With backpacking totally engulfing me I could not wait for the next years trip. Mike Sorrell did not disappoint us when he planned a trip from Toulumne Meadows in Yosemite National Park to Mammoth Ski Resort. Mike had it all worked out. All we needed is to get a group to commit. We ended up with some familiar faces and some new ones. Mike, Eric and I were returning hikers. Paul, Rob and Jim became the new guys. I know Paul and Rob but this was the first time that I met Jim. While he maybe the oldest of the group he by no means was the slowest. He was always in front of me!
Here we are before we take off down the JMT
(L-R) Paul, Mike, Me, Jim, Rob and Eric
As I said, Mike planned everything out and here is what he put together.
- 08/21: Drive up to Mammoth. Find a place to bunk down
- 08/22: Drive to the Mammoth Ski Lodge. Park the van. Take YARTS to Tuolumne Meadows. Hike into Lyell Canyon and set camp at the end of the day.
- 08/23: Climb over Donahue Pass and camp next to Waugh Lake
- 08/24: Climb over 1,000 Island Pass, pass Garnet Lake and descend into San Joaquin River valley and set camp.
- 08/25: Hike into Agnews Meadows and pick up the YARTS on Postpile Road. Ride back to Mammoth Ski Lodge parking lot. Load up the van and go home
It was a great plan and it was an awesome trip. Now it is time to fill in the details... blood and all.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
The drive to Mammoth was great. Rob is a great storyteller and on the ride up he talked about his disappointment of forgetting to bring his most important medical supply- krazy glue! He uses it like a band aid for scratches and cuts. He praised how the glue promotes healing, keeps wounds from bleeding and assists in reducing scars. He uses it at work and when he surfs. Little did he know how much krazy glue would become a big part of my story later on.
We reached Mammoth in the late afternoon. After getting some dinner Paul and Rob directed us to a little campground they knew about called High Sierra Camp. No reservations required. It was getting dark as we pulled our packs out and set up our sleeping arrangements. No tents this night. Some of us started a small camp fire and sat around and chatted. Others went to bed. One of them was Jim. By 10:00 the fire was getting small and we were all about to go to bed when a coyote trotted down the path that heads to the bathroom. That dog didn't seem to care that we were there. The canine trotted right up to Jim as he sleep. It stopped about five feet from him and started to sniff the ground. Slowly it stepped closer to Jim. Our verbal abuse on the coyote did nothing and strangely it didn't wake Jim up either. By the time I stood up the dog was about a foot from Jim's head, sniffing the ground as he stepped towards Jim. I jumped and yelled. That did the trick and the coyote continued down the camp path into the night. But within 15 minutes that mutt was back, having come back from a different direction (a classic hunting strategy) and sniffing at Jim again. This time the dog received a loud reception and a few rocks from those of us still at the fire. All the while Jim slept right through it all!
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
I woke the next morning to my watch alarm and as the designated wake-em-up for the group I began my rounds, nudging each guy awake. Mike was one of the last still sleeping. He had a T-shirt covering his head for warmth and to keep the bugs off his face. He was sleeping on his side when I gently nudged his shoulder. Mike EXPLODED! He grabbed that T-shirt in a blink of an eye and started whipping me, all the while screeching a panicked scream. Mike's shrieking echoed in the trees. I sort of felt bad for Mike but couldn't help but laugh at his high-pitched sequels. All he had to say for himself was that he thought I was the coyote coming back for some breakfast treats. He admonished me for being so quiet when waking him up. But I figured that our camping neighbors would appreciate a tranquil exit from us at 5:00 in the morning. Well, Mike took care of that for us. I swore that I would never wake Mike up again.
