[Maryanne]The plan for today was (now) to get from Precipice lake, through Big Arroyo and on to Moraine Lake. While the map indicated about 10 miles, the park signs showed 13 miles. We rose early, early enough for Kyle to appreciate the stars, leaving by 7:20am and started the hike over Kaweah Gap (rising just 200 feet from the camp site – and after the previous day it seemed quite reasonable and a relief). At the top of the gap we found a plaque commemorating the parks founder Steven Mather (apparently there is one in every National Park).
An early start but soon the sun was out - along with this adorable marmot
From the pass we started the descent into the Big Arroyo Valley. Here the red and green of the Sequoias looked spectacular against white rock and with beautiful blue sky above. It was also hot, with the sun beating down on us, but the walk was (aside from the heavy packs) a pleasant stroll down to the Junction at about 9,560’. A couple that we had played tag with for the last day or so, left for a different trail at the junction – their trail went down while ours then climbed back to around 10,600’ – a long relentless climb. Eventually we made the top and had lunch for a rest, before a nice descent to Moraine Lake. While Moraine Lake isn’t technically on the High Sierra Trail, most take this slight detour as it is simply more pleasant (views) than the official trail.
A break for lunch
On route to Moraine lake we came across a dramatic cliff top area with stunning views down into a valley – we took another 30 minutes to just enjoy it.
Another excuse for a break - wow!
Moraine lake lies at 9,300 feet. We arrived late, and two solo hikers were buddied up and had already made camp. They were looking relaxed and ready for company. While we were more willing to climb into bed – we did make some time to chat, and found Julio and Greg great company. Since they were travelling in the same direction, and a similar speed as us, we expected we’d see each other again.
We did make it to the lake early enough to actually bathe in the lake (cool, not toooo cold).
Camping by Moraine Lake
Despite our altitude, there were plenty of distant higher mountains reflecting in the lake, and we enjoyed a nice sunset, a hot meal, and were starting to feel quite proud of our modest achievements.
[Maryanne]From Bearpaw Meadow we planned to walk to Arroyo Junction (the next valley over) which, depending on which mileage you believed, was either 9.3 or 12 miles away (again the map was wrong, it was 12 miles).
Having expected to feel the chill of our first night in the tent, we were both surprised to wake up warm (great plus for the tent and gear we had).
The day’s hike started with a long descent (from 7,800’ to 7,300’) to a river crossing, and then a steep UP, with blasted trails up to Hamilton Lake, and then yet more UP, steeper still, 2,200 feet of tough climb under a blazing sun.
Hamilton lake is a popular spot to either camp or to take a lunch break and have a swim. By the time we reached there, we realized we were so behind time, we kept on walking, quite envious of those enjoying the cool waters.
Scenes from Day 2
During this final climb, we passed and were passed by the same groups, all grumbling about the effort while enjoying the views.
With the heavy packs and at altitude we were lucky to make a mile/hour. Taking a picture was as much an excuse for a rest as an opportunity to capture yet another spectacular view.
This day was a TOUGH day. On the steepest part, I became so aware that my struggle to cope with the altitude, the heavy pack and the steep climb, that basically my fitness level was holding us back from the ‘goal’ of the day that I cried with frustration and felt totally overwhelmed. Kyle was awesome and encouraging, but boy! What had we done!!! To ourselves!!!
During the Climb from Hamilton lakes it became clear we would not make our intended destination by dark, so we negotiated a change of plan, and decided to stop at the top of the climb at Precipice Lake, about 3 miles short of the plan. (Luckily the plan for the following day had been for a short day, so it was easy to ‘steal’ time from that day)
Eventually reaching Precipice Lake and we were fed and tucked up in the tent for sunset
Precipice lake is stunning in its own right – a giant granite wall, beautifully reflected in the water. The lake is surrounded by granite boulders and suitable camp spots were difficult to find (as was any privacy). Patches of snow still hung on the cliff walls, and as expected the lake water was COLD. At just over 10,300 feet we were getting winded just setting up the tent.
At each nightly stop, Kyle would fetch and filter enough water for our evening meal, breakfast and the following day of hiking, while I prepared the cooking area and started dinner.
Overnight it was cold and very gusty. We noticed in the morning that other campers had even moved their tents in the night to better protect themselves from the wind, but we remained warm in the tent and sleeping bags, feeling snug and even throwing off covers at times.
If you recall we had planned to stop at Arroyo Junction this night. Later we heard that a loose pack mule kept all the campers there awake as it kept walking through with its bell clanging all night long – our exhaustion and early stop, turned out to be a lucky break.
