Summiting Forester Pass
 |
| Sunrise from Forester Pass trail looking north |
Monday, July 16
We can
see the notch in the mountains that Forester Pass takes 1000 feet above where
we are camped and I am itching to get to the top of this much talked about
pass. At 13,180 feet, it’s a 1000 feet
higher than any other pass we have crossed so far and it’s the last pass we encounter
before we ascend Mt. Whitney. I woke up
real early this morning, an hour before sunrise to one coldest nights yet and I
wanted to get moving just to warm-up. The
wind died down, but I am sure the temperatures were in the low 30’s. I decided to start exploring the trail that
goes up the pass. In addition to wanting
to get warm, I had two other reasons as well.
One, I was hoping to get some good pictures of the sunrise from a higher
vantage point. Secondly, I wanted to get
some peaceful time around the lake before the scout troop wakes up. Man those kids were noisy last night. Those young teenage boys were bickering and cackling
so much it reminded me of one of watching one of those sea lion colonies on the
Nature Channel. Those men who are taking
those boys up here are saints – well either that or they are deaf. I should be used to it, because that is how many
of my students behave, but I would have told them to can it. I sneak past the scout troop and start
walking up the trail with my camera and tripod.
The sun slowly rises on our mountain enclave and I had a nice time
waiting for it and taking pictures.
 |
| An hiking up Forester Pass |
|
 |
| Scout Troop heading up pass |
An and
I start hiking around 8:30 am. The sun
is already shining on the lake at this but we are still dressed in layers and
it feels good to get moving with our packs on.
We can see the scout troop already halfway up the pass so they must have
packed up quickly. I am now very acclimated
to the altitude and An is in good shape too, because he is never far behind
me. We quickly catch up to the troop and
they marvel at how easily we are able to hike up the pass. This reminded me of the second day when I marveled
the same way at a north bond hiker on Donahue Pass. The troop is doing a good job up here too and
before long we are all at the top. Just
before the top, I pass my camera to An to video and commemorate my assent of
Forester Pass. Yes, we are having fun
now.
 |
| Views from the top |
The
other side of Forester Pass holds the widest u-shaped glacial valley I have yet
seen. We hike down five miles and have
lunch just below the tree line at Tyndal Creek.
I survey the creek for fish, but I didn’t see anything. I have been out here quite a long time now
and I admit that at times I miss the comforts of home. All this hiking can get
tiring out. It would be nice to home with Amy, cooking dinner in our kitchen,
eating at our table or sitting in the family room watching a movie with the
puppies climbing on us. Just a few more
days now out here, and I need to enjoy what I have left.
 |
| Is that glacier making a smiley face? |
 |
| Glacial boulder left high and dry |
 |
| Wide Glacial Valley |
 |
| Approaching the tree line of Fox Tail Pines |
 |
| 16 more miles to Mt. Whitney, We should be up there the day after tomorrow. |
We hike down some more and run into
a northbound PCT hiker who goes by Thomas – his real name. He said that a few years ago someone gave him
the trail name of Deacon, but that was too weighty so he prefers Thomas. Thomas was a gem. He asked us if there was anything that we
needed. We thanked him and told him we
were fine, but he insisted and seeing my war torn bandaged fingers asked me if
he could help. He seemed so genuine that
I didn’t want to refuse him and acquiesced. He took out some lanolin, sheep’s
wool and white tape and did a real good job.
He asked us if we minded if he said a prayer for all of us. We said sure and he said a prayer. Thank-you Thomas, and God bless you.
 |
| Scout troop with Fox Tail Pines in the background |
 |
| Lush fox tails draping down |
We camp
a few more miles down the trail at Wright Creek. We caught wind that the scout troop would be
a camped a mile further down at Wallace Creek and we figured that a mile of
buffer between their noise and us would be fine. It was still early in the afternoon; and the
weather was still awesome so we decided to nap for an hour or so. Still hoping to do some fishing I explored
the creek. There were fish in there, but
nothing over six inches so we walked over to Wallace Creek. There was not much in there either, so
fishing would have to wait another day.
.
No comments:
Post a Comment