Mammoth Lakes - Training and Acclimation Hikes
I spent three days at Mammoth Lakes enjoying the Sierra Mountains, sort of “warming up” for Whitney and Langley later this summer (July and Aug – not sure of the order).
Day one was ~ 9 miles RT from Saddlebag lake up to the Conness Lakes. Lots of scrambling and rock hopping in order to get around the Lakes. First picture is a Panorama of the Greenstone Lake basin, followed by pictures of lower and upper Conness Lakes. Upper Conness Lake is still partly frozen, with both lakes showing their green/aqua color from the Conness Glacier.
Day two was a short hike up to Crystal Lake. Four miles RT with perhaps 1,000’ of elevation gain. This is a well beaten path with lots of company – until you reach the far end of the lake. Working my way down to the beach took a bit of trial and error. Three pictures of the lake, all taken from the far end.
Day three was my longest hike. Agnew Meadows to Garnet Lake and back. Approx. 17.5 miles (RT), with ~2,000’ of elevation gain. Met two fellows doing the PCT. One of them from Australia, the other a student from So Cal. The student had a GoPro strapped on and had over 3500 photos so far. He was picking up a medium format camera when he reached Tuolumne Meadows to document his Yosemite visit. Interesting guy. He was also considering doing the Tahoe Rim Trail while he was passing through. Only added 100+ miles, and he did not seem to be rushed. Also met several hikers doing the JMT. All interesting to talk with. First picture is of Shadow Lake, followed by a shot of Ritter and Banner, and finally a pic of Garnet Lake.