[Maryanne]From our hotel we invested in a BIG breakfast (expecting to eat very basic food on the trail itself, this would be our last chance). To get to the trail from the hotel (even though our hotel is within the park) without a car, we needed to rely on park transportation which involved a bus from the Wuksachi hotel to the Lodgepole Visitor center, then on to another bus to the Giant Sequoia Museum, and finally a 3rd bus to the Crescent Meadow Trailhead – a distance of maybe 10 miles, and a journey time of 1.5 hours. Since the buses didn’t even start until 8:00, this meant we would not get the early start we’d like, but at least left plenty of time for breakfast.
Before we start - feeling fresh and ready
At the trail head and our first giant Sequoia trees
The goal for day 1 is a 12 mile (up hill) hike – starting at 6600’ and we need to reach 7500’ via a ridge called Eagle View with a view of Kaweah Canyon and switchbacks at the end to Bearpaw meadow. We arrived a little after 6pm, leaving time to setup camp and eat before dark. Aside from the ‘hikers camp’ Bearpaw meadow also has a swanky catered private campsite with supplies delivered via mule train, one of which we had to pass as it descended and we climbed. That site had amazing views down into the valley, but we were tired enough and happy to just rest up and put all our gear to work – so we didn’t begrudge them their spectacular views at all.
Scenes from Day 1 on the HST
We saw our first deer as we arrived, but they were readily spooked by us.
By the end of the first day we were both feeling a little overwhelmed by what we’d taken on. It wasn’t as easy as we imagined, and we were both happy that our requests for a John Muir Trail permit failed (i.e. we were not at day one of a 25 day hike – only an 8/9 day hike). Kyle came to understand that the map (from which we’d done our planning) had incorrect mileage (always indicating shorter distances), and we ended up hiking much further than the planning had anticipated. It was nice to have something other than our lack of fitness to blame for our tired legs.
[Maryanne]2016 also brought along with it my 50th Birthday. I wanted to do something memorable, and for some crazy reason decided it would be hiking the JMT (John Muir Trail). After months of planning, it eventually came time to apply for our permits for the JMT. It turned out all our attempts to get a permit for the trail failed – so we came up with plan B – a shorter hike (the High Sierra Trail), that ended at the same point on the JMT – atop Mount Whitney. Mt Whitney is 14,505 feet / 4,421m / 2.7 miles high (over 3 times taller than Ben Nevis in Scotland), its the kind of place where the air is so thin, that breathing is a noticeable effort (but not so bad that you need oxygen, you just have to take it easy).
Planning for this trip (both in its original and eventual form) involved checking over our camping gear (and updating it). Testing out food suitable for the trail, stoves, and so much more. We did practice hikes locally, and at altitude, often while deliberately carrying loaded packs. We’d be as ready as we could manage in the short windows of time we have to do so.
Getting to the High Sierra Trail (HST) from Oakland without a car is not so straight forward, we needed 2 days of travel and two nights of hotels (a small luxury given the tent that would be home after that). We took the train from Jack London Square to Hanford, where we caught an Amtrak bus to Visalia. We arrived in Visalia too late to catch any of the park buses, so we spent the night in another hotel. Looking forward to a good meal, we found an Indian restaurant which had great reviews, but once we had ordered discovered that the chef had gone home, the owner was cooking, and he could not make some of the sides we’d requested; given that, the meal was expectedly mediocre.
Sharing the journey from Hanford to Visalia, and as it happens also the same hotel, were other hikers clearly also headed for the HST, but they must have taken an earlier bus in the morning to the park, as we were the only ones with packs as we boarded the bus to the Sequoia National Park. Once on the bus, we quickly realized the significance of arriving on Labor Day weekend; it took almost 2 hours just to get through the line to enter the park. This was the park’s busiest weekend in the year, oh boy!
Once in the park, we still had some distance to go, and we were eventually dropped off at Lodgepole visitor center, where we were able to pick up our permit, and then await another bus (another LONG line) to our hotel. From the hotel check-in, we were directed to yet another building which we discovered was up hill, so we got our first taste of climbing with our packs; it felt miserable; it did not seem fun. We decided to dump our packs in the room and take a short hike with simply day packs through the forest, while contemplating the week ahead of us.
We took a short hike once we finally arrived in the park
[Kyle]At long last, it was finally here - my last trip at work. It seemed like such a long time since Maryanne and I first figured out a plan that would allow us to retire early and go sailing wherever we wanted. Back then it was in the very distant future - too far away to think of in tangible terms. As the time passed I would count down to retirement days in years, and days, and even number of commutes as the date drew nearer. Slowly I'd watch the four digit number of days decline to three digits and then two. Even so, in a way it seems to have sprung up on me. I was headed to work like I always did, from some airport near the boat, and was flying around all week once I got there (like I always had).
