Sept. 22, 2006 to Sept. 30: South Lake Tahoe to Truckee

These sixty-two miles of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) took me across the scenic and popular Desolation and Granite Chief Wildernesses, west of CA's Lake Tahoe. I began the backpack at Highway 50, close to the busy resort of South Lake Tahoe, and ended at Highway 40, near the charming mountain town of Truckee. As with last year's final outing, I hiked with an eye to the sky, as snow can come early to the Sierras.

The gateway to the Desolation Wilderness is this lovely pair of lakes. (Upper and Lower Echo Lake.) I was reminded it was autumn when I woke up at my first camp at the lake to a frozen camera; it was midmorning before it warmed up and the shutter would click.

I was in upbeat spirits as I entered the Desolation Wilderness. (Peter Kirby at Desolation Sign.) Two days earlier a federal judge had ordered the Bush Administration to restore a Clinton-era rule that national forest roadless areas (areas eligible for wilderness but not yet designated) be protected from new road construction. In CA alone this would preserve about 4.5 million acres of national forest wildlands, including the Meiss Meadows roadless area that I went through on my final PCT hike in 2005.

The PCT ascended past Lake Margery (Lake Margery) and opened up at spacious Lake Aloha (Peter Kirby in front of Crystal Range.) Due to extensive scouring by glaciers, this valley looks quite desolate -- hence the name of the wilderness. I camped that night on the shores of Susie Lake and enjoyed this still reflection of Jacks Peak in the morning. (Susie Lake.) As the trail gained elevation I was treated to this view backward of the distant Crystal Range and Susie Lake in the foreground. (Lake, Ridge and Range.)

Here's Dicks Peak en route to the pass of the same name (Dicks Peak) and the view from the crossing at 9,380 feet. (Peter Kirby at Dicks Pass.) This is the last time the PCT reaches above 9,000 feet all the way to Canada! Down the other side is Dicks Lake, with open granite fields all the way back to the peak. (Dicks Lake.) During the forested exit from Desolation Wilderness I often noticed the "snow line" drawn by the vivid green "wolf" lichen on tall trees. (Wolf Lichen on Red Fir.)

Here's a field of dried-out "mules' ears" that had yellow flowers and fuzzy, grey leaves only a month prior. (Dried Mules' Ears.) Beyond Desolation Wilderness is the only road that crosses the PCT on this section. (Barker Pass.) My campsite at the headwaters of Blackwood Creek offered this enchanting view of Lake Tahoe. (Lake Tahoe.) At over 6,200 feet above sea level it is one of the highest-elevation large lakes in the world. Plus, it is the second deepest lake in the U.S., after Crater Lake. It was always thrilling to see this pristine lake pop into view through the ridges.

Soon the PCT entered Granite Chief Wilderness (Sign) and began a stretch right on top of the divide between the watersheds for Lake Tahoe to the west and the American River to the east. For miles it was literally a trail on the "crest." (Crest Trail.) Jutting up dramatically along the crest were these massive twin columns of basalt, a type of cooled lava, evidence of a past volcano. (Postpile.) This clear trickle of water -- narrow enough to step over -- is actually the headwaters of the mighty Middle Fork of the American River, which later joins with its North and South Forks and flows close to my home in Sacramento. (Origin of River.)

Beyond Granite Chief Wilderness was this intrusive crossing under this ski tower from Squaw Valley Resort. (Ski Tower.) The PCT once again climbed to the ridgecrest. (View towards Tinker Knob.) This allowed for a windswept vista far north towards Castle Peak, a favorite snowshoe destination of mine. (Windswept Vista.) To the west loomed the deep canyon cut by the North Fork of the American River. (Royal Gorge.) The PCT also went past more lava flows. (Lava Flow.)

As the trail began to drop towards the next highway I set up my last camp and savored my final PCT sunset of the year. (Anderson Peak.) The next day I hiked down to Route 40, the crossing of Donner Pass -- the attempted route of the ill-fated 1846 Donner party. I caught a ride to Truckee and had my fill of pasta (Pacific Crest Restaurant) to celebrate the completion of a spectacular hiking season.

Sept. 9, 2006 to Sept. 16: Independence to Bishop

Mile for mile this section of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) is the most rugged and scenic I have hiked so far. Buckle up your seatbelts; you are in for a ride.

These forty-one PCT miles fill in a gap between where I ended in the High Sierras in August, 2005 and where I picked up again in the last hike in August, 2006. As noted in the last narrative, this is a remote section of the trail; I had to hike eleven miles just to get to the PCT and twelve miles to exit, both side trails also climbing over 12,000 foot passes!

