Dusy Basin, John Muir Wilderness, Sierras, CA

[JW]

My wife and I did a two night/three day trip into the John Muir Wilderness and into the Dusy Basin of Kings Canyon. We did a leisurly pace and did 7 miles the first day to the lake on the south side of Bishop Pass in upper Dusy, a four mile day hike to the end of the basin overlooking LeConte and the JMT, and then 8 miles the last day back to South Lake and our car. This was on July 28, 2007.

We had some thunderstorms, nice mornings and few bugs. For me it was a cool down trip after my 5 days on the JMT a day before (trip report to come), my wife had a great time and the Golite Jam worked well for her.

We shared the Gatewood for shelter, which sucked. I don't like that thing. It was a pain in the neck to pitch. For raingear it is great, but I prefer a square poncho in all cases.

Here are some pictures taken on a cell phone, so quality is not too good.

Mihaela at the entrance to JMW:

The trail from South Lake to Bishop Pass:

Long Lake (I think) in typical mirror image perfection:

Snow field at the north side of Bishop Pass 11,900 ft.:

South side of Bishop Pass, me thinking how much I hate setting up the Gatewood.

JRB No Sniveller and hood under Dri-ducks jacket at sunrise, nice and warm!

Lower Dusy Basin near Knapsack pass on a day hike (with all our gear packed up though):

Looking down into LeConte and the JMT with Langille peak and the Black Giant in the background to the right:

A little alpine lake with a nice overlooking camp site. Normally, I would not camp close to water but my wife likes the picturesque views:

The water was cold, but good for a rinse off:

Sunset with mosquitos:

[Ken Helwig]

Nice pics!!! Looks like I need to drag my wife there. What was your impression of Knapsack Pass. Did it look like a class 1 or 2 that guide books have said?

[Anonymous]

You commented that the shelter, "sucked." Can you be specific? I have been eyeballing the Wild Oasis as strictly a solo shelter. Would the Gatewood have gotten a more favorable rating if had been just you? I see these capes up for resell quite a bit and am wondering if it is to be avoided. I have been on the verge of ordering a Wild Oasis but I have been waiting for one to come up on the boards for resell.

[Ken Helwig]

Sorry to hijack this post. I own one and if you want my opinion pm me and I will answer all of your questions

[JW]

John,

My comment referred to the pitching of the gatewood and not the space inside, so number of occupants was not relevant. I've never used it before, but had it for my wife (I use a waterproof bivy and no tarp or a poncho tarp). Previously that week I was on the JMT for 5 days and loaned it to a friend, and helped him set it up each night due to him having difficulty as well.

It just did not lend itself to a tight pitch. Maybe I'm used to the solid pitches one gets with a tarp.

I am not bashing SMD, I think the GW is well made and a unique design, as well as better-than-poncho raingear. I just don't like setting it up for shelter which I did for 8 nights in a row. Some in rain, some in wind and rain, some in nice conditions. All sucked.

But this is all off-topic so I don't want to get into it here. Maybe you can start a new thread and get more feedback. I know many users here love the cape. I doubt the WO would be similar, since it does not have a head hole.

[JW]

Hey Ken,

From what I heard (talking to guys coming off the SHR in Dusy when we were there) Knapsack is well traveled and pretty easy. I'd say 1 with a little 2. We did not traverse it. After that you have Cirque Pass and Potluck to get to Palisades Lakes and they are pretty tough, 3-4 in some spots.

BTW, are you local to the Sierras? I seem to remember you posting on hikes there in the past.

Best,
Jhaura

[Steve .]

.

[JW]

Let's move it to a new thread guys.

[Jack H.]

Hey Jhaura,

Jack here, SHR hiker from Kearsarge and Bishop Passes. Nice meeting you out there. I'm heading back to the sierra tomorrow to do the section north of Tuolumne. Very excited. Then home to Utah.

To whoever asked… Knapsack pass is easy class 2 pretty much. Infact, there has been some trailwork done on the south side of the pass and there are cairns on the north side. Easily doable for all. The "trail" on the south side is a little sketchy but better than if you're going cross country. It's towards the east when going down the south side. After all of the SHR passes south of Dusy, Knapsack felt like a highway.

Cheers!
Jack

[JW]

Yeah Jack!

How'd you find this thread? What a trip. Good to meet you too. It was such a coincidence to see you on Bishop Pass.

Your on the trail now, but keep in touch. I'm gunning for the SHR next year. My email is jhaura **at** gmail **dot** com.

Take care,
Jhaura

PS. I'll be posting my JMT (partial) trip report here soon, so check that out if your interested.

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