This weekend's backpack trip took us to Mt. Silliman in Sequoia National Park. My buddy Allen and I started the hike at the Lodgepole trailhead. about 6,800 feet. The weather was cool but warm enough to wear shorts and a t-shirt. We stopped about three miles in where the trail crosses Silliman creek. The creek was very photogenic. After about an hour of taking photos, it was time to get back on the trail. As I was about to cross the creek, Allen corrected me and said " we're going this way. . ", which was along the side of the creek and up the mountain. At this junction, there is a small sign that reads "Twin Lakes" and "Ranger Lake" and points across the creek in a NW direction. The trail that we needed to follow didn't have a sign. In fact, if you look at a trail map, there is no trail marking for this route. Allen has been there before, so he led the way.
It is definite that this trail is not used often. Shrub and grass have grown over parts of this trail. When we got to the first meadow, we rested for a few minutes and took photos of the many wildflowers. There were Columbine, Leopard Lily, Indian Paintbrush and many others but the majority was the large patch of Shooting Star.
We continued up the mountain with the whispering roar of the creek to the left of us.
It's lunchtime and we have just arrived at the base of a large granite wall. Also known as "The Slabs" My thought, "Holy Mackerel". The sight of this wall is very intimidating. My wife made me three burritos that morning, "God bless her", two for breakfast and one for lunch. The burritos had diced red potatoes, egg, bacon, cheddar cheese and green onions. Yeah, I definitely keep the calories replenished on these trips. Alright, break is over, let's get movin'.
About halfway up the slabs, we stopped to refill our water reservoirs. Water from Silliman Lake, runs down the granite face which then turns into Silliman Creek at the base. At this point, I was pretty hot and needed to cool off, so I laid across the flowing water with great enjoyment. After re-energizing, we continued up the slabs. As we got closer to the top, we could see the bowl that surrounds Silliman Lake, which was encouraging. Looking back toward the west, we could see the valley (SJV). Finally, we made it to our campsite at the lake. The view is phenomenal! I dropped my pack and camera then jumped into the lake. A little over 10,000 feet. The water is very clear, deep and little cold, I'm guessing in the fifties. I didn't stay in very long. We washed clothes and relaxed until dinner time.
THE MARMOT
We noticed up the hill, atop a large granite boulder, a marmot looking down at us. It wasn't long before he made his way down to our camp. He got closer and closer and didn't care that we were there. He tried chewing on backpack straps, taking a shirt and tried for the socks. We tried to shoo him away, stomping our feet, clapping hands, he would back-up a little bit but was definitley not afraid. After about twenty minutes of this, he has really become a pest. We started tossing pebbles at him and wouldn't flinch. I picked up some larger stones and threw them at him until he started back up the hill. When he started back down I would throw rocks up toward him until he turned around.
We noticed up the hill, atop a large granite boulder, a marmot looking down at us. It wasn't long before he made his way down to our camp. He got closer and closer and didn't care that we were there. He tried chewing on backpack straps, taking a shirt and tried for the socks. We tried to shoo him away, stomping our feet, clapping hands, he would back-up a little bit but was definitley not afraid. After about twenty minutes of this, he has really become a pest. We started tossing pebbles at him and wouldn't flinch. I picked up some larger stones and threw them at him until he started back up the hill. When he started back down I would throw rocks up toward him until he turned around.
After dinner, we cleaned up and prepped our cameras for sunset and twilight shots. We took pictures for about an hour, getting some great sillohette shots and capturing the rich blue, gold and orange colors in the twilight sky. Neither one of us brought a headlamp when we left camp, so we headed back before total darkness.
Back at camp we setup for some star trail photography. While the camera was capturing the image, we had some canadian whisky and later brewed some hot chocolate. We started the second star trail shot at 11:30pm and went to sleep. No tents, just sleeping bags and the stars. The cameras continued capturing the image for an hour and a half before the batteries died. We were thankful that the cameras saved the image before shutting off. About 1:00am, the moon rose over the ridge. You can see the moonlight on the rock in the picture above. The moon was 83% full this evening, so it looked like daylight when it was over us.
6:00am, time to get up. Not to our surprise, the marmot was back and was trying to move my bear canister to get to the food inside. He went away. We washed up, ate oatmeal for breakast, packed-up our gear and was on the trail to Silliman Peak by 8:00am. Actually, there is no trail, you just pick the best route over the many boulders in the direction of the peak.
Silliman Peak - 11,188 feet
The views from the peak are amazing. To the SE is Black Kaweah, in the distance, spires from Whitney, looking south is Sawtooth, Florence, Alta, Farewell Gap and Hengst Peak. Below us to the south is Silliman Lake. And to the west, San Joaquin Valley. We both signed the peak register, Allen was more ellaborate with artwork filling a whole page. We were on the peak for about an hour then headed down the mountain. There's not much more to tell about the hike back, in fact, we hardly spoke while making our way down "The Slabs". I think we were both trying to not think about the burn in our feet, ankles, thighs, hips, you get the idea. We ate lunch at the bottom of "The Slabs" and continued on down the hill.
The views from the peak are amazing. To the SE is Black Kaweah, in the distance, spires from Whitney, looking south is Sawtooth, Florence, Alta, Farewell Gap and Hengst Peak. Below us to the south is Silliman Lake. And to the west, San Joaquin Valley. We both signed the peak register, Allen was more ellaborate with artwork filling a whole page. We were on the peak for about an hour then headed down the mountain. There's not much more to tell about the hike back, in fact, we hardly spoke while making our way down "The Slabs". I think we were both trying to not think about the burn in our feet, ankles, thighs, hips, you get the idea. We ate lunch at the bottom of "The Slabs" and continued on down the hill.
When we got to the first meadow, we had to lather up with deet to ward off the thriving mosquitoes.
We took one last break at the Silliman Creek crossing. I filled my water reservoir and made sure to save some for my girls. They always ask "Dad, did you bring home some mountain water?"
This was a great trip. The lake is beautiful, comparable to Franklin Lakes and the views from the peak are awesome.
Backpacking can be hard work, but the rewards are plenty.
Robert Adriaansen
Mt. Silliman
Sequoia National Park
July 11th & 12th 2009
http://www.robertadriaansen.com
Mt. Silliman
Sequoia National Park
July 11th & 12th 2009
http://www.robertadriaansen.com
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