Bishop to Mammoth Lakes, in the Belly of the Beast

After completing a zero in Bishop, we set off on the next leg of our journey. The upcoming section would take us through Kings Canyon National Park and the Sierra National Wilderness. Over the next 120 miles we would climb 6 passes and see scenery so dramatic that it was beyond imagining.

To get back to the trail from the town of Bishop, we needed to get back to the Onion Valley Campground and then hike back up Kearsage Pass. We got a lift out of the Owen’s Valley and back to the trail head. The car took us up 5000 feet from the town of Independence up to 9,200 feet. I was glad that Molly and I didn’t have to complete that climb on our own. I had heard of a frustrated hiker who was unable to catch a ride up and completed the 13 mile hike by foot. The very thought of hiking those 13 miles out of the desert basin made me cringe. From the trail head, at Onion Valley, it’s another 7 mile hike with a 3,000 foot climb to get back to the PCT. The view from the top of the Eastern Sierra down into the Owen’s valley is striking. Massive mountains jut out of the valley floor, shooting up almost 7000 feet. Seeing these mountains close up, it’s easy to understand why there are no roads that cross the mountains in the 300 mile stretch from Kennedy Meadows until Yosemite Valley.

Once we got back on the PCT, we decided to climb up Glen Pass, which stands at 12,000 feet. Completing two passes in one day is an exhausting ordeal, but it’s well worth it. Half-way up we ran into Rick Sanger, the coolest park ranger east of the Rockies. Rick was with his wife, who had their 1 year old strapped to her back. I was at once charmed and crestfallen. Here we were huffing and puffing up the pass, and a family with a 1 year old was bounding from pass to pass without beating an eye. We chatted for 30 minutes about the geological history and ecology of the sierras. They also helped us ID a bunch of trees, flowers, and birds. Thanks Rick! Once we reached the top, the views were spectacular.

We hiked down the pass and along Rae Lakes, a series of interconnected lakes north of Glen Pass. Although there were tons of campsites, we decided to hike on through the golden hour. The daylight was noticeably redder and softer and the lakes reflected gold. Molly and I decided that this was our favorite time to walk. As we hiked along the lakes, hundreds of trout would jump out of the water. Trouts jump in different formations. Apparently, skilled fishermen can differentiate these different “rise forms” to figure out what the trout are feeding on. This, of course, leads to hooked fish.

We hiked into the night, planning on hiking to a campsite around mile 797. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find the campsite and ended up camping in a mosquito infested marsh.

The next day, we hiked up Pinchot Pass, passing mile 800! It seemed that the hike up was unending. After 4 hours of hiking up, Molly and I slept in a meadow, which was also infested with mosquitoes. After we woke up, to get amped for the last section of the pass, we practiced our handstands.

We reached the pass and hiked down to a glacial lake at 11,000 feet. At the lake we consumed a pizza tortilla. This is a delicious combination of tortillas, sharp cheddar cheese, pepperoni, bacon flavored bits, and sriracha hot sauce. It’s become a. staple on the trail. While we ate, we dreamed up some other delicious foods that we could eat in town. My favorites included the Pizzito (burrito wrapped in pizza), Burgito, (burrito stuffed between two buns), and the Coffito (coffee infused burrito).

Molly and I had a great conversation about the word “humble”. In my opinion, this is one of the most misused and confusing words in the English language. So often, when a person receives a prestigious award the first thing they say is that they are “humbled by the award.” In fact, that experience should be ego boosting, not humbling. I think that the reason for this is that the only reason a person would openly describe themselves as humble, would be in order to conceal gloating. The question then becomes, how can you be both humble and honest? Can a player like Lebron James honestly be humble about his abilities as a basketball player? In the end, we agreed that it comes down to how you see the people around you. You can be an exceptionally talented and still respect and value people who are less talented in your field. I think, true humility has less to do with how you see yourself, than it does how you think of the people around you.

We slept halfway up the following pass, Mather Pass, opposite two bros who were Northbounding the John Muir Trail. One of the bros’ name was Random Fact. One of the first things he informed us was that. most planets in our solar system, except Venus and Uranus, spin in the same direction.

