From PCT mile 768.2 to 779.9 Total: 11.7 miles 7/6
I hiked on the Pacific Crest Trail northbound from Crabtree Meadow to the base of Forester Pass, for a grand total of 12 miles of hiking and 3000 feet of climbing, which would set me up for a dawn ascent of the final switchbacks to the pass the next morning. A modest day in the High Sierra, in other words.
Today also started the 175 mile long PCT CA Section H, which extended from Whitney Creek to my car in Tuolumne Meadows. Thus far this year, I finished off PCT CA Section G, at 115 miles from Walker Pass. Therefore, I had a bit less than 400 miles to go to complete the full Sierra Section this Summer! I was feeling good, and it still seemed quite doable. It might seem daunting, but it would surely happen, hiking one step after the other, just like the first 115 miles.
Maybe that’s why I woke up a bit late that morning. I had already hiked this piece of trail, on my way south to Mount Whitney, back in 2018, so I knew what to expect: Three creek crossings and a long steady climb in the afternoon. With good views along the way, of course! This was the Sierra Nevada, after all. It rarely disappoints.
After packing up everything and double-checking the area for stray gear, I headed down the sandy wash to the PCT, and took a right. The trail wound its way uphill through a typical Southern Sierra landscape of sand, granite boulders, and foxtail pines. As I strode along through the morning light, it felt good to warm up my legs in the chilly air.
The trail went over a low rise, then dipped down into a shallow bowl containing Sandy Meadow. It was green and grassy and beautiful. Not sandy at all, really. Several small streams fed it, the trail crossing them as it curved around the upper end of the bowl. I stopped briefly for photos, and thought about the time Vicki and I were here, back in 2020, when we stopped for a snack break. After that, the PCT climbed up and over a saddle, which I officially declared be named “Sandy Pass” in honor of the meadow. Also, this time it was actually sandy.
There were views to the north and east from there, looking toward Mounts Williamson and Tyndall, both fourteeners. It also made a rocky path through several ribbonlike boulder-piles of glacial moraine, leftovers from the ice age, when the Wallace Creek valley was full of alternately advancing and retreating glacial episodes. I’m not gonna lie when I state, yet again, that the world is a whole lot better since it got warmer and melted all of that deadly stuff.
Soon enough, I was down at the bottom of the valley. It was time to cross Wallace Creek. When I crossed it back in 2018, I was hiking light and didn’t bring any water shoes. Those stones on the bottom of the creek hurt my feet, like stepping on proverbial Lego bricks. I learned from my mistake, and this time I wore my sandals. There was still enough melting snow up above to make the ford difficult to rock hop. After crossing, I also washed the accumulated dust out of a set of socks I’d worn the last few days. I put on my spare pair on the northern side and hung the wet ones on my backpack to dry.
I also decided to try some fly fishing while I was there, and caught a small Golden Trout, just to say I did it, and let it go again. In 2020, Vicki and I camped in this area, as it was the eastern terminus of the High Sierra Trail. After my fishing break, it was time to begin the second climb of the day. There were awesome views to be had on the way up, by looking down along the Wallace Creek Valley as it drained into the Kern Trench, where the Middle Fork Kern River flowed. Across the way to the west was the Kaweah Range. The giant sequoia groves were many miles further, at the western terminus of the High Sierra Trail.
I crossed Wright Creek as the morning progressed. It was getting warmer out by then. Supposedly, California was in the grip of a “Heat Dome” and the weather, even up here in the rarified air of the High Sierra, was predicted to be quite hot, with clear skies and a blazing sun. The usual puffy cumulus clouds, utterly absent today, make the photos look so pretty in the afternoon, but they also lead to thunderstorms (which can cause wildfires) so I was of two minds about it. But that didn’t matter, as I couldn’t change the weather. Not for want of trying. It was hot today!
I was treated to fine views of the Sierra Crest as I climbed. Looking back to the southeast, I spotted Mount Whitney, and Mount Williamson was to the northeast. Quite impressive. Pausing to take photos was one of my methods for cooling off on a hot climb. It worked, as usual.
Once I arrived at the Bighorn Plateau, the hiking was easy. The trail was flat as it traversed east of a shallow lake. I still had plenty of water, so I didn’t bother approaching it, but last time I was here I saw people camping nearby, and even swimming in it. Some people will swim in anything, no matter how cold. I’m not one of them.
After that, the trail descended on an angle toward the crossing at Tyndall Creek. There are a lot of campsites there, as it is a popular spot for many Whitney climbers, either before or after, as it was a reasonable day’s hiking distance from Guitar Lake.
When I arrived at the Tyndall Creek crossing, I was relieved to see that the water level was low enough to provide a safe ford. A month ago, there were reports of people having difficulties, with one hiker being swept downstream a short distance, resulting in injury due to colliding with rocks. No thanks! I was also happy to see a few hikers already on the far bank, so at least I knew that someone would find my carcass if tragedy struck. For Vicki’s sake, for “closure” as they say these days.
It was quite hot at that hour, and I only had four miles left to go, so I decided to spend a couple hours hanging out by the creek with the other hikers. We talked about everything imaginable, of course, but mostly about the trail. I also decided to test my Sierra Trout Fishing list, which said that there were small Goldens and Brook Trout in the creek. I hiked upstream to a likely pool in the too-fast flow, and caught a puny Brookie – but I have proof that Tyndall Creek DOES have fish!
I also filtered a couple liters of water, as long as I was waiting. Eventually, I realized that I’d better get going, as I also had over fifteen hundred feet to climb in those seemingly-easy four miles. I said goodbye and continued north. I soon noticed that I was hiking a bit slower than I liked, and that I probably should have left sooner, but it was too late now.
The good thing about it was that I rapidly left the tree line far behind, and now the views were unobstructed in every direction. The sun even set behind the range to the west every so often, and the breeze was colder than I expected.
Eventually, I ended up nearing Forester Pass at an elevation of 12,500 feet! This turned out to be the highest point I camped at during the entire Summer on the PCT. As I arrived, I met up with my old pal Felipe, who was planning to “Cowboy Camp” that night with a handful of other folks in one of the few flat spots in that region, which was just below the final switchbacks up to the pass. There was an icy pond nearby, complete with a melting snowbank. And, no, I didn’t see anyone crazy enough to take a dip in it.
I hiked a bit further up the trail and found a nice flat spot to camp. It was probably too close to the trail, but it was also an established campsite, so I felt that I was following proper LNT (Leave No Trace) Guidelines, at least in spirit. I got the tent set up right away, as the sun was about to set behind Caltech Peak, and I wanted to get dressed in warmer clothing before I froze my butt off. This was an odd end to an otherwise roasting hot day.
I cooked my ramen noodle dinner, drank some Gatorade, and munched on some salty chips. As sunset approached, we all came outside for a few more photos. All of us agreed that this was a fine place to camp, with stunning views to the south and a fairly short climb in the morning. After that, I tucked myself deep into my sleeping bag and set my alarm for 3am. Yes, I intended to summit the pass while any residual snowbanks were still frozen. I had been carrying a pair of Microspikes this entire way, and I fully intended to use them!
For a topographic map of the hike see my CalTopo Page
For LOTS more photos of the trek see my Flickr Page
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