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The Trip

The Sharon Churchwell Fund is offering youth 18-25 years old a discount on this trip. Visit the Sharon Churchwell Fund page for more details.

John Muir was so moved by the alpine terrain of the Sierra Nevada that he established the Sierra Club to help protect it. One hundred years later you can still revel in the beauty of the John Muir Wilderness, which encompasses many of the areas that Muir explored in the late 1800s.

The Project

Our project will focus on the stabilization of the French Canyon Trail. The trail passes through wet alpine meadows. Work will involve moving (and potentially crushing) boulders to provide materials to repair degraded trails, naturalizing campsites in the basin, and removing unwanted campsite fire rings. Each day we may hike a few miles to get to the work site. The work will be strenuous and physically demanding, but also very rewarding. The Forest Service wilderness staff will provide training on safety and equipment use and direction of our work.

Itinerary

Day 1: The trip begins at noon at the Pine Creek trailhead about 16 miles northeast of Bishop, CA. We will eat lunch, get acquainted and hike four miles to Lower Pine Lake. The elevation of the trailhead is 7,400 feet and the lake is 9,942 feet. The trail is in good condition, but it will be a steady, steep climb with over 2,000 feet of elevation gain. Well worth the effort!

Day 2: We will complete our backpack in to our base camp in French Canyon. This hike will take us up over Pine Creek Pass (approximately 11,100 feet) and down into French Canyon. Our base camp will be at about 10,000 feet. This day's hike will be between 5-6 miles.

Days 3-4: We'll start our service work on the French Canyon Trail, following the direction of the Forest Service wilderness staff

Day 5: Today will be a day off for resting and exploring the area surrounding our base camp. Opportunities include: dayhiking into Piute Canyon, swimming in one of the many alpine lakes on the benches above French Canyon, or climbing nearby Pilot Knob.

Days 6-7: We'll continue our service work on the French Canyon Trail.

Day 8: On our last day together, we will hike out to Pine Creek Trailhead over Pine Creek Pass, then say our goodbyes.

Getting There

Trip members are responsible for getting themselves to and from the Pine Creek trailhead. Depending on your location, you will want to fly to Northern California (San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, or Sacramento); Southern California (Los Angeles, Ontario, or Burbank); Reno, Nevada (closest to trailhead); or Las Vegas. Exact driving directions, maps and information about places to stay before and after the trip will be sent later. The trip leader will send out trip rosters to all participants, including each person's travel plans, and will help arrange carpooling.

Since we will be hiking out between 9-10 miles on the last day, please make travel arrangements to return home on Sunday, August 26.

Accommodations and Food

Come with the attitude that food is part of the adventure. Trip menu planning considers that there is no refrigeration and food must be protected from animals. We provide healthy, nutritious vegetarian-friendly meals with a small amount of meat, along with dairy and soy products added to ensure proper protein.

We have a group commissary with everyone taking turns in food preparation. Before applying for the trip, people with food allergies and/or strong food preferences must contact the cook to see if accommodations are possible.

The Forest Service will provide pack animals to carry our food, tools, and group commissary equipment to our base camp, though we will need to carry a small amount of food and equipment for our first three meals. Each of us must carry our personal gear, including sleeping bags and tents to the camp.

Trip Difficulty

It would be misleading not to call this a strenuous trip. We will take two days for the hike in, but it is still a gain of over 3,000 feet with our final base camp and work site at about 10,000 feet. Participants should have past experience in hiking, camping, and backpacking, and be in good physical shape. Trail work can be physically demanding and ours will be performed at or above 10,000 feet. Experience at high altitude is not a prerequisite for the trip. However, physical conditioning before the trip, including hiking with elevation changes (or a lot of climbing up and down stairs), is essential to your enjoyment of this incredible outing. People who do not live at high elevations could potentially have problems adjusting to the high elevations of the Sierra; therefore it is highly recommended that all participants arrive to the area several days before the trip in order to begin acclimatizing.

Equipment and Clothing

In addition to your regular backpacking gear, you must bring two pairs of leather work gloves, a good pair of over-the-ankle hiking boots, a pair of long pants, and a long-sleeved work shirt to wear while working.

You will need a day pack to carry your lunch, water, work gloves, raingear, sunscreen, etc. to the work site. You should also bring a bowl, cup, and eating utensils, as well as a leak-proof plastic food container for packing your lunch each day. Temperatures will range from nighttime lows in the 30s to daytime highs in the 90s, and sunny days to hail/snow storms. You should bring clothing to cover a wide range of conditions. A detailed equipment list will be provided in your trip packet at a later time.

References

Maps:

• A copy of a detailed topographic map of the area we will be hiking and working in will be provided to you at the trailhead.

Books:

• Mock, John and O'Neil, Kimberley, Lonely Planet: Hiking in the Sierra Nevada.
• Secor, R.J., The High Sierra: Peaks, Passes and Trails.
• Snyder, Gary and Killion, Tom High Sierra of California.
• Whitney, Stephen, A Sierra Club Naturalist's Guide to the Sierra Nevada.
• Any John Muir book about the Sierra.

Conservation

Though the John Muir Wilderness is preserved, other areas not within designated wilderness areas and national park boundaries are still threatened by development, logging, and overgrazing. All of the Sierra Nevada is threatened by air pollution from the San Joaquin Valley below which is weakening trees and other flora. Rural development in the foothills and in the forests is encroaching on traditional habitat boundaries, increasing pressures on animals and threatening downstream water quality. 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.

Trip Price

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.

Staff

Leader:

John Clarkson resides in Illinois and has been participating in Sierra Club trips since 2002. He has a variety of backcountry experience including backpacking and trekking trips in Tanzania, Kenya, Nepal, Canada and the U.S. (Montana, Colorado, Wyoming, California and Alaska). John loves the challenging and restorative (both for the trails and the soul) aspects of service trips as well as the friendships that are developed while working with others who love the wilderness. He will probably be found fishing on the free day.

E-mail: johnclarkson@yahoo.com

Cook:

Leslie Haase loves to be outside and spends her free time running, cross-country skiing, hiking, and just being in nature -- which is why she likes to start her day on her deck, with a great cup of coffee. She is starting to explore watercolor and is interested in learning about, and working with more art mediums. She is a special education teacher who works with students who do not fit into the traditional school setting. Leslie and her partner live in Colorado where they are enjoying learning to play the game of bridge. She leans toward vegetarianism and tends to cook that way also.

E-mail: lesliehaase@aol.com

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General Notes About Sierra Club Trips

• Carbon Offsets
• Carpooling
• Electronic Devices
• Equipment
• How to Apply for a Trip
• Leader Gratuities
• Liability Release and Assumption of Risk
• Medical Issues
• Non-discrimination Statement
• Participant Approval
• Reservation and Cancellation Policy
• Seller of Travel Disclosure
• Travel Insurance
• Trip Feedback
• Wilderness Manners