August 24 - 31, 2019
Over the past dozen years, I've led small groups on week-long trips to California's Sierra Nevada. This trip covers diverse terrain, from granite cirques, verdant meadows, and alpine lakes to high alpine scrambling passes, granite peaks, and scree. This promises to be a challenging yet rewarding loop in the Mineral King area of Sequoia National Park. Won't you join me for this adventure?
Although a relatively short hike, the elevation gains and losses may make the hike more difficult than it may seem.
The Drive
We'll leave Tucson early on Saturday, August 24th and make the long ten-and-a-half hour, 675-mile drive to Exeter, CA, where we'll spend the night in the Best Western. See the links to the right, and make your reservations early.
On Sunday, August 25th, we'll get up, have breakfast, and drive about 50 miles to the Mineral King Ranger Station. The mileage is low, but that drive will take us over two hours up winding mountain roads, which are sometimes paved and sometimes not. We'll pick up our permits for the next day and check on the status of marmots in the area. They've been known to damage vehicles with their gnawing!
We'll have the rest of the day on Sunday to ourselves. First, we'll search for a campsite in either Atwell Mill Campground (21 sites), four miles back down the road, or the Cold Springs Campground (40 sites), which is right across the road from the ranger station. See the links to the right. Then we can go on a short dayhike, check out any nearby sequoia groves, do a bit of browsing at the ranger station, go to Silver City to see what we can see, etc. We may have lunch or dinner — or both — in Silver City. We might also decided to eat in camp for one or both of those meals. We'll have to decide before we go, as we might need either additional money or an additional backpacking meal or two. (Approx. 3.0 - 10.0 mi / + 500' - 2200' / LD / 
)
On Monday morning we'll have breakfast, pack up our camp, and get ready to head out for our trek. Depending on the marmot situation, we'll either leave our vehicle at the ranger station and walk to the trailhead, which adds just over 1.8 miles and 300' to the overall trip (* see The Hike chart below) or we'll drive to the trailhead.
The Plan
Day 1 - Monday, August 26, 2019 - Trailhead to Pinto Lake via Timber Gap The hike begins with a 1,500' climb out of Mineral King. Every hike from this trailhead starts with a climb to some pass, and Timber Gap is probably the easiest. Despite the climb, the grade is relatively easy going. Keep chugging up the trail and you'll soon find yourself on the shaded Timber Gap. Continue down the trail, losing nearly 2,300' on the descent to Cliff Creek. This stretch is often densely packed with wildflowers and can be quite pretty. After crossing Cliff Creek, the trail once again climbs. From the crossing, the trail ascends around 4,500' to Black Rock Pass. We will climb just 1,700' to Pinto Lake. There is a bear box and some campsites scattered nearby. (Approx. 7.2 mi / + 3400' / - 2450' / BLD / )
Day 2 - Tuesday, August 27, 2019 - Pinto Lake to Big Five Lakes via Black Rock Pass There is another tough start today, but at the end of the day we'll have a two-night rest. Some reports describe Black Rock Pass as "an interminable slog", but it can be rather enjoyable. It's steep, the grade isn't always the best, and it's sandy and slick in some places. But the views towards Spring, Cyclamen, and Columbine Lakes are breathtaking. You should feel no guilt in stopping to catch your breath. The descent to Little Five Lakes is relatively straightforward, but just a warning: from the pass, it looks like the trail will go right next to the Upper lake. This is not the case. The trail does meet the water at the next lower lake, however. The gentle terrain between Little and Big Five Lakes will surely be a welcome respite from the trail over Black Rock Pass. Eventually we will arrive at the upper Big Five Lakes where we'll settle in for a couple of nights. (Approx. 7.7 mi / + 3200' / - 1725' / BLD / 
)
Day 3 - Wednesday, August 28, 2019 - Day Hikes around Big Five Lakes Today is a lazy day. We can spend the day doing day hikes around the lakes, go back up to Little Five Lakes and chat with the ranger who might be there, read a book, clean our bodies and our clothes, et cetera. Whatever we wish. (Approx. 5.0 mi / + 1000' / - 1000' / BLD / )
Day 4 - Thursday, August 29, 2019 - Big Five Lakes to Columbine Lake Once we're packed up, we'll begin the relatively easy day over to Lost Canyon and up to Columbine Lake. First the trail descends past the lower of the Big Five Lakes. This one looks more heavily used and has a bear box for the crowds. Past the lake, the trail climbs a bit and has some nice views of the Kaweah peaks and towards the Whitney crest before descending into Lost Canyon. There is a nice creek flowing by for much of the hike. After a couple of miles, the trail ascends above treeline into one of the most beautiful meadowy alpine areas to be seen in the Sierra. You may find yourself stopping frequently to enjoy and photograph the flowers, a fish-packed meandering creek, and glacially-patterned granite walls. Upon reaching the end of the meadowy canyon, the trail begins to switchback up to Columbine Lake. As the trail crests a small pass it fades away in the sandy gravel, but is marked well by cairns as it continues around Columbine Lake. (Approx. 7.5 mi / + 2,150' / - 1,400 / BLD / )
Day 5 - Friday, August 30, 2019 - Columbine Lake to Trailhead via Sawtooth Pass. Sawtooth Pass is only 700 feet above Columbine Lake. Although there is no maintained trail, the route is well marked with cairns and use trails. The climb is easy, though the last stretch of switchbacking use trails is a bit sandy and annoying. It's nothing like the west side of the pass, where the trail drops over 1300 ft to Monarch Lakes in about a mile. The terrain is sandy and it would be an incredibly unpleasant climb if we were going the other way. Tighten your boots before you start plunge-stepping and gravel-skiing, following random use trails that aim in the general direction of Monarch Lake. From Monarch Lake to the trailhead the trail is once again being maintained, although it may feel like the switchbacks will never end. We'll likely make it back to the vehicle in good time. (Approx. 5.2 mi / + 700' / - 3,775' / B-- )
The Prep
I have a permit for only five people for this trip. The cost for the backpack permit will be five dollars per person, plus two dollars each to offset the ten dollar fee for the permit. Cost-sharing for fuel and your own incidental travel expenses must also be considered. Of course, there will also be two nights in motels, plus meals and snacks along the way. Plan accordingly.