I woke the next morning to my watch alarm and as the designated wake-em-up for the group I began my rounds, nudging each guy awake. Mike was one of the last still sleeping. He had a T-shirt covering his head for warmth and to keep the bugs off his face. He was sleeping on his side when I gently nudged his shoulder. Mike EXPLODED! He grabbed that T-shirt in a blink of an eye and started whipping me, all the while screeching a panicked scream. Mike's shrieking echoed in the trees. I sort of felt bad for Mike but couldn't help but laugh at his high-pitched sequels. All he had to say for himself was that he thought I was the coyote coming back for some breakfast treats. He admonished me for being so quiet when waking him up. But I figured that our camping neighbors would appreciate a tranquil exit from us at 5:00 in the morning. Well, Mike took care of that for us. I swore that I would never wake Mike up again.
We broke camp and drove to Looney Bean Coffee. I grabbed a coffee and a breakfast sandwich, others just had a cup of Jo. Back into the van and up to the ski lodge. There we parked the van in the lodges parking lot and unloaded our gear. Soon the YARTS bus was there and we were loading our packs into the belly of the bus. As you can see from the picture the bus was comfortable and not crowded. It traveled the June Lake loop, stopping at a couple of places to pick up more passengers. Then we were whisked up to the Mono Lake Nature Center for pick-up. But there was no one there. By this time the morning coffee was making it difficult for me to sit still. I needed a bathroom. Fortunately there were a few others and they spoke to the bus driver before I did and we stopped at the Chevron Food Station at the entrance of Tioga Pass. The driver was reluctant but because of the number of people needing the facilities, he relented.
On our way again, the bus slowly made its way up the Tioga Pass road. Most of the trip for me was spent napping and soon we were pulling into the Tuolumne Meadows Store and Cafe located at the Tuolumne Meadows campground. The place was a buzz of activity and I grabbed another breakfast sandwich at the Cafe to "carb up." Yeah right! I was plain hungry.
Mike thought that there was a shuttle that could take us from the store to the ranger station where we could pick up the JMT. But after about an half hour wait we realized there was no shuttle. So it was, "packs on!" and we started the hike along side the 120 freeway as we made our way to the ranger station. A couple of miles later we came upon the trail head to the JMT. There we stopped and used the bathroom and made final adjustments to our packs. Then it was off to Donohue Pass on the JMT.
The JMT crosses the Toulumne River and follows the river upstream on the western side of Lyell Canyon. Once you pass over Rafferty Creek the river is called Lyell Fork but we always referred to it as Toulumne River. The hike followed a well cut trail as we skirted the tree line in the valley. The eastern side of the canyon is lined with 11,000 foot plus peaks and the tree line at 10,000 feet is clearly observable. The hike itself is easy with its gentle climb through the meadows and trees.
The deer are plentiful here and we had many encounters. The animals appear to not care that we are around. At one point along the trail Mike and I came upon a fawn (picture below). Bambi seemed a little stunned at the sight of Mike (who wouldn't?). We could not see mom but we knew she was close. Bambi just stood there looking at Mike and then looked around, and then looked at Mike again. After a few seconds of this the baby deer jumped into the trees to our right. So we continued on. As soon as we made it to where the fawn had been standing mother decided to catch up with her baby and leaped out from the trees on our left. She bounded across the JMT and followed her baby into the trees. If Mike had not stopped the doe would have hit Mike. I almost rear-ended Mike as he came to an abrupt stop. But I have to hand it to Mike... even though he was spooked by the charging deer he did not make his now famous panicked sequel so proudly delivered upon his waking this morning.
On our way again, the bus slowly made its way up the Tioga Pass road. Most of the trip for me was spent napping and soon we were pulling into the Tuolumne Meadows Store and Cafe located at the Tuolumne Meadows campground. The place was a buzz of activity and I grabbed another breakfast sandwich at the Cafe to "carb up." Yeah right! I was plain hungry.
Mike thought that there was a shuttle that could take us from the store to the ranger station where we could pick up the JMT. But after about an half hour wait we realized there was no shuttle. So it was, "packs on!" and we started the hike along side the 120 freeway as we made our way to the ranger station. A couple of miles later we came upon the trail head to the JMT. There we stopped and used the bathroom and made final adjustments to our packs. Then it was off to Donohue Pass on the JMT.
