Photo: Bill Flower Peaks of Red and Silver, John Muir Wilderness Highlights:
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Trip Number: 08119A Price: $535 Deposit: $100 Capacity: 11 Rating: L/M Leader:
The Trip  Photo: Bill Flower Early visitors to the Sierra Nevada were dazzled by a striking sawtooth range of 12,000-foot peaks that shined like silver in the brilliant sunlight. Now it's your turn! Prepare for awe-inspiring views of what is now known as the Silver Divide on this seven-day trek in the Sierra high country south of Mammoth Lakes. The purples, crimsons, tans, and browns of neighboring metamorphic peaks combine to make this some of the most colorful country in all of the Sierra Nevada. We'll start high at 9,100 feet and cross the spine of the Sierra on our very first day. We'll journey two days on a beautiful segment of the John Muir Trail, take two layover days to relax or explore, and cross the crest of the Sierra a second time – this time approaching 12,000 feet – before descending alongside McGee Creek to our exit trailhead. We'll camp every night near pristine alpine lakes, all above 10,000 feet. Altogether, we'll hike about 27 miles. Join us if you seek the adventure and wonder of hiking a high, mostly-on-trail route through some truly spectacular scenery.
 Photo: Bill Flower Our trip officially starts at 5 p.m. on day one, when we will meet at a campground near Mammoth Lakes, California. We will prepare and serve a group dinner, shuttle a few cars about 20 miles to our exit trailhead, and get ready for the start of our hike. The following morning we will share a group breakfast, drive the short distance to our Cold Water Creek entry trailhead, and start our trek. Our hiking schedule is not rigid – how far we get each day and where we camp depends on how we feel, the weather, and other factors outside of our control. The itinerary described here should be taken as a general plan, and the actual camps and schedule may well depart from this plan.
 Photo: Bill Flower The first day we plan to hike about 4 ½ miles and climb nearly 1,700 feet to our camp near Duck Lake. Along the way, we will cross the crest of the Sierra Nevada at 10,800-foot Duck Pass, where we are greeted with our first view of the Silver Divide. We will have our heaviest packs of the trip and we won't be fully acclimated to the altitude, so we will take it easy. On the second day, we descend a short distance to the John Muir Trail and hike southward past Purple Lake to beautiful Virginia Lake, where we plan to make camp. Our intent is to take our first layover day near Virginia Lake, though plans may change depending on how we're doing and the interests of the group. Participants may choose to relax around the lake, hike to a series of remote lakes nestled against the Sierra Crest, or – for the very ambitious – climb Pretty Pass, a cross-country route over the Crest. On our third hiking day, we will continue on the Muir Trail to Tully Hole, where we will depart the Muir Trail and join the McGee Pass Trail. We intend to camp nearby at one of several beautiful alpine lakes located off the trail – perhaps Izaak Walton, Cotton, or Hortense. Here we plan to take our second layover day to explore these lakes or perhaps to scramble up to spectacular Red and White Lake. Ambitious hikers may choose to climb one of two nearby cross-country passes – Grinell or Shout-of-Relief – or climb 13,163-foot Red Slate Mountain. The views are truly awesome! On our fourth hiking day, we will return to the McGee Pass Trail and climb to McGee Pass, the highest point on our trek. We then descend to Big McGee Lake and our final camp. If we make good time, determined hikers may climb cross-country Hopkins Pass before dinner. Our final day we descend the peaceful valley leading to the McGee Creek trailhead. Getting There Our hike starts at the Cold Water Creek trailhead (elevation 9,100 feet) and finishes at the McGee Creek trailhead (elevation 7,900 feet), both near the town of Mammoth Lakes on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada. Mammoth Lakes is about 160 miles from Reno, 250 miles from San Francisco, and 310 miles from either Las Vegas or Los Angeles. Trip members arriving from other parts of the country should explore the option of flying to one of these major cities and sharing a rental car or arranging a ride. We will send a trip roster to all participants well before the trip in order to help facilitate ride sharing. Specific driving directions will also be sent before departure.
We will plan a diverse and appealing menu to accommodate both vegetarians and non-vegetarians. Responsibility for cooking will be shared among the trip members. Our first meal will be a campground dinner on the evening of day one.
