Mount Conness
Hike Review:
I hiked the Saddlebag Lake Loop Trail, then a side trail up to the Conness Lakes, then just followed the best path I could find through the backcountry.
I found the trail to have just amazingly beautiful sights. In the morning, the sights of Mount Dana, Shepherd Crest, and North Peak made my jaws drop, and in the afternoon, just seeing the valley that contained the Conness Lakes and Greenstone Lake made me swoon.
Most of the trail was not shaded, as it was too high in elevation for lots of trees.
There was much less snow than expected, which made the trail easier in parts, as I could walk on solid rocks. But then again, if the weather was colder and the snow was solid, I could have just worn my crampons.
When I turned around due to the weather and altitude, I didn’t realize I was a few hundred yards away from the Y couloir. If I had realized it, I might have walked a bit more to at least get a picture of the couloir. I should have read The High Sierra book before the hike.
What I Learned:
The weather report said that Saddlebag Lake would have a high of 55 degrees. When I saw that I was worried that it would be too hot for this to be fun. But the wind was forecast to be 5-10 mph before noon, and after it would keep gaining to a max of 25 mph. There were pockets of 10 mph winds, but it wasn’t steady on the mountain. Rather, there would be spots of 10 mph, and 5 mph, and mostly no wind at all. It meant that I was over dressed for the most part, but there were sections that were really cold as the cold wind above the snow would carry down the mountain and hit me as if I was standing with the freezer door open. In the afternoon, however, the sun was blazing and it got hot. Rather than the high of 55, my car read 70 degrees when I got back. No wonder I was hot and miserable once I came below 11k ft in elevation.
That melting snow is like mud in a way and it is very, very tiring to traverse. Similar to mud, it’s also hard to make a solid purchase and going up melty snow was terrifying at times. The good news was that as I gained elevation, the colder air counteracted the power of the sun, and so the snow condition never got avalanche bad, but still, it really tired me out. Next time I attempt Mount Conness, I hope it’s colder.
When it’s a hot day, it means that the streams are going to be larger than usual, which means more difficult stream crossings. Crossing the stream in the morning, I had to walk an additional quarter mile to find a decent stream crossing. On the way back, it meant making some rock jumps that had a bit of slip risk. Thankfully, I made it without issue. Also, I’m not sure if it was my imagination, but the stream seemed stronger in the afternoon due to the increased melt.
I loved feeling like I was alone in the mountain. I knew John from Mammoth was ahead of me, but there were a few hours there where I couldn’t see him or anyone else. It was just me and the mountains, and I loved it.
Snowshoes were useless when I tried to use it half way up the mountain. The upper layer was so loose that there were multiple times in a quarter mile where I slipped with my snowshoes on. I ended up taking the snowshoes off to instead rock climb my way up the mountain. After at higher altitudes, I put on my crampons and kicked deep into the snow slope to find the harder ice below the upper melty layers.
Even with ice axes, there were multiple times where the snow was too melty and would not hold the ice axe solidly. I have to either punch the ice axe down below the snow or I had to look around for colder snow pockets (or just keep moving). There were also spots where due to the rocks below the snow, there wasn’t enough snow that was cold enough (or deep enough) to hold the ice axes.
My slightly more aggressive ice axe was more difficult to use as the bent handle was harder to take out of the snow.
I know you only theoretically need one ice axe, but because of the melty snow, I was glad I had two.
I wished I had an ice axe longer than 60cm, as the ice axe needed to sink in a lot more before I could put weight on it.
I found 4 packages of 250 calorie baked goods to be a perfect amount of food. Hopefully, I won’t get sick of them during this summer.
The crampons worked wonderfully. They gave me lots of confidence and seemed to make the sketchiest of snows feel bomber.
I had not brought any trekking poles (oversight), and really wished that I had brought them. Especially going uphill, it would have been nice to have my upper body help me go up the mountain.
Glissading is just the best way to travel downhill. Because the snow was so soft, it was really easy to control my speed with my legs (and the ice axe) and it just was so fun going down.
I saw numerous examples of recent rockfalls and it made me really nervous, especially since during my ascent up the snow slope, there were rocks perched above me. I’m just glad I didn’t get hurt.
I brought 1.5liters of water with me and found that lacking as I was making my final push up to the Y couloir. Next time, I need to bring more water if the weather is going to be so hot.
I really wished that I had waterproof zipoff pants. That would have been perfect. My bottom would have been waterproof for glissading, and I could have been much cooler on the way down the mountain.
