That evening, the wind began picking up – a sign that the predicted weather front was moving in. For the moment we were happy that they kept the bugs at bay. Day 3 – Blue Canyon to Tunemah Basin. 3.68 miles - 1420’ elevation gain
Ahh….Tunemah…I had been daydreaming about this day for years! We woke up to overcast skies and fog. Some weather had definitely moved in overnight. As we made our way up Dykeman Pass a light rain developed. Dykeman proved easy and once over it and into the Alpine Creek drainage, we dropped our packs and decided to scramble over to the large unnamed lake at 10,400+. I had not been able to find any information on this lake regarding fish so I had dreams that this was a secret lunker lake. My dreams proved unfounded as we fished for probably 45 minutes with no action, no visuals, no signs of life. Not sure I can rule out fish for sure, but we came up empty handed. Back at our packs we made our way up the Alpine Creek drainage where we had wonderful views back down to the Middle Fork and across to the Monarch Divide. We pushed on, excited to get to Tunemah. Once we crested the saddle, there it was - Tunemah Lake. I couldn’t wait – we threw down our packs and began to fish. 30 minutes passed - Nothing. We moved our packs over to the jawdropping views at the outlet and fished some more. Still nothing. Hmmm….could Tunemah now be fishless? As much as I wanted to fish some more, I’d still have a chance to determine that tomorrow. We decided we should get into camp and enjoy the improved weather (sans mosquitoes) and , reluctantly, I retreated down to the beautiful basin below Tunemah.
To be continued…
As with all my trips it seems, there was a lot of anxiety leading up to this trip. I had been incredibly busy at work, traveling a lot and not exactly sure I should leave civilization at the moment. On top of that a weather system was scheduled to hit that predicted wind gusts to 50mph and potentially some rain. But as I realize every time I venture in the wilderness – I really needed the escape.
Day 1 – Maxson TH to N Fork of Kings River. 17 miles - 8 - 2400’ elevation gain
A 4am start from the Bay Area had us geared up and ready to hit the trail at 10am. With 40 lb packs we were a little heavier than I wanted to be but manageable. The first 10 miles of the trail were forested with minimal views but the miles ticked away quickly. At about 10.5 miles the views opened up where the North Fork carves its way through solid granite and creates wonderful little swimming holes and water slides. We stopped to swim at these pools and regretted not being able to stay the night there. If I had more time, this would make a wonderful stop for the first day. We continued on up the North Fork through mosquito hell at Big Maxson Meadow and past 2 Outward Bound groups of 10 kids or so coming back from a 7 day trip into Bench Valley and Blackcap Basin. I was impressed to see young kids doing such an adventurous trip – very encouraging! At 6pm we rolled into our planned destination near where the trail crosses the North Fork. I briefly considered fishing the creek, but decided against it and took refuge from the attacking mosquitoes in the tent. A long first day for sure and sadly no views to enjoy at the end of the day.
Day 2 –N Fork of Kings River to Blue Canyon. 7.8 miles - 2800’ elevation gain
Almost immediately we said goodbye to the trail (and people) for the next 4 days, and headed cross country up Maxson Basin. We skirted the shallow lake in the basin which was actually prettier than expected and had a nice view of Blackcap Mtn to the North. The mosquitoes were thick as we ascended to the ridge at about 10,600 where we got a light breeze and enjoyed wonderful views of Crown Basin and down to the Middle Fork of the Kings. The descent off this ridge was a little trickier than expected but not too bad and we made good time across Crown Basin and up to Hummingbird Lake and Mantle Pass. Again mosquitoes were thick in this area until we hit the pass where a breeze would knock them back. From Mantle Pass we made a sweeping traverse to the twin lakes at 10,320+ and made our way over to Lake 10,401 sitting at the back end of the canyon. Views from 10,401 were fantastic although we struggled with finding a flat campsite for our tent. We settled on some semi-level granite on the north end of the lake that had a good breeze to fend off our bloodsucking enemies. After setting up camp I spent about 15 minutes fishing, and deemed it fishless (saw no signs of life) so we scrambled down to the twin marsh-lined lakes 400’ below. These lakes indeed had plenty of rainbows, running to about 12” or so but the mosquitoes were almost unbearably bad. We fished until we could not bear them anymore and scrambled back up to camp. That evening, the wind began picking up – a sign that the predicted weather front was moving in. For the moment we were happy that they kept the bugs at bay. Day 3 – Blue Canyon to Tunemah Basin. 3.68 miles - 1420’ elevation gain
Ahh….Tunemah…I had been daydreaming about this day for years! We woke up to overcast skies and fog. Some weather had definitely moved in overnight. As we made our way up Dykeman Pass a light rain developed. Dykeman proved easy and once over it and into the Alpine Creek drainage, we dropped our packs and decided to scramble over to the large unnamed lake at 10,400+. I had not been able to find any information on this lake regarding fish so I had dreams that this was a secret lunker lake. My dreams proved unfounded as we fished for probably 45 minutes with no action, no visuals, no signs of life. Not sure I can rule out fish for sure, but we came up empty handed. Back at our packs we made our way up the Alpine Creek drainage where we had wonderful views back down to the Middle Fork and across to the Monarch Divide. We pushed on, excited to get to Tunemah. Once we crested the saddle, there it was - Tunemah Lake. I couldn’t wait – we threw down our packs and began to fish. 30 minutes passed - Nothing. We moved our packs over to the jawdropping views at the outlet and fished some more. Still nothing. Hmmm….could Tunemah now be fishless? As much as I wanted to fish some more, I’d still have a chance to determine that tomorrow. We decided we should get into camp and enjoy the improved weather (sans mosquitoes) and , reluctantly, I retreated down to the beautiful basin below Tunemah.
To be continued…