Stats

Start: Woods Creek – Mile 802
End: Tentsite on ridge before Mather Pass – Mile 814
Elevation Max: 11,747
Elevation Min: 8,987
Elevation Change: 3,852 up & 2,427 down
Average Heart Rate: 126
Walking Time: 4 hrs 49 minutes
Date: 5/26/2022

The Walk

I relaxed this morning. I’m in the Sierras. My bag is heavy. And I don’t need to hurry. At least it’s a bit lighter after finishing the salami, cheese, and veggies.

I got moving pretty slowly. Today was a 3k climb up to Pinchot Pass. Then we’d enter a valley and make our way to Mather Pass. Not sure if we will do both today or not. We’ll see how the day goes.

The climb up to Pinchot Pass was beautiful. We climbed out of a forest and followed a raging river all morning. It was bursting from all the snow melt.

As I climbed the mountains became larger and more beautiful. It is hard to capture in words or a photo.

The trail up to Pinchot pass was tricky because it was often buried in snow. I followed footprints through the snow, then walked over patches of rocks and often two different sets of footprints came out of the rocks.

So you had multiple options to choose, and couldn’t see the trail! If I was using a gps it would be easy to follow. But Quest and I were still using the paper maps.

Everything was great for the most part. I’d bounce between finding the trail and following footsteps. But I got to a ridge and could see footprints or the trail. I knew I was close based on the map.

I climbed 50 feet back down the rocky hill and found the trail. It was a fun experience. After that the trail climbed switchbacks and didn’t have much more snow. It was tiring, but the views on top were worth every step.

From the top I could see the path I climbed and where I’d hiked all morning to get to the pass. Then the expansive mountains all around. On the other side I could see a long valley, framed by mountains. Mount Pinchot stood tallest of them all to my right.

Three frozen lakes were to my left and I could hear a faint rush of moving water. The mountains were warming up. Snow was melting fast.

I laid up top soaking in the views and snacking for 15 minutes. Then Quest came up. We chilled and chatted for s bit. Then decided to start the hike down into the valley. We’d grab lunch at a lake.

The descent was snowy but not too steep. There were rocks all around and the scariest part was possibly postholing your shin into a rock under the snow. But that never happened. We walked a mile by the frozen lakes. Then walked over a stream flowing through a meadow. We kept walking and got to the lake filled by that stream.

It looked a few feet deep and would have made a good swimming spot if we were staying. I had tuna and goldfish and enjoyed soaking in the rays. What a beautiful experience.

Then we kept hiking. Descending into the valley. As we did the rush of water became louder and louder. The trail was often covered in running water.

Each river crossing was a journey. We walked up and downstream until we found the easiest place to cross. We jumped from rock to rock, walked over logs, crawled over logs, walked right through without shoes, and once even tossed packs over and jumped. So many ways to cross a river.

As we approached Mather Pass another large flowing river crossing was on trail. We decided to find a spot to camp and climb Mather in the morning. We took our shoes off for this one and walked across.

The water was ice cold! And went up to my knee. But it was only 4:00 and the sun had time to warm me up. What a beautiful day.

We found an amazing spot to camp soon after. Right in between Pinchot Pass and Mather Pass. We were 2 miles short of Mather Pass. Right at 11,000 feet. Mountains surrounded us. We truly were out here.

I could see Pinchot mountain and the valley we walked across this afternoon. The mountains were familiar. And it was beautiful. Quest and I set up our cowboy gear and cooked dinner, taking in all the beauty.

I can’t believe what I’m watching. We mediated and did some yoga. The few poses I remembers from a Covid inspired yoga month. It felt amazing. I could hear birds chirping, water rushing and wind blowing.

Is the water getting louder quest asked? No, we realized it was the wind. I check the weather on my Garmin and it showed a wind advisory from 6-9pm. With 0% chance of precipitation, so I wasn’t too worried.

I walked to filter water and was amazing all over again by the view. Snow capped river rushing along and framed by beautiful mountains. What a place. This was the most beautiful spot I’ve ever seen.

I went back up and relaxed for a few hours. The clouds kept rolling in and the wind grew stronger. I covered up with my sleeping bag and enjoyed watching the scene unfold. At sunset the clouds were amazing.

They filled the sky. What am amazing spot. The crazy clouds made me a bit nervous because we were high on the pass with no trees around. Not a good spot for a storm! Hopefully the sky clears and it will be full of stars tonight.

Tomorrow morning will be knocking out Mather Pass then hiking 20ish miles right before Muir Pass. I can’t wait to experience it!