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mtnyoung
Trad climber
Twain Harte, California
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 29, 2014 - 11:45am PT
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Thank you for the comments. Sometimes it's weird looking at these reports myself. I'm supposed to be a climber (I AM a climber), and yet the fun we get from and the passion we have for this project is as meaningful as any climbs I've ever done.
I suppose my reaction should be gratitude that I don't have to do just one or the other!!
And, RP3, here are my two reactions to your comment:
1. Your "short list?" Your short list is as long as Tricia's legs ( that is, it's really, really long);
2. It just occurred to me that, given the incredible breadth of knowledge you have of California climbing, you could well be the next "Clint Cummins" of this and of other climbing web forums. I'm impressed.
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mtnyoung
Trad climber
Twain Harte, California
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 29, 2014 - 02:57pm PT
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Here's what I posted to Mudn'Crud about our fourth day:
I always let Tricia sleep in on these trips. I know, I risk having a spoiled brat child by indulging her in this way, but on the other hand, she is putting out huge gobs of energy on these trips, and she's still growing at a fantastic rate too. I'll take the risk:
This day started with the usual packing rituals (everything in its place, everything buttoned down, lunch and water ready):
Today's hike required two big uphills, out of Kerrick Canyon and then into and out of Stubblefield Canyon. This photo shows about where the PCT crosses Kerrick Creek; this crossing was placid for us, but it has a reputation for danger when early-season through-hikers hit it in June of most years:
Like Kerrick, Stubblefield Creek was also placid, but it was also deeper:
The second climb of the day was out of this canyon. It was a hot climb. Here's what it looked like from the other side of the canyon (we climbed up the shallow side-canyon in the center of this photo):
Here's how it looked going up it:
We found a nicely shaded lunch spot with a breeze though:
At the end of this climb, according to the PCT guidebook, the "deep canyons" that had dominated the last 30 miles of hiking were done. We liked this. From the ridge top we quickly reached Tilden Canyon and then Wilma Lake:
We ended the day by starting up Jack Main Canyon (the creek through this canyon doesn't share that name - the creek's named Falls Creek; go figure). Jack Main Canyon is one of the longest north-south canyons in the Sierra (ten plus miles). It's also beautiful and the hiking is easy:
Our camp for the night was perfect. Easy creek access, beauty, near the trail, and good sun exposure. We relaxed and cleaned up before making camp and then dinner:
As we got into our sleeping bags that night, I thought back to the start of this trip; I had particularly looked forward to two sections of trail both of which I'd done many years before. One of these was the last ten miles to Sonora Pass itself. The other was the distance up Jack Main Canyon past Grace Meadow and then to Dorothy Lake. I knew that this latter section, which I remembered as gorgeous and gradual, would make up most of our hike tomorrow.
I also knew that we'd pass PCT trail mile 1,000 late tomorrow. That's only 1,000 out of 2,658 miles, but that's still a long way to hoof it from the Mexican border. I looked forward to "going quadruple digits" with my little 12 year old; 1,000 miles seemed significant to me, and it's taken her more than half her life to get that far. How would she react to this milestone?
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mtnyoung
Trad climber
Twain Harte, California
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 30, 2014 - 09:42am PT
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Day five:
Jack Main Canyon is a nice place to wake up. Here's the view downstream from our camp:
We headed upstream and quickly reached the lower end of Grace Meadow:
Reid and Tricia seemed to use every break this trip to soak their feet in the many creeks and lakes we passed:
Dorothy Lake sits near the top of Jack Main Canyon. Dorothy is a half-mile long, beautiful lake in a beautiful location:
Forsyth Peak stands over the lake (Forsyth was an Army officer back when the Army patrolled the park; Dorothy was one of his daughters):
By the time we'd reached Dorothy's northwest shore, we'd already hiked eight miles for the day. So we took a long lunch:
After Lunch we did a quick quarter mile up to Dorothy Lake Pass (which is very visible just above the lake in the second Dorothy Lake photo above):
This pass is the north border of Yosemite National Park. The Hoover Wilderness starts on its north side. This point, which I have passed over several times before, is where it hit me hard that, "man we're getting close to home!" We stopped for pictures:
On the other side of the pass are a series of smaller lakes (named for Forsyth's other daughters). The hiking past here is very pretty:
But we had another purpose by now. Yes, the lakes here are pretty. And yes, the hiking is easy. But Dorothy Lake Pass is at PCT trail mile 998.3; we had several miles of hiking energy still in us, and we were getting excited about that upcoming, meaningless, but oh-so-fun mile marker 1,000.
