High Sierra - North Lake to South Lake Loop - Layover Day

Timber

Timber

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Joined
Sep 8, 2023
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Hello fellow adventurers.

In 2 weeks, 9/21 I'm going to hike the North Lake to South Lake Loop (High Sierra) near Bishop, CA. I've got all my campsites scoped out and feel good about the mileage. I have room for a layover day in a cool spot, no breaking camp just cross country exploring.

I'm having difficulty deciding between these three epic areas:
- Humphreys Basin
- Wanda Lake Area
- Dusy Basin

I've been doing lots of research and am pretty confident that I can miss out on Humphreys Basin exploration this trip. But I can't decide between Wanda Lake area and Dusy Basin, and I don't want to spoil my trip by looking at tons of pictures.

Could someone please provide some guidance as to which location is going to provide the most rewarding cross country exploration?

Thank you very much!
 
First things first... what is your plan to deal with the bridge out over the south fork of the San Joaquin?
 
You can spend a day in Dusy without a problem. If you feel ambitious, you could climb up to Knapsack Pass.

Definitely need to be aware of the busted bridge. I would not cross it having seeing photos, but I have read that people are using it.
 
wsp_scott said:
You can spend a day in Dusy without a problem. If you feel ambitious, you could climb up to Knapsack Pass.

Definitely need to be aware of the busted bridge. I would not cross it having seeing photos, but I have read that people are using it.
Click to expand...
Trail scuttlebutt is that the Park Service ka-ploded it completely a couple weeks ago. No idea if it's fordable, but I'm hoping so. Otherwise imma have to do a lot of backtracking.
 
LarryBoy said:
Trail scuttlebutt is that the Park Service ka-ploded it completely a couple weeks ago. No idea if it's fordable, but I'm hoping so. Otherwise imma have to do a lot of backtracking.
Click to expand...

I haven't seen a recent photo, but it looks like the river has a pretty narrow channel so don't think it would be fordable even in late summer. Have you seen the mentions of the "high detour" to avoid the bridge? From what I have read, you would not have a problem. I can find more details if you are interested.
 
Decided to figure out where I had read about the bridge and the "high detour". It looks like people are now fording the river near the bridge

"FYI for North/South loopers, people are now fording the South Fork San Joaquin a few hundred feet downstream of the busted bridge (which has now been severed in the middle by maintenance crews). First hand accounts from 8/25 and 8/27 had it above the knees / lower thighs on people ~6’. There’s more info in recent posts on the JMT 2023 group - I’d read them before planning on it and keep in mind this isn’t a usual crossing.
I haven’t looked at it, but the ~45min Skurka bushwhack / scramble remains an alternative that seems heavily used this year. "

This is in the thread that talks about Skurka's high detour (not sure he called it that).

Please post a trip report :)
 
Hey everyone, thanks for the information. I talked to a SEKI Ranger a few days ago and was tolt that as of early September the bridge was busted but the river was fordable. I hadn't looking into it more than that, so I appreciate all the discussion on the topic. I'll look further into the thread "San Joaquin bridge washout? - Page 9 - High Sierra Topix".

Altogether, anyone have more thoughts on the Wanda Lake vs Dusy Basin dilemma?
 
There are way more High Sierra people at HST, you should ask there. I've only seen Dusy out of your list, so I can't help other than to say that Dusy is a very pretty area to spend a zero day.
 
Last I was in Evolution Basin, 2 years ago, it was a zoo. There was a huge group at Evolution Lake screaming, with multiple parties in the Basin playing music on speakers. It felt like a roadside party lake. It may be quieter in the fall. It's a lot easier to duck out from the crowds in Dusy and nearby basins. You can't go wrong with the views from either, and both offer easy peak bagging opportunities.
 
Update... the ford was a piece of cake. Some current, but not crazy and the water was never deeper than my knees. A cairn marks the best crossing spot 0.1 mi downstream of the bridge corpse.
 
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