I was luckily able to get my first three nights reserved online, and was able to add the last night as a walkup at the WIC on Thursday morning at 8:30. There was no line to enter the park, I think mostly due to the weather, views were going to be minimal from Sunrise with cloudy and chilly conditions.
Day 1
Sunrise VC to James Camp
11.21 mi, 1949 ft gain, 3809 ft loss
I passed only a few people in the fog towards the five-way intersection, and then only 3 other people the whole way from there to James Camp. I stopped at the viewpoint just after Grand Park for lunch and waited to see if the mountain would come out. It did, partially. From the viewpoint down to the White River is all through the trees.
There were 15 blowdowns, all fairly simple to get over or around. The path to cross the log bridges over the White River isn't always clear, and if it feels like you're lost, you're probably going the right way.
Day 2
James Camp to Natural Bridge to the top of Yellowstone Cliffs near Tyee Peak to Cataract Valley
12.33 mi, 3300 ft gain, 3300 ft loss
There were 32 blowdowns in this section. The vast majority were very easy to step over or around. I had to take my pack off to get under one, and another a few miles later presented a challenge, but nothing too difficult.
Day 3
Cataract Valley through Spray Park to Mowich Lake
6.63 miles, 1947 ft gain, 1518 ft loss
Day 3 total w/ Tolmie Peak
13.3 mi, 2827 ft gain, 2395 ft loss
The snow at the top of the Spray Park trail is no problem to cross with just shoes and trekking poles. I made it to Mowich Lake around 1:30 and set up camp. Then headed up to Tolmie Peak for the afternoon. I sat in the shade at the fire lookout for a while, then went over to the true peak. The path looks pretty sketchy from the lookout, but it's not as bad as it looks. The views are better from the lookout though. Then I went back to the lookout and just basked in the solitude. I watched some deer splash in Eunice Lake and run back out before I could get my phone out and get a picture. I went back down to Mowich Lake after dinner.
Day 4
Mowich Lake through Knapsack Pass to Mt. Pleasant to Mystic Lake
12.16 Mi, 4290 ft gain, 3670 ft loss
The path up to Knapsack Pass is relatively nice in the morning, while it's still in the shade. It's definitely an unmaintained trail, and it's steep, but the view from up there is worth every step, even with camping gear. looking out into this basin or back out over Mowich Lake is incredible.
Next was several hours of picking my way across the rocks. There was a well-defined trail for the majority of the way between Knapsack Pass Mt. Pleasant, but it was broken up by many sections of pick-your-own-way across the boulders. Sometimes there were great cairns, sometimes there were difficult to spot cairns, and often there were none. It's not too difficult if you just keep your destination in sight. I wouldn't recommend this to someone without experience in this kind of environment, simply due to the current remoteness, but this is a phenomenal experience if you do this kind of travel regularly. The views in this basin are unreal. My only regret here is having to bring my heavy bag and not being able to do it as a day hike.
Then I went up to Mt. Pleasant from the intersection without my pack. Ants were swarming up there, not very pleasant. And I accidentally left my bug net down in my bag, so I took a few pictures and kept going. The way back down to the Carbon River was very nice, the bridge was fun again, then the period of absolute misery began.
The climb up out of the Carbon River Valley in the full afternoon sun was brutal. I was carrying 2.5L of water up this stretch, and while I was cursing the weight, it was absolutely necessary in the heat. Mystic Lake is lovely, but I was exhausted. I set up camp and passed right out.
Day 5
Mystic Lake to Skyscraper Mountain to Fremont Lookout to Shadow Lake to Sunrise VC
12.95 mi 3498 ft gain 2677 ft loss
I made it down to Garda Falls, filled up my water, and started the climb up to Skyscraper Mountain. This was a much nicer climb, mostly in the morning shade. Got some more water at Granite Creek, then proceeded to the top. Excellent views up here, and this time I remembered my bug net! Then back down and over towards the 5-way again. I arrived there at 1:30, with tons of time to spare and some gas left in the tank, so I went up to the Fremont Lookout. I'm really glad I did! It was awesome to cap off this hike by looking at almost the whole route from above.
Then, leaving most of the tourists behind again, I took the Wonderland back down to Sunrise VC, past Shadow Lake.
Comments