On July 20th, 2014 I ran the High Sierra Trail from Mt. Whitney portals to Mt. Whitney Summit and finishing at Crescent Meadows. I departed the Whitney portals at 3:10am and finished at 9:33pm in Crescent Meadows.
This adventure was hatched from an email a friend sent me who had been hiking in the High Sierras the week prior to my run. His description of the beauty of the mountains of the Great Western Divide sounded incredible. I looked for some trails to explore the area and discovered the High Sierra Trail transects the entire Sierra Nevada range among its highest peaks and most remote wilderness. Having run the Western States 100 three weeks prior and several runs the Yosemite and Ansel Adams wilderness after WS, I felt relatively acclimatized and prepared for the distance. My wife Kim made surgical work of the planning and in 3 days we had permits, campsite reservations, and a game plan.
It appeared initially that the weather forecast was also shaping up to be perfect for the run. Mother Nature has a way of crashing even the most well laid out plans, and July 20th, 2014 was no exception. I reviewed the weather in detail to make my final selection of gear for the run, trying to strike that perfect balance between weight and safety. After a few hours of sleep at the trailhead, I departed the Portals at 3:10am under partly cloudy skies. On the switchbacks up to trail crest, the clouds thickened and it began to hail. I stopped and put on a long sleeve top, shell, hat, and gloves and continued towards trail crest. As I made the final few switchbacks, the hail intensified, wind increased, thunder and lightning were cracking around me. I made a quick dash to trail crest where I found several people taking cover in the rocks and crouching down. I paused here to consider my options: return to the portals, go straight over trail crest and down to guitar lake, or wait out the storm for an opening on the summit. I waited what felt like 15min and this first wave passed by, with a small beautiful sunrise through the clouds. I decided to continue to the summit with an inch of fresh snow and hail. Half way to the summit, the weather quickly closed in again and the top of the peak was shrouded in dense clouds. I summited in minimal visibility. I took a few photos and descended quickly feeling a sense of urgency with the weather. Halfway back to trail crest the second and more powerful wave of weather rolled in with severe hail/snow, wind, and lightning. I made it back to the trail junction that drops to guitar lake and found several people huddled together. I paused here again as the electrical storm was literally on top of us. It was at a key decision of commitment, to continue on or wait it out and descend back to the portals. I spent 10-15min waiting to see if this storm pulse would move on. Finally as I began to cool down, I needed to keep moving. I dove down the snow/hail covered trial and passed several hikers crouched in the fetal position away from their packs in the electrical storm. I descended the trail as fast as possible, it continued to snow all the way to Crabtree then turned to rain. Just before Wallace creek, the rain let up, but remained cloudy and cool. I took a small break just past Wallace creek to regroup, clean out my shoes and eat. The trail into Junction Meadows is beautiful with great running. As I made my way down the Kern River Canyon towards the hot springs, the dark storm clouds returned and opened up again as I approached the hot springs. I waited out this storm pulse for about 15min, knowing if I became hypothermic, I could dip into hot springs to warm up. The storm passed through, I skipped the dip in the hot springs and began the long climb towards Kaweah Gap. As the trail approaches Big Arroyo, it becomes absolutely spectacular, giving way to one of the most beautiful valleys in the Sierras. The weather was stabilizing, so I was confident I would get across the Kaweah gap without more rain or snow. The view from Kaweah gap is tremendous, surrounded by the peaks of the great western divide. As I began the rocky and technical descent down past precipice lake and Hamiliton lake, the light and scenery kept getting better and more inspiring. A small climb to Bear Paw, then beautiful rolling terrain through the forest made for a fantastic finish at crescent meadows. Kim was waiting at the trailhead, I was thrilled to see her, and appreciative of her love and support on such a challenging day. It had been a hard day for her as well, not knowing where and how I navigated the stormy conditions, and with no communication since departing the portals over 18hrs earlier.
The High Sierra Trail is filled with immense beauty, rugged terrain, solidary wilderness, and awe-inspiring scenery. It is the ultimate one day remote sierra wilderness experience. With no aid or support, it is a very committing route, combining all your skills as a runner and mountain athlete. It was one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life!
Whitney Portal 0:00:00 (3:10 am)
Outpost Camp 0:59:54
Trail Crest 2:34:06
Whitney Summit 3:22:09
Crabtree Meadow 5:16:25
Wallace Creek 6:10:42
Lower Kern Canyon 9:19:42
Junction in Arroyo 12:32:23
Kaweah Gap 13:28:30
Bearpaw Meadow 15:57:04
Crescent Meadows 18:23:09 (9:33 pm)
Topher Gaylord