September 13, 2010

6.6 miles

Day 7 Profile

MapSource

Google Maps Terrain

Up at 6am, 39 degrees last night. Hiking by 7:15.

It was a mostly wooded downhill trek from Trinity Lakes to the Devils Postpile junction. Easy hiking, and I made great time. The views were so-so, (at least compared to the rest of the JMT!!!) but I really enjoyed hiking through the forest in the early morning hours. (It's funny how a view that I would be ecstatic to have anywhere else can be so-so if compared to the other incredible views this trail provides).

Dawn breaks in the forest

Trail through the forest

Views on day 7

I decided to take the detour to Devils Postpile. I wanted to see the Monument, and it is an easy alternate to get to Reds Meadow. Lots of folks have commented that the multiple trail junctions in the area are confusing, but although there were many junctions, I found them well marked and had no trouble getting to the Postpile and then to Reds. I climbed the short hike to the top of the Devils Postpile, and read all the signs and information about how they were created. Pretty cool geological process that was involved. The side trip was defintely worth it. I did get a lot of interesting looks from the fresh, clean, soapy smelling day hikers that were at the Postpile. Nobody held their noses so they were either being polite or managed to stay upwind! I imagine I was pretty grungy looking after 7 days on the trail.

Middle Fork San Joaquin River

Entrance to Devils Postpile

Devils Postpile

Devils Postpile

Devils Postpile

Devils Postpile

The only unmarked junction that I found was at the end of the trail from Devils Postpile ending at Reds Meadow. The trail ends at a paved road, and I had no idea if I should go right or left. No signs... Left takes you to the campground, and right goes to the Reds Meadow Resort. I arrived at the Reds Meadow campground at 10:30am. I was looking forward to a day of rest (hah!). In my research for the trip, I never really understood how the campground and Reds Meadow Resort are connected. Well, they are not. The campground is not part of the resort, and is in fact about 1/2 mile apart. I had tried to reserve a cabin at the Resort, but they were booked the week I was there. I'd love to come back to the Resort with my wife and spend a week day-hiking and taking advantage of one of their pack trips. There is supposed to a 'backpackers' camp (in the campground) where you can share a tiny site with all the other hikers, but I never found it, and in fact since the cost is the same, I recommend just grabbing a normal campsite and skip the backpackers site. I grabbed a regular campsite, paid the fees, and setup camp. I then hiked to the Resort. First of MANY hikes to the Resort. I really wanted a shower, and was out of soap. So I headed to the resort to get my resupply and some extra soap.

Entrance to Reds Meadow Resort

Reds Meadow Resort

Reds Meadow Resort

There are two ways to get from the campground to Reds Meadow Resort. Along the paved road, or on a trail along the top edge of the campground. I used both, and either works. Since my campsite was right next to the road, using the road was easier for me. The resort has a general store, and it has just about everything a hiker might need in the way of resupply. It is not a gear shop however, so you would have to go onto Mammoth if you needed to replace any gear. I checked out the store, bought some soap, and hiked back to the campground. I found the showers at the top of the campground next to where the hill begins.

Now, you have to understand something about this shower.
You get a FREE, HOT shower (donations are welcome in the little box in the front of the shower) You can soak for as long as you like. The water is piped directly from a natural hot spring on the hill above the shower. There are 6 individual shower stalls, with hooks to hang your clothes and room to change/dress. I would have paid $50 for this shower. I soaked for a LONG time, washed all my clothes, and soaked some more. Bring a flashlight. It is dark once you close the door. There is however, a price for this opulent luxury. Just close your eyes. Leave the light dim. Enjoy the shower, but don't look too closely at the concrete walls. There may be things growing there that you really don't want to know about. It's all a matter of perspective. For me, mana from heaven after a week on the trail. :) I dropped $5 in the donation box.

Showers at Reds Meadow campground

Just close your eyes and enjoy the shower!

I loved this meadow scene at Reds Meadow

After my shower, I hiked back to the Resort for a fabulous turkey sandwich lunch. The cafe was nice with a good menu selection, and they let me charge my cell phone while I ate lunch. I spread out my maps and journal on the table to see what the next few days would be like. You would think I would have had the entire map memorized by now with the number of hours I have poured over them, but it was fun to go over it again. The cafe does have some excellent food, and I highly recommend it. If you sign up for it, you can join the staff for the nightly dinner special. Ham steak was the plan for tonight so I signed up. I also plan on being at the cafe tomorrow when they open for a huge breakfast! I headed back to the general store which is right next to the cafe to see if they had any water purifier tablets (OK, and to grab a candy bar!) They told me they normally carry the tablets, but as it was late in their season, they were letting inventory dwindle and were out. I was able to get cell phone service so was able to call home. Nice! They do have a pay phone at the Resort as well. I saw the washer and dryer out back, but didn't realize it was for public use.

I hiked back to the campground (starting to see an issue with my day off my feet???) and sorted through my resupply. Once again, I had extra food in my resupply. I thought about this, and think I will put less food in my resupply at Reds and VVR next year. I can always add more from their stores if I find I have more of an appetite next year.

I hiked back to the resort one last time (ha!) to relax and hang out until dinner. It was nice to chat with other hikers and rest. Reds has a hiker resupply barrel so you can sort through it if you need anything, or in my case I dropped off serveral items. I hung out at the Resort, read a book, chatted with other hikers, and just chilled for a couple of hours. Dinner was excellent!! Ham steak, mashed potatoes, cherry pie for dessert...

Beautiful Reds Meadow

I can't figure out why I am eating like a horse today, when every day on the trail I have been eating like a mouse. It sure is nice to refuel and recharge! After dinner I hiked back to the campground, and realized that I had left my hat at the cafe. Since the cafe was closing in a few minutes, I quickly hiked back to the cafe. It was dark, so I walked by moonlight/headlamp. They were just closing as I arrived, and they had my hat. Another hike back to the campground. 4 round trips between the campground and the Resort added an additional 4 miles to the 7 that I had done earlier in the day. It still felt like a rest day though. The 7 miles were downhill and the 4 were with no pack, so life is good! Back at camp, I sorted one last time through my supplies and took out anything I would not need for the last few days of the trip. I'll put the things in the hiker barrell at the Resort tomorrow when I get breakfast.

Despite the fact that I was camped in a regular campground, it was relatively quiet. They have bear boxes and picnic tables at each campsite, and restrooms and water close by.

Day 8

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Additional pictures from Day 7