We didn't know what to expect. As usual, Tricia was hiking ahead of me. I had the map. I'd yell thoughts and directions to her as we moved. Then, just as I was describing a curve in the trail, she yelled back "here it is Daddy!" Here it is:
Tricia had actually seen a small "sticks and stones" 1,000 mile marker that is right on the trail:
But over the years, PCT hikers had also left a larger marker. This is off the trail, and it's subtle enough that other hikers might not even notice it (it is visible in the photo of Tricia above, a big cairn to the right of the trail). Reid, for example, had hiked ahead a bit at this point, and, since he wasn't particularly looking for it, he didn't see the marker. We walked over:
Tricia then asked if she could add a stone to the monument. "Of course," I said:
This was a pretty cool moment. Does the 1,000 mile mark have any more meaning than any other point we passed on this trip? Maybe not; certainly it doesn't have more meaning in any objective sense. But Tricia was pretty thrilled (and when we caught up to him a few minutes later, Reid was totally thrilled for her too). As for me? Well, the area there must have had some kind of odd bug in the air, just there, right at that one location; an odd and invisible bug that must have been buzzing, unseen, very close to my face. How else to explain the moisture in my eyes as I saw the beaming pride of accomplishment in my beautiful little girl?
We kept going after this marker. When the forest opened up we started seeing ridges and peaks that weren't granite. We were leaving the High Sierra now and entering the northern Sierra:
We got our first view of still-distant Tower Peak (a big, big peak for this area, it's in the high, left-center of this photo; Tower Peak also marks the northern border of Yosemite National Park):
We finished the day at a nice camp near the Long Lake Trail Junction:
At this point we were well along toward Kennedy Canyon and, after it, the Sierra Crest. We had a plan for tomorrow, and this campsite put us in perfect position to see it through.
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Seamstress
Trad climber
Yacolt, WA
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Jul 30, 2014 - 11:52am PT
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1,000 miles - awesome.
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johntp
Trad climber
socal
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Jul 30, 2014 - 12:11pm PT
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Wonderfull! TFPU!
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RP3
Big Wall climber
Twain Harte
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Jul 30, 2014 - 01:01pm PT
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Thanks for the kudos, but I am entirely undeserving of THAT title. I just happened to walk past that formation ~6 times over the years and always dreamed of climbing it.
Have a blast on the next leg!
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mtnyoung
Trad climber
Twain Harte, California
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 30, 2014 - 02:24pm PT
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Secor lists The Pharaoh here…
Ironic that I had copied that very page to take with me regarding Volunteer Peak; and yet I didn't identify the buttress I was looking at :)
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mtnyoung
Trad climber
Twain Harte, California
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 30, 2014 - 08:37pm PT
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Day six:
Our plan for day six involved going slow on purpose. We'd spent night five just four miles from Kennedy Canyon. The trail through Kennedy Canyon leads right up to the sierra crest. This canyon is also only 11 miles from Sonora Pass. Finally, we expected to find no water past this canyon (and we were right, there wasn't any).
So, after a leisurely start, we made the four miles, tanked up on water, added three gallons of water to our loads (three gallons total, not each), and humped up to spend a night right on the crest. And what a treat that was!
The climb out of Kennedy is long but not steep. After a gradual ascent to above tree line, it follows an old mining road up several dramatic switchbacks.
Here's the view back down the switchbacks and also one down Kennedy Canyon (beautiful country there above tree line):
This long uphill with extra water was worth it. Once we reached the top of the climb we were on the crest. The views were sublime and the location fantastic. Here's the view looking south, into the Hoover and Emigrant Wildernesses and Yosemite:
This photo shows the actual pacific crest heading north toward Sonora Pass. The PCT is barely visible right below that crest:
And here we see a view to the west, showing also a proud daddy who's having a hell of a good time with his daughter:
Once the PCT reaches the crest it stays right near it for the next ten miles to the pass. This is just an incredible section of trail; views in every direction, dramatic cliffs to one side, steep slopes to the other. I'd forgotten how cool this part of the trail is, and how close it is to our home:
Eventually we came to a spot that was flat, wind sheltered and right near the crest. The perfect last night's campsite:
Although we quit hiking a bit early for the day, we did so just to enjoy this spot (it was only 6 1/2 more miles to the pass). After settling in, Tricia and I decided to go one step further; she and I moved up to a flat, sheltered spot that was on the actual crest itself. This was a spot where, even laying in my sleeping bag I could have thrown a rock one way and it would have gone into the Pacific Ocean drainage, while a rock thrown the other way would have gone into the Great Basin drainage. We slept under the stars too, all at 10,500 feet (and that's an elevation that gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "under the stars"). This was a really nice place:
The last rays of the sun looked particularly soft here; we were in the alpenglow instead of just seeing it:
We had a nice campsite, adequate water and just enough food. So we spent a great night and were well positioned for the next morning and for the rest of a wonderful hike.
