Edison Lake to Yosemite
Wednesday, 6/28/00: In Which I Ride the Ferry to Vermillion Valley Resort and Lounge Around All Day
I slipped out of the Bug Bivy to my welcoming cloud of mosquitoes, perhaps somewhat diminished by the morning’s coolness. I broke camp methodically and began the long descent towards Mono Creek. Moving I was able to escape most of the pursuers and enjoyed a leisurely stroll to the creek which fortunately was bridged.
There I left the PCT and headed down the trail to Edison Lake along Mono Creek. Near the end of the lake where the creek empties in a ferry takes hikers to the Vermillion Valle Resort where I planned to stay and pick up my resupply package. I arrived about 8:30 AM and the ferry wasn’t due until 9:45, but it arrived a few minutes after I got there to set up a new dock, so I was able to ride back right away. Ironically, I beat Lamont and John who set out walking early that morning on the 5-mile trail from the landing to the resort not wanting to wait or pay the ferry fee. They were distressed that I was there first and that the trail they took was so difficult. They plan to ride the ferry back.
Accommodations at the resort were bunk beds in large canvas tents on platforms that house eight hikers. I met various hikers including the three guys (the Earthdogs) who wandered into the Rae Lakes campground in the middle of the night, three folks from Eatonville, Washington (the Lost Tortugas)—one man, two women—and a woman with a foot injury who was waiting for her partner to arrive and hoping her foot would heal in time to resume the journey. She was taking pictures of people’s feet for some college project, which sounded a little strange to me, but I bared my soles to help her out.
The main projects for the day were shower, laundry and resupply box. I also caught up on this journal, but it seemed the main activity was drifting in and out of conversations, mostly led by Lamont who is clearly the best bullshitter of the bunch.
I had a gardenburger and salad for lunch, but everything is very expensive here (we keep telling each other this as we put more on our running tab), so I ate a remaining dinner from my supplies. In the evening I called home and talked to LiAnna, the main purpose to let Ellie and my father know I would be in Tuolumne Meadows on Monday, not Saturday, since I need to rest my knee and the PO is not open on Sunday when I most likely would arrive.
Evening brought a few mosquitoes that I desultorily swatted for practice. I was in bed at dark, the first one in the tent.
Thursday, 6/29/00: In Which I Laze About the Resort Until 4 PM When I Take the Ferry Back to the Trail
I woke a little after 5 as usual, but managed to stay in bed until almost 6 when the call of the flush toilet became almost irresistible. From there I went to the shore of the lake to watch the sun rise, eat breakfast and review the maps for the upcoming hike into Tuolumne Meadows.
By 8 the tent was a beehive of activity as all but the woman with the bad foot were planning to catch the 9 AM ferry. I chatted and helped where possible. I forgot to mention Paul and Patty, a father-daughter hiking duo doing the John Muir Trail from Yosemite to Mt. Whitney. He teaches at a community college in LA while Patty (20), who grew up with her mom and stepdad, is a Mennonite pacifist who wants to join the Christian Peace Team for 3 years (a group similar to Witness for Peace in that they try to prevent conflict as observers, not soldiers). It was interesting watching their father-daughter interaction, reminding me of what I was missing at home.
After the ferry left and the tent was nearly empty I began sorting my gear, cleaning, adjusting and repairing as necessary. I realized as new people began drifting into the tent area from the returned ferry that I was anxious to get going and decided to catch the afternoon ferry. I originally planned to stay two nights but want to get to Tuolumne Meadows by Sunday night to be at the Post Office on Monday (it is closed 7/4 for the holiday). It is 65 miles that means 20+ mile days, so cutting a few miles off this evening would make the next three days easier.
One of the new people was Paul (The Pedestrian). He was into gear and logistics (he spent months drying all his food for the trip), so it was fun hearing his perspective. Another person I talked with was Jonathon, doing the JMT, who decided to abandon his hike here to get back to Sacramento early to prepare for a new job with the State Attorney General’s office. He was giving up a high-stress, high-paying private law firm job to have more time for things like hiking. I told him my story and wished him well.
I went down mid-afternoon to the café for a final gardenburger, then went into the store and bought a can of mosquito repellant with DEET (gasp!). My hope is not to use it, but if things get desperate, I want the ability to have some protection from the swarms of mosquitoes.
I caught the ferry at four with another hiker named John (just hiking in the area) and Woody (a PCT hiker who came in this morning but leaving this afternoon to keep a planned meeting at Sonora Pass). As I debarked I saw a few people I had last seen at Tyndall Creek (including Angela and Duffy) waiting to get on the ferry.
I headed up North Fork Mono Creek that had a thigh-deep wade and a couple of nasty boulder hops that left my feet damp. About 8 I camped a mile below Silver Pass Lake, ready to tackle the pass in the morning.
