Yosemite High Route 2019

Yosemite High Route Days 1-3: Tuolumne Meadows to The Northern Terminus of the Yosemite High Route Core Route. 20+16+14 miles.
We decide to hike the PCT as our approach trail instead of heading down to the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne because we’re not sure if Jordan’s possibly still broken foot can handle the long descent down into the canyon. For some reason we think sticking to the PCT will be easier?

Jordan has to deal with acclimating and I’m still burned out from the Colorado Trail and the nonstop traveling. I’m crabby and impatient and worried about how much food we’re carrying and whether it’s enough and how it’s still too heavy. Already I start planning out points to bail if necessary.

The 50 miles on the PCT are pretty but since I’ve hiked them already I don’t enjoy them as much. This section is also hot and buggy and very repetitive. Climb up to a pass, see some lakes, drop down into a creek, climb back up to a pass, repeat. Still, it’s nice seeing some of the things we’re going to pass over off-trail. It’s not as nice seeing all the snow still remaining on some of the mountains. We also see one bear off the PCT. It’s v cute.

Halfway through day 3 we arrive at the Northern Terminus of the YHR Core Route. We wave goodbye to the trail and set off on the route proper.

Day 3, pt 2: 3 miles.
We tag the Northern Terminus which is not really a Terminus, just a random spot on the trail. We go off-trail for the first time and immediately go the wrong way, crossing a creek prematurely. The good thing about routes though is that you can’t go the wrong way (that’s not true, yes you absolutely can).

We follow the creek up through some woods. It’s disorienting being off-trail. After years of hiking with a clearly marked path in front of me, it’s strange not knowing exactly which way to go. But we manage to make our way up to our first pass, an easy walk up with a bunch of snow on top. Immediately we’re treated to some amazing views. We start our descent down towards a creek but decide to make camp on a little protected buggy ledge that has amazing alpenglow views.

Day 4: 12.2 miles.
We drop down into the creek then start making our way up out of it. I’m in a way better mood after getting off-trail and seeing completely different sights. We make our way up to our first class 2 pass which isn’t too bad. There’s a bunch of snow at the top but we find a small gap to descend down the “steep but straightforward” drop. If every pass is like this, we’ll be okay, we think. Spoiler alert: they aren’t.

There’s a steep climb on loose moraine that takes us forever to go up but eventually leads to a beautiful lake then up to our next pass. It looks like a storm is coming in so we try to hustle up and over the pass which leads to us making some not great decisions.

The pass is a class 2 but not that hard to climb up. There’s some easy snow we can skirt around but at the top there’s a big snowbank that seems to block our way down. We turn the class 2 descent into a unnecessarily class 3+ when we try to down climb on a different part of the pass. On our way down we do a little glissade where I almost break my ass and Jordan almost loses his phone. We make our way back to a trail and camp on the buggiest flat patch we can find.

Day 5: 12.5 miles.
We hike up an easy walk up pass to the clearest and stillest lake I’ve ever seen. It’s so perfectly clear that it looks like a mirror.

We descend down something called Suicide Ridge which thankfully did not live up to the name. We make our way through a little forest and to another steep descent. We’re supposed to follow a creek down but veer off too much and start getting cliffed out on some really steep slick slabs. Our climb down is way sketchier than it probably needed to be as we kept choosing the wrong lines and had to do some unsteady descending. It takes us ages to make our way down the slabs to a flat valley below.

We have lunch in the middle of a huge rockslide (a good reminder of how everything around us can collapse) then join a trail for a few miles. We follow the trail up to a beautiful meadow and snowy pass. At the top of the pass we can see our first class 2+/3 pass next to Matterhorn. I remember reading Dharma Bums where Kerouac and Snyder climb Matterhorn and run down it screaming “you can’t fall off a mountain”. Looking up at the overwhelming enormity of Matterhorn, I think they’re full of shit.

