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Dave and I drove up to Mammoth Lakes for vacation, with the intentions of enjoying the Ansel Adams Wilderness, summiting Mount Ritter, and eating all 21,442 calories in our bear canister (plus another 6,000 or so in our pockets). Let's just say it was a partial success.
Day 1: Agnew Meadows to Thousand Island Lake
We took the River Trail and PCT north from the Agnew Meadows trailhead. When I took the bear can out of my pack at lunch, I found that everything in my pack was wet and oily. Oops. Part of my tactic for cramming all that food in the bear can was to jump on the pile and compress things down. Not a good idea when there's a pouch of jalapeno-flavored olive oil in there. Now my pack and sleeping bag smelled like hot peppers, and most of our food had taken on a spicy flavor. We considered hiking out since my sleeping bag now smelled like food, but I wanted to risk it. Capsaicin is the active ingredient in bear spray, so my stuff didn't smell all that tasty, right? We got to Thousand Island Lake with plenty of time to perform a somewhat thorough oil spill cleanup.
Day 2: Thousand Island Lake to Ediza Lake
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| Shadow Lake Trail |
After a windy night at Thousand Island Lake, we packed up camp and took the JMT south to Ediza Lake, which would be our base camp for the attempt on Mt. Ritter. We met a party of three women who also planned to try Ritter the next day.
Day 3: Mt. Ritter Summit Attempt
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| Ritter (center) and Banner Peak (right) from the talus slope |
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| Waterfall on the approach |
After a failed attempt on Ritter in 2013, we knew the route to the approach was confusing. This time, bolstered with better maps and a breakfast of jalapeno-flavored oatmeal, we had high hopes. The 13,143' high mountain is not the highest peak in the Sierras, but its remoteness and glaciers have eluded many climbers since John Muir's first ascent in 1872. Dave and I arrived at the base of the talus and snow slope confident that we were on the right track. We saw the three women ahead of us and yelled greetings. They were attempting some class 4/5 bouldering (without ropes or helmets), while we were trying to stick with less technical snow travel on the Southeast Glacier Route. Summipost says this is an easy class 2/3 route, but the snow from the El Nino winter made it seem pretty sketchy. With the rocks looking dangerous, we attempted to go off course and climb the Upper Southeast Snowbowl to get to the ridge sooner. At this point it's important to note that Dave decided not to bring an ice axe, thinking he could save some weight and get by with crampons and trekking poles. Even with an ice axe, I thought the 45+ degree slope was sketchy, and there was nowhere to stop sliding if you couldn't self-arrest.
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| Is that the southeast col on the left? |
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| Upper SE snowbowl. Too steep. |
We went back on the course for a while, only to find the next snowbowl equally sketchy. After much discussion, we decided to give up and go back to the tent. Were we off the route, or is it just more dangerous than people say? We never saw the three women again, but I hope they summited safely! Dave and I returned to camp and packed up by 1pm, taking the JMT south to Rosalie Lake. The trail to Rosalie is a tough climb of its own, and the lake is gorgeous without wind or bugs. A couple camping near us was fly fishing for rainbow trout, while Dave and I took a cold swim in the lake. We treated ourselves to one of the rare foods that did not get penetrated by the jalapeno oil: those expensive backpacker/doomsday prepper meals in indestructible bags.
Day 4: Rosalie Lake to Devil's Postpile and Red's Meadow
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| Rosalie Lake in the morning |
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| Devil's Postpile |
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| Rainbow Falls |
We took the JMT south, descending what seemed like a zillion feet from Rosalie, while being eaten alive by bugs. This section of the trail is relatively boring, with few opportunities to get water. We stopped at Devil's Postpile, a pile of basalt formed by lava that cooled and cracked into hexagonal columns. We continued south to Rainbow Falls, fighting hoardes of tourists and strollers. Speaking of tourists, we had now turned north onto a section of the PCT that goes through a lot of civilization. My goal of finishing the food in our bear can was being threatened by the proximity of Red's Meadow Resort (which is not a "resort" per se, but more of a general store with showers and a diner for backpackers). I tried to illustrate to Dave the benefits of self-sufficiency, but his desire for a milkshake was stronger than my argument. We camped at Red's Meadow Campground, also quite civilized, but with a walk-in section for backpackers. That was getting full when we arrived, but we ran into the fly fishing couple from Rosalie, who offered to share a real campsite with us. Note: apparently when backpackers enter civilization, strangers just start giving them stuff. In addition to the shared campsite, we got bug spray and two more dinners (which we gladly ate now that my goal of finishing the bear can was out the window).
Day 5: Red's Meadow to Agnew Meadows
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| Upper Soda Springs |
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| Agnew Meadows Pack Station |
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| PCT with Ritter and Banner in the distance |
Our final day was a straight shot north on the PCT. It was hot and buggy, with the one highlight being a quick stop at Upper Soda Springs to get our feet wet and drink some spring water. Dave brought up a topic that he had planned to discuss on our would-be summit of Ritter: marriage. A discussion ensued as we hiked, regarding the hard work we expected marriage to be, our life goals, and how much we like our life together. The topic remained open. We got to our car at the trailhead in the early afternoon, but we still wanted to camp that night and try to finish the stupid bear can. To kill some time before setting up camp, we changed out of our hiking boots and got sneakers and daypacks from the car (so comfy!) and headed for a dayhike on the PCT/High Trail. We ran into someone who had just summited Ritter the week before! We exchanged information and some tips, so we can maybe try again in the future. Maybe.
Day 6: Living It Up in Mammoth
After we packed up camp (and I unsuccessfully suggested that we eat the gross dehydrated eggs that remained in the bear can), we decided to drive into Mammoth Lakes and go to our favorite coffee shop. When Dave walked outside to get something, I borrowed a marker from a stranger to give him my answer on a rock from the PCT. Lessons learned on this trip: don't jump on your food, strangers make great friends, and you can make good life decisions without summiting a mountain to get there.
