09/03/04 Report: "Trans-Sierra Crossing, Part 3"

This day was, on the map at least, one of the most
formidable.  We would leave Windy Camp at eight and
slowly make our way up the switchbacks to Colby Lake,
a dramatic blue gem set into the timberline cirque
directly below the Great Western Divide.  This divide
is a crest of high peaks that runs parallel to the
main Pacific Crest for about 12 miles.  The deep
canyon of the upper Kern lies between the two.  Some
of the group, myself included, could not resist a dip
in the lake despite the chilly wind blowing down from
Colby Pass.  The trail up to it was steep and rocky,
and for the first time we began to rise above the deep
canyons we had walked along and the general scheme of
the terrain became apparent.  Below and behind us
Cloud Canyon, with Roaring River in its bottom,
stretched northward toward Kings Canyon.  Under our
feet the Great Western Divide rose steeply, extending
to our left and right in huge buttresses and crags of
shattered granite.  About a mile to our north was
Milestone Bowl, which, according to my European
counterpart, is the most remote spot in the Sierra
Nevada; remote being defined by proximity to roads.



At the pass (12000’) we crossed into Sequoia National
Park.  From there we could see the main crest of the
Sierra Nevada rising across the deep Kern Canyon.   We
lunched there and everyone seemed to be handling the
altitude well.  The trail down the other side is steep
and sandy.  We stopped at a little stream that flowed
down from a snowfield high above us.  It is doubtful
that one could find water more pure anywhere.  We
dropped down into the Kern-Kaweah River canyon and
took in the beauty of Gallats Lake.  Called “lake” on
the map, it is now a meadow with the stream meandering
through it, filled up by the constant load of silt
carried in the waters of the river.  Our plan was to
camp there but Jan and I desired to cover a little
more ground before stopping.  As on the previous day,
we were all getting tired and the duty of selecting
the campsite fell to me.  I got out in front of the
lead hikers and anxiously searched for an appropriate
spot.  The topography here was not a challenge but
finding a place free of downed timber that was flat
and afforded a view of the canyon was.  Finally,
minutes before my announced, and guessed at, time of
arrival I walked into a perfect site amongst the
lodgepole pines, situated conveniently beside an
idyllic swimming hole on the river.  I threw down my
pack and jumped in the water and greeted the hikers as
they came in and gratefully recognized the end of
another long day.

photos property of tim bluhm.