Early-season Sierra trip
On a trip to the Sierra last week, we knew the lengthening days before the summer solstice would provide extra hours of light for hiking, fishing and other outdoor pursuits.
We took advantage of the super-long days, but didn’t realize that winter was still lingering in the Eastern Sierra. We also discovered that mid-June is still shoulder season in Mammoth Lakes — post-ski-but-not-quite-summer.
A day hike in the John Muir Wilderness to Duck Pass was cut short, thanks to deep piles of snow submerging the trail between Barney Lake and the pass. It’s hard to believe the Sierra snowpack was only 67% of normal in May. We ran into plenty on the trail, despite temperatures in the 70s.
It’s about five miles to the 10,797-foot pass and 1,677 feet of gain — a hefty day hike in the best of conditions, with scenic stops along the way at Skelton and Barney lakes.
The two miles of trail from the trailhead at Coldwater Campground (elevation, 8,900 feet) to Skelton Lake had easily-navigable snow patches.
We had Skelton Lake (right) pretty much to ourselves. We took a rest stop and eyed trout in the shallows of the ultra-clear water. We had fly-fishing gear but decided to hike on.
Then it was on to Barney, where we caught colorful brook trout using a variety of beadhead nymphs. The view of Duck Pass (saddle in middle of photo below) was enticing, and getting there looked deceptively simple.
But continuing past Barney became too much of a chore. Hiking poles were a must to navigate snow piles on the trail (the snow sucked off the basket of one of my poles, never to be found again), but we didn’t have crampons. We eventually got tired of constantly picking up the trail, losing it in the snow and trying to keep on track.
The return hike was much easier, by following our snow-steps. We fly-fished on the way back and, although the creek along the trail was mostly raging, we were able to find some fishable pools where we caught and released teensy brown trout.
On another day, a hike to Shadow Lake in the Ansel Adams Wilderness was more easily navigated. The road to Devil’s Postpile opened the previous week, so we took the mandatory shuttle to the trailhead at Agnew Meadows. From there, the River Trail treated us to waterfall views.
The San Joaquin River was flowing hard and we were swarmed by mosquitoes in the boggier sections. Three miles in, Shadow Creek (below) was fast and furious as it entered Shadow Lake.
At the lake (bottom) we were treated to views of Mount Ritter (13,143’) and Banner Peak (12,936’) and picnicked on giant boulders along the shore. We got skunked fishing, and headed back to catch the last bus from Agnew at about 8 p.m. Stopping at the Village at Mammoth, we figured we’d pick up some dinner to go but even the Pita Pit — always reliable for a late-night snack — was closed. At 8:30 p.m.! Skunked again.
Things will definitely be picking up at Mammoth heading into July 4 weekend, but several campgrounds are still closed (Coldwater and Lake Mary, for example).
If we’d read the Inyo National Forest website more closely, we’d have seen that there was still snow above 9,500 feet. Oops. Most area streams have hit peak runoff, so fishing should really improve. A good place to check for updates is the Trout Fly in Mammoth.
—Julie Sheer
Photos by Julie Sheer