The JMT crosses the Toulumne River and follows the river upstream on the western side of Lyell Canyon. Once you pass over Rafferty Creek the river is called Lyell Fork but we always referred to it as Toulumne River. The hike followed a well cut trail as we skirted the tree line in the valley. The eastern side of the canyon is lined with 11,000 foot plus peaks and the tree line at 10,000 feet is clearly observable. The hike itself is easy with its gentle climb through the meadows and trees.
The deer are plentiful here and we had many encounters. The animals appear to not care that we are around. At one point along the trail Mike and I came upon a fawn (picture below). Bambi seemed a little stunned at the sight of Mike (who wouldn't?). We could not see mom but we knew she was close. Bambi just stood there looking at Mike and then looked around, and then looked at Mike again. After a few seconds of this the baby deer jumped into the trees to our right. So we continued on. As soon as we made it to where the fawn had been standing mother decided to catch up with her baby and leaped out from the trees on our left. She bounded across the JMT and followed her baby into the trees. If Mike had not stopped the doe would have hit Mike. I almost rear-ended Mike as he came to an abrupt stop. But I have to hand it to Mike... even though he was spooked by the charging deer he did not make his now famous panicked sequel so proudly delivered upon his waking this morning.
The day wore on and the trees provided shade periodically and the view as we walked deeper into the canyon were spectacular. However, my pack became increasingly uncomfortable as I piled on the miles. I had borrowed the pack from Mark, my best friend who ranted and raved about how good his new pack was. Well I had to try it. The Osprey is a hi-tech and light rig and I wanted to try it out for myself. Since Mark could not go because of bad back, he allowed me to use it. The problem was that it was not fitting right and I could not get it to properly sit on my hips. By the end of the hike and 9 miles later I wanted that thing off in the worst way.
We finally made camp towards the end of the canyon. We camped on the west side and Kuna Creek faced us on the east and just south of us. Jim and I looked over my pack and discovered that the pack was not at the proper size for me. Mark's torso is taller than mine so there was no way to get the hip belt to fit me correctly. So with an adjustment to the Velcro bindings and a couple of test fits, the pack felt like a brand new rig. From that point on I had no fitting problems. THANKS JIM! I can tell you that this backpack is a VERY nice pack!
Across the canyon a team of horses were being rested and a small group of campers enjoyed the evening fire. But the horses seemed to enjoy lounging IN the river and the thought of them urinating and defecating in the crystal clear ice melt was disturbing. One of the horses had this loud, irritating "cow bell" around its neck. Every head dip and sway caused that thing to ring out into the canyon. The clanking never ceased. We figured the horse was the "alpha horse" and the heard went where he went. So if the heard wondered off the horse master would need only to follow the sound of the bell to locate them. But MAN! Did it ever cause an awful nights sleep!
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
The next morning we awoke to the wonderful horse chimes that periodically echoed down the canyon. I had hoped that some bear would have come in the night and spooked the heard down the canyon, leaving us in heavenly silence but it was not to be. There they were at 5:00 in the morning taking their morning bath in the river and chewing on meadow grass to the dull clanks of the horse locating device. NICE!
As is our custom, the group had breakfast, a morning devotion and then broke camp for another day of hiking. The morning was just like the previous, sunny, blue skies and warm. We were at about 9,000 feet but double layers of T-shirts were all I needed to keep warm. From camp we started the climb up the canyon wall to Donohue Pass. About a half hour into the climb we crossed the river to the east side of the canyon. There we stopped to fill up on water. Then back on the trail to continue the climb.
At 10,200 feet we came to a small lake. Before we crossed the outlet we stopped for a quick rest and some food. We may have spent as little as 15 minutes here. Well... Maybe 15 minutes for me but for Mike and Jim it may have be 20 or 30 minutes. from this point the route became steeper. My 50 pound pack felt like a house on my back. Mike set his own pace (running) and vowed not to have a young woman who came up behind us to pass him. "I'm not going to let some girl beat me to the top", he exclaimed. So he was off in a dash. Then Jim followed Mike and behind him Rob and Paul. I came next and way behind me was Eric. I was alone most of the climb to Donohue Pass. At approximately 10,400 feet I crossed the head waters of the Lyell Fork river and snapped the picture below. The extreme beauty was all around me. It was fantastic.