Given how much snow there is on the pass we’re on and how the next pass is supposed to be one of the harder ones and might be covered in snow on the other side, we’re not sure if we should continue. We spend a lot of time debating whether or not to keep going. We don’t feel confident enough given how steep the climb looks and how much snow there is around. Finally, after staring at the pass for an hour, we decide to bail.

We pathetically start down the trail with our tails between our legs but on our way down see a group camping below the pass. We figure we can try to get some beta from them and figure out whether or not there’s snow at the top. Turns out they’re a climbing group who are planning to summit Matterhorn the next morning. They haven’t gone up but don’t think there’s snow at the top. We say screw it and decide to at least try to make our way up to the pass to scope it out and backtrack if we need to.

The ascent up is steep but not technical. We make it to a huge snow bowl right below the steepest/technical part of the pass and decide to go for it. The 200 foot last stretch is steep as hell and a little sketchy but not overly complicated. In hindsight.

We make it up to Matterhorn Pass, our first class 3 pass and feel so overwhelmed with adrenaline and relief and awe at the sights around us. This pretty much only lasts the time it takes us to eat dinner.

The descent down, as we learn very quickly, will usually be the worst part of every pass. There is snow but not near where we need to descend thankfully. There is however a lot of steep slab. Given our earlier expierience, we’re not stoked to go down this. The down climb is way more technical than the ascent. We very very slowly and methodically work out way down. Halfway down there’s a band of slick quartz I scoot down safely. Jordan misses my beta and tries to do a sketchy bouldering move to get around it. In a gym it wouldn’t even be a V0 move but with loaded packs on and with very steep slab beneath, it is much more terrifying to watch.

We’re able to make it down safely though and drop down into a canyon where we’re able to fine a nice little spot to collapse on and watch the sunset explode the mountains around us.

Day 6: 12 miles.
After getting wrecked by a class 3 pass the previous day we decided to relax by immediately heading up to another class 3. We start off by doing some flat boulder hopping then move on to steeper boulder hopping then straight up climbing boulder hopping. I head up first to find a line to follow and to give Jordan enough space in case I trigger a rockslide beneath me. It takes us all morning to slowly go up the mile and a half up the pass. Near the top we have to do some ridge traversing, very carefully and cautiously choosing our lines across a very high up series of precarious ledges and loose holds.

We’re able to top out and make it to the pass safe and sound but then have to descend down the other side on a long serious of ledges and talus. It sucks but we do it because we don’t have a choice.

We have lunch at another dreamy lake and then make our way way down some “increasingly steep and slick” slabs. Oh, also it starts to rain as we’re making our way down. We’re able to make our way down to the forest below without slipping and sliding. We get onto a trail for a sec and start our way up another steep climb. Having spent most of the second half of the Colorado Trail staring at clouds and learning about storms, I realize that a thunderstorm is forming right above us and will probably travel up the valley we’re in the middle of. We decide to wait out the storm halfway up the climb while we’re still in tree cover. The thunder gets close enough to make us nervous but not enough to be dangerous. We get rained on for a bit and even get some hail but the storm passes over quickly.
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Waiting out the storm cost us some time so we have to hustle up the last pass of the day before dark. This last pass turns out to be a straight up snow chute. The pass is in the shadow of two peaks so the snow there lingers for months. It’s some straight up Game of Thrones ice wall shit so we of course try to climb up it.

In case you don’t know, I don’t like snow. Like at all. Not since I almost got trapped in a cornice on the TRT and fell down Cutthroat Pass on the PCT. We’re able to kick steps in for the first part of the climb (or Jordan is anyway, I just follow his) but the second gets too steep and I’m way too sketched out by it to try to climb up it.

Instead we try to climb around it on some loose mineral sand which honestly isn’t any better. It takes a while to make our way up and every step feels so unsteady on the shifting sand. We manage to top out right after the sun sets but still get some amazing views of the two lakes behind and in front of us. We have to descend down in the dark but manage to find a spot to camp not far from a lake we know will be gorgeous in the morning.

