Resupply North Lake Alpine.

Resupply South: Kennedy Meadows

National Forest: Stanislaus

Backpacker's Index

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Jenkins Canyon to the Boulder Creek Trailhead

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The Jenkins Canyon trail junction offers significant route choices.

Both Long and Short distance backpackers have lots of options

Long Distance Tahoe to Yosemite Trail Hikers

Long distance backpackers Southbound on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail will turn Right to continue South through Jenkins Canyon.

If you are not interested in the following discussion about hiking loops or the alternative long-distance route options at the Jenkins Canyon trail junction, skip to the trail guide's continuing description of the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail up Jenkins Canyon below.

Medium and Long distance Loops in the Carson Iceberg Wilderness

Lake Alpine on Highway 4 to Highland Lakes and/or the Pacific Crest Trail

Medium and long distance backpackers hiking local loops or trail segments out of Lake Alpine can continue straight through the Jenkins Canyon trail junction to hike Highland Creek up to the dirt road accessing the Highland Lakes as the end-point of their point to point backpacking trips from the Silver Valley Trail head.

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It is 17.84 miles from the Silver Valley Trail head to the Highland Lakes Trailhead. Or, from Highland Lakes you can easily hike the 3.72 miles Northeast over to the Pacific Crest Trail at Wolf Creek Pass through the Gardner Meadow Trailhead.

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It is 21.11 miles from the Silver Valley Trailhead along the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail at Lake Alpine to the Wolf Creek Pass trail junction on the Pacific Crest Trail. From Wolf Creek Pass your options expand further.

Wolf Creek Pass trail junction is 7.02 miles South of Ebbetts Pass.

Wolf Creek Pass trail junction is 22.42 miles North of Sonora Pass.

The North side of the Arnot and Disaster Creek Trails

The Northern end of both the Arnot and Disaster Creek trails coming up from the Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus River (their Clarks Fork Road trailheads are depicted on this page below) connect with the trail running between the Gardner Meadow Trailhead and the Pacific Crest Trail at Wolf Creek Pass.

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ROAD MAP

Highway 108 & Clarks Fork Trailheads

Hikers starting from the Highway 4 trailheads or trailheads along the Clarks Fork Road & Highway 108 can craft great medium distance backpacking loops out of and back to their respective trailhead using the Highland, Arnot, Disaster, or Boulder Creek trails which each connect the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail to the Pacific Crest Trail along the length of their routes across the Carson Iceberg Wilderness.

Loops around the Southern end of the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness can be extended by starting or threading the Southern end of your loop through Sonora Pass and Saint Marys Pass. This is your Southernmost turn-around point for Carson Iceberg Wilderness backpacking loops.

The same approach applies to hikers starting their backpacking trips from the Highway 4 trailheads. Backpacking loops starting from Highway 4 out of Lake Alpine, Highland Lakes, or Ebbetts Pass can use these same four connecting trails to craft great loops using the Tahoe to Yosemite and Pacific Crest Trails around the heart of the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness, back to your Highway 4 trailhead.

Getting Started

Plan a trip out of one of these Carson Iceberg Wilderness trailheads that accesses either the PCT or TYT. Hike your selected trail up or down the PCT or TYT to the connector trail you are planning on using to hike to the other trail, where you will turn to hike in the direction of your trailhead.

For instance, if you started hiking South on the TYT your connector trail will bring you to the PCT for the Northbound return leg of your hike. Your second connector trail will bring you back to the TYT, and back to your original trailhead. Or visa-versa, depending on your trailhead.

Use either the PCT or the TYT to hike out from your selected trailhead, then use the other to return. Deciding which trails you will use to connect the out and in trails will determine the length of your backpacking loop around the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness.

The longest loop you can make by starting at either end, Highway 4 or 108, and hiking a loop using the PCT and TYT to hike around the other end is just short of 80 miles. The shortest loop would be the Arnot-Disaster "loop" at 18.3 miles. The highest loop you can do with the shortest mileage is the Sonora Pass-to-Boulder Lake-to-Saint Marys Pass loop, which measures out and 23 miles. The Arnot-Disaster Creek loop's 18.3 miles includes 4.17 miles of hiking along the Clarks Fork Road between the Arnot and Disaster Creek Trailheads.

