Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion Resupply Cache

Reading Roguephotonic's ambitious itinerary reminds me to ask about resupply strategies for approaches to Whitney from the west. First time I did Whitney ('64) resupply by packers leaving caches (particularly for PCT throughhikers) was fairly common and reasonably priced. When I inquired a couple of months ago, the one packer who responded estimated $2000 (yes thats thousand) to drop 20-40 lbs at Junction Meadow (Sequoia NP). Is this really the going rate? Can resupply only be done now by coming out, other than on the JMT? What's the deal?

They are that expensive, and you MUST meet them to receive the food. they cannot drop a supply somewhere for you to pick up and just leave. Without a sat phone, the chance of being late for such an expensive service would make this a pretty big gamble.

And there is one big reason I'd never use them: no way will I pay money to see even more horseshit on the trails.

Not sure why you would need a resupply to get up the back side of Whitney. With a decent sized bear canister. I can travel 10 days before I need a refill, which allows for a rather distant approach.

Here's the fee schedule for that service from Rock Creek Pack Station:

http://www.rockcreekpackstation.com/dunnage.shtml

Other pack outfits probably charge similarly. ($2000 seemed pretty high.)

If you object to a little horse shit on the trails (Phew, oh how nasty! Yuck!), then consider how trails in the Sierras would be maintained without the pack outfits. Even the USFS and Park Service uses mules and horses to maintain trail systems.

A little history: local trails in the Bishop Creek drainage were originally created by pack outfits, who still help maintain those trails. The work wasn't and isn't done by the Sierra Club, that's for certain.

Since you say Junction Meadow does that mean you plan to do the High Sierra Trail and then further and you need resupply?

I think the Whitney Portal Store might hold a package for you but still your only option is to go down to the trail head and get it.

Resupply is a tricky business I have always found and often dictates my route planning due to it. I have been lucky enough in the past to have family members bring me packages or cache them or I once left a cache in the Onion Valley Trailhead bear boxes.

Thanks for the tips: the Rock Creek prices are much more like what I was expecting. Reason for the resupply is that I plan to either yo-yo or more likely loop the HST (and I like to take my time) with a few days fishing and summiting around Lake South America and then back maybe by Pants Pass. Much as I'd like to pay my respects to the folks at the Portal, I want to bag Whitney and get the hell out of Dodge. Having been there last when I didn't need a reservation, water treatment or wag bag, I want to avoid the descent to the Portal (and the return climb) if I can. I think it would just break my heart. Might be an alternative, though, if am feeling up to the MR.

thanks again for the help

Well, the Whitney Portal Store IS a good resupply option. Shoot... if you spent the night on the Whitney summit, you could zip down to the store and back up and over in a day.

If you are ok with the descent down the MR, you could leave most of your gear at Iceberg Lk, get your resupply at the store plus a huge burger, and then get back up at least to Iceberg in the same day. Rather than a second summit, you could head west over Whitney-Russell pass.

All of that could be done on your hiking permit from Sequoia N.P., with no Whitney Zone reservation required. ...In fact, Inyo rules are that you can re-enter using the same permit, even after an overnight off the trail. It's ok as long as you are not "out of the wilderness" for more than 24 hours.

And wag bags aren't that bad. You can get one at the Crabtree R.S. or close by. Just try not to use one on the return trip -- it'd be a very long carry back to the west side!

That would be about right. To get to Junction from anywhere is going to be a minimum 3 day trip with 3 animals and a packer. And to do that, it would have to be Rock Creek Pack Station coming from Cottonwood or Onion Valley Pack Station coming over Shepard Pass. Might even be 4 days.



True to a certain extent. Most trail crews (though not all) require some level of stock or helicopter support. Both Yosemite and Sequoia Kings use stock extensively.

The down side is stock causes impacts -- both mechanical on trails and environmental as a result of manure and grazing -- that is disproportionate to the number of people they bring in.

Somewhere between 3% and 6% of stock (in a Yosemite study) carry both Giardia and Cryptosporidium. Stock manure and urine dumps large quantities of nitrogen into watersheds that likely contributes to algae blooms in lakes and streams. And, of course, when they're grazed, they remove tons of grasses, forbes etc. from the meadow and riparian ecosystems; the loose grazing also destroys fragile habitat that, in Wilderness, is supposed to be protected.

