Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

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UtterDev
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Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by UtterDev »

Hello, new user here. We are flying from Seattle to SF, CA on Friday with plans to hike Saturday, June 26 to June 28. Originally we had planned to do the Burst Rock Trail & Crabree Trail loop, a 22.4 mile loop in the Emigramt Wilderness. Due to the possibility of snowy conditions we are looking into possible alternatives, so i thought I'd post on here to see if anyone has any good ideas.

What level of backpacking experience do you have?
Level 2- Some backpacking trips, using trails
Have done mostly well worn trails such as Wonderland, segments of PCT, Washington's Cascades and Olympics. The only California hike I've done is the Benson Lake loop
http://www.sierra-trails.com/benson/benson01.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

What terrain are you comfortable/uncomfortable with?
- Class 1 terrain/trail hiking
(river crossings and snow patches are fine, but we are trying to take it easy this weekend and not make it a huge adventure)

What is your main interest?
- Lakes
- Forests
- Big Mountain scenery
- Fishing
Looking for the ideal trip that has it all. Most of our backpacking trips have had a nice mix.

How many days/nights is your trip, not including travel to trailhead?
3 days, 2 nights

How many miles did you want to do a day, any layovers?
25 miles

Did you prefer a loop or out and back trip?
Prefer loop, but open to out/back.

Is there a particular area in the Sierra that your most interested in(Yosemite, SEKI
western sierra start or eastern start ect.)?
Due to time constraints, being within 5 hours of SF would be preferable.

Will you be hiking with a dog? Nope.

Thanks!
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UtterDev
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Re: Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by UtterDev »

Whoops, that was meant to be around 25 miles total.
So miles per day, 8-9. But anything up to and around 10 is acceptable.
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maverick
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Re: Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by maverick »

Hi Utterdev
Welcome to HST.
Just to early for the higher stuff in Yosemite, and SEKI has nothing worth doing
yet, especially for 2 nights.
You might consider Rancheria Falls in Yosemite, but expect crowds, and skeetrz.
Another is Glen Aulin where you could base camp, and hike down to Waterwheel
Falls, which will be booming, best it has been in maybe 10 years or more.
The only thing is that you will have some snow in TM meadows to start, and there will
be some major flooding in some sections that may be difficult, but if you have never
been there it would be well worth the effort.
By the way your Northern Yosemite Loop is a great trip, one of my favorite areas
in Yosemite.
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Re: Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by rlown »

Glen Aulin is nice, and the water will be exciting. The only rub there is the reservation permits are full for 6/26, so if you were going to get a permit for the Glen, you'd have to be at the permit station really, really early for a walk-in permit.

I did the Gianelli cabin/burst rock loop, i think in '82 or '83 in August. There was still a good foot of snow through Whitesides Meadow with 5' drifts in the trees over the trail. I know, August, and there were a LOT of mosquitos. There were also some stream crossings that i don't really want to remember with the run-off. Edit: forgot to mention that the road to Gianelli and Crabtree probably aren't normally plowed, hence call ahead.

Best thing to do is pick some areas you might be interested in, call the ranger station (tomorrow) who would issue permits, and check on conditions before you commit to a drive to a destination.
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Re: Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by SSSdave »

Those two trailheads might be closed due to snow on their dirt roads but the paved road to nearby Dodge Ridge Ski area (6400 feet) would certainly be open. Even at worst if the road to Crabtree Road is gated or blocked you could hike from the ski area up the road to Aspen Meadow Trailhead (7043 feet) then down to the Bell Meadow trailhead (6600 feet) that actually has a good chance of being open because its lower elevation. From there a destination could be the set of 5 small Chain Lakes at 7.5k that nicely sit atop a ridge with good distant views. Being open to the sun most of the day, that whole ridge top zone ought be melted out. The only water crossing would be Bell Creek at Bell Meadows that ought not be that difficult a ford as the basin above is limited.

http://mapper.acme.com/?ll=38.17114,-119.91337&z=14&t=T" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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Re: Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by rlown »

For Emigrant Wilderness, try this (i know it looks hideous, but the FS assures me their sites are in flux at the moment and if this doesn't work, google (stanislaus emigrant wilderness):

http://fs.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsinterne ... Wilderness" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The contact number for Emigrant is:

Stanislaus National Forest
19777 Greenley Road
Sonora, CA 95370

(209) 532-3671

If the roads aren't open, you basically have to have a plan B.
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Re: Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by Mike M. »

You might try the Ten Lakes loop in Yosemite, north of Highway 120. It's a pretty hike. There should be good camping near the lake, but you will encounter some snow along your route.

Mike
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Re: Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by UtterDev »

A big thanks to everyone for the suggestions. We are currently looking into some of the alternative hikes you have suggested. This is a great board, much appreciated. I may follow-up with a couple questions later today.
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Re: Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by UtterDev »

Update....

We ended up driving to Emigrant to see what we could find and maybe do SSSDave's suggested hikes. On the way, we stopped at the Stanislaus Forest Service station and a volunteer there talked us into doing a loop in the Carson-Iceberg wilderness because the conditions were better.

We hiked from Sand Flat campground along Arnot Creek to Lower Gardner meadow (just short of PCT). Then we hiked back along Disaster Creek until the turnoff to Paradise Valley. Took that trail almost to Paradise Valley and then almost to the PCT, and then doubled back and hiked back out to the Iceberg Meadow parking lot. Considering it was a back-up hike that we only learned about the day-of, its was a great loop with uncountable opportunities to summit minor peaks and get some great views. Ended up being 30+ miles, and due to the early season conditions we spent about half of those miles off trail.

In 3 days we only saw one other backpacking group, but we saw 3 groups of horse riders.
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Re: Emigrant Wilderness (or Alternative), This weekend, 6/26-6/2

Post by balzaccom »

Great solution. I've always kept that route in the back of my mind for the time that our planned hike hasn't worked out---but haven't done it yet.

How was the fishing?
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