“I’d be interested in any thoughts you have on the topic as well.”
I haven’t hiked in that area, Matthew, so I can’t reliably comment on it. I’ve gone over it a number of times on maps, and it looks very interesting, but that is a whole different thing from boots on the ground.
“My current plan is to show up at the Inyo office in Bishop and cross my fingers hoping that we can get a walkup permit for either Piute or Bishop Pass. If neither of those work out we will use our current permit and explore the heck out of Sabrina Basin poking around the various off-trail destinations such as Blue Heaven Lake, Bottleneck Lake, the approach to Haeckel Col, etc.”
Sabrina Basin has a lot of nooks and crannies to poke around in, so you wouldn’t be wasting your time there. Finding your way up from Midnight Lake to the ridge at the beginning of the approach to Haekel Col would be an interesting exercise in and of itself. Following it up a ways from there would also be fun. I know we enjoyed it. It would be a good preview for the real thing in the near future. Also, sussing out the route from Hungry Packer/Moon up to Echo Col would also be fun. A day hike up to Table Mountain, above George Lake is another fun trip. But all of these are consolation prizes. I hope you get your permit for either Bishop or Piute Pass.
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