The meadow just below our camp, looking down canyon. The trees beyond reach up the canyon side to a bowl where Frog Lake hides just below the snow in the peak (12145 feet) morning shadow...
Finding a Place to Camp
A Pioneer Basin Trip from Edison Lake, June 2003
After we got our shoes back on, we braced ourselves for about another 500 feet of altitude gain over about a mile and a half. This section was uneventful if still entertaining with occasional views up and down the canyon. The good news was that we were finally climbing above 9000 feet and experiencing the real Sierra as we love it. Being in a sheltered canyon, the trees still grew tall and the plants hardy, but then again, we had finally left the transition zone for the evergreens.
Typical canyon trail above 9000 feet.
We were getting a case of the high altitude first day full pack tireds, so we were looking for a good place to camp. After another long march and steady but gentle climbing, we suddenly broke into the open above a large attractive meadow with a very nice view up canyon. The meadow obviously got visited somewhat often by snow avalanches from the peaks west of Lower Hopkins Lake (Peaks 12178 and 12967). There were many prone snags leveled and carried by the avalanches scattered about, particularly above the trail. The meadow also had a good collection of prone snags all lined up in the same direction.
Looking up-canyon, our first night camp was in the trees about mid-picture, where there are packer camps. Mt. Hopkins is to the left, as is the entrance to Hopkins Creek Canyon.
After crossing this nice piece of trail above the meadow, we discovered an extended packer camp area in the trees to the right, where we found a fair place at the fringes of the camp area, an area suitable for our no impact style of camping. There was easy access to Mono Creek for our water needs and the meadow offered a nice diversion for what idle time we had, and sunny exposure for drying out clothing and wet shoes. We had plenty of time to relax, explore and read, but soon enough (as always in a canyon) the shadows caught up with us and dinner-time came a calling.
As night rolled around, it was not hard to head for our sacks to end a long and eventful day of hiking and observing in the High Sierra.