Check out your route options on this Carson-Iceberg Topo Hiking Map.

This really big topo map may give you more context on your Carson-Iceberg backpacking trip options.

Where you are on this Trail Guide

The page below depicts the Southbound Tahoe to Yosemite Trail from the Jenkins Canyon trail junction alongside Highland Creek over into the Arnot Creek valley and out of the Arnot Creek Trailhead onto the paved Clarks Fork Road off of Highway 108. We hike 4.17 miles upstream on the Clarks Fork Road to where the Disaster Creek and Clarks Fork Trailheads are located at the end of the Clarks Ford Road.

We re-enter wilderness through the Clarks Fork Trailhead and hike up to Southernmost of our connector trails, the Boulder Lake trail junction, located 2.56 miles South of the Clarks Fork Trailhead.

From the Boulder Lake trail junction this trail guide continues South along the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail, but also covers the connecting trail up to the Pacific Crest Trail.

This page of the trail guide covers the Southern Side of all four of the trails connecting the Tahoe to Yosemite to the Pacific Crest Trail across the Carson Iceberg Wilderness. As mentioned above these are the Highland, Arnot, Disaster, and Boulder Creek Trails.

Above, along the top of this page your will find links to the trail guide pages with the information you need to plan out backpacking trips from the Silver Valley Trailhead up the Highland Creek Trail to Highland Lakes, and on to the Pacific Crest Trail at Wolf Creek Pass. Each page of the guide links to the topo hiking maps, miles and elevations, and the related trail guide pages for that particular section of the trail.

From Highland Lakes you have the option of hiking South on either the Arnot or Disaster Creek trails from their Northernmost mutual termination point between Gardner Meadow and Wolf Creek Pass, down to their trailheads (below) along the Clarks Fork Road, and then hiking the other trail back up to Highland Lakes.

How Many Loops?

When I get the chance I'm going to find a mathematician to figure out the number of loops we can craft out of the 8 trailheads, two main trails, and four connector trails that characterize the Tahoe to Yosemite and Pacific Crest Trail routes across the Carson Iceberg Wilderness. I live next to UC Berkeley, and have had a few math whiz kids as pals over the decades I've been here.

If you can set up and work out this equation, shoot me an email.

Many fine loops from all compass points

Independent of where you start your backpacking or even a nice day hiking trip from, from either the Highway 4 corridor or the Highway 108 corridor, you have a lot of excellent hiking loop options in the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness.

Check out this Trip Report of a fifty-mile Carson Iceberg Loop. Another way into this maze of trails is from the East, through the remote Corral Valley Trailhead situated on historic Rodriguez Flat at 8000 feet off of Highway 395. Access is just North of the town of Walker, about 17 miles North of the junction between Highways 108 and 395.

Highland Lakes and the Clarks Fork Road are well connected to each other by two excellent trails, the Arnot and Disaster Creek trails. The Highland Creek route down to the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail is a bit North of the Clarks Fork Road, while the Boulder Lake trail junction is a bit South of the Clarks Fork Road.

There are loops to suit a wide range of fitness and experience levels.

Southern Carson Iceberg Wilderness backpacking loops

The Boulder Lake trail and the Disaster Creek trail connector East up to Golden Canyon link the Southern section of Pacific Crest Trail in the Carson Iceberg Wilderness to the Tahoe to Yosemite trailheads at the top of the Clarks Fork Road.

These trails, when combined with segments along the PCT and TYT offer you a wide variety of loops of different lengths and characteristics that put you into the heart of one of my favorite parts of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, the East Fork of the Carson River from Murray Canyon to Sonora Pass.

The Northern turnaround point for hikers out of the Boulder Lake and Disaster Creek trails is Wolf Creek Pass on the Pacific Crest Trail.