Day 7: 9.1+3 miles. 12.1 miles total.
Turns out the lake is gorgeous in the morning. Another one of them crystal clear pure lakes. We cross some beautiful open tundra, a welcome flat stretch after the previous day and make our way back onto a trail that leads us to Tuolumne Meadows.

On-trail miles are a cake walk by comparison so we stop at a beautiful cold lake and swim. After days of spending all day hiking, we take the longest most luxurious break.

We make our way back to Tuolumne Meadows. On the way, we get some beautiful views of the Catherdral Range in the distance. It’s intimidating but exciting to know in a few days we’re going to be crossing over it.

At Tuolumne, we pick up our resupply, charge up our electronics, stuff ourselves with as much food as we can get at the grill, and hang out with a few PCT hikers. They’re so cute with their clearly marked trails and guthooks and no sketchy passes.

We decide to hike out a few miles since our permits will be cancelled if we stay in Tuolumne. We end up in another buggy forest which also ends up being one of the coldest nights we have on trail.

Day 8: 11.6 miles.
We work our way through open forests and meadows to a creek. It’s weirdly cold and and there’s frost on everything. Our feet have been wet for days and we desperately try to find a crossing we don’t have to ford so we can keep them dry for a bit longer. We manage to find a downed log we can cross. It doesn’t end up mattering though since there’s so much frost on the ground and we have to traverse some soggy marsh anyway.

We make it to a little unmarked lake where we take a long breakfast break and then up to another lake before an easy but windy class 2 pass. We decide to stop early since we haven’t had a real rest day since we started. This section is relatively easy to so we can linger and enjoy it more thoroughly. We finish hiking by 3pm which is incredibly early. We can see the Cathedral Range in the distance and the steep slab wall we have to climb first thing but we don’t think about either as we lounge around a little lake and breathe in the crisp mountain air.

YHR day 9: 8.9 miles.
Welp, the best laid plans… We intended to make this the hardest day with three class-2 passes but we end up only doing one and barely making it to the base of the second. We severely underestimated how hard the first pass of the day was going to be. On the topo the terrain didn’t look too steep but as we have already found out the contour lines never tell the whole story.

The first class 2 pass is absolutely gorgeous but brutal. We spend all morning hiking uphill, briefly hiking on the JMT for less than a mile. The less than a mile section on the JMT is beautiful. I’ve hiked it twice before and it still never stops being stunning. In this short trail stretch we also see 5 other hikers, the only people we’ll see on the southern section.

In order to make it to the pass we have to traverse a glacier. We follow some slab ramps which leads us halfway up to a pure blue crystal lake we have lunch at. This section is indescribably beautiful and awesome. It’s a glacier in the Cathedral Range in Yosemite, how cool is that??

Rather than try to traverse the glacier slope to the pass, I decide to glissade down into the center of it and hike straight up it. Since the snow is soft and sun cupped, I think this will be easier. For once, I’m actually right about the way to go. The glissade down is pretty safe and the ascent up is relatively easy. Lots of kicking in steps and jumping from sun cup to sun cup. Plus now I can say I’ve climbed a glacier in worn out trail running shoes and frogg toggs.

The top of the pass is windy but gorgeous. I’ve spent so many days hiking on the JMT/PCT/Yosemite staring at the Cathedral Range in the distance and to be in it, on the pass and ridgeline with all the peaks right next to me is overwhelming.

The descent down the pass is brutal though. We have to basically boot ski down loose talus and shale. No step feels solid and at one point I almost trap my leg under a big loose rock. We make it down finally and then have to trudge our way through some lingering snow.

We get to the base of our second pass but Jordan isnt feeling well. The first pass wrecked him so we decide to call it quits early and make camp on another semi-protected ledge. The views are georgous but we’re definitely not happy about not being able to keep going. We figure that we still have enough food though and can make up miles the next day so we settle in early and watch the sunset.

