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[Yosemite]

Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Hiking, backpacking, running, biking, climbing, rafting, and other human-powered activities in Yosemite National Park

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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby sh3phard » Tue Aug 21, 2018 9:41 pm

Phil wrote:Here we go. We're going to pick it back up from Sunrise Lakes and assume you have three days remaining to get to the Valley.


Now I do understand what you meant. We actually have 2 more days as our schedule was to stop at Sunrise Lakes on our 6th night - leaving 2 more days to do Cloud Rests, Sunrise Creek and the Valley... :o
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby Phil » Tue Aug 21, 2018 9:48 pm

Non, you're going to camp at both Sunrise Lakes and by CR. Time allowing. You can go on to CR from Echo Valley or wherever that 4th or 5th day, but I think it might be a bit much for you to go beyond Sunrises Lakes after all that. It's all been about injecting a better sense of reality into it. And, you'll actually have 3 more days after Sunrise Lakes to get to the Valley, depending on what you do and if my math is right.

In this whole trip, everything is very much dependent on how you feel, including how you react to altitude. If it hits you hard in a bad way, don't hesitate to end it and go lower, be that the first mile, first day......... if and wherever it strikes. What you originally had planned was going to kill you. Besides being a real huckleberry of a guy, that's why I've spent the time fixing you up and basically just hiked from TM to the Valley on my fingertips. And, I sort of like Canadians...sort of. :roll:

I'll summarize:

Night one: Young Lakes
Night two: Boothe Lake
Night three: Bernice Lake
Night four: either Washburn Lake, Echo Valley or #5 on the Echo Creek Trail
Night five: Sunrise Lakes
Night six: Cloud's Rest
Night seven: Sunrise Creek
Day eight: out
Night eight: Fresno
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby sh3phard » Tue Aug 21, 2018 10:04 pm

Haha, merci Phil, much much appreciated!

According to the "new" plan, it would be our 6th night arriving at Sunrise Lakes.

What we could do though is not sleep at Bernice Lake. Just say hi to the water and then keep walking until we reach the Valley, on the East side of Merced Lake (see the marker).
Then on day-4 we could head to Washburn just for the fun as it seems to be great to walk into that canyon and get to that lake. We eat our lunch there and then head back to the Valley, pass Merced Lake and go up to that "5th" footbridge, right before the serious hike.

THEEEN, day-5, heading to Sunrise Lake and we would still have 3 days to do what you've suggested!
https://caltopo.com/m/J20H
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby sh3phard » Tue Aug 21, 2018 10:09 pm

Phil wrote: Night four: either Washburn Lake, Echo Valley or #5 on the Echo Creek Trail


Ooooh, so even though we would decide to go to Washburn lake, on the 4th day, we would still go to Sunrise Lakes from Washburn Lake on the 5th day?
It would be a 23km hike (14 miles), +989m (+3280f) : would it be realistic to do that in one day?
If not:
- either we skip Washburn Lakes (night #4) after our night at Bernice Lake (night #3) and go directly from BL to footbridge #5 (night #4)
- or after Boothe Lake (night #2) we skip Bernice Lake and go spend our night #3 in that Valley close to ML (see the marker). Then the next day (day #4), we could hike toward WL, lunch there and then go back to Merced Lake and go up to Echo Creek and sleep at footbridge #5 (night #4).
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby Phil » Tue Aug 21, 2018 10:31 pm

Nope, night five at Sunrise. Totally doable according to how I laid it out. Forget the map and colored lines and go by daily destinations. My post previous to this one is the blueprint for making it work. You have some hard work, but I tried to lay it out to be reasonable for you and your situation given age, physical condition, being unaccustomed to conditions and altitude, ability. The only variables are going to be you guys and if you either burn out somewhere along the route or have some other unforeseen problems. I designed this for you to get the most out of it, and too be able to succeed.

That said, any problems, you cut out and down along the Merced and to the Valley.straight from Echo Valley. Always have a failsafe bailout in case you need it. Sunrise and CR are just icing on the cake, but you have almost an extra 1000 meters of climbing and the time it takes to do that in order to get there. .
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby sh3phard » Tue Aug 21, 2018 10:50 pm

Alrighty! Here is the final project:
https://caltopo.com/m/J20H

I think we're done! Our 8th night (Sept. 11th) will be spent at the Yosemite Valley backpackers camp. Then next morning (Sept. 12th), it's bus time to get back to TM to go back to our rental car and we head to Fresno.

GOD, it has been hell of a week. But I'm SO glad that I found this forum and you guys - and especially you Phil! Woah.

Nothing is done, that's for sure, as this is going to be "the" plan and sometimes nothing goes according to the plan, but still we'll be starting our trip MUCH equipped, with a better understanding of the park and definitely more knowledge about a realistic daily hike ;) and we'll be able to cut a part at the end if we're really in trouble.

Thanks again Phil & AT. In 2 weeks, we'll be sleeping at Young Lakes!! We'll definitely keep you posted before and after our trip!!! You guys rock - and Phil, you're awesome, thanks again for your sincere dedication! You will make the difference in our trip, that's for sure! And thanks again AT for trying to be creative and find us some alternatives outside of the YNP!
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby Phil » Tue Aug 21, 2018 10:58 pm

sh3phard wrote:Ooooh, so even though we would decide to go to Washburn lake, on the 4th day, we would still go to Sunrise Lakes from Washburn Lake on the 5th day?
It would be a 23km hike (14 miles), +989m (+3280f) : would it be realistic to do that in one day?