At Wolf Creek Pass you have excellent hiking options. You can continue 7 miles North to Ebbetts Pass or turn South to hike 22.42 miles to Sonora Pass along the Pacific Crest Trail route. You can hike over to access Highland Creek down to the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail via Gardner Meadow. Or, you can loop back down towards the Clarks Fork Road along the Arnot or Disaster Creek trails. Or, you can head South on the PCT down to access the Disaster Creek Trail down to the TYT on the Clarks Fork from Golden Canyon. Or, you can continue South along the PCT down to the Boulder Lake trail junction.

The Boulder Lake trail is the shortest trail from the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail along the Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus River to the Pacific Crest Trail above the East Fork of the Carson River. The Boulder Lake trail junction is just a few miles South of the Clarks Fork Trailhead at the end of Clarks Fork Road.

The longest Southbound loops from the trailheads along Highway 4 at Lake Alpine, Highland Lakes, or Ebbetts Pass are crafted by pushing the Southbound extent of your PCT hike all the way down to Sonora Pass on Highway 108, then turning North to return on the TYT through Saint Marys Pass Trailhead. These loops work out to just short of 80 miles.

Alternatively, the longest Northbound backpacking loops out of the Sonora or Saint Marys Pass trailheads on Highway 108 would use the Northernmost connector trail between the TYT and PCT, the Highland Creek Trail, as the trail connecting their Northbound route with their Southern turnaround point. This works out to a 56.41 mile loop.

Both sides are Good

In fact, great hiking loops using the TYT and PCT can be started out of any of the Highway 108 & Clarks Fork trailheads or from any of the Highway 4 trailheads. Which side of the Carson Iceberg Wilderness you begin your long-distance backpacking loops really depends on whether you have easier access to the trailheads on Highway 4 or Highway 108.

More Information

This map of the heart of the Carson Iceberg hints at the potential for great backpacking loops.

Check out this discussion of your Route Options further South down the TYT at the Boulder Lake trail junction.

Road Map: Road access from Highway 4, 108, and the Clarks Fork Road.

Above: Southbound Backpacker's View of the Jenkins Canyon trail junction.

Lake Alpine is behind us to the Northwest, Jenkins Canyon continues our Southbound route along the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail to our Right , and hiking Northeast, straight through this trail junction up to Highland Lakes will put us 3.27 miles from the Pacific Crest Trail route at Wolf Creek Pass.

The Northern ends of the the Arnot and Disaster Creek Trails running South to the Clarks Fork Road intersect with our trail between Highland Lakes and Wolf Creek Pass.

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These are all amazing backpacking trips...

Jenkins Canyon to the Arnot Creek Trailhead

Permits

This next 5.83 mile segment of the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail from the Jenkins Canyon trail junction to the Arnot Creek Trailhead brings us out of the Northern Carson Iceberg Wilderness to its Southern half.

Administratively, we are hiking from the Calavaras Ranger District into the Summit Ranger District when we hike across the gap in the mountains between Jenkins Canyon and Woods Gulch. In terms of road access we are moving from Northern access into the Carson Iceberg Wilderness from Highway 4 to Southern access from Highway 108.

Hikers starting from the Highway 4 corridor obtain permits from the Calavaras Ranger District of the Stanislaus National Forest, while trips starting from Highway 108, including the Clarks Fork Road, obtain their permits from the Stanislaus National Forest's Summit Ranger District.

Stanislaus National Forest Ranger Districts and Contact Information

Backpacking Video

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Jenkins Canyon trail junction to gap in the ridge dividing Jenkins Canyon from Wood Gulch:

1262 feet of elevation over 2.27 miles.

Note how the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail passes South around the East side of the Dardanelles:

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Hiker's Note

Climbing South into Jenkins Canyon you get great views North of the series of Peaks on the South side of Highway 4 and Highland Creek running Northeast up the West flank of the Sierra to the Crest line.

These peaks include Bull Run Peak, who's Southwest flank we rounded hiking from Rock Lake to Spicer Meadow Reservoir. Bull Run Peak is out of view to the Southwest in these images.