The following day, we hiked up Mather and were treated to one of the most beautiful views on the trail.

Unfortunately, after Mather pass it’s a 4000 foot drop down a section of the trail known as the Golden Staircase. The endless switchbacks are incredibly hard on the knees. Finally, we made our way down the headwaters of the Middle fork of the Kings River. It’s waters eventually joining the San Joaquin and flowing into the San Francisco Bay, a world away. We slept on the banks of the Middle fork of the King’s river on the way up Muir pass, at mile 851.9.

The next day was one of the best on the PCT. We woke up early and began our hike up Muir Pass. Early on, we passed Shark Rock.

Further up the river we took a rest by a lake that was filled with frogs. We watched as two Clark’s Nut Crackers swept down and grabbed a tadpole. Inspired, I decided to catch a few frogs myself.

Muir Pass is one of the biggest climbs on the PCT. As we climbed, I kept on seeing passes in the distance, and proclaiming that we were arriving at our destination. But when we arrived, it was clear that we had a lot more to climb. Mountains that had towered above us, now seemed small and insignificant.

From the distance, we could feel the thump of boulders falling. A reminder that the landscape that were were walking upon was not static, but one that was shifting under our very feet.

Reaching the top of Muir was a crescendo of emotions. It was powerful and serene. I also found a poem written by Possum in 2012.

The 20 miles going down Muir Pass were incredibly easy and gradual. If the hike down Mather was the Golden Staircase, this hike was the Golden Wheelchair Access Ramp. We ended our day by fording the Evolution River, the first river ford on the PCT.

The following day, we left King’s Canyon National Park and Entered the Sierra National Forrest. I saw my first day hiker of the section. It had been 5 days since I’d seen or heard from anyone in the outside world. My first question to him was “are you from civilization?” We laughed and he told me the final result of the basketball finals- the game happened 3 days earlier. It’s a strange thing being so secluded from the world.

We swam across Sallie Mae lake. The cold water was refreshing. During that break, I found a small stream leading into the lake. As I started walking up the stream, I realized that the trout would not attempt to pass me. After a few minutes, I was able to corner around 100 trout. Try as I might, I wasn’t able to catch any.

Later. we climbed up and down Selden Pass. Although this is a smaller pass, standing at 11,000 feet, it was just as challenging and beautiful as the previous passes. Even though I had climbed at much higher elevations, I felt incredibly weak climbing up Selden.

On the way up, Molly made a fascinating observation. All the passes and mountains that we crossed were named after men. Often, these were the men who discovered the pass or men who had made contributions to the cause of conservation. On the other hand, all of the lakes that we passed were named after the wives and daughters of the explorers and conservationists. These names are interesting relic of the past, the mountains representing the triumphs of masculinity. The lakes representing the softness of femininity. Perhaps the stars will be named after the women who explore them.

On the way down, we were attacked by swarms of Mosquitoes. Molly and I drenched ourselves in repellent, put on long layers, and ran. At any point there were at least 20 Mosquitoes around us. When we reached camp, we set up our tent in record time.

The next day, we hiked 7 miles off trail to resupply at the Vermillion Valley Resort (VVR). This is a “resort” located on the banks of the Thomas Edison Lake. I have no doubt that VVR is the hiker destination with the most misleading name. We were expecting a fancy resort where we could lick our wounds. Instead, we found that the lake had been drained to 37% capacity. Instead of rustic cabins, there were trailers. Even-so, VVR was perfect for us hikers. We had an enormous BBQ feast and we learned how to play Cribbage from a hiker named Shuffle. Molly is freakishly good.

The 30 miles from VVR to Mammoth Lakes are a bit of a blur. We were ready for a break in town and flew up Goodall Pass and into Mammoth. By now, our Zero in Bishop- with its full bellies and soft beds- was a distant memory. We were ready for a break. We made it into Mammoth on Monday, the 30th.

The next section of the trail will take us into the heart of Yosemite. Molly and I will hike an extra 23 miles into the Yosemite Valley to complete the John Muir Trail. We also were able to finagle 2 permits to climb up half dome through a glitch in the NPS.

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