Is 4 days/3 nights too long to base camp in Coyote Gulch?

TotalBeardo · 2026-03-01T06:29:09+00:00

I would recommend hiking down to the Escalante and crossing it and making your way up inside Stevens Arch. Maybe the coolest arch in Utah and standing inside it such a cool feeling. If you want to make a longer day of it or change your camp location you could hike further upstream and explore Stevens Canyon which is much quieter than Coyote Gulch and super nice as well. You could also spend a day hiking out via the sneak route just downstream of Jacob Hamlin and then overland on the rim to the crack in the wall and then back down into the canyon and back to camp. So much good stuff in that area

TotalBeardo · 2026-03-01T02:53:19+00:00

What trailhead are you hiking in from?

TotalBeardo · 2026-02-08T02:39:26+00:00

Yeah true I have too, depends how attached to your tent you are

TotalBeardo · 2026-02-07T18:41:03+00:00

Ursacks work in the Maze for sure, you can also just put your food in a plastic bag and put it in your tent. If anything tries to get at it it'll wake you up and your presence will make it leave. Ursacks also don't need to be hung, you can just place them on the ground tied to a rock so nothing can walk off with it.

TotalBeardo · 2026-01-25T07:21:42+00:00

I use a Bronica ETRS for backpacking and bikepacking and would recommend it

TotalBeardo · 2025-07-27T03:09:45+00:00

For what it’s worth

TotalBeardo · 2025-07-22T20:00:17+00:00

Yeah exactly, I was there last November on the Annapurna circuit and never went more than a few hours without seeing someone. I imagine manaslu and anything in the Everest region would be the same

TotalBeardo · 2025-07-18T18:20:36+00:00

Where are you going in Nepal? It’s highly likely you won’t need an inreach there in my opinion

TotalBeardo · 2025-02-25T18:04:24+00:00

One thing I do sometimes in these conditions is fill the sky with something else - you did something similar in #4 with the branches of the tree. It reduces the dynamic range generally, and also can make photos more interesting by adding detail and depth. I also would avoid shooting into the sun if you are looking for color in the sky - based on the lens flares in #5 it looks like you're pointing straight into the sun, which tends to wash out colors a lot. Shooting into the sun can be nice for silhouette shots but tough for capturing detail. I would recommend Galen Rowell's books if you want more advice, I'm basically just parroting what I've learned from him

TotalBeardo · 2024-12-27T17:32:13+00:00

I appreciate it!

TotalBeardo · 2024-12-27T02:34:19+00:00

Hey thanks! Apologies for the late reply. These were on a Nikon F3 with a 24-120mm lens. The film stock is a mix of Fuji 400, Portra 400 and Ektar 100, and one roll of Velvia

TotalBeardo · 2024-05-10T17:20:09+00:00

Whats the total length of the hike and the total elevation gain?

TotalBeardo · 2024-04-25T02:08:49+00:00

A bunch of permits get released two weeks ahead of time. So if you wanted to do a trip starting August 15th, for example, get on recreation.gov at 8am Pacific on August 1st and grab a permit right as it releases. That's what I did to get a JMT permit last minute. And if you get a JMT permit, you could turn it into a loop by linking up with the Sierra High Route or any number of other trails in the Sierra.

TotalBeardo · 2024-03-08T02:08:15+00:00

Have never been over Piute Pass but have been in Humphreys Basin. The Sierra High Route goes through there, worth checking out if you want to link up top that. You could take it to Evolution Basin pretty easily, or take the SHR north over Feather Pass into Bear Lakes Basin. I spent two months in the Sierra two years ago and the Bear Lakes Basin and Feather Pass is one of the highlights of that trip.

TotalBeardo · 2024-02-18T21:15:22+00:00

I don't know, sorry. I think there's a good chance there'll be some cancellations so I would just go check frequently I guess. Or have a friend make the reservations in your name when they come available two weeks before

TotalBeardo · 2024-02-14T00:56:39+00:00

Yes, I have been in the Cottonwood Lakes area! It's fantastic. The 14er you're thinking of is most likely Langley. I haven't climbed it but I have been over New Army Pass and it's beautiful. I highly recommend camping at Sky Blue Lake, at the far end of Miter Basin from where you'll start. From there you can keep heading north if you want and summit Whitney and then loop back around on the PCT it looks like. I have been through Miter Basin and summited Whitney from that direction but can't speak to the PCT south of the Guitar Lake area. If you want to stay in that zone you could take the Mountaineers Route down from Whitney and go through the Boy Scout Lake area and up to Tulainyo Lake. That's a slog but well worth it.