To the Northeast of Bull Run Peak we have a series of peak marching up to the Sierra Crest line. Henry Peak, Peep Sight Peak, Lookout Peak, and then Folger and Hiram Peaks bracketing Highland Lakes are the main peaks we can see to our Northeast from Jenkins Canyon.

These peaks are local favorites and are targeted by "peak baggers" as they are easily accessible from Pacific Valley and Highland Lakes.

The series of images below depict this section of the West Sierra flank up to the Sierra Crest from the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail climbing South up Jenkins Canyon.

Hiram Peak in far distant Right of image, pointy Folger Peak in middle Left (Highland Lakes between them), and Peepsight Peak is hump at middle-left of image. I'm pretty sure...

I need to line this image up with the map next time through Jenkins Canyon. As I say...

"THIS PAGE IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION: STAY TUNED FOR MUCH MORE!

COME ON BACK NOW, 'YA HEAR?"

Check out this view looking South at this terrain from the top of the PCT crossing Tyron Peak South of Ebbetts Pass. From the high point on Tyron Peak I was more concerned with pointing out the terrain where Disaster, Arnot, and Highland Creek cut down-mountain to their intersection points with the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail.

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I am having a hard time figuring this one out. This is the sheer South-side of the line of peaks along the South side of Highway 4 between Pacific Valley and the Highland Lakes Road.

We can see where the valley containing Weiser Creek cuts Northwest, to the Right behind the ridge dropping down from the middle-foreground Left. Highland Creek runs up between our position and the middle-foreground ridge, and continues to the right where Weiser Creek cuts Left.

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Climbing up Jenkins Canyon late in the short days of late October of 2011 saw Ari and I unsuccessfully racing sunset.

As Darkness fell we continued up, and then off, the trail up Jenkins Canyon. No problem. I follow the lay of the land and the logic of trail location. I began looking for flat areas and the meadow sections up here as I continued to lead us up the mountain following the creek.

The location of the creek told me the trail was off to our right, but I waited to cut right until I spied the meadow above.

We hiked over to the most likely spot to camp at the top of the meadow in almost total darkness, and found a nice little campsite there waiting for us. The edges of the meadows along the creek are littered with little camping possibilities.

I suspect that the current route of the trail varies from the route depicted on the USGS topo map at the top of Jenkins Canyon. I will study this next time through Jenkins Canyon. If you have noticed any difference between the USGS map and the trail on the ground post up your thoughts on the Jenkins Canyon to Boulder Lake forum page.

The image above is looking North and down-mountain from our little campsite at the head of the meadow. The creek runs about 40 yards to the Right.

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I want to kick myself. As we were climbing the last bit of the trail South up to the top of Jenkins Canyon I passed by a fresh bear track in soft mud that had a delicate outline of frost.

Don't let fatigue-or-fear from enjoying and even recording special circumstances.

I was tired, and though I paused to enjoy its delicate beauty, I kept straining up the grade to our crossing into Woods Gulch.

Damn.

Though this image was taken in late October, it represents the regular below-freezing temps that you will experience during High Sierra evenings all Summer long.

Gear Notes

Gear List

A nice soft flat area always gives the feet a break from the rigors of up and down hiking. Volcanic terrain of the East edge of the Dardanelles is visible on right of image.

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An easy 3.65 mile hike (downhill in soft terrain) 1742 feet down to the Arnot Creek trail junction starts here.

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To our Northeast sits an interface of granite and volcanic terrain that rises to compose the Eastern side of the massive ridge line of mountain tops running a bit East of North up to Highland Lakes. At the Eastern base of this ridge line Arnot Creek runs North roughly parallel with Highland Creek up to Upper Gardner Meadow. On the other side, the Western side of this High Sierra ridge crest Highland Creek runs in the massive valley running down from Highland Lakes.

To the Southwest of our position in Woods Gulch we can see that we are skirting around the Eastern flank of the massive volcanic hulk of The Dardanelles, who's position we have noted since it first came into view after crossing South over Mount Reba. We are passing South around The Dardanelles through Jenkins Canyon and Woods Gulch.

