I am planning on hiking the SHR this year. I was thinking late August/Early September but I’m flexible. I am a 35 year old trail builder in the CA Bay Area. I have hiked the in High Sierra every summer for the last 20 years. I have hiked from Sonora Pass to Mt.Whitney via the JMT/PCT. I have been on numerous multi day trips in various parts of the range. A few years ago I started venturing off trail and have learned to love cross country hiking in the High Sierra. I have hiked a few small sections of the SHR cross country through (Bear lakes Basin, Humphrey’s Basin, Dusy Basin, Barrett Lakes, Pallisade Basin. I have also cross country hiked through Darwin Basin. The cross country passes I’ve completed on the SHR so far are :Feather, Knapsack, Pot Luck, Cirque, Carol Col.(puppet pass). Other cross Cross country passes I’ve hiked include: Granite/Bear Pass, Glacier Pass, Sixty Lakes Col, Rae Col, Gardiner Pass, and a few others I may have forgotten.
I can read Topo maps and can route-find somewhat decently. I layout and design hiking trails professionally so I can read terrain pretty well. I usually use my phone GPS and a Gaia App to aid in general navigation. I have always wanted to hike the SHR and I feel that I have gained enough experience thus far to feel okay giving it a shot. I don’t mind hiking solo (as I have on most all of my cross country trips) but my loved ones would feel far more comfortable knowing I wasn’t alone on the route. Let me know if this sounds like something you’re interested in and we can start on the planning! Take care
