3 Day loop

[armorscout]

Just returned from a three day backpacking trip with my friends. We started out at Humber Park and began our hike to the peak. We started up Devil's Slide Trail at about 7am, a little later than we had hoped but mother nature was kind and provided descent temperatures and ample breeze. Small water streams were already abundant and confirmed my suspicions that we would have plenty of H2O. Once we made it to Saddle Junction we took PCT toward Wellman's Divide. PCT was beautiful. Snow packs were scattered and mostly off of the trail. We only saw two other hikers here, one man was alone and on his way to Canada! Pro! We stopped for lunch at Wellman's and got ourselves revamped. The remaining ascent to the peak was challenging but incredibly worth it, the views are beyond description. We were passed a few times from people off the tram, one gentleman offered to have a cold one for us once he returned, I hope he did! Once at the summit we ditched our bags and scrambled up to the peak. It was cold enough to put on my jacket and had lots of snow packs and ice but did not require any ice cleats or micro spikes. The peak was deserted which was a nice treat for us, we enjoyed the view and took some photos. By now it was about 3pm and we started down to our first campsite Little Round Valley. There was much more snow on this side of the mountain but nothing that impeded our descent. One of the guys in our group got sick on the way down, but then recovered and was able to make it. Altitude maybe? LRV was speckled in white ice and snow and was definitely colder here. A nearby stream supplied our water bottles and hydration packs with fresh water. After a bit of post hike banter and dinner, we hit the sack. Next day we had the easiest of the three. We had to hike about 4.5 miles down hill to Strawberry Junction. We crossed dozens of streams and several waterfalls on the way. The snow was still present but much less frequent, and the temperature was still cool. Beautiful scenery. Strawberry Junction seemed right around the corner compared to the previous day, and was just as serene as the rest of the mountain. There was no more snow here and it was noticeably warmer by at least 10 deg. The short hike allowed us to take our time and enjoy our surroundings at camp. We found a descent water source about an 8th of a mile down from SBJunction, but should have continued further as we found a waterfall about 100yrds further the next day. We stayed up to watch the stars and ate the remaining bulk of our food...hardly seemed like roughing it out there. The next morning was the start of our last day. We broke camp and hit the PCT back to Wellman's Divide around 9am. The day started with a 1000' ascent and warm weather. The views of the mountain side were humbling and powerful. With our packs at their lightest in three days, we made good time heading out. By the time we reached Wellman's, I discovered I lost my iPhone on the trail. I was bummed but brushed it off easily after considering it a technological sacrifice to the mountain. From there it was all downhill and boy oh boy did it get warm. We passed many more hikers this day than any other day and only stopped once, I think the visions of In-n-Out made us move faster. We arrived back at Humber around 2pm. What a great loop, challenging and rewarding.

[Sally]

Great TR, armorscout! It must have been wonderful to savor the mountain for three whole days. It's nice to know there's plenty of water flowing as I'm heading down to Caramba tomorrow. If your phone is visible on the trail someone will probably find it and return it to you.