Comments on: Hiking the High Sierra Trail – An Overview

By: Lee Wheat

Lee Wheat — Fri, 05 Nov 2021 17:08:45 +0000

First time coming across your post. Read it from start to finish and the HST is now at the top of my bucket list! Do you have a gear and provision list for this experience? I am going to set a goal for early September 2022 to make the trip—with planning starting now. Thank you for post.

By: Joe Dawson

Joe Dawson — Wed, 16 Jun 2021 17:32:52 +0000

In reply to Christine. HST covers it.

By: Lee

Lee — Mon, 04 May 2020 17:29:23 +0000

In reply to Greg Glass. Thank you; I've really wanted to do this hike but other posts have left me feeling like there's a lot of exposure. Hopefully we get our trails open for this season. Thanx again.

By: Greg Glass

Greg Glass — Thu, 30 Apr 2020 15:43:09 +0000

In reply to Lee.

Lee – thanks for the question. There is very little exposure on the route over Kaweah Gap. The main points of exposure are from the Lone Pine Creek bridge to Hamilton Lake – crossing the waterfall is slightly exposed. Then from Hamilton Lake to Precipice Lake there is a bit of exposure on the Hamilton Gorge trail section and just above it where the trail washed out last year. Both of these points are not nearly as exposed as forester pass or the ‘windows’ on Whitney trail. From Precipice Lake to Kaweah Gap there is no exposure. Hope that helps.

By: Lee

Lee — Thu, 30 Apr 2020 04:05:52 +0000

In reply to Lee. Clouds Rest in Yosemite would be another one I've done for comparison; thanx again.

By: Lee

Lee — Thu, 30 Apr 2020 04:01:02 +0000

Looking for comments regarding the cliff side exposure on Kaweah Gap section.
I have hiked Whitney and the JMT.
Biggest challenge was coming down south side of Forrester if you can provide comparison.

How long is the exposed section?
Any input helpful!

By: Greg Glass

Greg Glass — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 15:58:09 +0000

Tre – plenty of water everywhere – read through the entire 8 day blog here and you will see all of the camp sites we used and all of the water sources. Snow will not be an issue in August – you will not need traction devices.

By: Tre

Tre — Tue, 06 Nov 2018 14:45:41 +0000

Greg-great, thank you. That would work!! Any water issues? How many liters were you carrying? We were looking at August, do you think we would need to bring any crampons or snow gear?

By: Greg Glass

Greg Glass — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 22:08:54 +0000

Tre – the High Sierra Trail has bear boxes all along the trail at almost every campsite. You can use the bear boxes every day except in the Whitney Zone on the last day or two when you can use the BV450. That’s all I carried on my 8 day and only used it at Guitar Lake and Outpost Camp. The rest of our days/nights we stored all our food in the bear boxes – so you are good to go with no resupply.

By: Tre

Tre — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 22:03:05 +0000

Greg-Thank you, but I only have a BV450 and can’t carry more than 5 days of food. My friend and I wanted to do it in 7.

By: Greg Glass

Greg Glass — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 16:20:47 +0000

Tre – the trail is only 72 miles and most complete it in 5 to 8 days, so you really don’t need a resupply. Simple carry a full week of provisions and you will be fine start to finish.

By: Tre

Tre — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 16:14:17 +0000

Hi, does anyone have information on resupply option?

By: Debbie

Debbie — Sat, 16 Jun 2018 21:55:07 +0000

I have permits for June 26th of 2018. Has anyone hiked HST yet this year? How were the streams and ice?

Also I may have two extra permits.

By: Brad

Brad — Fri, 15 Jun 2018 17:59:38 +0000

Paul, this website has a listing for all camp locations with bear boxes, not sure if it is 100% accurate, maybe someone who has hiked it could verify for the group.

http://www.highsierratrails.com/high_sierra_trail/destination.html#here

By: Ken

Ken — Fri, 01 Jun 2018 03:33:43 +0000

Great post, thanks for all the good info.

By: Dave

Dave — Fri, 01 Jun 2018 01:09:15 +0000

Not all sites have bear containers. They tend to be really full in July and August. I have always carried mine to be safe.

By: Paul

Paul — Mon, 28 May 2018 20:33:26 +0000

Did you require to carry a bear canister or can you use the bear containers at designated sites?

By: Greg Glass

Greg Glass — Mon, 12 Mar 2018 12:05:33 +0000

Christine – if your HST permit has you exiting Whitney Portal, it covers you summiting Whitney and spending one night in the Inyo NF (Trail Camp, Outpost Camp).

By: Christine

Christine — Mon, 12 Mar 2018 05:59:45 +0000

I had a question about permits. Do you need a separate permit to hike Whitney or does the HST wilderness permit cover it? Thanks!

