TR: Sabrina Basin Oct 24-26th
Posted: Mon Oct 30, 2017 10:20 am
Along with a long time backpacking buddy, I took advantage of the incredible fall weather last week (Oct 24-26) to explore more of the Lake Sabrina Basin. We got a mid-day start on Tuesday and headed up the trail to Blue Lake. Our original plan was to head to Moonlight Lake via the normal trails but as we approached the Donkey Lake/Dingleberry Lake trail junction we decided to look for an XC route from Baboon Lakes to Moonlight - essentially, the "pass" between peak 12,138' and 12,486'. The approach to the pass from the east was pleasant XC travel, and the views from the top were fantastic. Getting down into the Moonlight/Echo Lake drainage proved more challenging. Without much daylight left in the day, we needed to make good (and lucky) decisions on route finding to avoid getting cliffed out. But as often happens in the Sierra, a route gradually presented itself to us - a mixture of slabs, ramps, class 3 downclimbs, and enjoyable skree skiing.
We made it to the optimal campsite on the peninsula of Sailor Lake just as the crescent moon appeared over Picture Peak. I slept outside the tent, enjoying the bug-free conditions, and amazingly woke up without any frost on my bag.
Day two's objective was to check out Haeckel Col. I lead a group of early teens on a backpacking trip every summer, and I wanted to recon Haeckel Col as a possible route into Evolution Basin for the group next summer.
Documentation on the col recommended Midnight Lake as a starting point. We were at Sailor Lake, on the other side of the ridge between the two lakes. Didn't seem necessary to hike over to Midnight just to start the route so we gained the ridge from Sailor Lake. Having read beta emphasizing the importance of staying to the left of the final ridge protrusion, we erred too far on the side of caution by staying left from the beginning of the ridge. That put us into the much more difficult cliffs and gullies along the side of the ridge facing Hungry Packer Lake, and we wasted much time putting the ridge behind us.
But, once we did, the route to Haeckel Col became obvious - although the travel over talus was less than enjoyable at times. The distinctive shape of the rock denoting the col made it easy to find, and we were "on top" by mid-day. We then retraced our steps back to the ridge that had given us trouble in the morning. Motivated to find the correct route, we explored the area around the rocky protrusion at the end of the ridge, eventually finding what we believe was the path of least resistance. With some time to spare, we decided to take the ridge down the Midnight Lake, and then return to Sailor Lake via trails.
Thursday morning dawned bright and cold, until the sun hit us. This day, we decided to climb to the top of Mt. Wallace so we headed up the ridge between Moonlight and Hungry Packer, and then onto the slopes above Echo Lake. We took full advantage of the various snowfields to speed our approach to the saddle between Wallace and Haeckel. There were times when I wish I had brought my micro-spikes but, for the most part, the snow travel was pleasant.
When we got to the north side of Wallace, we exited the snow field and began the climb. The biggest challenge was to link together a route that allowed us to stay on larger rock/talus and to stay away from the smaller rock/skree. I think we probably were east of the recommended north face route, which probably made the approach steeper, looser, and less enjoyable. By the time we got to the summit block, we were definitely on the east side, and, from there, the final ten feet' exceeded our skill level. I thought I could get up it but I was not sure I could down climb it. I thought about descending slightly to get to the other side of the summit block in order to find an easier way on top of it but decided instead to just enjoy my lunch from a comfortable perch, with great views. The visibility was the best I've ever seen in the Sierra - no smoke, haze, etc... Had to be clear for 100s of miles. No wind, no clouds, just simply incredible conditions.
The down climb was uneventful and we soon found ourselves back at Sailor Lake. We broke camp by 3pm and then headed down the usual trails back to Sabrina for the long drive home, interrupted only by a plate of fish tacos at Whoa Nellie.
I'll try to add some photos to this TR when I have some time to upload them.
We made it to the optimal campsite on the peninsula of Sailor Lake just as the crescent moon appeared over Picture Peak. I slept outside the tent, enjoying the bug-free conditions, and amazingly woke up without any frost on my bag.
Day two's objective was to check out Haeckel Col. I lead a group of early teens on a backpacking trip every summer, and I wanted to recon Haeckel Col as a possible route into Evolution Basin for the group next summer.
Documentation on the col recommended Midnight Lake as a starting point. We were at Sailor Lake, on the other side of the ridge between the two lakes. Didn't seem necessary to hike over to Midnight just to start the route so we gained the ridge from Sailor Lake. Having read beta emphasizing the importance of staying to the left of the final ridge protrusion, we erred too far on the side of caution by staying left from the beginning of the ridge. That put us into the much more difficult cliffs and gullies along the side of the ridge facing Hungry Packer Lake, and we wasted much time putting the ridge behind us.
But, once we did, the route to Haeckel Col became obvious - although the travel over talus was less than enjoyable at times. The distinctive shape of the rock denoting the col made it easy to find, and we were "on top" by mid-day. We then retraced our steps back to the ridge that had given us trouble in the morning. Motivated to find the correct route, we explored the area around the rocky protrusion at the end of the ridge, eventually finding what we believe was the path of least resistance. With some time to spare, we decided to take the ridge down the Midnight Lake, and then return to Sailor Lake via trails.
Thursday morning dawned bright and cold, until the sun hit us. This day, we decided to climb to the top of Mt. Wallace so we headed up the ridge between Moonlight and Hungry Packer, and then onto the slopes above Echo Lake. We took full advantage of the various snowfields to speed our approach to the saddle between Wallace and Haeckel. There were times when I wish I had brought my micro-spikes but, for the most part, the snow travel was pleasant.
When we got to the north side of Wallace, we exited the snow field and began the climb. The biggest challenge was to link together a route that allowed us to stay on larger rock/talus and to stay away from the smaller rock/skree. I think we probably were east of the recommended north face route, which probably made the approach steeper, looser, and less enjoyable. By the time we got to the summit block, we were definitely on the east side, and, from there, the final ten feet' exceeded our skill level. I thought I could get up it but I was not sure I could down climb it. I thought about descending slightly to get to the other side of the summit block in order to find an easier way on top of it but decided instead to just enjoy my lunch from a comfortable perch, with great views. The visibility was the best I've ever seen in the Sierra - no smoke, haze, etc... Had to be clear for 100s of miles. No wind, no clouds, just simply incredible conditions.
The down climb was uneventful and we soon found ourselves back at Sailor Lake. We broke camp by 3pm and then headed down the usual trails back to Sabrina for the long drive home, interrupted only by a plate of fish tacos at Whoa Nellie.
I'll try to add some photos to this TR when I have some time to upload them.