This last summer I had the opportunity to hike THE High Sierra Trail (HST) – a 72 mile trek from Sequoia National Park to Mt Whitney Portal. This was a bucket list trail, but I’d only been dreaming about doing it for a little over a year. My hiking buddies included my brother, Robert, and his girlfriend, Lucia. Robert is an experienced hiker and backpacker so was blessed to enjoy his company. He planned all our meals and did an amazing job.
Our adventure was to be a 7 day trip through the Sierras. We spent months planning and talking about it. Which camp sites we would camp at, how many miles we would average each day, and the must-see sights along the way. I studied the trail by reading trip reports and hiking guides. I have a fear of heights – although I am not sure if it’s the heights I am afraid of, or the fear of falling to my death. As I studied the trail I started to feel anxiety over some certain sections. Last September while hiking a local trail, I fell and twisted my ankle. In the Spring as I started training for the HST, during narrow or steep sections of the trails I had a mini panic attack as I feared falling again, this time to my death. I nearly canceled my trip.
We started our trip early in the morning on Saturday July 18 from Crescent Meadows. On day one we hiked to Buck Creek, a 10.5 mile day, right on track. There was one section of the trail with erosion, that caused a little anxiety as I crossed; the trail sections with a steep drop were also wide so it wasn’t too bad. That evening as we were enjoying the creek, Robert had just walked away and a boulder fell from the trail, the trail we would be hiking the next day. It landed in the creek, right where he had been standing. Thankfully he had left; but I spent the night thinking about the integrity of the trail.
The next day when we hiked up, the trail was fine and we were on our way to Hamilton Lake, a 6 mile day. The bridge at Lone Pine Creek wasn’t as bad as I read about on trip reports (a bridge over a gorge, that needs repairing every few years due to the elements), but the hike from Lone Pine Creek up to Hamilton Lake was rocky, steep, and hot. But Hamilton Lake was worth it – it was beautiful and stunning. That evening I was talking with another hiker who had done this hike 11 times; he gave me a heads up about the trail up to Precipice Lake – there are parts that are narrow, don’t fall or you could fall off the trail and it’s a steep drop, take your time. I barely slept that night, thinking about the hike the next day.
The next day we started early up out of Hamilton Lake to Precipice Lake. There were some questionable sections; I rested before each section that looked terrifying, but took my time and made it up to Precipice Lake. Precipice Lake is a must-see; the pictures do not do it justice. That day we made it to Big Arroyo, a 6.5 mile day. As we needed to average at least 10 miles per day, we were behind. The next day we needed to hike to Kern Hot Springs, a 14 mile day; due to the switchbacks, the mileage was off and it ended up being a 16 mile day.
We started early for Kern Hot Springs because it was going to be a big day. While it was going to be a long day, we had an easy climb compared with the previous two days, followed by a long, somewhat flat hike across a mountain, then a steep decline into the Kern River Valley. The scenery was beautiful. On the way down the switchbacks we came across a rattlesnake who was not moving, sat coiled up in the strike position. We ended up cutting the switchback. When we made it to Kern Hot Springs, I was beat; I cleaned up, put up my tent, ate, and went to bed.
The next day we hiked up to Junction Meadow. This was to be our biggest climbing day and another long hiking day, at about 11-12 miles. We climbed between 4k-5k feet up that day. The first 7 miles included several creek crossings; they were quite difficult with some required log crossings; my brother was amazing and helped carry my pack while I made my way across. The last 4 miles were steep and tough, with some seriously steep drop offs, and narrow sections of trail. There were some terrifying moments – both with some of the creek crossings and steep narrow trails.
We were exhausted when we got to Junction Meadow; after we set up camp and ate dinner, we enjoyed watching a rabbit frolic in the meadow, then went to bed. The next day we hiked to Guitar Lake for our last night. We were very excited about it being our last night on the trail. The final leg of the trip included a steep hike up the western side of Mt Whitney, then hike down the eastern side to the portal. The hike excluding a Whitney summit was 14 miles, a Mt Whitney summit adds 4 miles to the day. Since I summitted Mt Whitney 8 years earlier I opted out of an 18 mile day and just did 14.
A few weeks prior to our trip there was an earthquake in Lone Pine, causing some rock slides in the Mt Whitney zone. There was some scrambling on the western side, it was a little bit terrifying. On the eastern side coming down the 99 switchbacks, there was a section of serious rock erosion. Another hiker helped me cross – it was the most terrifying part of the 7 day trip…at least for someone who has a fear of heights. I finished my hike, took the standard photo at the Mt Whitney sign, then went for a long overdo shower…best shower of my life, after 7 days of no modern conveniences.
The hike down, after Trail Camp, I was thinking of the last 7 days, how special it was, how amazing it was, and I was thinking about how many times I faced my fear of heights and lived. I thought back to the last several months of the pandemic and lockdown, and realized I really am “safer at home”; the narrow steep trails, the narrow trails with erosion, the creek crossings, the rattlesnake, and the Mt Whitney zone compromised by the rock slides – all of it terrifying and people do suffer serious injury, and many die every year. Had I stayed home, I would have been safer. However, I would have also missed out on an adventure of a lifetime! I wouldn’t trade the experience of a week in the Sierras for a week on the couch watching Netflix.