To our East-Northeast in the faint distance we can see the Sierra Crest line bending itself across our visible horizon.

The compass of our Southbound Tahoe to Yosemite Trail route is ultimately pointed Southeast from Woods Gulch towards Saint Marys Pass, though the trail itself will swing around the compass a bit before we get there.

Cool.

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The hulking mass at the far distant Right of center is the Southwest side of Arnot Peak marking the location of the Sierra Crest line.

At the far distant Left of center we can see the Eastern flank of Highland Peak.

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This is the Eastern Flank of the massif hosting the series of Peaks dividing the Highland Creek drainage from the Arnot Creek.

This is really beautiful terrain.

Heading Northeastward up Arnot Creek towards Gardner Meadow they are Iceberg, Airola, and Hiram Peaks.

Stable, well-designed and soft trail... Look at the size of those boulders the trail crew located, freed, and herded into place.

Those kids work hard.

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Note how this fine soft section of trail is wedged between the slope and the line of trees. My compliments to the Stanislaus Trail Crews for working so deftly with the terrain.

This piece of trail will be here for a long time.

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The Tahoe to Yosemite Trail from Jenkins Canyon meets Arnot Creek at this junction.

This junction is 1.65 miles North of the Arnot Creek Trailhead.

Southbound hikers on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail turn Right here.

On its North side the Arnot Creek Trail runs North to Gardner Meadow.

The Arnot Creek trail connects with the trail linking the Gardner Meadow Trailhead to the Pacific Crest Trail at Wolf Creek Pass on its North side.

The trail coming up from Disaster Creek links up with the Arnot Creek Trail just South of their intersection with the connector trail.

The Gardner Meadow Trailhead is located off of the dirt road out to Highland Lakes from Highway 4.

Jenkins Canyon is behind us to the North on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail but is actually East by the compass from Arnot Creek...

See the Regional Topo Map

Click the RED DOTS on the map for more info...

Arnot Creek Trail Miles

From the Arnot Creek Trailhead to its Northern junction with the trail between Gardner Meadow to Wolf Creek Pass is 7.96 miles.

From our current position 1.65 miles North of the Arnot Creek Trailhead the distance North to the end of the Arnot Creek Trail is 6.31 miles.

Arnot Creek Trailhead to Lower Gardner Meadow

Arnot Creek                                                      0

Arnot Jenkins Junction                                 1.65

                                                                      2.89

First two fords                                             4.54

                                                                        .86

Third ford                                                     5.5

                                                                        .38

Fourth ford                                                   5.78

                                                                        .82

Lower trail split                                             6.6

                                                                         .33

Upper trail split                                            6.93

                                                                         .18

Junction with Disaster Creek Trail / Upper Gardner Meadow                                                         7.11

                                                                          .85

Junction with Gardner Meadow Trail               7.96

                                                                         1.03

Wolf Creek Pass, PCT                                     8.99

Related Trail Mileages

Tahoe to Yosemite Trail Miles with Highland Creek

Pacific Crest Trail Miles from Ebbetts to Sonora Pass

Southbound Hikers on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail exit the trail through this trailhead and follow the dirt road down to the paved Clarks Fork Road.

Northbound Miles up Arnot Creek to Lower Gardner Meadow

Carson-Iceberg Wilderness MAP

Jenkins Canyon to Sand Flat MAP

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Terrain

For the next 4.17 miles South along the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail we will be hiking along the gentle upgrade of the Clarks Fork Road between the Arnot Creek Trail head and the Clarks Fork Trail head at the end of the road.

We will rise 240 feet as we follow the road along this long gently rising section of the Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus River.

I know that Liahona is a Mormon treatment program for youth.

My treatment is mountain trails...

This place has a strange look and feel. It is listed as a "Youth Guidance Center School" out of San Francisco.

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Arnot Creek Trailhead to the Clarks Fork Trailhead

Between the Arnot Creek Trailhead and the Clarks Fork Trailhead we have a 3.61 mile hike along the old paved Clarks Fork wagon road to its end-point at the Clarks Fork Trailhead along the Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus.