The trip began with an early morning ride from the hamlet of Independence -- a town without a traffic light -- to the trailhead at Onion Valley. As with the last hike, the side trail crossed through the John Muir Wilderness. (John Muir Sign.) It helped distract me from the steep switchbacks that the trail passed one pretty lake after another (Gilbert Lake) and that owls hooted away for the first hour or so.

The trail crested at 11,600 feet at Kearsarge Pass, also the boundary of Kings Canyon National Park, another designated wilderness. The vista was like a dear friend from last year, south to the fierce Kearsarge Pinnacles (Kearsarge Pinnacles) and west to the PCT junction. (View West.) I descended to serene Bullfrog Lake (Bullfrog Lake), took a nap and later camped in a canyon filled with birdsong.

On the PCT the next day I enjoyed this view of a dynamic landscape -- a classic, U-shaped glacial valley laced with multiple avalanche chutes. (Charlotte Creek.) The PCT soon circled up and around walls of granite and suddenly emerged on a narrow ledge -- or "knife edge," as climbers call it -- along the top of 12,000 foot Glen Pass. To my surprise, what should come along this knife edge but a fully loaded mule train led by Mr. Casual Cowboy? (Mule Train.) I asked about the solo mule at the rear and was told, "She's cranky today and might pull the others down." By "down," I guess he meant 2,000 feet straight down. Gulp.

Speaking of which, it was almost straight down to Rae Lakes, with its famous sentinels: Dragon Peak, Painted Lady (Painted Lady) and Fin Dome (Fin Dome.) Note the almost unearthly light the next morning in this still reflection. (Dollar Lake.)

The long ascent of the next pass -- 12,000 Pinchot Pass, named after Gifford Pinchot, the founder of the Forest Service -- began with a bouncy walk across a suspension bridge over Woods Creek. ("The Golden Gate of the Sierra.") The PCT climbed up along Woods Creek for over two thousand feet, past this cascade in open terrain. (Woods Creek Waterfall.) Higher still, I looked across Woods Creek to the distant sharp peak of Mt. Clarence King, an early CA geologist after whom the national park is named. (Mt. King.)

I finally got above timberline and wondered where the pass would be. (Granite Wall.) It turned out the trail had been blasted into a notch in the mountains, up a steady grade of switchbacks. (Blasted Trail.) Barren Lake Marjorie awaited me on the other side. (Lake Marjorie.)

The roller-coaster PCT dropped again into the shelter of the South Fork of the Kings River and bounced back up again towards the next rockbound pass -- 12,000 foot Mather Pass, named after Stephen Mather, first head of the National Park Service. I ascended to a well-watered basin (Alpine Cascade) and seemed to be climbing into the sky. (Alpine Footpath.) The pass loomed ahead, with countless switchbacks up the 1,500 foot face. (Mather Pass.) How glorious to be on top! (Peter Kirby at Mather Pass.)

On the descent the various Palisade Peaks looked like waves about to break under an angry sky. (Palisade Peaks.) I set up my tent under a clump of exposed trees and heard the wind whistle through the night. During the next day's descent I carefully picked my way across the sharp rocks of the so-called "Golden Staircase" blasted into the impassable wall of Palisade Creek, another U-shaped glacial valley. (Palisade Creek.)

I stopped to talk for a while with a crew of young trail workers workers from the CA Conservation Corps (CCC) and thanked them for their summer of service to us hikers. (CCC Women.) I ran into the entire group later that day and listened in for a few minutes as the leader explained some ecological issues in the mountains, eg., disappearing frogs. What a classroom!

I finally reached the bottom of the valley and cooled my feet in the Middle Fork of the King's River. (Middle Fork Waterfall.) This was an emotional moment. Over thirty years ago I had hiked the PCT from near Mount Whitney north to this very spot and then had turned south off the PCT. I reflected how fortunate I was to be able to trek and enjoy it all again -- slower, but in good health, and with a camera and an Internet journal to share this adventure with friends and family. And how fortunate we all are that such beautiful wildlands are preserved in wilderness! I camped in a meadow nearby and was lulled into a deep sleep by the sound of the river. (Middle Fork Meadow.)

The next day I reached the trail junction where I had hiked in last month so I turned and labored up the many steep switchbacks towards the exit at Bishop Pass. Here's my last view of the PCT at the bottom of this giant gorge. (Le Conte Canyon.) And here's my last night out. (Tent at Dusy Basin) On my last day I went out over Bishop Pass, dropped down to the trailhead and caught a ride back to Bishop -- and the pleasures of salad bars and hot showers.

