Bear canister and other regulations for High Sierra Trail?

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I’m having trouble finding the official government regulations for the High Sierra Trail. Are bear canisters required? Are alcohol stoves banned? Are there other rules besides no fires above 10,000ft?

[Matthew / BPL]

Yes. No. LNT rules including camping/washing near water and trails apply, use of existing campfire rings. I think that’s it.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

Thank you. Now I have a better sense of how small my food has to be.

[Matthew / BPL]

Yep it’s time to play Tetris

[Russ W]

Don’t forget that waste at SEKI includes used toilet paper. You may want to read up on toilet paper alternatives!

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I’m a no-TP person. I do think we have to bring a wag bag for one of the days. Hopefully by then I’ll be so starved that I won’t be pooing anymore.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

Yep it’s time to play Tetris

Yep. Lots of powders.

[Adrian Griffin]

Many national forests now prohibit fires or stoves lacking a shutoff valve, which would nix alcohol stoves. See thread under Plumas NF joins stoves w/shutoff, no wood fires. Not just Plumas, at least as far south as Stanislaus.

[Jeffs Eleven]

Which direction you going, Diane?  I’ve been on a portion of the hst headed East  to West. It was some of the most amazing stuff I’ve seen. I felt bad for the people headed East, but we only did from kern canyon to Whatever the trail to Elizabeth pass is called.
Precipice to Hamilton lake. Epic! headed west though. Lord of the rings stuff

[Matthew / BPL]

Adrian, SEKI changed their regulations a year or two ago. Alcohol and Esbit are allowed in the wilderness even during fire restrictions. See the table on this link:

https://www.nps.gov/seki/learn/nature/fire-restrictions.htm

[Adrian Griffin]

I guess the Park is less restrictive than National Forests in this case.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I’m going West to East.

I have some more questions about this.

Question 1: Transportation to the trail

The plan right now is to get a ride with one of the other participants to the Eastern side to pick up a third participant. Then drive to the Western side. The person who is driving is very annoying. I’m thinking about just meeting him on the Western side. I can arrange my own ride home at the end. This would involve taking Amtrak train/bus to Visalia and taking an Uber to the Sequoias wherever the trailhead is. In this COVID nightmare, is Uber from Visalia or Amtrak even feasible?

Question 2: Permits

The plan was to join a person I have never met who got a permit for 6 people. All of them dropped out. He is friends with my friends so I got an invite to join the permit. Now he does not want to go the whole way. He only wants to go to Moraine Lake and back. I want to go all the way and so do my two friends (my one friend and the annoying person). The person with the permit was not convinced that we could go all the way on his permit if he wasn’t there with us. Do you think it is true that we can’t do the whole trail if the person who’s name is on the permit turns around halfway?

I’ve applied for my own permit just in case. If I can’t get one that exits via Whitney Portal I will be happy to accept one that exits Horseshoe Meadow and add an extra day. Does anyone have any sense on how close to the wire I have to wait for my own permit to arrive?

[jscott]

“The plan right now is to get a ride with one of the other participants to the Eastern side to pick up a third participant. Then drive to the Western side. ”

That’s…a bit much. any way the friend on the Eastern side can meet you guys on the Western side?

OR: change plans and do a circle from the east back to the east. Or west to west–you could get out and let the annoying person pick up the friend while you do an overnight, or just camp. There’s tons of great routes. And it would solve beaucoup problems.

this is just how I would proceed; I don’t mean to be directive! I understand that you have good reasons for going with the original route.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

It’s suddenly starting to look like the whole thing is falling apart. Perhaps I will end up just going to the Eastern side either to meet my friend, or alone, and possibly entering at some non-quota trailhead and just wander around in the vicinity of my permit that has me starting at High Sierra trail. If it falls apart enough, I could add some days and start earlier.

I guess I should start researching public transportation to the Eastern Sierra.