I continued up the side of granite. The elevation and the weight was getting to me as I slowly made my way up. I would have to march 50 to 100 yards until I was breathing very hard, then stop for a 2 minute rest. Then push on and then stop. Some times the path flattened out and I could go farther but all in all it was a very slow climb. In addition my left foot was burning from the constant nagging of a Morton's Neuroma. The weight of the pack and hours of constantly pushing off on the ball of my foot as I climbed aggravated the neuoma. I had it looked at by a podiatrist and had proper fitting shoes, orthodics and a cortisone shot but all of this accumulated to cause a very slow climb. At times the trail seemed to disappear among the granite and boulders. There are no clear markings. Sometimes the only hint of a trail were foot prints in dirt patches between the rocks. There were a couple of times I had to stop and study the landscape to find the clues.
I continued up the side of granite. The elevation and the weight was getting to me as I slowly made my way up. I would have to march 50 to 100 yards until I was breathing very hard, then stop for a 2 minute rest. Then push on and then stop. Some times the path flattened out and I could go farther but all in all it was a very slow climb. In addition my left foot was burning from the constant nagging of a Morton's Neuroma. The weight of the pack and hours of constantly pushing off on the ball of my foot as I climbed aggravated the neuoma. I had it looked at by a podiatrist and had proper fitting shoes, orthodics and a cortisone shot but all of this accumulated to cause a very slow climb. At times the trail seemed to disappear among the granite and boulders. There are no clear markings. Sometimes the only hint of a trail were foot prints in dirt patches between the rocks. There were a couple of times I had to stop and study the landscape to find the clues.
At about 1:00pm I reached the summit. At over 11,000 feet, the pass is desolate and rocky. It is here that a weather worn plaque marks the Yosemite Park boarder. We rested until everyone made it to the top. Then it was "packs on!" and away we went- out of Yosemite into Inyo National Forest. Oh! by the way... Mike did beat the young lady to the top and spend some time chatting with her and confessing he didn't want to beat to the top by a girl. I laughed at the silliness but secretly inside wished I had the strength to keep up with Mike.
Here I am at Donohue Pass. It's hard to see but you can see Mammoth Mountain to the right of me, just over the ridge of the pass.
After climbing the pass we started to descend down the mountain as we headed back under the tree line and to Waugh Lake. The trail was well defined and maintained. In fact, further down the hill we came across a forestry crew working the trail. Every time I passed one of them I thanked them for doing it. They seemed genuinely appreciative for the encouragement.
I approached a certain water break (They were plentiful on this part of the trail) about a mile or so down from the last crew member. These are typically rocks or wood that are laid across the trail at a downhill angle to divert water off of the trail. This keeps the trail from turning into a creek during rain storms. This particular water break consisted of flat stones set on edge causing a two foot high obstacle for me. But as I approached it I spied another rock on the left side of the trail that would make for a perfect step for me to use to get over the water break. As I committed my full weight onto the flat rock and began to step over the water break, the flat rock gave way. I put my body weight on my hiking pole (I used 1 at the time) and felt that this would give me enough time to plant my right foot on the other side of the water break. But the pole bent and gave way to the pressure exerted on it and there was no time to react. The weight of my pack pushed me down and I all I could do was close my eyes. The next thing I know I'm face-planting in the trail (A.K.A. Trail Diving). My legs are still propped up over the water break and I'm seeing dirt on the other side of my sunglasses. THANK GOD FOR MY SUNGLASSES! I am now wedged between two small boulders on each side of the trail. I feel like a turtle who can't turn over. I know I need to get out of my pack but I can't seem to get turned around enough to slip my arms out. Now I'm wiggling in the dirt trying to free myself from the bondage. About this time I hear Mike and Jim calling out to me as they race back up the trail. They help me out of my pack and seated on a rock. There is blood all over my face. I can see it drip off of my left eyebrow. Mike is a bit panicked and Jim, who is retired dentist, is tending to my wound with a napkin. After looking at the cut Jim says, "OOH! That's a nice one. Let me take a picture of it." So he pulled the napkin away from my head and snapped the picture below and then went back to tending the wound. 