You'll need food for five breakfasts, four or five lunches, and four or five dinners, plus snacks. The number of lunches and dinners we'll each need depends on our meals on Sunday. See above. Bear canisters are required for everyone, but you might be able to get by with a smaller model for several reasons. First, you can carry Monday's lunch and dinner in your pack, as you will consume both before we turn in for the first night in camp. Next, there is a bear box available at our first camp site. We can put our food in there. The next day, you will have your breakfast in camp and may, once again, carry your lunch and dinner in your pack to be consumed before we turn in for the second night. Your bear canister need only be large enough to hold two breakfasts, two lunches, and two dinners. It doesn't seem right, but it is.
The Elements
There should be water all over the place. I don't foresee any problems.
The weather in the Sierra Nevada can be very nice at higher elevations, but will be warm in the lower portions of our trek. Daytime highs will be in the 60s or even the low 70s with nighttime lows in the upper 30s and low 40s. There might be one or two nights of temps in the high 30s. Be prepared! Click the links for the different campsites below (
) to get spot weather forecasts for that particular area. Remember that those forecasts will as much as six or seven days into the future from when you're able to look at them. Even so, you will probably only need a cool weather sleeping bag for this trip. I'm hoping to be able to take my mid-weight 30° bag.
The Hike
| day | miles | elev gain | elev | destination |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat | 675 mi / 10 hrs | driving | - | Best Western, Exeter, CA  |
| Sun | 50 mi / 2.5 hrs | driving | 7,500' | Ranger Station / Campground  |
| Sun | 3.0 mi - 10.0 mi dayhikes | 500' - 2200' | 7,800' | Possible Day Hike, Tourist Stops |
| Mon * | 0.9 / 0.9 / 0.9 | 300 / 300 / 300 | 7,800' | Timber Gap Trailhead |
| Mon | 0.6 / 1.5 / 1.5 | 500 / 800 / 800 | 8,300' | Sawtooth Pass Trail Jct |
| Mon | 1.6 / 3.0 / 3.0 | 1200 / 2050 / 2050 | 9,500' | Timber Gap |
| Mon | 2.7 / 5.7 / 5.7 | -2450 / 2050 / 2050 | 7,100' | Black Rock Pass Trail Jct |
| Mon | 2.4 / 8.1 / 8.1 | 1650 / 3700 / 3700 | 8,750' | Pinto Lake |
| Tue | 2.8 / 2.8 / 10.9 | 2950 / 2950 / 6650 | 11,700' | Black Rock Pass |
| Tue | 1.5 / 4.3 / 12.4 | -1200 / 2950 / 6650 | 10,500' | Little Five Lakes Ranger Station |
| Tue | 2.0 / 6.3 / 14.4 | 200 / 3150 / 6850 | 10,450' | Big Five Lakes Trail Jct |
| Tue | 1.4 / 7.7 / 15.8 | -250 / 3200 / 6900 | 10,200' | Big Five Lakes |
| Wed | 5.0 / 5.0 / 20.8 | 1000 / 1000 / 7900 | 10,200' | Big Five Lakes |
| Thu | 1.4 / 1.4 / 22.2 | 250 / 250 / 8150 | 10,450' | Big Five Lakes Trail Jct |
| Thu | 0.7 / 2.1 / 22.9 | -625 / 250 / 8150 | 9,800' | Last of the Big Five Lakes |
| Thu | 1.8 / 3.9 / 24.7 | 450 / 700 / 8600 | 9,600' | Entrance to Lost Canyon |
| Thu | 3.6 / 7.5 / 28.3 | 1450 / 2150 / 10050 | 11,000' | Columbine Lake |
| Fri | 0.6 / 0.6 / 28.9 | 700 / 700 / 10750 | 11,700' | Sawtooth Pass |
| Fri | 1.4 / 2.0 / 30.3 | -1275 / 700 / 10750 | 10,400' | Monarch Lakes |
| Fri | 2.6 / 4.6 / 32.9 | -2000 / 700 / 10750 | 8,350' | Timber Gap Trail Jct |
| Fri | 0.6 / 5.2 / 33.5 | -500 / 700 / 10750 | 7,800' | Timber Gap Trailhead |
| Fri * | 0.9 / 6.1 / 34.4 | -300 / 700 / 10750 | 7,500' | Mineral King Ranger Station |
| Fri | 200 mi / 5 hrs | driving | - | Rodeway Inn, Castaic, CA |
| Sat | 550 mi / 8 hrs | driving | - | Tucson, Arizona |
The End
After five days on the trail, we'll stop at Silver City, just down the road from the trailhead, to have lunch. Then we'll travel a few hours further down the road to Castaic, California. We'll stay at the Rodeway Inn for the evening of Friday, August 30th. Once again, please see the links to the right, and make your reservations early.
The eight-hour drive from Castaic back to Tucson on Saturday, August 31st covers nearly 550 miles. With the usual stops for fuel and food, we should be back in Tucson sometime in the early evening.