No, from either Washburn or Bernice, whichever, you go ONLY to either Echo Valley or #5. From Bernice to Echo Valley, just under 9 miles...and except for that big descent, all pretty much flat and forested. From there, add roughly 2 more miles up to #5, making it an 11 mile day total. From Washburn to #5, about an 8 mile day. Again, all but about those last 2 miles are the same flat terrain in the trees. I'm not just pulling these numbers and expectations up, I know the route and I'm sitting here referencing my map to verify what's in my head for the actual distances.

So, from either Echo Valley or #5, to get to Sunrise Lakes, you're looking at a 9 mile day from Echo Valley, or about a 7 mile day from #5 up to the lakes. Breaking it down, you have 6.1 miles up the Echo Creek trail alone from the junction of the footbridge in Echo Valley to the JMT, then another 0.9 miles from where that trail hits the JMT to the Sunrise HSC, then another roughly 2 miles up and over to Sunrise Lakes. You aren't allowed to camp within a 1 mile radius of the HSC, so to cut distance, you only have the choice of camping at the group backpackers area of the HSC itself. Or you push up and over to the lakes for your own dispersed site. You go past the JMT at long Meadow Creek, and those are your only legal camping choices left. Zoom in on your map and look at it closely.
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby sh3phard » Tue Aug 21, 2018 11:15 pm

Thanks Phil :)

Last question: is it possible to buy gas can in TM? We can't bring ours in the plane so we'll have to buy some when we get there. As we have our car it will be easy to go somewhere but any tips regarding where to purchase one would be much appreciated!
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby Phil » Tue Aug 21, 2018 11:18 pm

Get your stove fuel before you get into the park or in the Valley. I'm not sure if the store at TM sells it or not, but probably. Also remember to make sure your stove doesn't have any fuel residue in it before you fly, or they'll confiscate it if they can clearly smell it.
Last edited by Phil on Tue Aug 21, 2018 11:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby AlmostThere » Tue Aug 21, 2018 11:21 pm

Gas can = stove fuel. In Fresno the REI, Big 5, Dick's even Wal Mart will have the ISO pro canisters. You will want to get them here in town.
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby Phil » Tue Aug 21, 2018 11:23 pm

Goodnight everybody. I'm so done.
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby Phil » Wed Aug 22, 2018 5:19 am

Your final map looks good up until your seventh day. In fact, perfect. I imagine that you got confused when I talked about that slight backtrack off CR summit. Your trail shown is actually the Forsyth Trail that I mentioned several posts back as a waypoint for finding your CR campsite on the sixth day. The "lower trail" backtrack you want in order to go up and over the summit, then continue on the actual CR Trail, is only a few hundred feet back down from the summit itself. Your Caltopo map doesn't show it, so you're going to have to go to your #309 NatGeo map to see it, but there's a definite fork at the base of the final NE ascent. Go back down to that split, turn right, descend the eastern face on the trail that goes through the talus field. It's clearly defined. The trail from the summit down the south aspect is steep, it basically dives, so much so that a lot of people will go down it on their butts with a full pack on.

This is just a minor detail, but it needed to be clarified. Check it out. See it?
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby sh3phard » Wed Aug 22, 2018 9:39 am

Thanks Phil, indeed on the physical map (#309) I do see it. I'll update the map soon!

**Edit: it occurs that the Nat. Geo maps aren't complete... there is a glitch!
The #306 map (South West) ends with the "279" vertical line - the area we're looking for is between 4182 & 4178 (horizontal grid).
The #309 map (South East) starts with the "280" ich/281... I can't see a part of the Yosemite, close to Cloud's Rest!

Mmmh.... :?:


Map 306 - 1: https://ibb.co/gfFTse
Map 306 - 2: https://ibb.co/f9cKyK

Map 309 - 1: https://ibb.co/fMtRdK
Map 309 - 2: https://ibb.co/eD4zyK
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby Phil » Wed Aug 22, 2018 3:16 pm

I have an older #309 that shows CR right along the left margin at about halfway up the sheet, roughly next to the compass rose.

If you didn't already order it, when you stop at REI in Fresno for stove fuel, get your Tom Harrison "Yosemite High Country" 1:63,360 map at the same time. It shows it clearly. You don't really need to plot it, just know that it's there. Map or on the ground, you won't miss it.

I'm sure glad you wrote today, I was getting separation anxiety.

Sat image:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Cloud ... 19.4893517

See the fork and the switchbacks at the base of the escarpment between face and talus when you zoom in and go to 3D? Look closely. When you're there, there will also be a metal sign at that split.
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Re: Water along Yosemite Creek Trail in September?

Postby Phil » Wed Aug 22, 2018 4:08 pm

YouTube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TP6IDWJ3DlE

Sign and alternate trail I'm talking about at about 3:10.

See all the people on the summit? Mostly day hikers. That's why you want to camp on the north side and go up in the evening and early in the morning.
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