By: Patrick

Patrick — Tue, 20 Feb 2018 17:33:26 +0000

HIRING EXPERIENCED GUIDE – Hiking High Sierra & Mount Whitney

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Who we are: mid 30’s, hike often but do not own specialized gear for this trip, looking for something more interesting/authentic than what we could book through a tour company – without sacrificing quality.

Who you are: experienced outdoor guide, local to area, who can manage end to end logistics and planning for us (from suggesting an itinerary to actually coming with us on the hike), you can provide most of the specialized gear that we will need (beyond tents, packs, poles, etc).

Willing to pay up to $200 per client ($800 for group) per day for the right guide. Looking to build an ongoing relationship with someone who can continue to challenge us.

If interested, please reach out to me at psteffens82@gmail.com with:
Proposed itinerary
About you (qualifications & experience)
Your online profile (social media, flickr, vimeo, etc)

By: Anna

Anna — Mon, 20 Nov 2017 06:16:54 +0000

Awesome post here. Love the image of Guitar Lake. My friend brought up wanting to do the High Sierra Trail next year. We’ve gotta decide what we’re doing, but seems like it’s calling to me.

By: Stephen Smith

Stephen Smith — Sat, 04 Nov 2017 16:15:04 +0000

Thank you for publishing this guide. The photos and maps were very helpful. I used it to help find the way to Angel Wings.

By: Garrett

Garrett — Wed, 20 Sep 2017 22:58:24 +0000

My brother and I did this hike in August and it was our first backpacking trip ever. We did the entire trail in 4 days and 3 hours. If you are interested in how we did it, please feel free to reach out to me. Also here is a link to a little video we made along the way(it is kind of funny too):
https://youtu.be/O2BtaNULLKs

By: Greg Glass

Greg Glass — Sat, 29 Apr 2017 16:33:05 +0000

Hi Scott – big arroyo to upper funston doesn’t have a huge amount of climbing – just at the beginning from the arroyo to the plateau. Then it’s flat and then a big 3000 foot descent into kern canyon. With an early start, You could most definitely have plenty of time to go another two miles up the canyon to the hot springs – that would be no problem if you’re fit. But that downhill can take your legs out LOL! Also if you stay on trail instead of going to moraine lake like we did, you save another mile and a half. But moraine lake is super beautiful – so I recommend it.

Play it by ear – the ascent to the Kaweah gap may not be that bad. Check with ranger station just before you go to get a read on the conditions and join the high Sierra trail Facebook group too for updates. But if it’s snowy and icy, take the proper gear and climb safely!

Have an amazing time!

Mobile email
Greg@bciitv.com
818.381.3151

By: Scott Brown

Scott Brown — Sat, 29 Apr 2017 16:22:50 +0000

Awesome post, great resource. My trip this year is late July / early August. I am somewhat hesitant with the first half of the trip to plan very aggressive with the snow/ice that will most likely still be lingering because of the crazy snow year. That would put us at Big Arroyo for night 3 with 3 nights left in the trip. When you look back on your trip was the day you went from Big Arroyo to Upper Funston Meadow hard for you in anyway? I’d like to continue to Kern Hot Springs but not sure if all our group will be on board for that if this day is pretty taxing. But we may need to, seems like a good day to get some extra miles in considering the elevation that day.

By: Greg Glass

Greg Glass — Thu, 02 Mar 2017 15:48:31 +0000

Yolanda – congrats on getting your permit. Mid-July 2017 should have some snow and water crossing challenges, so be prepared! I suggest Microspikes in your backpack, as well as 50-100′ of rope, and a good plan for changing shoes/socks/clothes if the stream crossings are deep. Keep an eye on the SEKI website for updates on the trail. Have a great trip!!

By: Yolanda Nowicki

Yolanda Nowicki — Thu, 02 Mar 2017 05:26:43 +0000

I just received my lottery permit for the HST 2017! WhooHoo! I’m going mid-July, so there probably will be snow and river crossing issues, but epic nonetheless! I appreciate your day by day posts. I will use them as a tentative guide for my trip. Thank you! Happy Trails ~SoloYolo

By: Marty Elliott

Marty Elliott — Fri, 07 Oct 2016 18:11:03 +0000

Bookmarked!

By: Greg Glass

Greg Glass — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 00:35:09 +0000

Thanks Mike! Our trip was July 8-16. If you were there in June, you must have encountered some snow/ice on the Hamilton Gorge and some pretty deep water in crossings like Wallace Creek! I’ll check out all your photos!

By: Nancy R

Nancy R — Sun, 18 Sep 2016 09:37:04 +0000

So inspiring… someday!

By: Mike

Mike — Sun, 18 Sep 2016 05:20:09 +0000

Awesome! I cant wait to read the rest of the trip reports for this trip! I went this past June, when were you there?

You can see my pictures here: http://www.cattywampur.com/2016/06/11/high-sierra-trail-to-mt-whitney-introduction/