Jim confessed that the cut needed stitches but no one had any thing more than band aides. Just then two college age guys came upon us. One look at me and one of them said, "Dude! You need our help!" I asked if they were EMT's and they said they were certified lifeguards. I gave them permission to help and with that one of the guys pulls out this package and unrolled it. It was about three feet long and filled with all sorts of medical supplies. It looked like a portable emergency room. One of them immediately started to clean out the wound and applied antiseptic. He asked his friend if there was any stictch kits, the reply was, "no." "How about butterflies?", he asked. "Nope." The young maqn attending me then began to do sales pitch on me about the wonderful properties of Krazy Glue. It was obvious he was attempting to put forth a case before I could resist. In the middle of his pitch I simply held up my hand and said, "Do it!" By this time Rob had come along and I explained to the young man that Rob had already sold me the wonderful medicinal purposes of krazy glue. The young man pressed the gash closed and applied the glue. It stung as it was put directly to the cut and it seemed like I could taste it as my body absorbed it.
As I sat there letting the glue dry Mike lightened my pack and gave me his two poles. For the rest of the hike that day Mike and Jim stayed close to ensure I had no ill effects from the bump on the head. We hiked and hiked and hiked. The trail was either down hill or flat. When we made the tree line we stopped for a rest. The awesome vistas never let up!
Jim confessed that the cut needed stitches but no one had any thing more than band aides. Just then two college age guys came upon us. One look at me and one of them said, "Dude! You need our help!" I asked if they were EMT's and they said they were certified lifeguards. I gave them permission to help and with that one of the guys pulls out this package and unrolled it. It was about three feet long and filled with all sorts of medical supplies. It looked like a portable emergency room. One of them immediately started to clean out the wound and applied antiseptic. He asked his friend if there was any stictch kits, the reply was, "no." "How about butterflies?", he asked. "Nope." The young maqn attending me then began to do sales pitch on me about the wonderful properties of Krazy Glue. It was obvious he was attempting to put forth a case before I could resist. In the middle of his pitch I simply held up my hand and said, "Do it!" By this time Rob had come along and I explained to the young man that Rob had already sold me the wonderful medicinal purposes of krazy glue. The young man pressed the gash closed and applied the glue. It stung as it was put directly to the cut and it seemed like I could taste it as my body absorbed it.As I sat there letting the glue dry Mike lightened my pack and gave me his two poles. For the rest of the hike that day Mike and Jim stayed close to ensure I had no ill effects from the bump on the head. We hiked and hiked and hiked. The trail was either down hill or flat. When we made the tree line we stopped for a rest. The awesome vistas never let up!
With the sun setting Mike, Jim and I had yet to reach Waugh Lake. We were close but we were tired after traveling a dozen miles and cresting Donohue Pass. My legs were rubber and my head pounded. I was getting pretty grumpy. We found where the trail to the lake and headed east of the JMT. Appearently my grumpiness was showing and Mike abandoned the idea to go all the way to the lake. Instead we found a nice spot along Rush creek just off the trail where a foot bride crosses. At this point all I wanted to do was go to sleep.
Soon Paul and Rob came into the camp but still no Eric. As the sky turned dark Mike went out to find Eric. Fortunately Eric was not that far away and soon we all were together. But we all were tired. I set up my tent and sleeping bag, did a quick dip in the chilly creek and then went to bed. I didn't even feel like eating. I just wanted to sleep.
This was the longest day of my life!
Thursday, August 23, 2008
The next morning my injury caused my left eye to be swollen but my headache was gone and my body felt better. I was pretty hungry too.
The next morning my injury caused my left eye to be swollen but my headache was gone and my body felt better. I was pretty hungry too.