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ß Î Ø T Ç H
Boulder climber
extraordinaire
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Jul 30, 2014 - 11:07pm PT
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My bro-in-law used to rave about the TYT (alternative to PCT north of Yosemite).
Ultimate respect and thanks extended to you guys.
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mtnyoung
Trad climber
Twain Harte, California
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 31, 2014 - 10:14am PT
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And here's our last day (day seven):
Our last day was short and beautiful. We continued along the pacific crest:
The trail alternates sides of the crest. It also passes among volcanic towers:
We took a break overlooking Blue Canyon:
Before long Chipmunk Flat, a Sonora Pass Climbing area with hundreds of established routes came into view (this was quite a new way to see this climbing crag - too bad the smoke was thick on this day from the fires to the south):
One last flat stretch led to a point from which we could clearly see the paved highway at Sonora Pass:
Two miles of long switchbacks then led down to the closest point that the PCT comes to our house:
We continued another tenth of a mile to the picnic area located near the pass and then we were done. There remained only to wait for Vicki, our ride home (only a 50 minute drive!), and to add up all our remaining food. Here's the leftover food, left over from a three person, seven day trip (not bad, I wish I could call it that close every time!):
And now we're still waiting for the weather. Although Tricia and I had hoped to finish from Highway 108 to Highway 4 and then from Highway 4 to Highway 88 this week, the thunderstorm cycles are back, and we're not so foolish as to go out directly into them if we can help it. Instead it looks like we'll get out Saturday and Sunday for the 31.6 mile hike to Highway 4 and beyond that will wait until after Tricia's week at science camp.
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clinker
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, California
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Super cual guys and Tricia! We will catch a segment of this with you up trail. Up trail being north by a standard and correct globe perspective.
This,
Not this,
Which could lead to this,
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mtnyoung
Trad climber
Twain Harte, California
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 5, 2014 - 09:33pm PT
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Trip number two for the summer also went very smoothly. I posted this to the Mudn'Crud forum (I haven't edited out the first name references to friends of ours on that site).
I used the title: The PCT Volume 22: A Highway to Highway Quickie:
DAY ONE
Tricia and I "ran" the 31.6 mile distance from Highway 108 to Highway 4 this last Saturday and Sunday. Well not really; we didn't actually run. But we did go very fast and very light (I started with 30 pounds and Tricia with just under 10). And we somehow missed (again) all of the precipitation that has been hitting the high country over the last several weeks.
We had a really great start on Saturday; a leisurely wake-up followed by a 55 minute drive to the pass (we were hiking by 9:00 a.m.):
Vicki hiked the first mile with us before turning around:
We reached and then traversed across the south side of Sonora Peak. This part of the trail is visible from the highway. Then the trail crosses the crest and heads north to the headwaters of the East Fork Carson River. It then follows the "river" first as a tiny rivulet and then as a stream until after five miles it might, maybe be called a small river. Here's Tricia just before the descent into the start of the canyon:
And here's a view in the opposite direction, looking up canyon from five miles down (in the prior photo Tricia is standing in the obvious saddle that is in the middle of this shot):
Nine miles into the hike the PCT leaves the river and moves up and to its west. Gentle uphill leads past pretty streams and, occasionally, really expansive views:
Stanislaus Peak seemed to always be visible. Here it is (the closer one) along with Sonora Peak (slightly left) and a six mile stretch of the East Fork Carson River Canyon:
We passed under Boulder Peak (a pretty but totally non-descript rubble pile that I climbed on one of Tricia's first backpacking trips in 2006):
By now we were 13 miles into the day and we were getting pretty weary. Slight uphill led to slight downhill. In spite of being tired however, we broke into smiles when we came to "Son of Hexentric." This volcanic rubble pile/peak had several faces that each looked like the Sonora Pass climbing route Hexentric. Here's one of them:
(For some reason seeing this formation made me think immediately of Rob. Maybe because I think he'll ask me how far into the Wilderness it is?)
As the day wound down we started to too. We began looking for a flat place to sleep near water:
And we found one, a nice one:
The photo of us in camp was taken by Elizabeth, one of only three other people we'd seen that entire day. She and her friend Don caught up near dark and we happily shared the area with them (they were doing the same hike as us, also in two days, and they were from Sonora - it was a real treat to meet them).