On the way home I stopped at the town of Mammoth Lakes and had breakfast with Sally Miller, a field staffer for The Wilderness Society. Experienced, energetic and dedicated, Sally helps coordinate a campaign to establish and preserve wilderness in the eastern Sierra. I applauded her and her many local supporters and partners for their tireless efforts to persuade the local Republican Congressman and our two senators to introduce a bill to expand the Hoover Wilderness on the northern border of Yosemite National Park. If passed into law, this expanded wilderness would protect over ten miles of the PCT, including the fragile headwaters of the Walker River. I hope to hike through this proposed wilderness in 2007. Sally thanked me for my kind words and urged me to keep sending letters to our Congressional delegation!

August 13, 2006 to August 30: Bishop to Tuolumne Meadows

The town of Bishop is located in the heart of one of the most spectacular landscapes in CA, rivalling the Big Sur coast in its beauty and grandeur. It's in the midst of the Owens Valley, surrounded on one side by the giant, notched wall of the east side of the Sierra Nevada and on the other side by the massive range of the White Mountains. Bishop served as my gateway to much of my hiking in 2006.

At this point the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) is so remote that it required a twelve mile hike over a 12,000 foot pass simply to get to it. Here's the view from the trailhead at South Lake, outside Bishop. (Peter Kirby at South Lake)The trail was busy with a wide range of users: young families with kids; seasoned anglers off to catch trout, and even a group of five women, all plus seventy, leaving for a week in the wilderness with gear and food brought in on horses.

Speaking of wilderness I soon came to the sign for this Congressionally-designated wilderness (Peter Kirby at John Muir Sign) -- national forest land forever protected from roads, logging, mining and other development. (As is my custom, I start these long trips clean-shaven.) Nature greeted me with wildflowers everywhere, especially in moist places along lakes and creeks. (Alpine Flowers) What a dazzling variety: Indian paintbrush, shooting star, columbine, fireweed, avalanche lily, lupine, pussy paws, larkspur and more.

The trail led up past one stunning lake after another until we reached the last lake with tree cover and set up our camp. I was fortunate to be sharing the hike with an experienced and good-natured friend from Carmel Valley, CA -- Bill Salmon. As we put up our tents we chatted with a spirited Sierra Club group returning from a climb of the nearby Mt. Agassiz.

The next morning we hiked steadily up through a world of rocks and got to Bishop Pass, at about 12,000 feet. (Peter Kirby at Bishop Pass) We were now in Kings Canyon National Park, also a Congressionally-designated wilderness. Neither of us, thank goodness, was bothered by the altitude.

Descending into the beautiful Dusy Basin, we saw some government biologists wading intently in shallow ponds. (Scientist With Net) As we approached, they showed us their prize -- a Western yellow-legged frog -- whose populations they were monitoring. (Frog) Sad to say, they reported this type of frog, once common throughout the Sierra Nevada, was rapidly disappearing and was now gone from over 90% of its original range. The biologists were not exactly sure why, fearing that nonnative fish may be eating up the tadpoles. The stresses of climate change and ozone depletion may also be factors as well, they said. (I read later that conservation groups had sued to have this type of frog added to the endangered species list.)

After this grim encounter, we were cheered to meet the "Llama Mama" from Bishop coming our way. Her two creatures stared at us placidly as Mama waited for her friends to catch up. (Peter Kirby, Mama and Llamas) It turns out that the Bishop area has a thriving outfitter business that relies on the backcountry for the services it provides to the public.

The trail dropped steeply down to the Middle Fork of the Kings River, at 8700 feet, where we camped at the junction with the PCT. We began the next day a long, long climb up to 12,000 Muir Pass, facing a stair-step challenge of granite before us. (Granite Divide.) It was tough going -- uphill the whole day -- but we made it almost to the pass and camped out just below Helen Lake. (Muir Pass is flanked by Helen and Wanda Lakes, named after the two daughters of John Muir.)

Deer visited us during supper. (Deer.) And in the morning distant peaks were bathed in the ethereal glow that inspired Muir to call these mountains the "Range of Light." (Early Light.)
After crossing a bunch of wet and tricky snowfields we got to the pass and posed here next to the hut built by the Sierra Club for emergency use. (Bill Salmon and Peter Kirby at Muir Pass.) Nearby, a yellow-bellied marmot chattered and whistled away, hoping to be fed. (Marmot.) The marmot is the largest rodent in North America and eats grasses and flowers (in addition to the occasional trail mix.)

