Yosemite: Vernon Lake (almost) via Rancheria Falls

Helen and Libby were on a mother / daughter campout, so it was a perfect weekend to get away for a fast and light backpacking trip. I was hoping for getting into the high country, but this year the Sierras have received more than 170% of the normal snow fall.

I left work Friday afternoon and planned to pick up a wilderness permit at the Hetch Hetchy gate, and spend the night in the backpacker camp so I could get an early start Saturday morning. I was planning to do a loop up to Vernon Lake, camp over night, and then come back via Rancheria Falls. When I received my back country permit, the ranger warned me that a party got lost in the snow near Vernon Lake the previous weekend. A SAR had to be called, and the wives of the missing men were calling every five minutes. The ranger said they seemed well prepared and "had done their homework". Hmm... maybe I should alter my plans. I forgot my GPS, this is my first time to Hetch Hetchy, and my wife would kill me if I got lost.

Talking with the ranger, Amy, was the first of a number of encounters with people I have corresponded with over the last couple of years. Other people included Ken, a fellow light / ultralighters, John, Bob, and Tom who I know through a forum about backpacking in the California.

Early Saturday the hike started by crossing the Hetch Hetchy dam.





The entire trail around the Hetch Hetchy seemed to be lined by wild flowers. It almost looked like someone had purposefully planted the flowers along the path.



The valley must have been very beautiful before it was flooded. Sort of like a mini Yosemite Valley. It's hard to imagine than anyone would build a dam here. That said, the lake is pretty.



Once I got to Rancheria Falls I hiked up to Tiltill Valley. Along the way there was a fair bit of fire damage. Apparently, last year an arsonist hiked in and set a fire. Thankfully the blaze was started one day before the freak snow storm which cut the fire off before it damaged a larger area.



I found large sections of Tiltill Valley to be a soggy mess. I soaked my feet as I crossed. I seemed like I had plenty of time to make it to Vernon Lake so I starting hiking up.



Between Tiltill Valley and the top of the ridge I passed through some fire damage from a number of years ago. I was amazed at home peaceful and quiet this stretch of the trail seemed to be.



Eventually I got to a location where I was able to look out at the surrounding mountains.



Alas, Vernon Lake was not to be. Within two miles of the Lake I lost the trail in the snow. I normally would have gone cross country, but Amy's warning about the group the previous week, and my commitment to turn around if I didn't hit the lake by 4pm resulted in me coming back down. I thought about staying in Tiltill valley, but then I saw three bears, maybe a mountain lion, and I thought about getting my feet wet the following morning to get out of the valley. I thought that it might be a good idea to head down to Rancheria Falls since my feet were already wet, and then have a quick exit the following morning which would give me time to visit the valley floor.

So down I went. The moon was pretty bright which was useful for the last bit of the hike. The next morning I got our and the when for a run along the valley floor. 21 miles Saturday. 7 miles hiking, 7 miles trail running Sunday.

I was very pleased with the performance of Inov-8 Flyroc 310 trail running shoes. No blisters even though 13 of the 21 miles Saturday were in wet socks / shoes!