As Don and Elizabeth set up their camp and chatted with us, we all watched the evening light on the far side of the canyon. It was wonderful:
We slept that night under the stars, and there actually were some (we had a tarp handy though just in case). But, true to predictions, we would wake up the next morning to overcast, to the possibility of rain, and to another 14.8 mile hike to Ebbett's Pass...
DAY TWO
We woke up at first light on the second day. This was partly because we'd gone to sleep at 8:30 and also because I expected rain later in the day and I wanted to be on our way by the time it hit (but it never did).
From the moment we started walking, Stanislaus Peak dominated the area (it was behind us though):
Temps were very cool and we had thick overcast:
After only a mile the views to the north starting opening up:
Side canyons showed evidence of recent heavy washouts (so did the trail itself in places):
At eight miles for the day we hiked past Asa Lake. I found this small lake fascinating (it covered maybe three acres?). It's on a hillside, but there's a crater-like area that the lake fills on that hillside. It has a vigorous outflow stream, but no inflow stream. After we got home I read in the PCT guidebook that the lake is completely spring fed, that it does have a fish population and that beavers have been occasionally found in it:
From Asa the trail ascends to a saddle on the southeast shoulder of Tryon Peak:
Although I'd heard of the Highland Lakes, I'd never been there and I knew nothing about them. We saw them in the distance (and the dirt road leading in to them from Highway 4). These look like a wonderful place to car camp and day hike; very pretty:
From the Tryon Peak saddle we could clearly see the Three Chimneys, a well known formation that is in the Emigrant Wilderness, which is south of Highway 108 (it's at least 25 miles away; the Three Chimneys are visible in this photo just to the right of the closer, pyramid-shaped peak):
We passed a talus field of unusually pink blocks. We took this photo for J.C., but the light wasn't good and the photo doesn't really show how very pink the rock was:
After some more miles we knew we had to be close to Highway 4; but we couldn't see it. Unlike the Sonora Pass Highway, we never saw any of the Ebbett's Pass Highway at all until we were right onto it:
It's kinda surprising how narrow Highway 4 is, huh? I've only been over Ebbett's a few times before and had forgotten that it's a physically small road up there.
Anyway, we walked our customary 50 feet in to the next section and then turned to walk the quarter mile down to the PCT trailhead to find Vicki. And, no surprise (how does she do her magic?), Vicki had just left there to come look for us. We hopped in the car and headed home from another trip on "our" fantastic trail.
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Might have driven right by you on 4. Thanks again for sharing.
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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One of the best threads on the taco.
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Hawkeye
climber
State of Mine
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AWESOME!
GRAND!
Thanks for sharing this.
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labrat
Trad climber
Auburn, CA
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"One of the best threads on the taco."
Totally agree! Feeds my dreams....
Thank you
Erik
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Footloose
Trad climber
Lake Tahoe
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Yeah, very cool thread, one of the best. Thanks for the share.
We ran ptc sat from hwy 4 trailhead and hiked Highland Peak. For a moment around Noble, where the pct switchbacks up through western junipers I remembered this thread and I thought about leaving you guys a note and a few jelly beans under a root and rock or something as a cache, lol! that I'd then post to this thread about later that evening; then I thought, well, no, there's a chance they're already on the trail so I didn't (because then I'd have to return to pick up the "litter"). So I was right about you guys already on the trail, haha!!
A couple pics off pct Sat you probably recognize...
(I'll pull these later, just wanted to show.)
Again, thanks for the stoke from the very cool report and updates!!
EDIT to ADD: Okay, mtnyoung, thanks, I'll leave pics. Yeah, what a difference a day makes! Sunday we were further south at Sawtooth and weather was overcast and... menacing... very. :)
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mtnyoung
Trad climber
Twain Harte, California
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 6, 2014 - 04:35pm PT
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Hey Footloose, don't pull the pictures.
I recognize each photo. I found them interesting too because we were there the next day under complete overcast and very different light. I liked the Saturday weather (and light much better).
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HighTraverse
Trad climber
Bay Area
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Too much fun!
Great to see your doggy out there!
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mtnyoung
Trad climber
Twain Harte, California
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 6, 2014 - 10:03pm PT
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We love having Charlotte along too High Traverse (she's the white faced dog).
Unfortunately our other girl, Madeleine, who you've met, and who was on many of our PCT trips with us, died just a few weeks ago. She was over 14 years old.
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