In its descent the PCT followed the shore of icy Wanda Lake. (Wanda Lake.) We then meandered down open Evolution Basin (Evolution Basin), through forested Evolution Valley (Valley Meadow.) and across Evolution Creek (Bill's Ford.) (In early summer hikers have drowned in this raging creek; by late August, it had calmed down.) And guess where we camped? Yes, Evolution Lake. (Evolution Lake.) The surrounding mountains are named in honor of the scientists of that era: Darwin, Mendel, and others.

As we exited Kings Canyon National Park the next day along the South Fork of the San Joaquin River, I was in a cheery mood, singing out the Western favorite, "Don't Fence Me In." Bill and I took a short detour to the John Muir Trail Ranch (Horses at Ranch.), where Bill had mailed himself a package of supplies. We rewarded ourselves with a soak in a natural hot springs in a meadow near the ranch (Peter Kirby in Water) -- what bliss!

The next ascent over 10,200 foot Selden Pass took us past Sallie Keyes Lakes (View back from Selden Pass.) At twilight the water boiled with trout jumping at flies. From the top of the pass the next day, the picture-perfect Marie Lake took my breath away. (Marie Lake.)

After a long stretch along sparkling Bear Creek, the PCT crossed a ridge and dropped steeply to a side trail to Lake Thomas Edison. It was luxury to be greeted there by a boat from the friendly Vermilion Valley Resort that ferried us the length of the lake to their fishing camp. What great hosts: a free hiker tent, yummy meals, laundry, a store for my supplies and even cell phone access! Plus, it was fun to use my trail name -- Lorax -- in hanging out with the other hikers.
We feasted on pancakes in the AM and took the ferry back (Bill at VVR Boat), spotting some osprey nests on the way.

Back on the PCT, we ran across this gentle friend smiling at his catch from Mono Creek. (Trout for Dinner.) Rested and fed, we made it over 11,000 foot Silver Pass in a single day. (Peter Kirby at Silver Pass.) It was a challenge sliding down a near-vertical snowfield -- and the first view of the Minerets in the distance made it doubly exciting. (Snow and Minarets.) We camped above timberline at Squaw Lake and enjoyed the sunset. (Mountains at Dusk.)

The next day we climbed steeply above lush meadows (Tully Hole.) and past a lake too blue for words. (Virginia Lake.) We continued past the broken cliffs of Purple Lake. (Purple Lake.) Finally, we passed through a large area burned in 1992 en route to the lodge at famous Reds Meadows. (Burn.)

Bill and I took our first "zero day," (for zero mileage) at Reds Meadow. popular for its quaint store and cafe, mule trains and (for us dusty hikers) its hot showers. Some of the early John Wayne movies were filmed here. Years ago, the archRepublican owner also lobbied against a transSierra highway planned for nearby; the Democratic Congress in 1984 included the proposed route in an expansion of the Ansel Adams Wilderness, stopping the highway for good. Way to go!

Near the lodge is the gorgeous, one hundred foot high Rainbow Falls (Rainbow Falls.) and the extraordinary formation of sixty-foot high straight basalt columns, toppled over by glaciers. (Devil's Postpile National Monument.) At this point, Bill and I took the alternative John Muir Trail rather than the PCT, in order to hike by a string of lakes. This allowed us to see the Minerets up close. (Minarets.) This also took us past Rosalie Lake where the crescent moon rose later over these granite cliffs. (Rosalie Lake.) We paused to watch the divings of a merganser (a duck) and its young in Garnet Lake against the majesty of Mt. Ritter.

Best of all were the incredible reflections of Banner Peak in Thousand Island Lake -- THE icon of the Pacific Crest Trail in CA. Here's sunset (Banner Peak at Sunset.) and sunrise (Banner Peak at Sunrise.) Finally, here's a last look at the Ritter Range as the PCT leaves the Ansel Adams Wilderness. (Ritter Range.)

A final climb to 11,000 foot Donohue Pass brought us into Yosemite National Park. This park is also Congressionally-designated wilderness. We camped below Mt. Lyell, the highest point in the park; the glacier visible below the peak is also the largest in the park. (Mt. Lyell.) The PCT dropped into Lyell Canyon, offering us a wooded and level walk out to the road at Tuolumne Meadows. (Lyell Canyon.)

Here we are -- two happy campers after our 124 mile trek. (Bill Salmon and Peter Kirby at end.) For Bill it was the culmination of a dream -- the completion of the John Muir Trail (PCT) that he had began as a Boy Scout. For me it was simply heaven on earth.