On July 31-August 16, 1981 Jim White and I took a 77 mile backpack trip in the Milestone area of the John Muir Wilderness/Kings Canyon/Sequoia National Parks. We left Independence after work Friday and hit the trail at Onion Valley about 6 p.m. or so. With two weeks' worth of food our packs were very heavy so we took it slow on the 1.5 miles to Little Pothole Lake where we made camp around 7 p.m. or so.
Saturday morning we got up sort of lazily and hit the trail around 10:30 or so. Gilbert Lake came fairly easily. We stopped at the overlook of Heart Lake for lunch about noon and headed on for Kearsarge Pass about 1 p.m. On the pass we enjoyed the view and rested before heading down to camp at the former Ranger Station site in Kings Canyon Narional Park which we made about 4 p.m. or so. This was the first of many schedule changes we made. We settled eventually on a hike two days, layover one routine.
Milestone Deck Trek 1981
Sunday we headed out about 10:30 again with great weather and settling in to our packs. We met a guy on the trail who had hiked from Lake Tahoe (45 days, I think) with people meeting him along the way and providing resupplies. We arrived at Vidette Meadow near 1 p.m. and stopped for lunch. Around 2 p.m. we headed up the trail with plans to stop at the Center Basin Trail junction area. Around 4 p.m. after climbing a hill we found a neat little spot across Bubbs Creek and made camp. The creek had a little waterwheel cascade nearby and a pool for wading and washing. We did some laundry and rested before fixing supper.
We decided to layover Monday and rest before tackling Forester Pass. We laundered. Jim rearranged the water flow in the creek several times and generally played in the water. We sunned ourselves and enjoyed a relaxed day.
Tuesday we got started about 9:30, I think, which is early for us. We had Forester Pass at 13000 feet - a climb of 2800 feet - in front of us. We made good progress on the slow but steady climb. I noticed many potential campsites all along the route - sites I had not remembered from previous trips. We stopped at a creek crossing around 11,600 for lunch.
We thought we were higher and closer to the pass but it turned out we still had quite a bit of climbing and about 2 miles to go. Around 1:30 we hit the trail and slowly ground our way up the trail. The good grade made it mostly a question of just pluggin' along. We finally hit the top around 3:30 p.m. along with several other small parties. We rested and enjoyed the views in both directions.
We left around 4:30 or 5 and headed down the precipitous south side in Sequoia National Park. It had been a long day so we made camp west of the trail on a small bench about 2.3 miles below the pass. We had our own private water supply from a stream out of a high lake on the west.
Milestone Deck Trek 1981
Wednesday we got our usual 10:30 or so late start and hiked cross-country on easy terrain with fine views of Tyndall Creek and Mt. Whitney to the trail from Tyndall Creek to Lake South America. We stopped at Lake 11440 for lunch and then headed over to the trail for the upper Kern River and Milestone Basin.
We found an interesting spring area that had a large 10 by 30 foot patch of moss. After climbing a slight rise we dropped rapidly down to the Kern River where we had a late lunch. Around 2 p.m. we hiked on into the Milestone Basin about a mile and made camp at around 11,000 feet. The camp was heavily used by horse parties and there was lots of horse dung but we were able to set up a nice camp. Jim set about modifying the water flow at a nearby waterfall and made a pool for bathing. We washed some clothing and enjoyed the cool bath waters.
Thursday it was time for a layover day so we lazed around in the morning. I did my laundry and burned the accumulated trash down to aluminum foil for easier packing. About mid-morning I set out on a day hike to the upper basin. I hoped to find the site Gil Beilke, etc. and I had camped at many year's before. I got lots of pictures of Milestone Peak and climbed to around 12,000 feet where I had lunch overlooking a large lake.
Milestone Deck Trek 1981
After lunch I descended to the lake and found it teaming with polywogs and frogs. After taking pictures of both I headed back to camp with a side trip to the southern lakes where I saw a few other campers. Back at camp Jim was still working on his waterworks above the falls and doing his laundry. While I took a nap, Jim hiked up to the top of a nearby unnamed peak where he reported good views of the area.
