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Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
#37025 06/02/14 05:59 PM
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This is a question for people who have 2 or 3 of these

Just looking for some options for August. Will be further north on backpack trip 1, but want to do another trip of 3-4 nights.

One of these passes got washed out in spots last yr I think.

I have seen the western ends of all these trails and know the way out north and south. Also am aware that the east side starts lower and hotter. Will have 2 people, 2 cars so no problem with transport.

Am looking for comments about grade, condition of trail (or not), likelihood of water (esp this yr).

I have done other rougher routes and wonder if any of the 3 passes are anything like MR, Whitney-Russell pass, Shadow of Minarets: Minaret-Cecile-Iceberg-Whitebark Pass-Garnet Pass to Thousand Is, Banner Peak itself (west glacier), Lamarck col .

In other words, do the 3 passes have sections like that, or are they all trail?

Thanks

edit: Also interested in bang for your buck views or interesting trail. Considering where they all end up in the west they all are good, but what about the east?

Last edited by Harvey Lankford; 06/02/14 06:41 PM.
Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Harvey Lankford #37040 06/03/14 01:14 AM
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Harvey, I haven't hiked any of those, but here are the numbers, links to trailhead location maps, and links/text from the Inyo descriptions.

Taboose 5500-11400 (5900 gain) Trailhead
Taboose Pass Trail Experience many biologic zones as this strenuous trail begins from the black lava rocks and sage of the Owens Valley floor. The trail climbs more than 6,000 feet as it follows the canyon of Taboose Creek between Cardinal Mountain and Goodale Mountain. Crossing over Taboose Pass leads to the John Muir Trail and destinations in Kings Canyon National Park south of Mather Pass. This trail is not recommended for stock.

Sawmill 4600-11300 (6700 gain) Trailhead
The Sawmill Pass trail is steep and strenuous. Starting near Division Creek, this trail climbs more than 6,700 feet of elevation to reach the Sierra Crest. Sawmill Pass provides access to the Woods Creek area of Kings Canyon National Park. There is no water or shade at the trailhead or along the first few miles of the trail. A pre-dawn start is recommended during the summer and early autumn.

Baxter 6000-12300 (6300 gain) Trailhead
The Baxter Pass trail provides access to the John Muir Wilderness. After climbing more than 6,000 feet of elevation to the Sierra Crest, the trail continues into Kings Canyon National Park . This trail is steep, rugged and difficult to locate in some places. It is not recommended for stock.


I think I would avoid Sawmill Pass, since it climbs so much and then drops so much on the west side to the Woods Creek bridge. That part of the JMT (except the bridge itself) was not a favorite of mine. Baxter is more appealing since it climbs through Bighorn sheep country (I would love to spot a few of them), and meets the JMT near Rae Lakes, a great reward! Taboose is appealing because it would put you close to Bench Lake, another pretty area.

If your hiking partners aren't as seasoned as you, I would think coming in at Baxter, heading out over Kearsarge would make a nice Rae Lakes loop. A side trip to Sixty Lakes Basin would be interesting, too. BTW, there is a cool shortcut down to Charlotte Lake about where the JMT crosses the 3400 M contour. ...but then there are lots of people camping around Charlotte Lk, so maybe not so great.

Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Steve C #37046 06/03/14 07:54 AM
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Steve, thanks. This is very helpful.

I had my eye on Baxter,s o I think this confirms it. Sawmill was pretty much not in the running. Funny, that Woods Creek descent is one of my least favorite areas, but the 3 guys in our group last year loved it. Time of day, I think. Makes a difference.

Dan will be out front no matter where we go.
Thanks again, Harvey

Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Harvey Lankford #37055 06/03/14 09:51 AM
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I used Taboose Pass to exit the JMT a few years ago. I was in a pretty bad mood to begin with, but I hated every step of it. It was miles and miles of hiking on loose grapefruit to watermelon-sized rocks. There were at least half a dozen water crossings where I had to take off my boots and wade (July 2011, a high-water year). At the bottom were several more miles of trail through roasting desert scrub, with plague warning signs at the trailhead. Then I had to hike miles more on the forest service road to reach I-395 and hitchhike back to civilization. Did I mention that I was in a bad mood? :-)

https://www.flickr.com/photos/26292057@N08/14151966169/in/set-72157644585005947


More Taboose Pass photos here: Taboose Pass photo album

Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Steve Chamberlin #37073 06/03/14 03:35 PM
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Originally Posted By: Steve Chamberlin
It was miles and miles of hiking on loose grapefruit to watermelon-sized rocks.

That it as great description and of great use in the decision making. My orthopedist's work need preserving. Thanks.

Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Harvey Lankford #37110 06/04/14 09:50 AM
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This is from Bob Burd's(the immutable)TR from Mt. Baxter in 2007. In the words of the Almighty Burd:

"Mt. Baxter lies within a bighorn zoological area and is only open to climbing before July 1, so it would be good to get this SPS peak ticked off before the season closes. Together, Matthew and I had been up the Baxter Pass Trail twice in the past, to Black Mtn and Diamond Peak on the Sierra crest. The trail is steep, loose, endless, and surprisingly easy to lose in places, not one of our favorite climbs."

I don't imagine that any of these three will be easy, but if Bob Burd didn't like it, I can only imagine the horrors that wait. I don't recall him bemoaning the Taboose nearly as much. But I have a terrible history of being incorrect.