[Erica R]

If you start on the east side (Inyo NF) you don’t need a bear canister, you can use a (white or new) Ursack. That is, until you get to a NP or the Sierra NF.

If you start on the West side (Sierra NF or NP) you need a bear canister.

 

 

[Matthew / BPL]

“If you start on the east side (Inyo NF) you don’t need a bear canister”

Is that correct? I know you need one at Kearsarge or Cottonwood. The Sierra Wild map shows the trail up to Whitney skirting the edge of bear can zone.

Speculation at this point but I wouldn’t be surprised if the east side closes given this:

[Pedestrian]

“If you start on the east side (Inyo NF) you don’t need a bear canister, you can use a (white or new) Ursack.”

Could you please post your source for this? Thanks!

 

[Erica R]

Check out the Sierra NF website and the Inyo NF website,

[Pedestrian]

This seems to be a pretty up to date map showing wilderness food storage requirements across the Sierra Nevada.

Looking at that map (and reading through the Inyo website) I don’t see how one could conclude:

“If you start on the east side (Inyo NF) you don’t need a bear canister, you can use a (white or new) Ursack.”

Parts of Inyo National Forest *do* require bear canisters and parts of Sierra National Forest don’t mandate them.

Based on the above post in question I thought there were recent changes to canister requirements; looking more closely it doesn’t look like much has changed.

 

 

 

[Erica R]

Thank you for the recent map.

The legend says ” Carry and use a bear-resistant food
storage container that is allowed in the
area or areas that you are visiting”

Maybe something has changed with the Inyo definition, which a couple years ago was a white (or newer) Ursack.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I would still need a bear canister because I intend to enter the area where they are required even though I won’t start there.

I wasn’t able to get my own permit so I tried to submit another application for a permit. Last resort is to show up at the ranger station and ask where on earth can I still go. Fortunately my friend is pretty easy going and doesn’t care that much where we go. It’s down to just the two of us. If she drops out it’ll become a 10 day solo potluck trip for me. I sure hope this works out somehow.

[Erica R]

The trail to Chain Lakes in Yosemite starts in the Sierra NF. When I was coming out I met a group doing the John Muir Trail. Maybe this entrance will work out for you.

[Matthew / BPL]

Diane, I don’t believe they are doing in-person walk up permits this year at any of the ranger stations. Reports are that phones have not been answered regularly. You should probably read the NF/NP website you plan to enter from very carefully.

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I cannot get them to answer the phone. I cannot get them to reply to my online permit requests in a timely manner. I have been rejected once even though there were openings available when I submitted my reservation. They have not provided a means online to request a permit for walk-in permits despite hearing from other people that they won’t allow you to walk in but you are required to get an overnight permit by walking in.

I don’t think I’m going to be able to go anywhere in this area legally.

That guy who said we could share his permit screwed me by not wanting to do the whole hike he signed up for, only wanted to do 3 days of a 10 day permit (or 6 if you count the round-trip). How many permits are given out that are never used?

I was going to go with a friend. It’s looking like I will have to go somewhere by myself for 10 days. Where should I go? Is there ANY walk-in office for anywhere in the high country? I don’t want to die of heat prostration in the southern Sierra or my backcountry. I also have to get someone to drive me so I can’t go too far from my home in So Cal or he will get cranky(er).

[Diane “Piper” Soini]

I finally got a permit. Tell me if this itinerary is too ambitious for 10 days for two middle-aged ladies, one who hikes all the time and one who works from home on the couch but tries to go on a lot of local backpack trips (me):

1. Enter Trail Pass. Go to Rocky Basin Lakes.
2. Aim toward the big junction with the Kern via Golden Trout Creek.
3. Go up the Kern to Colby Pass Trail.
4. Avalanche Pass to Bubbs Creek trail.
5. Bubbs Creek to SOBO PCT.
6. Make a trip to climb Whitney if we feel like it.
7. Exit via Cottonwood Pass.

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