What an incredible day! On day 13 of my John Muir Trail adventure we hiked from Vidette Meadow to Tyndall Creek via Forester Pass. This was the day I had both been looking forward to and also dreading – it was one of my higher mileage days, along with the biggest climb yet. But, since I had been on the trail nearly two weeks I had nothing to worry about – it was much easier than I expected. The highlight of the day was Forester Pass, which, at 13,200 ft, is the highest pass on the PCT. I had never been over this pass before and had heard how scenic it was, and it didn’t let me down.
Trip Report: Vidette Meadow to Tyndall Creek
After leaving Vidette Meadow, it takes a couple of miles before the views open up. And when they do – oh my.
The trail winds higher and higher to Forester Pass which seems so far away for so long.
As with every pass on the John Muir Trail, the new views from the top took my breath away. Although it was smoky, the turquoise lakes and sharp granite terrain looked beautiful.
I could still make out my first glimpse of Mt Whitney in the distance, and even managed a fuzzy photo through the smoke.
At a lake on the south side of the pass, I defended our packs from a roving gang of killer marmots while Dave refilled water.
Again, the clouds built up this afternoon but ended up fizzling away into nothing. We settled into camp at the somewhat busy Tyndall Creek just in case the rain started, but it turns out we were just treated to a nice sunset thanks to the clouds!