Yosemite east gate has the same policy as the rest of the park in that one needs a reservation between 6am and 4pm. Because I got to the gate at 3:20pm, I had to wait 40 minutes at a pullout with dozens of other cars.
Fears Faced:
Am I susceptible to altitude sickness?—Yes and no. There were many times last year where I would backpack or hike at high elevation without acclimating to altitude and I didn’t get altitude sickness. However, I did not sleep well the first night (or two). I had also visited high altitude destinations pretty regularly. This was a big test given that I had been in low altitude for the past month and that I would be going up to 10k ft in elevation (and gaining another 2k ft) without time to acclimate. What I found out was that I do need some type of acclimating, but that I’m not so susceptible to get HACE or something to that degree. Rather, I got a headache that improved as soon as I headed downhill. So, what this means is that for future destinations, I do need time to acclimate if I’m going to attempt something at high elevation.
Am I good enough to deal with steep slopes in snow?—I am! I had gotten a taste of it while trying to go up Mount Tallac earlier this year, and this trip cemented the fact that while it sucks to try to go up with melty snow, I am capable. I did have a few moments of fear as I saw how steep of a slope I was going up, but with double ice axes and crampons, I felt bomber where the snow wasn’t too melty. I can’t wait to go next winter when the snow is much more solid.
Media Consumed:
The Call of the Wild—finished!
A Brief History of Time—finished!
To Kill a Mockingbird
Friends Made:
There was a guy I met on the trail whose name was John and he was from Mammoth. He stated that he was just checking out the mountain and didn’t have any concrete plans for himself. I think he was about 10 years my senior, and while talking to him, I realized that he was living my dream. Living near the mountains and using the weekends to just hangout wherever he wanted. We had a nice short conversation and we went our separate ways to keep going up the mountain. I later almost caught up with him, but I got tired out trying to keep up at higher altitudes. One day, I’ll be as cool as him, just checking out the mountain and enjoying the journey without a set destination.
What Happened?
~8.3 miles, 9 hrs 30 mins, 1800 ft of ascent
I arrived at the Saddlebag Lake Trail Trailhead at 5am and started hiking after I had put my food in a bear locker. When I started hiking, I was feeling a bit worried because it was just too warm. I got down to a single layer for my upper body just a mile into the hike.
But as I was hiking through the wilderness, I just enjoyed the beauty around me more. I stopped worrying about how it was too warm, or how difficult the hike felt due to the elevation. Rather, I just focused on how beautiful the landscape was, or how much fun I was hiking with the path I chose to hike, which contained some class 2-3 climbing.
As I got above the Conness Lakes, however, the heat, and fatigue set in, and I just started feeling miserable. And what I saw in front of me was a wall of snow, and above that, the ridge that would lead to the peak of Mount Conness. Still, I had come to face the Y couloir, and I kept going. At the base of the snow wall, I put on my crampons, got one ice axe and started following John’s ski tracks. After struggling up the snow path (and sliding down in a few spots), I got out the second ice axe, and chose to directly go up the snow wall instead of cutting a diagonal path. I found this to be easier, as I could just face the slope and not worry about sliding sideways, which was tiring me out. After 40 minutes of struggling up the slope, I found myself above the snow wall, and tantalizingly close to the Y couloir. But, even with the high of conquering this snow slope, I felt horrible.
I had climbed 500 ft of elevation and still had 1000 ft more to go. Worse, during the 500 ft of elevation climb, I had consumed .75 liters of water, with only .75 left to go. Lastly, I was exhausted after having spent so much energy dealing with melty snow.
Even though I had felt dejected, I wanted to go further, so I tried to cross this flat part of the path to the Y couloir. I hated this section. I kept falling through to my knees or further, and it just tired me out. Halfway to the Y couloir, I turned around and headed downhill.
Getting down that snow wall was just the best part. The slope was about 35-40 degrees and it allowed me to glissade down. I had a fun time sliding down and near the end, even practiced a few self-arrests.
The rest of the hike had a few highlights of class 2-3 climbing, but for the most part, it was a slog. The last mile was the worst. I was hot, I was out of snacks, and the patches of snow that I handled so easily in the morning was even more melted than the shitty snow I had hiked through earlier in the day. But eventually, I made it to my car.
I washed my face, picked up the pizza box from the bear locker, and headed off to the Yosemite gate. I did have a headache on the drive home, but once I ate dinner (pho was just perfect), it felt much, much better. I got home at 9pm and that shower I had was just... chef’s kiss.
