GRAND CANYON OF TUOLUMNE 2017 for a couple old farts

[Stephen Kundell]

I am planning to hike the Grand Canyon of the Toulumne next spring, White Wolf to Toulumne. We are 2 older guys wanting a leisurely trip during high water periods. Anticipate going late May. We will probably take 4 days. Instead of sleeping at the backpacker campground on our first night, thought we would hike to Harden Lake. I would appreciate suggestions for 3 more camping spots along the trail. Also, I usually sleep in an ultralight bivey sack, with tarp if necessary. I am a little freaked out over the rattlesnake situation. I have no problem with all the mammalian critters that may come by while in a little claustrophobic sack, but a bit more concerned about rolling over onto a snake. Should I take a tent?

[David Thomas]

Peace of mind is worth a lot.  So is a good night’s sleep.  So maybe it’s worth the 2 pounds for an enclosed shelter.

I’ve got maybe 40 nights total camping out in the open in that area (I’d often drive up Highway 120 towards YNP and stealth camp to the west of the park and I was on staff at a BSA camp along Evergreen Road just west of the park).  I never had anything crawl into my bag.  Edited to add: actually, my data set is a lot bigger because I’d lead overnight BPing trips of 10-15 boys each week and we had 200 or so campers in the bigger camp and I’d have absolutely heard about any snakes in sleeping bags.  I was the one to respond to any rattlesnake sighting of any kind and we’d only get 2 in a summer (I’d capture it with a snake stick and release it a few miles from camp after displaying it in a terrarium for the campers).

In hundreds of nights of camping, mostly in North America, I’ve only had one scorpion crawl into a bag with me (Chabot Regional Park, Oakland/Castro Valley area – got stung, no big deal) and one scorpion was in my wife’s boot come morning camping on a beach at the south end of the Big Island of Hawaii.

So it’s never prompted me to bring an enclosed tent for that reason.  Sometimes I’ll do so for mosquitos, but not for creepy-crawlies.

[Stephen Kundell]

Thanks David. I will probably stick with my UL set up and hopefully the snakes wont crawl all over me in my bivy sack.

[Paul Wagner]

There are a few other things you might want to consider about this trip:

1. The road may not open by late May.  True, we’ve had some dry years recently, but that road sometimes doesn’t open until mid-June…and in very heavy snow years, later than that.  If the road isn’t open, it’s a long way back to your car…
2. High water.  Even if the road is open, the trail can be under as much as two-three feet of water in places.  This is slow moving water, but you will almost certainly have to wade 100 yards or so in a couple of different places.  Some campsites (especially the illegal ones that are too close to the river, might also be wet.
3. The waterfalls will be booming.  Really impressive.  Bring your camera, and a fly rod.  It’s an amazing river.
4. As David noted, don’t sweat the snakes.

 

[Justin Baker]

I did the grand canyon of the Tuolumne late may of this year. I went from toulmne to white wolf. It was following a decent snow year, right after a late season snow storm, and during a heat wave, so all of the conditions led to very high water situations. First of all, I would personally recommend going from toulumne to white wolf instead. You get to see the best scenery going downhill (less exhausted) and I would rather go straight uphill all at once (at the end) rather than go slightly uphill for the entire trip. But that’s just my personal preference.

There were two unbridged serious creeks to cross. The first creek, I believe it was register creek, was unbridged and totally uncrossable. The only reason I was able to cross it was because some other hikers I ran into mentioned a log crossing upstream. Getting to this log cross involved some rock hopping and light bushwacking. There is a good sized log that you can easily get across. If you fall off this log you will probably not survive. Right after this creek there is a bridged creek, which makes you wonder why they didn’t just bridge both of them. The second creek was going uphill towards white wolf right before you get to the big flat area with a view of hetch hetchy. I ended up bushwacking upstream a ways before grabbing a stout pole and crossing a deeper and slower area upstream of a log jam.

The trail sections can become very flooded. The valley below glen alluin camp was completley flooded, like almost the entire forest itself was flooded. Walking through this was not difficult but your feet will get cold. There was also a knee deep wading section where you have a granite cliff on one side and the river on the other. This was a little nerve racking because you are wading into the river with a giant torrent of death near you, but the water you walk through is just a eddy with a light current.

Stay calm, take things seriously, and you will enjoy the adventure. The trip was adventurous and a bit intense at times, but at no point did I feel in danger. Even if you take things slow this is not a leisurely trip, its an adventurous and challenging trip.

Keep in mind that suitable campsites are few and far between, so if its getting late in the day and you find a decent spot you should consider stopping. It is unlikely you will be able camp the legally required 100 feet from the water, 100 feet from trail but I seriously doubt you would ever get into trouble considering the circumstances.

[Stephen Kundell]

Thanks Paul and Justin.  It sounds like the intensity of the spectacle appears to correlate with the danger in hiking with higher water levels and crossings. Just curious, with all the hiking in water, did you use trail runners so they would dry out? I am still an 18 pound base weight and light boot user, but trail runners seem to make sense on this hike.

[Justin Baker]

Hey Stephen, I worn non waterproof trail runners (altra superiors) that drain water really well. They were wet most of the time because of the frequency of wading and when they occasionally did dry out, they soon got wet again. So expect to have wet feet. Having shoes that drain water really well makes it all much more comfortable. If you have never hiked with wet feet for extended periods of time, I recommend good fitting socks, good fitting shoes, gaiters to keep dust out of your shoes (which makes your shoes very gritty) and an extensive blister kit. I find it manageable.

I don’t think the hike is dangerous as long as you don’t ford register creek and instead walk upstream to cross the log, and when crossing the creek heading down from white wolf (before you start the big descent) you scout a bit upstream for a safe mellow spot to cross.

The log crossing on register creek is sturdy, wide, and safe, but if you fall off you will probably not survive. I don’t see why you would ever fall off that log. Maybe butt slide if that makes you feel more confident.

As far as footwear, use whatever you are most comfortable with. The trail can be rough at times. The grand canyon of the toulumne was the best backpacking trip I have ever been on and early season is the most impressive time.

[Paul Wagner]

I use water shoes to wade, then put my hiking shoes and dry socks back on…

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