Thus spaketh the mighty Burd...

Burd, Bob et al. Mount Baxter. SnwBurd.com. 10 June 2007. 4 June 2014 <http://www.snwburd.com/bob/trip_reports/baxter_1.htm>


@jjoshuagregory (Instagram) for mainly landscape and mountain pics
Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Snacking Bear #37119 06/04/14 02:58 PM
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With the 6300' gain to Baxter Pass, I think I would divide that up into two days. I would start the hike late afternoon and continue on into the night and gain several thousand feet, then camp by water. I see several stream crossings, and the third is about 2000' above the trail head, at maybe 8000'. I would think the climate and hike would be more pleasant from there on, to do on the second day.

Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Harvey Lankford #37121 06/04/14 04:02 PM
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I took Baxter Pass (with a group of 4) last Summer for a July 4 hike. We started a little late around 0930am, and it was already hot. You park your car at the trailhead, which is a decent drive up the mountain and I forget what altitude you start at - probably somewhere around 6200'.

Baxter Pass is described perfectly by those posts above. We lost the trail at a stream crossing, stopped for lunch while some went in search of where we lost it, and got stung by the plants there at the crossing (stinging nettles?). A few more miles in, the heat rapidly transformed to a storm, dropped to 50 degrees, rain, a little hail, and a lot of lightning. About halfway up there is a really nice flat area wonderfully covered (I know they say not to stand next to a tree in a lightning storm, but I preferred a little cover than being 100% exposed at 10000ft). We ended up camping there for the night, and resumed hiking the following morning. I had thought that we would reach the pass in 2 hours, but it ended up being another 5 hour trek up to the top. This hike is not easy. The last 1500ft is straight scree.

The backside into Kings Canyon is nice, mostly downhill on scree at first, then a huge lake, then back into wooded areas. On the backside of the trail, some of those wooded areas acted more as a bog/marsh than anything (and we lost the trail again - look for cairns!) and the mosquitos were terrible, so never stop to look at your map without adequate bug spray already applied!

We reached the JMT/PCT around 1630, so it was an incredibly long day, and hiked north until 1930 where we found a viable campsite on the JMT.

The next morning we took Sawmill Pass out. The Kings Canyon Portion/Western Portion of Sawmill Pass was by far my favorite part of the trail. Woods Lake is a popular spot to camp/fish/hang out and I would love to go back to the same spot. Getting there is a pain though.

All in all, it was extremely grueling. There's a saying I had in my head that kept me going: "Once the blood dries and the wounds heal, you don't remember the pain, just the good memories" (or something like that).

Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Harvey Lankford #37125 06/04/14 05:52 PM
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I've done Taboose several times, and Sawmill once. Sawmill was only downhill, and I was glad it was in that direction. Prettier, but there was no water for a long way (mid September) between trailhead and the last place I could fill up. The trails can be done by horses so they are not very technical. Just hot HOT at the bottom. Shade is non-existent for most of the climbs.

Either pass, if headed up, I would start well before dawn, or late in the day after the sun goes behind the crest. Head up half way and finish the rest the next morning.

Sawmill is in pretty rough shape in some places, and on the west side you can easily lose the route in some of the more level segments.

Nothing really difficult about these passes. There will be less people on Sawmill, because it leads into a rather underused area on the other side. Taboose leads to popular Bench Lake and is a bit shorter and easier.

Interesting Trail - Taboose itself is rather boring. The area it leads to (Mather Pass, Upper Basin, Split Mtn, Cardinal Mtn. Vennacher Needle, etc) is one of my favorite parts of the Sierra. Sawmill, once you get out of the extended desert slog, is nicer, more variation and some nice lakes, but on the west side it leads to Woods Creek or Pinchot area, which can't match what Taboose offers in my view.


Sawmill has some really pretty spots on the east side, but also some burn zones








Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Fishmonger #37126 06/04/14 07:22 PM
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thanks to all for beta. All excellent help.

hmmmm

Re: Taboose vs Sawmill vs Baxter
Harvey Lankford #37129 06/04/14 09:09 PM
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The hike to Taboose Pass is on a good trail that is maintained periodically and easy to follow. The trails to Baxter and Sawmill are trail hikes (Class 1), but not overly engineered like the trails that get a lot of traffic; so there are sections that are not as easy to follow. At the same time, you won't be dealing with miles of engineered stairs; so fairly nice trails. The problem with all of those trails is the high temperatures you will have to deal with until you get up to higher elevations.

It is not unusual for it to be 100+ degrees at those trailheads in the summer. Start before dawn on a hot day and plan on coming out late in the day if you are coming down them. I got back to the Sawmill Pass Trailhead at about 11 pm one night a couple summers ago and it was still 88 degrees (I came out that night instead of waiting for the morning because the lower part of the trail is in the sun in the morning and I wanted to avoid that).

There are places where both the Baxter and Sawmill Passes fade away on the west side of the passes until you hit the junction with the JMT. The Taboose Pass Trail is easy to follow all the way to th JMT.

Taboose is a good one to go up, but not so much fun going down. Sawmill is nicer coming down than going up. Baxter is about the same either way.

Also, Taboose is by far the easiest one (not easy though) to get over in a day - it's only around 8 miles from the trailhead to the pass.

Last edited by KathyW; 06/04/14 09:28 PM.

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