JMT Day 12 – Double pass day: Math and Pinchot Pass

August 15 – Lago Palisades about Mathher Pass and then skews pass to Woods Creek

One day of two steps

Most of the days in the JMT, we walk a pass and camp at the base of the next. Today it was different: we were addressing two in a single thrust: Mather Pass and Pincchot Pass. They are close enough for many hikers to press them in one day, and with our tight schedule, divide them was not an option.

Treada Math

We woke up early and we get to the road to finish the climb Math pass. The last 2.5 miles were constant and steep but not scary. As the JMT progresses, the passes become higher and more challenging, especially for someone like me, who is afraid of heights. Math, however, felt like a good warm -up for the hardest increases.

Pinchot goes ahead

From the upper part, he went down to the floor of the basin before turning uphill to Pinchot. The interesting thing about JMT is the flow of the path. Unlike the path of the Apalaches, which is full of constant ups and downs, called pods (meaningless ups and downs), the JMT tends to follow a different rhythm: up, down and then flat. Most of the terrain between the passes is level, with the path woring through basins, meadows or next to Ríos. That pattern remained true here, giving us a stretch of softer miles before the constant climb to a skewer.

Along the way, we pass the Marjorie lake, a small but beautiful alpine lake that is the highlight of this section. The climb to Pinchot was stable, with radical views of the Kings Canyon National Park from the top. Beautiful, yes, but with our second pass of the day behind us, my approach was in the miles ahead instead of persisting at the summit.

Descent to Woods Creek

The descent was soft, without great falls, only a narrow path and a series of long curves. Finally, we arrive at Woods Creek’s suspension bridge. I am not a fan of the heights, and this cross tried all the nerves. The bridge swings and bounces with each step, causing the crossing to feel much more precarious than probably. I kept my eyes forward, I moved slowly and deliberately to minimize the rebound, and finally stepped on a solid terrain with a sigh of relief.

Find Catie

A little beyond the bridge was the main camp, already full of tents along the riverbank. We walked in circles looking for Catie before remembering the Faout application. One of the comments mentioned a hidden place on a social path, just after the main area. Indeed, we find her hidden in a quiet place in the forest. Woods Creek was an area of high activity of the bears, so we were very careful with our foods and items.

The last day of the big mile

We arrive at the camp around 6 PM too late to wash clothes or soak. We had enough time to eat and collapse in bed. Do you notice the pattern? Fortunately, today it was our last day of great mile, and I couldn’t have been more grateful.

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