Friday, 6/30/02: In Which I Struggle Off Silver Pass, Then Go On To Have My Best Day Since Returning to the Trail
I got my usual crack of dawn start and was on Silver Pass by 7:30, passing a brilliant reflection in the still Silver Pass Lake. At the pass I took the last photo on the roll, having made the bonehead move of having only 10 or 11 pictures left on the roll when I left Lone Pine and no additional film until Tuolumne Meadows. A quick look at the north side of the pass showed a frozen expanse of snow, steep in a few places down about 1000 feet, so I decided to rest, dry off the tarp and write in this journal for about an hour to give the snow time to thaw and soften.
When I started down I went cautiously and had trouble finding my way in places, but eventually made it to bare ground and followed the trail down a few miles to a bridge over Fish Creek. From there I went upstream to the meadow at Tully Hole and began the climb to Virginia Lake.
As I climbed I noticed two surprising things: 1) I was climbing well like I did back in May and 2) the mosquitoes, which had been chasing me since I left the snow were gone. I reached Virginia Lake fairly easily, still no mosquitoes but I didn’t pause long enough to test my luck. Finally at 12:30 I stopped at Purple Lake, took off my pack and still none. I sat for half an hour by the lake in the sun with a light breeze and reveled in the all-around general pleasantness I felt.
From there it was mostly downhill and I coasted through the afternoon passing the Reds Meadow area where Rochelle and I hiked four years ago. A few clouds blew through but it was also the first day since I returned that it hadn’t rained.
I went around Devil’s Postpile, having seen it earlier, and camped a little short of Minaret Falls. I was hoping to get the ford there done before dark but time ran out and I was tired from 25+ mile day. As it grew dark, it was strange to look across the Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River and see the lights of the campground there.
Saturday, 7/1/00: In Which I Struggle To Do Another 20+ Mile Day and Barely Clear My Last High Pass
It was cold when I got up about 5:30. The mosquitoes under the tarp vanished or expired when I took it down and the condensation on the foot of my sleeping bag froze.
I finally got going about 6:45 knowing the first order of business was to ford the icy waters at the base of Minaret Falls, something I did with Rochelle. That completed (and now certainly wide awake) I walked upriver for a couple hours and then through Agnew Meadows campground.
There was no doubt it was a major 4-day weekend as the campground was full as was the trailhead parking lot nearby. I walked along a ridge route that gave great views of the Banner Range and I saw many weekend backpackers, no doubt headed to many of the lakes on and off the trail.
After such a good day yesterday I was certainly dragging today, but kept moving in hopes of clearing Donohue Pass, about 20 miles from where I started this morning. I stopped around four for dinner and several thru-hikers passed me headed towards the pass.
About five I started after them and made it to the top (11,000+ feet) by seven. Three people (part of the Menacing Vegetables) were going to camp at the top (some romantic notion about sleeping at the last high pass), but I could feel the bite in the wind and wanted to get below the snowline and into some trees if possible. I managed the former and sort of the latter, if you could call the pygmies struggling to stand as high as me trees instead of bushes.
The wind was brisk, the ground hard and I had to anchor the tarp well. Having only 12 or 13 miles to go tomorrow, I decided to sleep in figuring it was going to get very cold tonight.
Sunday, 7/2/00: In Which I Wake in Ice, Suffer a Loss and Make It to Tuolumne Meadows
It was cold last night and the wind blew half the night flapping the tarp about so much that I slept rather poorly. I made up for it by staying in the sleeping bag until nearly seven, when the first sunlight hit the tarp.
It was still cold about eight when I started off the ridge towards the stream I could see below. As I had hoped, it had gone down in height, exposing more boulders for crossing, but those boulders were covered in ice. I debated whether to wade but decide to try further upstream where I finally found a safe place to cross. Much lower (and warmer) and about half an hour later I came to another ford, which was unavoidable but only about knee deep.
From there it was about ten miles of fairly level walking down the Lyell Fork to Tuolumne Meadows. Early on I met a ranger and we walked and talked until he had to stop and check on the innumerable weekend backpackers. When I stopped about two-thirds of the way along, I discovered I was missing one of my sandals. I went back and looked for a ways, asked a couple people, but finally gave it up for lost. So I’ll have to ford barefoot or with wet shoes for a while. But it will lighten my load by a pound, looking on the bright side.
As might be expected the Tuolumne Meadows area was a zoo. I got directions to the backpackers’ section of the campground after laughing at the ranger who asked if I had a car. It is rather nice, isolated on a knoll and I can’t find anybody who’ll take the $3 fee, so I guess it is free.
After dinner I had a good long chat with Ellie and LiAnna, then Dad (making arrangements for my next stop) and finally called Andrea to wish her Happy Birthday but she was out. I went back, ate a bit and the food in the bear box.