Trip Report 9/8-9/11 - Timber Gap > Granite Creek > Hamilton Lake > Little Five Lakes > Black Rock Pass > Glacier Pass >

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st_chris
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Trip Report 9/8-9/11 - Timber Gap > Granite Creek > Hamilton Lake > Little Five Lakes > Black Rock Pass > Glacier Pass >

Post by st_chris »

Started 9/8 at MK ranger station. There were a few other groups heading out same day but we missed most of the Labor Day weekend crowd. AQ was good. Slightly hazy but couldn't smell smoke. Head out via Timber Gap. Lunch at Cliff Creek and then continued north through Redwood Meadow to Granite Creek (first water after Cliff Creek). Stayed there night one.

Continued on day two toward Bearpaw Meadow where we stopped for a break. Continued on through High Sierra Camp to Hamilton Lake. The trail between Bearpaw and Hamilton is spectacular but it's quite a climb up to Hamilton. Got there mid-afternoon and set up camp. Rain rolled in around dinner time. Thunder, lightening, hail, strong winds -- this was the storm that started KNP Complex fire. Lots of dead trees at Hamilton so we were worried about trees falling with the wind. Luckily, no issues. Rain and wind continued through the night.

Day three hit trail towards Precipice Lake. Still cloudy but no rain. Made for mild climb up to Kaweah Gap. Break at Precipice. Over Kaweah Gap and into Big Arroyo. Hiked down to Big Arroyo JCT. Lunch break. Cut southwest towards Little Five. Difficult day. The hike from Big Arroyo JCT to Little Five is quite a climb and was tough after doing Kaweah Gap earlier same day. Arrived at Little Five early evening. Intermittent showers all day but no heavy rain fall.

Set out day four over Black Rock Pass. Climb is not bad from Little Five so long as you're fresh. Took just over an hour to reach the top. Break on top of BRP. The plan was to head down to Pinto and on to Cliff Creek JCT for the night and then out Timber Gap the following day. We noticed that Cliff Creek/Timber Gap area was enveloped in smoke (probably from recently started fires in the area combined with Walkers Fire). Decided to change plans and head half way down the other side of BRP and then cut over to Spring Lake, take a break and then over Glacier Pass to get out a day early given worsening smoke conditions. After break at Spring Lake, began climb towards Glacier Pass. Trail is clear about 70% of the way up and then it becomes a scramble over granite boulders to get into position for the final ascent. Last 5% is marked with trail markers so it's pretty clear how you need to approach. Getting over Glacier does require the use of your hands for balance but it's not as difficult as it looks from a distance. Cut over to Sawtooth Pass switchbacks and descended to Monarch Lakes. Took a break at Monarch and exited Sawtooth Pass trailhead. Crushed a burger at Silver City before heading back down the mountain.

Evacuation order for Mineral King was issued following day so we made it out just in time. Glad we trusted our gut and got out a day early. Had a great time. Despite the drought, the only section where we really had to be careful about water was between Cliff Creek and Granite Creek. Mosquitos were a non-issue.
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gary c.
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Re: Trip Report 9/8-9/11 - Timber Gap > Granite Creek > Hamilton Lake > Little Five Lakes > Black Rock Pass > Glacier Pa

Post by gary c. »

Thanks for your report.
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Harlen
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Re: Trip Report 9/8-9/11 - Timber Gap > Granite Creek > Hamilton Lake > Little Five Lakes > Black Rock Pass > Glacier Pa

Post by Harlen »

Nice trip st_chris. That is a wonderful rute, full of highlight mountain views. We hope you had the amazing views of sunrise on Angel Wings, and sunset on the Kaweahs from Little 5. We're glad you got out there, any photos coming?
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st_chris
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Re: Trip Report 9/8-9/11 - Timber Gap > Granite Creek > Hamilton Lake > Little Five Lakes > Black Rock Pass > Glacier Pa

Post by st_chris »

Image
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st_chris
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Re: Trip Report 9/8-9/11 - Timber Gap > Granite Creek > Hamilton Lake > Little Five Lakes > Black Rock Pass > Glacier Pa

Post by st_chris »

Sorry, not exactly sure how to post picture here.

Here are some links:

Hamilton Lake: https://imgur.com/gallery/79sImNL

Precipice Lake: https://imgur.com/gallery/LDkPvJ9

Big Arroyo: https://imgur.com/gallery/4EfOxbv

Big Arroyo again: https://imgur.com/gallery/9l23fch

Little Five: https://imgur.com/gallery/23oCVLc
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Harlen
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Re: Trip Report 9/8-9/11 - Timber Gap > Granite Creek > Hamilton Lake > Little Five Lakes > Black Rock Pass > Glacier Pa

Post by Harlen »

Nice shots st_chris. Docent extraordinaire rlown may have time to advise you, as he did me long ago, on the photo loading process.

I now am first getting the images onto Google Photos, editing them there, then I hit "Download all," and that sends them back to an accessible part of my computer, where I can add them into my TRs. It's a long and tedious process, and I can't explain it well, being a techno-peasant. Good Luck.
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Re: Trip Report 9/8-9/11 - Timber Gap > Granite Creek > Hamilton Lake > Little Five Lakes > Black Rock Pass > Glacier Pa

Post by rlown »

Copy your image to your desktop or wherever you store your pictures. In the posting editor, select attachments and add files. open the file from there.

Make sure your cursor in the editor is where you want to place it. The editor sometimes puts it in the wrong place if you don't pick a clear place to drop the file.

Hit "place inline" and it will be included. There are size restrictions so I try and keep my pics at 1Mb.
79sImNL.jpeg
Hit preview to make sure your pictures show before hitting submit.

Trip reports should be put in the Backpacking section. This section is mainly for backcountry conditions.
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st_chris
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Re: Trip Report 9/8-9/11 - Timber Gap > Granite Creek > Hamilton Lake > Little Five Lakes > Black Rock Pass > Glacier Pa

Post by st_chris »

Copy that. Thanks for the help. Will post trip reports in the Backpacking section next time.
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