| 6/25 Tent Mdw |
 A diary from a 16-day High Sierra
backpacking trip surfaced during a closet clean-out. To save the fading pages, it seemed
as easy to post the content here as it would be to re-type everything. The photos have
been added - the rest is just about as originally pencilled in on the back of route plans
during the trip in July of 1966. I, 38 years old; Marilyn, 12; and Richard, just
now 10, were old hands at back country travel, having taken lots of self-supported trips
into the wilderness of the Los Padres National Forest and the High Sierra. But none of
them far from some kind of trail, however faint. This time a "knapsack route"
was chosen from Starr's Guide To The John Muir Trail, Sierra Club, 1964. The
off-trail portion of the route (in reverse) is described therein:
"Goddard Creek and Disappearing Creek; Muir Pass to Simpson Meadow.
The route is from Evolution Basin (or Muir Pass) across Goddard Divide to Goddard Basin, and thence down Goddard Creek (or Disappearing Creek, between Scylla and Charybdis through the Enchanted Gorge) to Simpson Meadow. The region transversed by this route
is isolated because of its extreme ruggedness. No trails pass through or near it. Rising
in a group of lakes lying in a large high basin (12,000) South of Goddard Divide, Goddard
Creek and Disappearing Creek (forks of the same tributary stream), flow southward between
the White Divide and the Black Divide, separated from each other by Ragged Spur until they
meet in a beautiful little valley, walled in by sheer cliffs, and continue as Goddard
Creek down the canyon and over some fine falls to the Middle Fork of King's River at
Simpson Meadow. Disappearing Creek descends for a distance of about six miles through a
wild narrow cnayon called the Enchanted Gorge. The stream is so named because at times it
is lost from view while flowing through great masses of talus which fill the narrow
canyon, laid there by rock avalanches from the cliffs above."
The high country in 1966 had very few travellers (all we saw are noted in the
diary), "squaw wood" was used for cooking fires, and the alpine environment
appeared generally untouched and beautiful. A last trip from Toledo in about 1974 saw
changes brought on by population pressure: back country travel permits, many more people,
fires prohibited, and many more signs of human trespass. Anyway, here begins the story of
our last finest trip of the '60's. It was first edited July 13, 1966.
Saturday, June 25 Left home [in San Jose] at 6:30, Marilyn, Richard and I in the VW. AB had gotten up and made a valiant pass at breakfast. [The dog] Max had fits; with all the early morning movement he knew something was up. Nice clear warm morning. Drove to Fresno and picked up David Kader (Fresno College student) about 9:30. An impressive drive through King’s Canyon Nat'l Park to Cedar Grove. (Rich carsick.) Reached Cedar Grove at noon; got our fire permit, then drove to the road end in the valley of the South Fork of the King’s River opposite Grand Sentinal. Lunched. Found neither kid had returned sneakers to the car. Abandoned sneakers rather than carry them for two weeks. To general disgust of each. [Packs; mine 55#, Marilyn’s 25#, Richard’s 20#. Drilite dehydrated food accounted for most of the weight over a basic 18#.] Took off up the Simpson Meadow trail at 12:45 after lunch. Hot, dusty hard work. Lots of resting. All split up and not much conversation. On & on. No water. Reached Tent Meadow (est.7,OOO’, up from the 5,100' valley floor, about 6 mi.) at 6:00. Crapped out at first level spot. Saw two does and one big fuzzy antlered buck wandering around. Cooking corn chowder now - will eat and go at once to bed. Really not a bad start - all feel OK even though tired. Sure is pretty country.
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7/3 Over The Top; Lost on the Peaks 7/5,6,7
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