Friday it was time to shoulder our packs again and head for Lake South America. The climb up from the Kern River was steep in places and we still felt our packs. We stopped for lunch at a nice lake around 11,200. After the final climb to Lake South America we made it around 3 p.m. and found a party of two in camp. A group of six came in from Harrison Pass direction and went right on through. Later a single hiker made camp at the upper end of the lake. I washed clothes and took a bath at the upper end of the lake before taking a nap. The weather was pleasant but it cooled off rapidly when the sun went down so we hit the sack early.
We got started around 10:30 Saturday as we headed for Harrison Pass. The easy grade to the pass from Lake South America was a pleasant hike. Large clump of pretty red flowers near the pass. Jim was ahead of me and went to the low spot on the crest. As a result, I got ahead of him as I went to the east to the higher normal crossing point. He saw me and joined me for lunch.
About 1 p.m. we started picking our way down the north side. The first thirty feet were the worst. The snow was mostly melted out but a patch at the top forced us over to the east edge on some fairly tricky rocks. The footing was sort of slippery and made for sort of scary going with our heavy packs. We both made it okay and the balance of the descent was on loose small scree that you could just sort of plunge step down - being careful not to lose your balance, etc.
We made it down in fine shape and stopped at a small pond for a second lunch. I managed to strain the muscles in the top of my legs due to the unusual load I was placing on them. These bothered me some several days later but were no problem on the rest of the descent to Lake Reflection.
We dropped rapidly the almost 2800 feet. The canyon was very pretty and the route easy to follow but it was much steeper than I remembered from years ago when we went up the route. Age does make a difference! As we got near the Lake Reflection Canyon I decided the trail we were following was taking us in the wrong direction. As a result we ended up floundering through the bushes along the creek before getting down to the main trail. (This sort of ticked Jim off as he was wearing shorts.)
We finally got to Lake Reflection about 6 p.m. and were quite tired. After a rest we both went swimming in the relatively warm lake. We made supper and finished it around 7 or so. Then we decided to move to a better campsite on the main part of the lake since we were going to layover the next day. We finished the move in the dark but it was worth it in a better site for the night and the layover.
Sunday was a lazy layover day after the tiring climb down from Harrison Pass. We lazed around, washed clothing, burned trash and enjoyed the scenery. About noon a roving backpacking ranger arrived via the Milly's Foot Pass Trail. He proceeded to breakup all the fire places as Lake Reflection is just above the 10,000 foot no fire limit. In the process he packed up our aluminum foil trash, He is a teacher and has been a Wilderness Ranger for 11 years. We talked about things in general before he headed down to East Lake.
About mid-afternoon I decided to hike up the Milly's Foot Pass Trail for a look see. I took pictures of the route up to Longley Pass for future reference. The ranger said it normally took him four hours. There is no trail but route finding is no problem - just lots of elevation gain. The trail turned into ducks after passing a high campsite next to a spring. At about 10,500 the terrain levels out in a small valley with numerous small campsites. The climb up to the higher lakes and pass looks like work. Back at camp we had our long planned steak dinner. The food was great except I had my usual problem with fried foods and didn't eat much of the steak.
We had decided not to go the original route over Longley Pass since we were so tired so on Monday we headed down to East Lake. The ranger said that East Lake was usually a zoo and we did find quite a few people setting up camp near the outlet. Later we passed a pack train headed into the area. The trail up from Junction Meadow has been worked on and there is now a bridge at the first crossing from west to east side.
We arrived at Junction Meadow about noon and had lunch. We decided to go on down the trail and eventually camped at Charlotte Creek. Once you leave Junction Meadow the campsites are fairly sparse, however there are a number of sites at Charlotte Creek. We took a dip in the creek to wash off trail dust and wash a few cloths. While cooking supper several deer ambled into our campsite apparently undisturbed by our presence. We hung our food from bears for the first time this trip and got a good night's sleep.
Milestone Deck Trek 1981
Milestone Deck Trek 1981
Tuesday we got our usual late start as we continued down Bubbs Creek. The first several miles were through a not very old burned area which was desolate and hot. Not a very good up route but most people seemed to be going that way as they did the Rae Lakes Loop. The area is heavy in ferns which provides cover for the rattlesnakes that inhabit the area. We passed one right next to the trail - even though we had been warned he was there, his rattle scared us and we were much happier when we were out of the ferns and into open forest.