Day 10: 15.6 miles.
We wake up and listen to sad country music to get the day started right. In comparison to the glacier covered pass we hiked over the day before, the two passes of the day aren’t too bad. Lots of talus and rock hopping but after days of hiking on similar terrain, we start to get better at getting through it. Kinda.

The first pass is pretty steep but we’re able to make it over easy enough then down to a lake and waterfall. The second is much longer and takes us a while to go over. At the top, I get impatient trying to find an easy line and do some sketchy bouldering moves to top out. Jordan takes an easy rock chute up. His way is much better.

After that we have an easy descent past some more pretty lakes to a long on-trail section. This section is also beautiful but in the last few miles I start to lose it. I’m fried from weeks of nonstop hiking and traveling and to make things worse, I get a really bad toothache. I want to write that I enjoyed all of the high route, that I was immersed in the sublime beauty of the mountains and that everything was perfect and beautiful but the truth is my stupid tooth hurting ended up ruining this day for me.

I set up camp away from Jordan since I need some time alone to be moody but still manage to get some nice sunset views I don’t really enjoy. I take all the ibuprofen and benadryl I have and manage to pass out.

Day 11: 9 miles.
My tooth feels slightly better in the morning. It’s our last day on the core route (so we think) and I’m hoping my toothache subsides enough to enjoy it. We get back off trail and hike up a snowy not-pass over more talus and rocks. We have to scramble a bit and traverse some hard snow but it’s not too bad. We cross some beautiful lakes and hike up a steep ascent to our last serious pass. This ends up almost being my last pass or last anything ever.

(Mom, don’t read this part) On the descent we can’t figure out the best way to go so we end up on some really sketchy slaby ledges. At one point I slip on some mineral sand and face plant hard. I barely manage to grab a shitty hold and stay on the ledge and not go flying off a very steep drop. It takes me an eternity to calm my breathing down and steady myself enough to get back up. I’m shakily able to make the rest of the descent to a lake outlet below.

Jordan’s descent is also sketchy as hell. From relative safety below, I try to guide him through the down climb but it’s hard to navigate. His pack gets snagged as he is trying to drop onto a ledge and it’s the most terrifying sight to watch.

But we make it through okay. We hike on some thankfully flat granite through one of the most surreal sections. The rock formations around us are like nothing I’ve seen in Yosemite before. We’re frazzled from the descent so we jump into another beautiful freezing cold to re-invigorate ourselves. It ends up just what we needed.

After that, we have one last steep climb up. We end up going straight up a ridge then onto Quartzite Peak, our last high point on the route. The views from the peak are amazing. We can see Half Dome and Yosemite Valley and the Cathedrals and all the other things we’ve gone through the past few days and it’s a little sad but also a giant relief to have made it through.

Our last descent is on some more steep slabs. It gets dark and figuring out a safe way down is too hard so we find a little flat ledge with amazing views and set up.

Day 12: .4+10 miles. 10.4 miles total.
We wake to another beautiful sunrise and make our way slowly down some forest and slabs to the southern terminus of the YHR core route. I’m initially stoked to be finished with the core route but immediately get sad and nostalgic as soon as we make back to a trail.

The trail down to Yosemite Valley is pretty, mostly following the river through forest, including a burn area. Lots of stately domes and big granite walls. We see a mama bear and two cute bear cubs and start getting back among the JMTers and day hikers.

Near a trail junction we see a ton of trash, mostly half eaten we know an animal, probably a bear, got into. It was probably someone’s shitty bear hang 😡. Frustratingly, none of the other hikers we saw that morning bothered packing any of it out. We end packing it all out which was probably heavier than Jordan’s base weight.

The valley is a shit show but we’re able get some food and shower and do laundry. Despite the crazy amount of people, Yosemite Valley is still gorgeous though and as we take the YARTS out it, I remember that one Ansel Adams quote I know: “Yosemite Valley, to me, is always a sunrise, a glitter of green and golden wonder in a vast edifice of stone and space.”