Leavitt Lake/High Emigrant Lake/Snow Lake

Emigrant Wilderness

Friday 09/13/2002 - Sunday 09/15/2002

Hike Data:

Length: 30.5 miles
Elevation Gain: 4,800 feet
Elevation Loss: 4,800 feet
Time: 15 hours
Difficulty: 3.5/5
Rating: 3.5/5
Other Information: There is no fee. A wilderness permit for the Emigrant Wildnerness is required.

Introduction:

The Emigrant Wildnerness lies within the Stanislaus National Forest just North of Yosemite National Park and just South of Sonora Pass. It covers a fairly large area containing a variety of different types of geology. I came up with the idea to try to put do a long semi-loop, starting from Leavitt Lake (in the Toiyabe National Forest) just NorthEast of the wilderness, dropping down near High Emigrant Lake, and then looping down to Emigrant Lake, down to Buck Lake and Huckleberry Lake, and then to Twin Lakes in Yosemite, and finally back to Leavitt Lake. This would cover the Eastern side of the wilderness. I knew, however, that it would be long days of hiking (about 17 miles/day).

I talked my friend Steve into going with me, and we decided to start on Friday, the 13th of September, and do a half-day to High Emigrant Lake. We decided to meet at about 2:30. I volunteered to pick up the permit on the way up, and the plans were set.

Of course, there's always a problem of some sort when I go backpacking. This time the problem turned out to be that I hurt my left knee about a week before we were supposed to leave. After resting it for a week, it was feeling ok, so I figured it'd probably be ok, and thus it was that I headed out of the Bay Area that Friday to meet Steve for a fun trip. Having been stuck in the house (and worse, the Bay Area) all summer, I was excited to get going. I also had some new gear to try out, and was in the best shape I'd been in in years, thanks largely to losing almost 15 pounds from my gut.

Anyway, what follows is the story of our trip, some great pictures, and the route description. I hope it's entertaining...

Getting There:

From the West: Take Highway 120 East to Highway 108 East to Sonora Pass. After going over the pass, drop about three miles and then turn off to the right at a hairpin (left-hand) turn onto Forest Service road 77 (which is unmarked). If you have a car with decent clearance, follow the dirt road about 3 miles to Leavitt Lake. Follow the trail as it winds around the North and then East side of the lake to the Emigrant Wilderness Leavitt Lake trailhead.

From the East: Take Highway 395 to Highway 108 West. About 3 miles before you reach Sonora Pass, turn left at a hairpin (right-hand) turn onto Forest Service road 77 (which is unmarked). If you have a car with decent clearance, follow the dirt road about 3 miles to Leavitt Lake. Follow the trail as it winds around the North and then East side of the lake to the Emigrant Wilderness Leavitt Lake trailhead.