California Hiking In The High Sierras

My California hiking trip reminded me of the song "It Never Rains In California." I was in the southern Sierras, and I didn't see one cloud in five days. This is common in September, they tell me.

I went to California on a Greyhound bus, from my home in Michigan. A long lay-over left me spending the night in a cheap Carson City, Nevada motel, mostly paid for by the $20 I won at the nearest casino (playing roulette). Later that night my luck changed, and I fell in a bathtub for the first time in my life. I thought the trip was over. All of my weight had come down on my shin, which tried to wrap around the edge of the tub. My leg was not broken, I finally decided.

The following day, the bus headed down the east side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, on Highway 395. Greyhound Bus Lines has eliminated this route, by the way, but it is still a beautiful drive. The snowy mountains towering above you, are impressive when seen from the dusty Owens Valley.

I arrived in the town of Independence later than I wanted, but I was in California to go hiking, so I put out my thumb and caught a ride to the trail head by early evening. I hiked a few hours, and sometime after dark I laid out my bag, tried to sleep, and then changed my mind. It was too beautiful to quit for the day. I cut down my suspended food bag, and the line ran through my fingers, burning and opening a cut in one. The scar remains to this day. A bit of profanity, a bandage, and I was hiking again. 

California Hiking By Moonlight

Desert had become forest, and then bushes that moved in the darkness, like there was a bear in them (never did figure out that one). Then there was only tundra. I arrived at 12,000-foot Shepherd Pass by moonlight, which may have been the most beautiful way to arrive in any case. I was on the border of Kings Canyon National Park and Sequoia National Park. Gray peaks rose up around me, and I had a little lake all to myself. That's classic California hiking in the high Sierras.

Actually, I had a lake to myself every night. Who said California is crowded? I was hiking without seeing a soul for most of each day. I explored isolated hanging valleys, with lakes all over at different levels. I swam in ice water and laid in the sun. I slept early and got up every night or early morning to hike by moonlight. I ate wild currants and watched the trout scatter as I walked alongside small lakes. I followed Kern Canyon south, and I never saw a cloud. In fact, I just slept under the stars every night.

The fourth morning I woke up at four to a beautiful moon, and I began hiking by it's light. I summited Mount Whitney, the highest point in the continental U.S., just before dawn. Sitting and watching the sunrise, my feet dangled over a thousand-foot precipice. From the top I could look fifty miles in any direction, and see nothing but mountains. Then the crowds came. I headed down by the "standard" route, but despite the traffic on the Whitney Portal Trail, there was still a lake of my own to camp at that night.

Keeping It Light

On my last day, as I was hiking down towards the Whitney Portal trail head, I met a man limping along in great pain. He had been left behind by his friends after blowing out his knee(some friends). I made a walking stick for him. Later I realized how much weight many of these backpackers were carrying. Enough to cause a knee to go out on that steep trail.

I had been thinking about reducing my own pack weight at the time, and thought the 33 pounds on my back was light. That seems like heavy backpacking now. I even had a separate day pack that weighed a pound, just for going to the summit. I had hiking boots on too, and of course, had a few blisters to show for them. If I am in California hiking again, it will be with half the weight.

I was on the road in the morning, due to more moonlight hiking, and soon the snow and giant pine cones were gone, replaced by the desert town of Lone Pine, California. It was time for a hot shower and a pizza.

California Hiking Link

Sequoia and King's Canyon National Parks are less crowded (by far) than the more famous Yosemite National Park. There are hundreds of miles of good hiking trails to explore. Some of them can be accessed for day hikes, while other sections of the parks require getting out the backpacks and hiking deep into the mountains. This is a land of huge mountains and huge trees, as well as an incredible diversity of landscapes. The elevation in the parks ranges from below 2,000 feet, up to 14,491 feet at the summit of Mount Whitney. You can click on the link here for the official web site for Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.

If you make it to California, it will become one of your favorite places to go mountain hiking. It is definitely one of my favorites. You'll find another story on California Hiking on the page "Climbing Mount Shasta." 

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