Forum Index > Trip Reports > High Sierra/Ansel Adams Wilderness (7/23 - 7/26/18)
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omhk
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PostFri Aug 17, 2018 8:43 pm 
Going back to the first trip of the summer for me, we spent 4 days near the Minarets area of the Ansel Adams Wilderness, which features (obviously) the Minarets as well as Mt. Ritter and Mt. Banner. I did the JMT two years ago and thought it was a shame that the trail passes right through this area without exploring it more, even moreso that I found out about the Minarets after finishing my thru hike. The plan was to do a full loop counterclockwise, starting at Agnew Meadows on the PCT and ending at Reds Meadow, potentially bagging Ritter and Volcanic Ridge along the way. Well, we ended up doing half the loop, ditching Ritter, and hiking back out the way we came but it was still a great time. We hit the trail around 7am and made pretty quick work up to the JMT junction. We saw a big group of campers with a campfire going just beyond the dozens of NO CAMPFIRES signs along the trail, which was a lovely start to the trip. The footbridge up to Ediza Lake was out so we had to decide whether to scramble around the north side of the lake (what we should have done) or find a spot to ford. The best spot we could find was thigh deep and fast-moving. At Ediza, we ascended above the lake to get a bit of privacy. This entire area is like a fairy tale and even though I get antsy if we're not putting in enough miles each day, we ended up spending two nights in the same spot.
This creek was a glacial lakes level of cold, but relaxing to dip into after each day. The second day we decided to head up Volcanic Ridge for sunrise. We had read that there was an easy class 2 route from Ediza. Naturally, my friend Nicole was not super pleased about waking up at 1:30 in the morning to scramble a peak, so I volunteered to scout out the route the afternoon before. I would describe the route as a walk-up, but with a bit of route-finding to get to the right gully and a moderate angle snowfield at the very top. I followed a light bootpath initially but it terminated pretty quickly and I had to check the map a dozen times to guesstimate which gully I thought was the correct route. There was a single cairn in the middle of nowhere which really didn't help at all. Anyway, confident that I had found the correct gully, we took it easy the rest of day 1 and set an unpleasantly early alarm. Probably the least enjoyable part of day 2 was having to cross a knee deep creep in the dead of night. To say our feet were in pain was an understatement. We moved like slugs up the route, and routefinding in the dark was a bit difficult. I should've put up some ducks the day before, but we somehow managed to get up to the talus slopes of volcanic ridge without much incident. That is, until we hit the permanent snowfield before sunrise and it was icy. I was in trail runners, so we decided to hop up the rock on the side of the gully. Moderately steep class 3 with a couple of exposed moves, but the rock was really good quality and we eventually made it to the summit. 15 minutes after sunrise. Oops.
The view from the ridge really is phenomenal. We signed the napkin summit register and spent maybe two hours chilling on the summit. I guess winter really did a number on me because we were estimating 2 hours from camp to summit and it took about 3.5-4. I was nauseous and dizzy on the way down, probably from not bringing enough food for the trip that we thought we take 4 hours MAX. Back at camp, we gorged ourselves and napped the rest of the day. The plan was to ascend Ritter in the morning then move camp up to Iceberg Lake, but I think both of us were pretty tired and not really feeling like going up Ritter. The route looked really inviting, but oh well. We already knew we'd be coming back to this place some time soon, so we instead caught a sunrise on day 3 (and by we, I mean me since Nicole slept right through it lol.gif ) and made the very arduous 2 mile trek up to Iceberg.
Alpenglow on the Minarets Upon leaving Minaret, we ran into a group of 6 (family) camped in a meadow about 20 ft from the creek, right on some wildflowers (when there was a cleared tent area right next to them), and with a campfire going on the meadow. Also had the most unpleasant surprise of running into the father helping his son take a dump 5 ft off the trail. There were seriously primo pooping spots just over the hill rolleyes.gif Sometimes I want to be productive and maybe point out good LNT practices to other groups, but not sure how to do this without sounding patronizing, so I just keep my mouth shut. We also ran into a huge group consisting of 2 older men and about a dozen high-school aged boys camped ON the trail down at the lake, as in we had to walk through their campsite to get to the Iceberg junction. They asked us about the route up Ritter and we pointed it out to them, but they seemed really confused. It was also 10am at this point with t-storms forecast in the afternoons all week. Nicole commented gently that it seemed like they were getting a late start, but they didn't seem fazed so we bid them good day and began the ascent to Iceberg. The Ferguson Fire outside Yosemite was raging at this time, but we had gotten really lucky with the smoke so far. Evenings got slightly hazy but our mornings and afternoons were always crystal clear. On Day 3, the smoke began to blow in after lunch and got progressively thicker that night until our eyes were burning and we were sneezing and coughing (remedied by a wet buff over the face). There were only 3 other people at Iceberg that night, but we definitely heard them all sneezing too).
Around 11am when we got to lake #2
Slightly hazier around 3pm I don't have any photos from the evening but it was horrible. I've hiked in smokey conditions before but this was the first time it actually started to affect me a little. Thankfully, it all blew away by morning and we had a clear sunrise. We thought about doing a day trip up to Cecile Lake since it was clear at this point we wouldn't be doing the full loop. We had traction and axes for the snowfield that was turning most people away, but we decided once again to be lazy and spend the whole day at the lake. I thought it might be cool to go up the arm north of the lake and get to the base of the northern Minarets, but the smoke started rolling in so I decided it wasn't worth the effort.
On our hike out, we decided to cross Ediza at its outlet and do the talus field back down to the trail. The outlet looked pretty shallow and was completely calm so I started to lead us through. The middle of the outlet ended up being close to stomach deep on me. Oops.
Here's Nicole with her boots in a plastic bag around her neck being totally not thrilled with this crossing
We said one last goodbye to the Minarets before making the hellaciously hot trek back to the car. As a reward, we found a nest of about 4 mice in one of our tote bags in the trunk, plus bonus mouse droppings pretty much everywhere. Great. All in all, a super relaxing trip with great company and a nice way to kick start the summer for me.