A short well-maintained dirt road connects the Clarks Fork Road to the Arnot Creek Trail head. The USGS 30 minute map correctly depicts the dirt road looping at the trailhead, but does not show the old road continuing up Arnot Creek past the current trailhead, almost to the Jenkins Canyon trail junction.

The 7.5 minute Topo Hiking Map also omits the dirt road past the trailhead.

The USDA Forest Service Map of the Carson Iceberg Wilderness shows dirt road loop at the Arnot Trailhead, and the old roadbed continuing up Arnot Creek, though it is no longer open for vehicles.

Reaching the Clarks Fork Road gives you another option for re-supply.

Highway 108 is six miles West down the Clarks Fork Road, then its a few miles East along the Highway 108 to the store at Dardanelles. But, I highly suggest you continue a couple of miles beyond the Dardanelles Store to the turnoff for Kennedy Meadows Pack Station.

Kennedy Meadows Pack Station has a better store, a better restaurant, and full laundry and shower facilities perfect for long distance backpackers. And a Bar!

Kennedy Meadows Website

It should be real easy to get a ride to Highway 108 out of the Clarks Fork Road and on to Kennedy Meadows Pack Station during the Summertime when car campers throng to this area.

Although the nearby Dardanelles Bridge is listed on BridgeHunter, this Arnot Creek Bridge is listed on UglyBridges.

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Closed and Empty during late October. This place is FULL during peak Summer vacation periods.

Stanislaus National Forest: Sand Flat

Walk In Campsites Behind the Bathroom

I believe that there are 15 walk-in sites and 53 drive in sites at Sand Flat.

The Stanislaus National Forest Sand Flat page indicates that fees are $17 dollars per night.

Looking Down at the Walk-In Sites

The walk-in sites are located on a little flat along shore of Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus River.

Beyond the Sand Flat campground we have a 2.51 mile hike up 240 feet to the end of the gradually rising Clarks Fork Road.

The terrain hiking up the Clarks Fork Road, and along the Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus River past the road, is by far the smoothest, best-graded route up to Sonora Pass.

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The Disaster Creek Trail heads North to link up with the Arnot Creek Trail near Upper Gardner Meadow. Their unified trail intersects with the trail linking Gardner Meadow with Wolf Creek Pass on the Pacific
Crest Trail.

About half-way up the Disaster Creek Trail North towards Gardner Meadow a junction breaks off the trail to your right to link the Disaster Creek trail to the Pacific Crest Trail at Golden Canyon through Paradise Valley.

Disaster Creek Trail Miles

From the Disaster Creek Trailhead to its Northern junction with the trail from Gardner Meadow to Wolf Creek Pass is 7.02 miles.

Disaster Creek Trailhead to Lower Gardner Meadow

Disaster Creek                                                 0                                                                               

1st Junction, to PCT S of Boulder Peak        2.83

                                                                      .08

2nd Junction, to PCT @ Golden Canyon       2.91

                                                                     1.27

3rd Junction, spur trail                                 4.18

                                                                        .75

Entering Arnot                                              4.93

                                                                         .72

Arnot Creek ford                                            5.65

                                                                         .52

Junction with Arnot Creek Trail / Upper Gardner Meadow                                                         6.17

                                                                          .85

Junction with Gardner Meadow Trail               7.02

A few step South of the Disaster Creek Trailhead The Iceberg dominates the scene across the Clarks Fork Meadow from the Clarks Fork Trailhead.

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Off the hard but stable surface of the Clarks Fork Road back onto unpaved Tahoe to Yosemite Trail.

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Clarks Fork Trailhead

Boulder Lake trail junction: 2.56 miles South of Clarks Fork Trailhead.

Interesting Option

Pacific Crest Trail via Boulder Lake and Creek: 5.3 miles. Distances from Boulder Lake trail junction along Pacific Crest Trail.

Tahoe to Yosemite Trail

Clarks Fork Trailhead to Saint Marys Pass at Highway 108 past Boulder Creek trail junction along Tahoe to Yosemite Trail: 11.61 miles.