This trip was different, it WAS to be the last time. In reality it was a really good week. Probably the best I've had at work in years (if only it could have been like this all along).
Despite having more important things to do, my chief pilot had gone to all sorts of trouble to ensure I had my first officer of choice (Ben), Ben in turn, sacrificed his vacation time to be there with me. During the whole week, I found myself fussed over as people discovered it was my retirement trip - it felt good. Everybody was so nice (knowing they would not have to put up with me for much longer?).
In the middle of the week's pairing, a weather system moved through Chicago (where I'd been primarily flying in and out of) wreaking havoc on the flights and schedules and my crew and I were worried this would disrupt our schedule, or prevent Maryanne from joining me on that last flight. I really wanted Maryanne to be there on my last flight, and she endured all kinds of hassle to get there for me (including taking a red-eye from San Francisco and sleeping in Chicago airport overnight once she arrived there).
My last lay-over was in Flint, Michigan - yeah, I know, I thought the same thing too - but my boss explained that would give me the best chance of a spare seat being available for Maryanne - so Flint it was. There is not much to do nearby the hotel there apart from paying a visit to a nearby microbrewery, so I took the crew out to Lunch and we had a nice afternoon swapping stories and getting excited about the following day.
We had to get up while it was still dark on my last day - of course! - but I only had one flight to do, so It wasn't so bad (I was noticeably more chipper than the rest of my crew that were not so lucky).
Once everyone was boarded (including Maryanne), instead of making the usual PA from the cockpit, I stepped into the aisle at the front of the plane and gave an extended farewell PA - I explained it was a special occasion for me (my retirement flight), I assured the passengers (that generally fret about the size of the plane as they board) they were in good hands (Ben and I were old, and with perfect safety records), they were on statistically the safest airliner in the world, and they should expect an unusual landing treat. I also thanked Ben for keeping me safe all the many times we've flown together in the past. With that, everyone cheered (that doesn't normally happen) and it was on with the work of flying to Newark.
The weather we'd been dealing with for most of the trip had moved off, and it was mercifully a nice, clear, calm day. It was strange, when flying the arrival along the Hudson into Newark (an approach I'd done 1,000s of times) that this would be my last approach and landing in this plane (after over 10,000 hours of flying as Captain in this type). The landing was smooth (thankfully, I didn't need to be embarrassed about any bumps) and through the cockpit door I could hear the cabin cheering.
We landed so early that I was worried I'd beat the fire department - but I hadn't, that was the next big thing I'd been looking forward to. As an honor to retiring pilots, the airport fire department customarily conducts a 'salute' where they fire their water cannons in an arch over the plane as we taxi in. They were waiting for us, and I must say I teared-up a little as we taxied through - and the cabin cheered again.
I parked the plane and set the brake. Outside, on the ramp, people were taking pictures to commemorate my last day. All the Newark management were walking towards the plane. I instinctively thought I must be in some kind of trouble, but then I remembered - what could they do? Fire me? No - they were there to congratulate me. Once everyone was off the plane, I went into the cockpit to have one more look before shutting the power down.
As I entered the crew room, I was met with more applause and cheers; they had decorated and put out a cake and some food and even had a poster of me in my uniform (which I suspect was a result of a conspiracy involving Maryanne and my Mother). It was really nice and really appreciated on my part. Everyone was congratulating me and shaking my hand. The chief pilot (Ann) even made a special play list for the event to be piped through the crew room. We stayed talking and laughing for a couple of hours before it was time for Maryanne and I to leave and head for our flight back to San Francisco. We even got lucky and had seats together (that rarely happens! It has been a good week).
A memorable and special day - thanks for those who shared photos
I extend a big THANK YOU to all the team at ExpressJet that made not only that day so special, but went out of their way over the years to help me attain my dreams both at work and (with extended time off) in so many other adventures.
And retirement begins....
Once Maryanne and I made it back to San Francisco, we were met by Geoffrey, my high school friend, who was in town for business and had extended is stay to celebrate with us. We dined out that evening, and the following lunch time ate at my favorite restaurant Juan's (in Berkeley), followed by a visit to one or two of the pubs around Jack London Square and beyond. While Geoffrey returned home early the next day, we took an overnight/2 day sail before staring the preparation for our next adventure - a trip to the Sierras
