Photo: Lynda Witzel Women's Beginner Backpack, Ansel Adams Wilderness Highlights:
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Trip Number: 08116A Price: $495 Deposit: $50 Capacity: 13 Rating: L Leader:
The Trip  Photo: Lynda Witzel If you want a nice, smooth entry into the world of backpacking, this trip is for you! Just south of Yosemite, where lakes and streams are abundant and where the road is less traveled, we'll learn and practice our wilderness skills. Short backpacking days leave lots of time for natural history study, day hikes, or relaxation. On many days, we will reach our campsite by noon and spend the afternoon hiking without a pack, botanizing, sketching, taking a dip in a cold mountain lake or steam, or just enjoying the view! The trip is suitable for beginners or experienced women who want to develop skills associated with wilderness travel: reading topographic maps, planning trail and cross-county routes, picking campsites, operating and cooking on portable stoves, starting campfires, using tarps, and minimizing our impact on this fragile terrain. Everyone takes a turn with the cooking and camp set-up, hauling water, wood gathering, and planning the next day's activities. Above all, we'll have fun sharing this wilderness adventure with our new friends!
 Photo: Lynda Witzel We will meet our first day at the Clover Meadow Ranger Station and then drive a short distance to the Isberg Trailhead near the Granite Creek campground. There we will begin our trip with a short hike to our first campsite near Granite Creek. This short hiking day will give us an opportunity to perfect the fit of our packs, practice putting up our tents, and to generally build confidence in our skills so that we may fully enjoy our backpacking experience. Then we will head north following the Isberg trail sometimes going cross country. We plan to camp at Cora, Sadler, and Joe Crane Lakes with a lay over day at one of them in order to explore further without our packs. Getting There Clover Meadow Ranger Station is a five to six hour drive from major Bay Area airports. The airport at Fresno, CA is about a two hour drive away.
Our first meal will be dinner on day one and the last meal will be lunch on the last day. The bulk of our meals will consist of high-carbohydrate cereals, pasta, crackers, and dried fruit, with cheese, nuts, chicken, turkey, and fish adding a small amount of protein and fat. Easy recipes for soup and one-pot dinners allow even beginners to become four-star wilderness chefs. Vegetarians are welcome, but please notify the leaders well before the trip. Trail snacks will be provided.
This beginner backpack is rated Light (L), but participants should be physically fit. Elevations range from 7,000-10,000 feet and the total distance is about 30 miles, with one layover day. Though we won't cover many miles, some of them will be logged scrambling over boulders, talus, and scree slopes. The travel itself will be as exciting as each day's destination. As all backpack trips are strenuous, you owe it to yourself -- not to mention the group -- to be in the best possible physical condition. Make sure your boots are well broken-in.
The Sierra Club provides food and cooking equipment, a first-aid kit, and iodine for water purification. A detailed list will be sent to registered participants. Bring only the absolute essentials and keep your pack as light as possible. A pair of good fitting Vibram-soled boots should be your first investment -- buy them now and start wearing them. Most other pieces of equipment can be rented or borrowed. Temperatures range from the 80s during the day to the 30s at night. Your sleeping bag should keep you warm in freezing weather. For shelter, you will need either a tent or a tarp. Most women hike in shorts or long pants with zip off legs. Lightweight waterproof rainwear (coat/pants or poncho) is also essential for summer hiking in the Sierra.
Maps U.S.G.S. 7.5-minute series: "Timber Knob" and " Mt. Lyell " Books * Clark, Ginny, Ansel Adams Wilderness * Storer, Tracy I. and Robert L. Usinger, Sierra Nevada Natural History * Graf, Michael, Plants of the Tahoe Basin Conservation The Sierra Club's history is steeped in efforts to preserve endangered habitat and wilderness. The club was instrumental in passing the Wilderness Act of 1964, establishing the National Wilderness Preservation System, and affording the High Sierra the highest-level of protection possible. As Sierra Club members we have reason to be proud of this accomplishment when we hike through the region. The Sierra Club's work on conservation issues continues to this day. While most of our outings in the Sierra Nevada visit places that have already been protected either as parks or as wilderness, the lands surrounding them face threats on several fronts: * Logging practices are still extremely disruptive, and logging roads leave scars that remain long after the forests recover. * Cattle grazing at the edges of wilderness areas pose a direct threat to water quality and fish habitat. Recent efforts by local groups to "retire" grazing permits, which would allow watersheds to recover and rejuvenate themselves, are encountering opposition in the state legislature. The areas we pass through on our way to the high country face many of the same threats that prompted establishment of the parks and wilderness areas. While on this trip, feel free to ask your leaders about any particular conservation issues that are relevant to this outing. The Sierra Club believes that its outing program provides a perfect opportunity for members to both enjoy the fruits of past conservation victories and learn about current concerns.
See the How to Apply for an Outing section for more details on registering for this trip and details about our Reservation and Cancellation Policy. The payment of a deposit does not confirm you as a member on the trip. Participants must be approved by the trip leader. After signing up for this trip, you will be sent a confirmation packet containing approval materials (Participant Approval Questionnaire, Medical Form, Liability Release Form). Each applicant (including those on the waitlist) must fill out these forms and promptly mail them to the trip leader. The leader will review the approval materials and notify you of your acceptance in a timely manner.
E-mail: akulka@comcast.net General Notes About Sierra Club Trips
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Alice Kulka has led and assisted on Sierra Club backpacking trips in the Sierra Nevada Mountains for more than 10 years. She has volunteered for the Natural Sciences Gallery of the Oakland Museum of California, and enjoys bringing new visitors to California's wild places.