High Sierra Topix

Day 1: It was snowing lightly all day and we headed out with the intention of spending the night at 4th recess and exploring Pioneer Basin on subsequent days. However, when we were at the top of the switchbacks before Mono Pass, the heavens opened up and it began to snow hard and the mountains became invisible in the clouds. I decided it was wiser to give up all of our hard earned altitude and high tail down to Ruby to make camp. There was always tomorrow. It retrospect, though we were stuck in the tent for several boring hours, it was a good decision. I enjoyed the views and the hike up and over Mono Pass much more in the sunlight the next day rather than slogging, soaked and cold without views. It dumped over 2" in two hours and continued to snow or hail until the next morning. At Ruby, we found two really pretty white birds with big brown spots nesting. They had the body shape of and size of pigeons but I do not know what they were. If any of your can tell me, that would be fun.

Day 2: It was a beautiful, cold morning at Ruby! A couple of Landscape photographers had hiked up to capture the glorious morning. The views up and over Mono Pass were wonderful. I used crampons going up and over the Pass since it was less fatiguing. However, there was a group of trail runners doing it with no traction devices or poles. Coming down from Trail Lake, micro-navigation was tricky through deep snow patches. I knew very well where I was and where I was going, but was too tired to deal with bush whacking or a big detour through dense vegetation. I was so tired and really feeling the altitude, so I decided to head for the closest camp and that would be at Golden. Turns out, when I got to the junction with Golden Creek, the map from MyTopo.com was wrong. The trail is on the north side, not the south side of Golden.

Day 3: The temperatures were in the teens and nothing had dried, just frozen overnight, even in the tent. I dawdled around camp waiting for my socks, gloves and boots to dry in the glorious sun! My feet had been wet and cold for the past day and a half and it was so good to have the sun baking us. We met a fisherman who came up and over half moon for a few hours of fishing at Golden before he would go back to work. He said that the fishing had been really good that year. Golden was completely frozen and he was ice fishing and also fishing in the creek.
We headed down the Mono Creek trail and enjoyed the dense forest and views of Pioneer Basin peaking through. I was going to explore 4th Recess and Pioneer Basin. However, I wanted to get back to camp early and didn't feel like getting wet again crossing Mono Creek. So we greatly enjoyed a lazy day in the forest. I met another nice group of three fishermen who had also come over Half Moon for the day to fish and camp overnight.

Day 4: I was feeling refreshed, energized and a bit more acclimated and would have loved to have had one more day to go and explore Pioneer Basin. Alas, we had cut our trip a day short because of the storm (And we got caught in the tail end of it in any case on that first day!) and I had to be back at work the next day. SIGH And so, we enjoyed the hard hike back. The wind above Trail Lake was gusting hard, but it was still an enjoyable day.

And so, I ended up going somewhere I had not planned at all and never getting to the intended destinations and having a wonderful time! AHH, but that is one of the many the seductions of backpacking, no "have to's" just go and do what you feel like at the moment. No schedules and no real plans that must be kept.

I was so proud that I managed to upload the pictures in a cohesive fashion...However, they are in backwards order chronologically. Sorry, but I am getting close to posting a proper TR

This is a great report! Thank you! Man, it looks cold in those photos, but it sounds as if you had a great time. That trail down from Mono Pass to Trail Lakes and beyond is a little bit confusing even in the middle of summer--I remember a couple of use trail alternatives in that area...

That shot from Golden Lake at sunset is stunning

Wise turning around. Every few years, over a foot of snow falls at higher altitudes late May. Not conditions for the type of lighter weight footwear many are using these days. Given frozen lakes and mostly snowy landscapes, temperatures at nights may often get into teens due to cold air sumping. I realize some are enthusiastic about venturing into such places but... as someone who skis all winters especially fresh powder, am not impressed by usual spring melt snow landscapes.

Thanks for the great report and pics. I'm thinking all the lakes in the lower valley are free of ice?? I would like to make it up there to mono pass while there is still some snow, thinking next week. What's your thought on the trail conditions then??

I understand that it is pretty hot this week.
There was no snow at all in little lakes valley. When I was there, close to the pass, I would guess that it was about a foot to 18” deep on either side. When we went past Summit in the late afternoon, it was soft but was shallow enough that we really didn’t posthole. Going from Trail Lake to the Golden Creek junction, several feet deep in some places in the forest. Also remember, I was there the day after it dumped about 3” and it was still pretty sparse.