We soon arrived at the Sphinx Creek trail junction - a pleasant spot with several heavily used campsites. From here we dropped on the warm trail down to the junction of Bubbs Creek with the South Fork of the Kings River about three miles from Kings Canyon roadhead. After crossing the steel bridge over the river we stopped for a late lunch.
About 2 p.m. we headed up the river trail and after a pleasant climb arrived at Mist Falls. The falls receive heavy day hike use from the canyon and show the wear and tear. A nice but not spectacular falls. It started to sprinkle as we left the falls but it never developed into much. After more climbing we arrived in Paradise Valley. My mild case of loose bowels didn't help my energy level any and I was beat when I made camp about 6 p.m. Jim and I both took a dip in the river to clean up our bodies and wash socks. We hung food from the bears and after a late supper hit the sack.
Wednesday we decided to layover for much needed rest. We hardly left the tent all day. During the night something, probably a bird, had pecked a hole in the bear bag holding Jim's lunches and eaten part of a Sierra Cookie. It happened again the next night. During the afternoon it decided to rain. We discovered that my cheapo tent had some leaky seams and that heavy rain drops seemed to spray through the top. We had been using a heavy space blanket for a sunshade and it served as a rain fly for one side. We draped an emergency space blanket over the center of the other side and that kept us dry. After a late supper due to the rain we hit the sack.
Thursday we got our usual late start after drying everything out from the day before's rain. We hiked up the pleasant Paradise Valley with its heavy vegetation arriving at the Woods Creek trail junction about noon for lunch. A ranger and pack train came down the trail returning from resupplying a trail crew at Rae Lakes. He relieved us of our trash which we appreciated. We continued up Woods Creek after passing several Boy Scout groups on the trail making camp in the area. About 3 p.m. as we climbed steadily up the well graded Woods Creek trail it started to rain. By the time we reached Castle Rock Meadow it had quit and we made camp above the meadow on a bench next to the creek. Another group was camped below us and there are several small campsites. We hung our food from the bears for the last time this trip and had a pleasant supper.
Friday morning we got up to cloudy sunshine that dried things out and we got a fairly early (for us) start. We soon passed the Rae Lakes turnoff on the John Muir Trail and continued up Woods Creek. As we were eating lunch it started to rain but had stopped by the time we reached the Woods Lake turnoff. We met a lone hiker here who had come from Sawmill Lake. We continued up the steep climb and on over to Woods Lake where we found a nice camp on the north side of the main lake. We rigged for rain and after we went to bed it did rain some more - until about midnight we were told by nearby campers.
Milestone Deck Trek 1981
Saturday the sky was broken clouds but the sun kept breaking through. We got our usual late start and as we were hiking along the lake shore ran into Vic Taylor of Independence. He was burro packing with family - came in over Taboose Pass a week before and were on their way out. After a pleasant chat we headed on up to Sawmill Pass where we ate lunch.
Milestone Deck Trek 1981
We headed on down the other side and soon arrived at Sawmill Meadow. We lucked out and got the best campsite - seems others who had arrived earlier from the roadhead had stopped at the first campsites to the east. We had a nearby spring which supplied cold good water. Vic and his burros arrived later and had to scramble for a campsite at the east end of the meadow. Jim and I both managed to find a place in the creek at the lower end of the meadow to take a bath and wash socks. We thoroughly enjoyed this last night's campsite.
Milestone Deck Trek 1981
Sunday morning we got up lazily as usual and ate a leisurely breakfast. We left about 11 a.m. and stopped for lunch at the last water. About 1:30 we were on our way on the final leg of this hike. As we were charging down the last mile of trail we spotted Jim's parents on their way home after leaving my car at the roadhead. They were looking for the trail and spotted us as we yelled at them. They continued home as we charged down the trail to the car where we arrived about 3 p.m. We really enjoyed the soft seats and motor powered travel as we headed for Jim's house.
The trip was great. I got to see some areas new to me and got to enjoy again some areas visited many years ago. I also lost about 10 pounds and got my body into fairly decent shape. Hope I can keep it that way.
