Tackling the High Sierra Trail

The High Sierra Trail – to Valhalla and Back

Just about everyone has heard of the John Muir Trail. Stretching 212 miles from Yosemite Valley to the summit of Mount Whitney, it traverses some of the most striking areas of the high Sierra. Built between 1915 and 1938, it was designed to make these areas accessible and to honor Muir’s work in protecting the Sierra.

Backpacking the whole trail takes serious physical conditioning and more time than the average person has – at least three weeks and one or two food resupplies along the way.

Less known but no less beautiful is the High Sierra Trail – a 72-mile crossing of the Sierra that includes some of the most impressive features of Sequoia National Park. Beginning on the west side of the park at the Giant Forest, it climbs up through steep canyons into a spectacular granite basin known as Valhalla and then higher over the Great Western Divide at 10,700-foot Kaweah Gap before beginning a 4,300-foot descent into the glacially carved Kern Canyon and then rising dramatically to the 14,508-foot summit of Mount Whitney.

A “sampler” of all the major landscapes, features and elevation zones of Sequoia, the trail was one of the most memorable I’ve ever walked. Most of the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are wilderness, and the best way to see them is on trails like this one.

The route starts at Crescent Meadow, in the southeast corner of the Giant Forest. It climbs gradually at first, and before long, the views are memorable. Three-quarters of a mile beyond the trailhead is Eagle View, a 180-degree vista that includes the Great Western Divide, Castle Rocks, Moro Rock and the middle fork of the Kaweah River. If you want an easy hike, you can turn around here. You could also combine the hike to Eagle View with other nearby short hikes such as Moro Rock, Tharp’s Log or the Giant Forest.

The trail continues along the mountainside beyond Eagle View, reaching Bearpaw High Sierra Camp in about 10 miles.

We crossed about 12 streams in this 10-mile stretch, which had a surprising amount of water flowing, despite the drought. We camped along Buck Creek, 1.3 miles below Bearpaw. Most people we met during the first two days were staying in the tent cabins at Bearpaw and day hiking to other destinations in the area. Although it is 10 miles to Bearpaw, reservations include food, bedding and shelter. All you have to carry is your clothing and personal items.

For information about reservations for the Bearpaw tent cabins, go to http://www.visitsequoia.com/bearpaw.aspx or call 877-436-9615. All backpacking trips within Sequoia National Park require wilderness permits. For more information, go to http://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/wilderness_permits.htm.

Bearpaw sits on a 7,800-foot granite promontory that overlooks the peaks of the Great Western Divide. As we followed the cliffside trail beyond it on our second day, I was astonished by the variety and extent of the wildflowers.

After crossing the steep cascades of Pine Creek on a bridge, the trail begins a climb up the granite into the basin of Upper Hamilton Lake. Rising 1,800 feet above the basin, a massive granite formation known both as “Valhalla” and “The Angel Wings” guards the entrance. In Norse mythology, Valhalla is the great hall where the warriors who die valiantly in battle go to be with Odin.

The name is also often fittingly applied to the whole basin of Upper Hamilton Lake. This is the kind of place you’d expect as a final resting place for Viking warriors. The basin is only 8,200 feet above sea level, but it seems much higher – a granite world in the sky. The mountains around the lake are so vertical and so tall that they had clouds resting on top when we arrived.

If you stay at Bearpaw High Sierra Camp, Upper Hamilton Lake is a moderate day hike. Many people make a three-night backpacking trip out of the first 14 miles of the High Sierra Trail, spending one night on the trail near Bearpaw, a second night at Upper Hamilton and a third on the trail as they return. Because of the popularity of the lake, fires are prohibited and camping is limited to two nights.

We spent the second night of our trip at Upper Hamilton, under one of the best star shows I’ve ever seen. We awoke the next morning in a dense cloud, and by 9 a.m., we had some serious lightning, thunder, rain and hail. We waited out the storm and then followed the cliffside trail above the lake. This section of the trail has some of the best views of the whole High Sierra Trail as you gaze back down at Upper Hamilton and Valhalla. There’s also a place where the trail passes through a tunnel blasted into the side of the cliff.

To be continued next week …

This story was originally published July 21, 2015 at 6:43 PM with the headline "Tackling the High Sierra Trail."