After the morning routine we broke camp and headed back to JMT (which is also the Pacific Crest Trail [PCT] at this point). There we turned left and headed south to Island Pass. This climb took us to 10,200 ft. We stopped here to take a rest at the top and then continued to Thousand Island Lake. In the picture below Mike and I (red backpack) break to take in the awesome beauty of Thousand Island Lake.
We hiked passed Thousand Island Lake, Ruby Lake and Garnett Lake. Mt Davis towered over Thousand Island Lake and Mt Banner and Mt Ritter crowded the east shore of Garnet Lake. What a phenomenal view of the natural world. After crossing a foot bridge over the outlet of Garnet Lake we seemed to have lost the trail. We ended up following an "alternative" path that took us down a boulder strewn gully. This gully was a steep climb down of about 300 feet. The picture below shows the path we took and I'm the one farthest down with the white hat and red backpack. Rob is the next one and Jim is right behind Rob. At the bottom we found a well developed trail which was a zig-zag decent the mountain another 500 ft to the Middle Fork San Joaquin River. There we set up camp for our final night in the wilderness.
We hiked passed Thousand Island Lake, Ruby Lake and Garnett Lake. Mt Davis towered over Thousand Island Lake and Mt Banner and Mt Ritter crowded the east shore of Garnet Lake. What a phenomenal view of the natural world. After crossing a foot bridge over the outlet of Garnet Lake we seemed to have lost the trail. We ended up following an "alternative" path that took us down a boulder strewn gully. This gully was a steep climb down of about 300 feet. The picture below shows the path we took and I'm the one farthest down with the white hat and red backpack. Rob is the next one and Jim is right behind Rob. At the bottom we found a well developed trail which was a zig-zag decent the mountain another 500 ft to the Middle Fork San Joaquin River. There we set up camp for our final night in the wilderness.
From our camp we could see the river cascade down the 900 ft drop from Garnet Lake. Rob busted out his fly pole and found a hole at the bottom of the water fall. He snagged several trout but only keep the two biggest ones. Jim used the fish to augment his dinner but we all received a chunk to taste and enjoy. Fresh fish in the wilderness is just wonderful. Leter that night we were surprised when Rob broke out some rum he had carried with him THE WHOLE TRIP. We mixed it up with some Cyrstal Light Lemonade and had a toast to a wonderful trip. Tomorrow would take us home.
Friday, August 25, 2007
Just like the rest of the mornings, the day started at 6:00am. We were on the trail by 8:20 and we were making real good time because of the lighter packs and the downhill grade. Our destination was Agnew Meadows and we were feeling good about the quick pace. Just pass the waterfall from Shadow Lake we dropped into the valley at about 8,000 ft. Just past Olaine Lake we came to the fork where the trail split left to Agnew Meadow and right to Reds Meadow. Veering to the left we were immediately faced with a steep incline as we climbed back out of the river valley. It was slow going for me as my legs screamed, "What the heck are you doing?! I'm tired and I wanna go home!!" The parking lot of Agnew Meadows was an comforting site. It wasn't until I got there and took off my pack that I began to observe the meadow. A large flat green field lined with the towering forest and set in front of monstrous peaks. What an awesome vista to end the hike on. With everyone together again we were "packs on" one more time as we marched down the gravel road to Postpile Road. There we stripped the packs off one more time at a picnic bench along the road. We waited for the next YART to come by. Soon the bus arrived and we stowed our packs in the luggage compartments, paid our fees and climbed onto the bus. What a sweet release of relaxation. The bus dropped us off at the ski resort and all of our stuff was transferred to the van. From there we went back to Minaret Summit were we reveled in our feat. The picture below is the group at this place. Donohue Pass is somewhere in the middle over our heads.
(L-R) Mike, Jim, Paul, Rob, me & Eric
The trip covered 30 miles and several climbs to over 10,000 feet or more with Donohue Pass (11,100 ft) being the highest I have climbed at that time. This was an awesome trip. Of course I tend to say that for all my trips.
At the Trailhead Parking Lot the group reassembled for congratulations and farewell. After cleaning up and changing clothes, we went into Oakhurst for dinner and then drove all the way home. I arrived at my house around 3:30 in the morning. 