The time of year determines the flow rate of creeks and rivers. Spring flow intensity is determined by temp and the status of the snowpack. Summer brings diminished flows, tapering to a trickle during Fall.

"Easy" fords are a matter of timing.

The character of the annual movement of water is determined by the specifics of each season. Summer hikers are well informed of the conditions they can expect to encounter by tracking the evolution of conditions throughout the year, especially the transition of Winter into Spring. This transition will determine when the trail open and the creeks and rivers recede from raging torrents to placid flows.

The status of the Winter snow pack against the profile of rising Spring temps determines both the potential intensity of the Spring Thaw, as well as how long and how much water will be running during late Summer.

The interlocking natures of the Winter snows and the Spring Thaw determine each Summer's moisture conditions. These factors are all tied together by hemispheric weather patterns that we can track.

Check out the High Sierra Weather Page.

Mountain Safety Forum

Mountain Weather Forum

These grand global forces "set the table" for the local conditions we will experience on the ground during each season of every year. Tracking the hemispheric weather engines that annually determine the nature of each year's water cycle gives us the outlines of "the big picture."

The High Sierra Weather Page also provides resources for us to focus in on the specific conditions on the ground across the length and breadth of the Sierra Nevada through its links to a wide range of ground reporting stations.

These reporting stations allow you to get a real-time glimpse of temp and snow conditions on the ground.

Ever changing conditions.

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Great boulders roll down the rivers during great Spring Thaws. When a raging Spring Thaw is thundering down mountain one of the scariest sounds a river can make are the sounds of great boulders rolling, smashing, and grinding down river hidden under the raging flow.

That sound always makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

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Quiet, cool, soft, and serene trails.

The trail up to the Pacific Crest Trail from Boulder Lake sits below the Left side, the North side of the peak barely visible through the trees.

Boulder Lake sits below and Left of that part of the Sierra Crest line in this view.

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The trail junction post can be seen just Right of the big tree. The trail up to Boulder Lake continues straight through this junction along Boulder Creek. The Tahoe to Yosemite Trail turns Right across Boulder Creek to continue following the Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus River up to Saint Marys Pass.

MAP

Boulder Lake is 1.39 miles Northeast up this trail.

Heading 1.35 miles East past Boulder Lake a good unmaintained trail brings us up to the Pacific Crest Trail.

Route options discussion.

Boulder Lake Map

The Boulder Lake Trail Junction to the Pacific Crest Trail

The Boulder Lake trail up to the Pacific Crest Trail from the Clarks Fork of the Stanislaus is the Southernmost of the 4 trails connecting the PCT and TYT routes across the Carson Iceberg Wilderness.

Trail Guide Pages

Hike the Boulder Lake trail up to Boulder Lake and on to the Boulder Lake trail junction on the Pacific Crest Trail.

MAP

Miles and Elevations

Boulder Lake East from the TYT to the PCT

Boulder Lake trail junction            6960 feet elevation          0 miles

Boulder Lake                                 8160 feet                         1.39

                                                                                            +1.35

PCT @ Boulder Lake trail junction    8650 feet                      2.74

The total distance between the Boulder Lake Junction on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail to the Boulder Lake Junction on the Pacific Crest Trail is 2.74 miles.

The elevation difference is 1690 feet.

This is the shortest of all 4 trails linking the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail with the Pacific Crest Trail through the Carson Iceberg Wilderness.

MAP

South on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail

Boulder Creek to Saint Marys Pass: 9.05 miles.

Miles and Elevations

These fire slots mark the location of old and current Trail Crew camps. The keyway is cut facing the prevailing wind, and lined with suitable rocks. The keyway creates a venturi that feeds the fire. If trail crew sets up a camp here in the future they will dig this out.

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Backpacking Trail Guide

North TYT

Rock Lake to Jenkins Canyon

North and East to the PCT

1> Jenkins Canyon to Highland Lakes and/or the Pacific Crest Trail

2> Arnot and Disaster Creeks

3> Boulder Lake

Backpacking Trail Guide

South TYT

Boulder Creek to Saint Marys Pass