See this page for the latest arrangements.
Summary of all emails and discussions on the subject before tuesday July 11:
- Going: Anne(Milpitas), Bianca (SF), Emily (PA), Jamie (SF), piero (RC), Shashi (Santa Clara), Sindy (SF), Virginia (SF)
- This hike is a bit traumatic if you have never hiked on the sierras: it is by far the most difficult trail that i know. Basically it exercizes all skills, from orientation to snow to creek crossing to rock climbing. It doesn't require any particular gear, but everything is demanding. This hike is actually more difficult (much more difficult) than Mt Whitney (or any other hike i've done in this country).
- The trailhead is in Independence, about 7 hours non-stop driving from here. This requires
- renting a car (the road is really bad at the end)
- leaving friday afternoon or earlier
- returning sunday night very very late (2-3am on monday)
- and it is a strenuous trail. Not a relaxing weekend at all (you will be very tired on monday)
- First, a general idea of the hike: at the very beginning we'll cross a creek four times, and each time may be adventurous because of high water level; then very steep switchbacks take us to the top of the "saddle"; then the trail goes down big time; then the trail goes up into a canyon towards Shepherd Pass (two more creek crossings but they may be dry by now) and it gets steeper and steeper until the pass; then the trail ends and we are on a Tibetan-style plateau surrounded by huge mountains; we head for the Williamson Bowl coasting Mt Tyndall and passing two/three lakes (very mild uphill); then we walk down into the Williamson Bowl, that has at least four lakes; then we have to climb up a gulch to reach the top of Mt Williamson (class 3 climbing). The grand total is 50km. Mt Williamson is the second highest mountain in the contiguous USA.
If you want more details, see my notes: it is a good idea that everybody prints them in case you get separated from the group.
- If you are going to be one of the drivers, you definitely want to print my notes: it has the details of how to get to the ranger station, trailhead, etc.
- Pictures: trail up to Shepherd Pass, but actually the best pictures of the Williamson Bowl are from Mt Tyndall, which is right in front of it.
- Is it worth it if you don't make it to the top? I have never made it to the top. Shepherd Pass is a five-star destination. The Williamson Bowl is one of the most spectacular sights on the sierras. So, yes, it is very worth it as long as you make it at least to Shepherd Pass.
- A general tip: try to opmitize the weight on every single item that you want to take with you. At high altitude every kg makes a huge difference.
- It is going to be extremely hot at the foot of the mountain. The forecast is 39 degrees for saturday, hotter than you've ever been in California; see temperature in Independence (foot of our mountain). The weather "on" the mountains is always unpredictable. Wind can cause the temperature to drop dramatically. Thurderstorms in this season are rare, but at high altitude nothing is rare.
- There should be plenty of water along the trail up until 4000m. I personally trust water from the creeks at high altitude (this is the water than humans and all animals have been drinking for millions of years). If you don't trust it because you get sick easily, either bring lots of water or a water filter or iodine tablets (that kill germs). Bianca has a water filter. You do dehydrate quickly at high altitude. There are different theories on what fluids to drink to avoid dehydration. My personal opinion is that chemical water (the water sold in stores that most people call "natural water") lacks key ingredients and does not do much against dehydration. Ditto for filtered water that, by definition, has been filtered of all "nutrients". But this kind of artificial water is certainly better than no water at all. You can buy little bags of powder like Cytomax/Gatorade, which is easy to carry and then mix it with chemical/filtered water. You can also buy iodine tablets that kill germs, so you don't need to carry a water filter, and Emily tells me you can also buy some Vitamin C tablets that you can put in the water after the iodine to dilute the disgusting taste of iodine. The more water you carry, the slower you will be (and the more water you will need). So this is one of the key strategic decisions on a high-altitude hike. Do not underestimate (or you'll dehydrate) and do not overestimate (or you'll exhaust yourself).
Big disclaimer: am i SURE that there will be that much water? No, we'll find out when we are there. Take everything i say with a grain of salt: i don't live on that mountain, and conditions are always unpredictable.
- We are still debating if we should try and hike the whole thing in one day or backpack. Backpacking means carrying a lot of stuff, thus walking very slowly (and it's very debatable how much one enjoys hiking under such conditions). Hiking in one day may just not be possible, because humans do need to sleep, so backpacking may be the only option.
The issue is very simple: the more stuff you carry, the longer it takes, and the longer it takes, the more stuff (food, water) you need to carry. It is debatable when you get more exhausted: hike light and fast non-stop, or hike heavy and slow camping one night (the total number of hours of hiking is certainly higher in the second case). So i'm honestly undecided.
If Jamie comes, she certainly backpacks, regardless of what i do.
In fact, Jamie would like to leave earlier on friday, head straight for the
trailhead, hike a bit overnight, camp on the trail.
- I cannot judge if you are fit to make it to Shepherd Pass or beyond. I am not sure about myself either. Every day is a different day. So many things can go wrong on a mountain that it is totally unpredictable how a person will do. Some things do help: we acclimatize the night before by sleeping as high as possible; we eat a good breakfast/lunch; hiking before sunrise at the beginning would make it much easier; light backpacks; etc. If you are familiar with Half Dome, i would say that just the hike to Shepherd Pass is about twice harder (because of the elevation, not because of the distance). If you do make it to Shepherd Pass, i'll strongly encourage you to try either Tyndall or at least the Williamson Bowl. The summit of Mt Williamson is too much for most people, but again, once you are at Shepherd Pass, you can decide how you feel.
- A minor detail: unfortunately, it is illegal to enter the Williamson Bowl after July 15. The Williamson Bowl is off limits because of a bighorn migration. Allow me to doubt that the bighorns start migrating exactly at midnight of the 15th of July, but that's what the law says.
Now click on the up arrow and you are in the Shepherd Pass quadrant.
We'll be coming up Shepherd Pass, then we will turn left around the lake at the pass, then coast Tyndall and enter the Williamson Bowl.
Click on the upper right arrow and you can follow the Shepherd Creek, which is basically the trail we will follow to Shepherd Pass.
Our route looks like this (click to enlarge):
- If you want answers from me, do not talk miles/feet/gallons. This planet uses the metric system. Not my fault.
See this page for the latest arrangements.
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What To Bring
- sleeping bag, mattress, pillow
- blanket (if you get cold easily)
- fork, knife, spoon, cup
- flashlight and batteries
- swim suit
- insect repellent
- toilet paper
For the hike...
- flashlight and batteries
- hiking boots or good walking shoes
- sunglasses
- sunscreen lotion
- hat
- LOTS OF WATER AND FOOD FOR THE HIKE
- 3000-6000 calories in food/powerbars etc
- light rain jacket for if it starts raining
- light fleece sweater for the cold part
- some long pants for the cold part
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