The overall trip is rated L/M (light-moderate), but do not be deceived by the words “light” and “moderate” – high-altitude backpacking is physically demanding. A disciplined training and conditioning program will be necessary to achieve the required very good level of fitness. Our days will be relatively short in terms of distance covered – four to five miles on three of the travel days and a little over six miles on the other two moving days. However, we will gain significant elevation on all days but one, which will add to the difficulty of the hike. Our greatest elevation gain will be the first day, when we will ascend nearly 1,700 feet. Elevation gains on all other hiking days but one will be greater than 1,000 feet. The sole exception is the final day, when we will descend 2,600 feet in about six and a quarter miles. Altogether, we will hike a total of about 27 miles, and the total elevation gain summed over five planned moving days will be about 5600 feet. Except for one brief segment on the third or fourth day, we will be above 10,000 feet from the morning of the first day until the morning of the final day. The high elevation of the hike also adds to the difficulty. In years with high snowfall, late-melting snow on the high passes may also make hiking more difficult. Participation in this outing requires that you be experienced backpackers, in shape, and have reasonable expectations for the trip. Very good aerobic conditioning is essential. Our objectives are to enjoy some spectacular country and to complete the trip safely as a group.
A list of suggested personal equipment will be sent to all participants. (If you would like the list before signing up, let the leader know and he will send you a copy.) Each person should keep the weight of personal gear below 25 pounds so that, with the addition of approximately 15 to 20 pounds of commissary equipment and food, total pack weight will be less than 40 to 45 pounds at the start. We will provide all food and cooking equipment, although you must bring your own eating utensils. Some of the group equipment is relatively bulky, particularly pot sets and bear canisters. Your pack should be sufficiently large to carry an item about the size of a full paper grocery bag (alternatively, four or five one-gallon milk jugs) in addition to your personal gear. A couple of additional remarks on shelter and rain gear – although Sierra summers are generally relatively dry, you still must be prepared for rain. For shelter, tents are strongly encouraged, and lightweight waterproof tarps or bivy sacks are the required minimum. Sharing of tents is encouraged, both to reduce pack weight and to reduce environmental impact. Where possible, we will help participants contact other trip members who want to share shelters. For clothing, you should bring a waterproof jacket and rainpants rather than a poncho.
Please plan on bringing your own map and compass. Not only is this a matter of safety, but you will have a better appreciation of where we are going and where we have been. Suitable maps include the map of the John Muir Wilderness put out by the US Forest Service or the combination of the Mono Divide High Country and the Mammoth High Country maps published by Tom Harrison Maps ( www.tomharrisonmaps.com ). If you prefer 7.5-minute maps, four of the standard USGS 7.5-minute quadrangles are required to cover the entire route: Bloody Mountain, Graveyard Peak , Mt. Abbot , and Convict Lake . In this case you may find it easier to print your own map either using personal computer software such as Topo! or by using map-printing facilities that can be found at outdoor stores such as, for example, REI. Secor, R.J., The High Sierra: Peaks, Passes, and Trails (published by The Mountaineers), is an excellent general reference to climbing routes, cross-country routes, and trails in the Sierra Nevada . Conservation The Wilderness Act of 1964 defines “wilderness” as “an area where the earth and its community are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor.” This important act first established the National Wilderness Preservation System, originally protecting nine million acres of national forest lands. Today some 106 million acres are encompassed by the system, including the John Muir Wilderness, where we will be “visitors” for most of our nine-day trip. The magnificent wildlands of the Eastern Sierra are home to over 35% of California 's native species, 200 plants and unique animals, and some of the most spectacular scenery and recreational opportunities in the world. Upwards of 90% of the land in the Eastern Sierra is public land managed either by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) or the U.S. Forest Service. However, although much of the high and mountainous portion of the Eastern Sierra, such as the region we visit on our trip, has been designated as Wilderness, the vast majority of these Eastern Sierra public lands still do not have Wilderness designation. This land where the desert meets the mountains deserves diligent protection. In recent years, local volunteers, working together with conservation organizations, have developed modest proposals to permanently protect the remaining wild gems of the Eastern Sierra. These areas were included in a bill first introduced in 2002 by U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer – the California Wild Heritage Act, which seeks to protect remaining wildlands across the state. More recently, t he Eastern Sierra Rural Heritage and Economic Enhancement Act, introduced in April 2006 by Congressman Howard “Buck” McKeon, seeks specifically to protect Eastern Sierra Wildlands. This bill contains nearly one-third of all the lands in the statewide Wild Heritage bill. This outing is an excellent opportunity to consider the impact our own visits have upon the wilderness and to compare this with the ideal that we would like to achieve.
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: flowerbill@aol.com General Notes About Sierra Club Trips
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Bill Flower took his first backpack trip in the Sierra Nevada when he was a kid and has been hiking in California and the West ever since. A real highlight of his summer the past fifteen years has been participating in Sierra Club National Outing trips, both as a trip member and as a leader. Bill has participated in more than 20 Sierra Club national outings.