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NorthwestWanderer
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PostSat Aug 18, 2018 5:16 pm 
Super beautiful, those are some stellar photos!

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PostSat Aug 18, 2018 9:50 pm 
Yes, beautiful photos and a very nice trip report... thank you!

The General primarily backpacks solo.
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olderthanIusedtobe
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PostSat Aug 18, 2018 10:52 pm 
That's beautiful country. I can assure you Cecile is also very nice. Those lakes below the Minarets plus Garnet and Thousand Island are on a very short list for my favorite places in the Sierras (so far; there's so much of them I haven't seen yet).

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MojaveGeek
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PostSun Aug 19, 2018 6:03 am 
The smoke can be awful but it looks like you got some pretty blue sky days early in the trip. I was day hiking around Tioga Pass not far to the north for two weeks during the same time and some days the smoke there was horrible. A few times I had to navigate (up on ridges, no trails) with GPS because visibility went down to 100 yards or less. Minarets area was on my list but I was worried it would be too smoky from the Lions fire. Looks like you squeezed in some awesome days and your pix sure make me want to go back and get in there, thanks!

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silence
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PostSun Aug 19, 2018 8:58 am 
I love that area ... we had a magical time there, but it was cut short due to an incoming snow storm in Sept, so we've always talked about returning some day to finish our trip. We too camped above Ediza and then day hiked to Iceberg (nixed Cecile as well since it would be an out and back), but totally missed Volcanic Ridge because we were focused on the spending time elsewhere. Way to get up there. Awesome views! One thing you've confirmed is to never do the Sierras in the middle of summer ... too many people! We didn't see a soul, except a few peps around Shadow Lake. Still you managed to carve out a bit of privacy. Your photos are awesome. Thanks for the memories.

PHOTOS FILMS Keep a good head and always carry a light bulb. – Bob Dylan
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fyodorova
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PostMon Aug 20, 2018 3:06 pm 
Gorgeous photos of a stunning area. Having done several sections of the John Muir Trail including Evolution Basin and Thousand Island Lake, I thought I had seen the best of the California Sierra and didn't need to return. Your photos convinced me otherwise. Nice trip! One question, was it hard to get a backcountry permit for this area? I've pretty much resigned myself to never going back to Donohue Pass or Thousand Island Lake because of the enormous recent popularity of the JMT.

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olderthanIusedtobe
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PostMon Aug 20, 2018 3:25 pm 
fyodorova wrote:
Having done several sections of the John Muir Trail including Evolution Basin and Thousand Island Lake, I thought I had seen the best of the California Sierra and didn't need to return.
There is so much territory to explore in the Sierras! The PCT in Washington is fantastic but misses quite a few of the best places. I would assume the JMT is similar. Evolution Basin/Muir Pass was nice but just off the JMT nearby Dusy Basin/Barrett Lakes is way better IMO. And as noted in this thread the lakes below the Minarets are pretty much on equal footing with Thousand Island/Garnet. Also the Nydiver Lakes are just off trail and also lovely and worth wandering around. Piute Pass/Humphreys Basin/Desolation Lakes is another interesting area, it's big and not crowded at all last time I was there. You probably won't ever run out of places worth visiting in the Sierras.

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omhk
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PostMon Aug 20, 2018 8:47 pm 
fyodorova wrote:
One question, was it hard to get a backcountry permit for this area? I've pretty much resigned myself to never going back to Donohue Pass or Thousand Island Lake because of the enormous recent popularity of the JMT.
It isn't too hard to get a walk-up permit out of Mammoth, especially on a weekday. As long as you aren't trying to do something crazy like start out of Tuolumne, you should be completely fine. There are also a couple different trails into this area, and the rangers were super helpful in working with you to make sure you got where you wanted to be

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Sculpin
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PostTue Aug 21, 2018 7:57 am 
olderthanIusedtobe wrote:
The PCT in Washington is fantastic but misses quite a few of the best places. I would assume the JMT is similar.
Yes. Thru-hiking is about the total experience. But if you want to see the best scenery, you have to leave the JMT/PCT every few miles. Some of the reroutes seem to be for the purpose of avoiding the best lake basins. Nydiver Lakes. agree.gif

Between every two pines is a doorway to the new world. - John Muir
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John Morrow
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PostFri Aug 24, 2018 5:20 am 
Here's pics from a trip I did in 2006 on your route and then a couple more days to the north: https://www.flickr.com/photos/23557848@N03/albums/72157656076990073

“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”-Mary Oliver “A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom.” ― MLK Jr.
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silence
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PostFri Aug 24, 2018 7:32 am 
This is the storm that ran us out on Sept 8, 2010. We packed up fast and headed lower while it was snowing. It never seems to fail to snow on us when we're in the Sierras.
mt ritter and banner peak
mt ritter and banner peak

PHOTOS FILMS Keep a good head and always carry a light bulb. – Bob Dylan
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