This trip started with a great drive up the 395 and I arrived at the trail head around 7:30 pm with the intention of camping there and getting an early start, I discovered that several people had the same idea as me.. In search of solitude I continued up the dirt road, which ended at a nice little LA County Water District dam and waterfall with swarms of Dragonflies darting around. I back tracked a little trying to find a place to came and came across a little offshoot that took me to Scotty Spring. The spring was surrounded with dense green vegetation and had a nice sized stone fire ring. I parked the truck and pulled out a chair and cooler to watch the fading light on the White Mountains behind me. I sat and watched as the bats came out until I could barley make them out in the full moon light and turned in to get an early start.
Around midnight I awoke to water a bush and while standing about 10 feet behind my truck I heard the rustling of a large animal in the bushes about 20 feet away. I was a little startled as the sounds were of fairly large branches being broken and my headlamp was in the truck. I climbed back in the truck and attempted to look around but could see nothing, being unsure if this was an elk or a bear it took sometime and several attempts to fall back to sleep. Sometime later I awoke to the recognizable sound of an elk chirp only a few feet away from the truck where I had no vantage point and peacefully fell back to sleep.
I awoke again at first light, packed up my chair and dressed in my hiking clothes. I wanted to get an early start as the trail begins in the desert at four thousand feet and climbs to around 10k before there is any shade and it was going to be HOT! I managed to find a spot err make one at the crowded trail head and promptly headed out while people were only beginning to break camp and make breakfast. My timing couldn’t have been better several times on the ascent I felt the temp climb only to cool off as I gained altitude. Along the desert valley I saw lots of grasshoppers, lizards and butterflies. After a few hours and several thousand feet of elevation gain I found myself in the trees, a much needed break from the desert floor. I came to my first real rest spot of the day by a small flowing stream where I replenished my water and had a lunch of Asiago cheese and summer sausage. Even with the temperature cooperating the steep climb was kicking my butt and I continually questioned if I could make the 12 miles to my planned destination for the night. A few miles further along the trail I found another ice cold stream to take a break and soak my feet for awhile. It was here that I saw a few hikers heading down the trail and was passed by a couple heading for Sawmill lake. My exhausting break was followed by a short nap in the sun before I gathered myself for the final ascent over the pass. Once I reached the top of the pass it was flat, wide open and desolate, not like the craggy narrow passes I’ve experienced in the Sierras before. I made camp near Woods lake in the late afternoon tired and thinking about the day, it was an uphill slog, 11 miles and around 4000 feet of steady elevation gain. I had only barley averaged one mile per hour this was well of my usual 2-2.5mhp times.
After a restful slumber in my hammock I awoke to a beautifully chill 55 degree morning. This gave me time to take a short hike to the lake and break camp before it warmed up enough for the mosquitoes to come out in force, which they certainly did. I was back on the trail around 8:30, I discovered this part of the trail is not heavily hiked and hard to follow, it should not be taken by someone that gets lost easily. I wandered off course and back on several times but found my way to the John Muir trail after a few hours. Once here I pondered what I wanted to do. My original plan was to hike south to the northern most of the Rae Lakes but I knew that every mile I put in today I was going to have to make up coming out tomorrow and Rae was downhill. I opted to hike north for a few hours and found a nice spot for lunch on a cliff overlooking Twin Lakes. After lunch I headed back towards Sawmill junction and set up camp among some nice trees out in the openness of the valley, it was windy enough to keep the mosquitoes away in the evening, or so I thought. I spent the next several hours lounging in the hammock deep in thought, almost a meditative state while staring out at the great mountains in front of me.
At some point late in the afternoon it was decided that I needed to see what lay up the path not taken. With naught but my water bottle I started south and soon discovered a drastic change in scenery from the past two days. Once over the ridge the vegetation grew more lush and dense, there was a part that resembled a rain forest and abundant wild life. As I was walking along I discovered a small ground bird making some noise while trying to put some distance between us, then I saw the mother just sitting there watching. This site repeated several times down the trail with mother pheasants watching over there little ones. I exited the forest to the sight of a wonderful waterfall and I began to weep at the beauty that is the Sierras. It was at this point that I decided that I needed to come back next year and thru hike the PCT. With the sun disappearing behind the ridge I turned back to the north and headed for camp, arriving back around 6:30 to make dinner. With not much time to spare I discovered that my windy perch was no match for the giant swarms of mosquitoes of the inner Sierras and I found my way to bed at 7:15 to keep from being eaten alive.
I woke well rested just before dawn, broke camp and headed out back down the trail from which I came. It was a great start while still chilly but it wasn’t long before the blood suckers were out in force again. This morning they all but prevented me from taking any breaks or stopping to snap pictures. It was another long day, just the way I like it and thankfully gravity was on my side today. Making a final water and rest stop at the stream where I had lunch two days earlier I met a 67 year old man that was headed up solo for a 7 day hike. We chatted for a while and I gave him some information on distance to some locations he asked about. When the day was done, I had made it back out covering the 13 miles in just under 8 hours. The last 2 miles thru the desert were pretty rough with temps in the low 100’s and the soles of my old boots coming apart in the heat but thankfully they stayed together enough that I didn’t have to perform any repairs on trail and my truck was right where I left it.
The Numbers: 3 days 32 miles 9,860ft elevation gain and loss. Starting pack weight 24.5lbs with 3L of water. Ending weight 17.4lbs .75L water. Typical daily water consumption 6L. Temps were in the upper 60s on the mountain with overnight lows in the mid 40s, final 3 miles back into the desert were just over 100°.
Moon rising over the Desert 
LA County Water District 
