Our friend read about this 51 mile hike in the Sierra’s and we all decided that it sounded like a great trip. We planned to meet them in Mammoth Lakes, Leann wanted to see Mojave National Preserve and best way to do this was fly into Vegas. It was a nice direct flight, we rented a car and got out of town. Leann read about the Hotel Nipton which was near the preserve, it sounded quaint so we decided to give it a try.
We arrived at the hotel after dark, found the key and let ourselves in since a manager is not always on duty. Little strange but we had the place to ourselvesThere is a central room for guests to share and the bed rooms are on the side. Bathroom is shared which I don’t like but that didn’t matter since we were the only guestsWe did some hiking in Mojave and then headed to Mammoth Lakes to meet our friends
Since we had another day before our backpacking permits began we did a day hike to Devil’s Postpile and Rainbow Falls
The postpile, looks like PlaydohRainbow FallsGear check on the night before the trip, lots to carryMost of the hike was in Kings Canyon National Park and Muir Wilderness. We had to do a quick shuttle, left one car at South Lake and then drove to North Lake and the start of the trip.Welcome to the Sierra’s, lots of elevation change for this trip and three really nice passesLoch Leven, no we are not in Scotland but I would like to go some dayYou can see the pass above the last lakePiute LakeAlmost to the passLooking back the way we cameView to where we are headedNice sunset for dinner timeWe lose a lot of elevation today which means we are going to gain a lot on another dayBeautiful morning and weather stayed nice all dayThis part of the trail was on a massive granite slabHeaded down, down, downLooking back to where we campedPiute Creek, almost to campThe quote was from a backpacker we talked to while taking a break. She really liked where we were headed, time will tell.Aspen MeadowWe had to descend to and then hike up Evolution CreekEvolution Creek was one waterfall after another, it was an amazing stretch of trailAfter all the waterfalls you end up in McClure Meadow, classic Sierra sceneLeann on the second to last climb to Evolution LakeEvolution Lake is just over the last little climbHome for the night, our tent is just to the left of the treesI have to agree, Evolution Lake is a special place.Sapphire Lake, I wonder how it got the name?Wanda LakeWe found a fully packed tent around the corner. Somebody was going to be disappointed when they got to campAlmost to Muir PassLeann at Muir Pass, we had lunch in the stone buildingYours trulyHelen LakeMarmots are common in rocky areas out west, they whistleWeather was not looking good as we headed into Goddard Canyon, fortunately it turned out OKSomebody had a lot of time on their handsShort day today but lots of great sceneryThis is one well fed Marmot, he must get treats from backpackers because he was close to the trail and did not run awayOur destination for the night is the lakesI liked this campsite tucked in the rocks and treesWe went for a walk after dinner and took this pictureThe longer days earlier in the trip provided shorter days at the end and more time for exploring around campLast climb to Bishops PassLeann at the passReady to start down the other side, one beautiful lake after anotherLeann on the switchbacksI always wanted a lake front home, this will do.Morning sun on the mountains, awesomeThe Whytes above South LakeSouth lake and the end of another great trip
“The Mountains are Calling and I Must Go” John Muir