My main problem with stock is, to the extent we agree that numbers of people should be limited to some level of carrying capacity, then stock is not considered in that calculation by any of the agencies involved in Wilderness management.They're treated separately as if they're a user group with the same privileges (or, really, more) as people.

If a boy scout were to dig a pit in a meadow or pick flowers, they'd get either a stern talking to or a citation (depending on attitude...). But a horse rolling in a meadow and creating a dirt pit or eating those same flowers is considered an acceptable impact.

There are a number of mitigation that can be done to ensure stock users can continue to use Wilderness areas, but they're very slow to be accepted and adopted.

George

"To get to Junction from anywhere is going to be a minimum 3 day trip with 3 animals and a packer."

Three animals? I'm talking 1 or 2 bear canisters, and I'd settle for Tyndall, Crabtree or anyplace I can get to in a day from there. I am also less inclined to being responsible for even one more animal crossing the Crest, so Anvil Camp looks like the best possibility, and the MR to the Portal and back also a reasonable choice. BTW, I have not so much concern about my own wag bag: its the horror stories I read about other peoples' that get me. Can't figure why you would use one at all if you're not gonna pack it out.

well, if you're headed north on the JMT, I was told (with a straight face) by the friendly ranger at Lone Pine who handed me my permit that I had to pack any used wag bag with contents all the way to VVR, which I had just pointed out to her was my next resupply...

They don't tell you that when you make plans to hike the JMT northbound

> I'm talking 1 or 2 bear canisters, and I'd settle for Tyndall, Crabtree or...

Saltydog, give some guide services a call. I think they might be willing to dispatch one of their trip guides on a day hike to meet you with a resupply.

It isn't legal with the F.S. for you to hire/pay a random person to do that (friends are ok, but the payment is the problem), but guides are licensed by the Forest Service, so their hiking in and out for pay carrying a resupply load would be ok. Try calling Kurt Wedberg's SMI in Bishop for starters.

If you call, please let us know what you find out.

Right. It's not just your stuff, it's the packer's stuff for a 3 day trip as well. It's not impossible they can fit it all on one animal -- and for 2 days or overnight, they probably could.

Most people look at a resupply as "how can it be so much for just 2 bear canisters". But pack stations charge per animal per day (including the packer's horse)and per day for the packer. And you still need a minimum of one mule, one horse and one packer no matter what you do. The packer's got his stove, food, pots, clothes etc. for an overnight trip plus they usually carry grain or even feed depending on grazing regulations. Plus your stuff. It adds up.

Obviously the cheapest way to do it is to figure out where a pack station can get in and out in a day. So that's usually no more than 20, maybe 25, miles round trip: Upper Rock Creek; Kearsarge Lakes/Charlotte Lake; Anvil Camp (maybe -- they've still got to truck the animals over to the trailhead from Onion Valley if you go with Pine Creek/Onion Valley Pack Station). Check with the Berners and see what they charge for Anvil Camp.

Or, like Steve says, see if you can find one of the mountaineering guide services who'll hump the stuff in. But, yes, if you give them money, they have to have a commercial use permit or be a friend.

Good luck.

g.

Steve: Yeah, my next post was gonna be, "So, does anybody want to make a few bucks by humping an extra 20 lbs to Trail Crest . . . ?" Would that be the most likely day hike spot, if I could find a licensed guide willing to do it? I don't see any other likely place on my map. Any licensed guides read this forum?

> I don't see any other likely place on my map.

Have you decided on your intended route?

> Any licensed guides read this forum?
Not really. Kurt Wedberg drops in occasionally.

Call Kurt's SMI at: Sierra Mountaineering International

Or:

Sierra Mountain Center

Sierra Mountain Guides

Bardini Foundation

Two Inyo National Forest lists:
Outfitter Guides - Mt. Whitney
Outfitters & Guides

Honestly I think you will be happy if you go down to Whitney Portal. After a few days on the trail a nice burger, fries and a drink will do wonders for your morale and energy levels.

It always does for me when I approach resupply thinking blah! 9 days of food on my back again! But the good food and company always serve to make the continuing journey much easier.

My route will be the HST from Crescent meadow to Whitney and then maybe a yo-yo but more likely a loop by way of Lake South America and Pants Pass