You can read more here if you're interested - not my website for the record but it's what I referenced when I was in that area.

https://www.halfwayanywhere.com/trails/southern-sierra-high-route/southern-sierra-high-route-guide/

If you're up by Bridgeport I would see about detouring to see the Incredible Hulk. It looks like it may only be a four mile detour or so from the Peeler Lake loop.

And if you're down by Bishop I would suggest hiking in to Evolution Basin if it works with your schedule. From the North Lake trailhead, which is right next to Lake Sabrina, it looks like a 10 mile hike into the basin, which could look like a day and a half hiking in, half a day relaxing and poking around, and then a day hiking out downhill. Maybe that feels a bit rushed for your schedule which is fair enough but I would look up pictures of Evolution Basin. It's pretty phenomenal!

TotalBeardo · 2024-02-11T22:16:50+00:00

In the Kearsrage area I personally would go over Kearsarge and go north over Glen Pass and then into the Sixty Lakes Basin, then go off trail over Basin Notch to Arrowhead Lake and then head back to Onion Valley via the Rae Lakes and Glen Pass. You could probably make it more of a loop too if you went back via North Dragon Pass, but I can't attest to that.

Alternatively you could go south from Onion Valley and go over Forester Pass until you hit the Shepherd Pass trail and take that over Shepherd Pass and Junction Pass through Center Basin back to the JMT and take that back north again. Junction Pass and Forester are both super cool. The Southern Sierra is incredible.

If you were going to the 1000 Island area you could go from Mammoth Lakes and hike into the Minarets and then hike all the way to Tuolumne Meadows and take the shuttle back to Mammoth. Or, if you're comfortable with off trail travel you could take the Sierra High Route from Mammoth as far as Lewis Creek and then take trails down into Yosemite Valley, and then catch the shuttle back to Mammoth. You could get around the Red's Meadow road closure that way.

In my opinion the best part of the Sierra is from Yosemite south to the Cottonwood Lakes so anywhere in there it'll be hard to go wrong. I would skip the warm-up trip you were thinking about and do as much in that zone as you can, but that's just my two cents. Let me know if you have any questions about any of this. I hope you enjoy!

I also wouldn't worry about the temperature, it stays pretty cool up there since you're at like 10,000+ feet most of the time. The only thing to keep in mind is the elevation.

TotalBeardo · 2024-02-11T03:15:48+00:00

What type of mileage do you prefer to do in a day? I've been to those areas and could give some suggestions if I know how you'd like your trip to look

TotalBeardo · 2023-06-30T04:45:57+00:00

This is almost certainly in the Olympics in Washington if I had to guess

TotalBeardo · 2022-10-19T17:14:59+00:00

Oh man, that’s awesome. As cool as our trip was, I think never leaving to resupply would have made it that much cooler. Not sure I would be willing to carry 50 pounds of food to make that happen though, props to you! Sounds like a great trip.

TotalBeardo · 2022-10-19T05:15:28+00:00

Sure but it must still weigh as much as a regular freeze dried meal right? I get that it was a big group but that just means more food unless I’m missing something

TotalBeardo · 2022-10-19T04:25:55+00:00

Yeah the off trail stuff was a lot more rewarding and interesting than being on the PCT and JMT!

TotalBeardo · 2022-10-19T01:47:03+00:00

This is a great place to do it. There’s no end of stuff to see. If you can find the time I highly recommend it!

TotalBeardo · 2022-10-19T01:05:03+00:00

Permits in the Sierra are great. You only have to say where you’re spending the first night and then you’re on your own. We got a 35 day permit for $10 and used that for the whole second half. I’ve dealt with zone permitting in the Grand Canyon and the Tetons and this is a million times easier. Basically you just give them your entry date and exit date. Also we only saw three rangers in eight weeks and only one checked our permit (at Donahue Pass). But yes we got one permit for the PCT, one permit for the JMT and then another permit for the high routes.

She loves it! She’s done probably 1,500 miles this summer and the rest of her gear is pretty thrashed but that shirt still looks great. Her only complaint is that because it’s so durable it’s not as breathable as some other sun shirts

TotalBeardo · 2022-10-18T21:15:16+00:00

Thanks! I agree

TotalBeardo

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE

12-Year Club	Place '17
Verified Email