Bryan Meadow and Sayles Canyon
Trail Junctions
Dropping 240 feet of elevation over .6 of a mile South off of the high point of the trail across Peak 8905 brings us to the Bryan Meadow trail Junction.

This trail leads down through Bryan Meadow to connect with the next trail to our South, the trail running West through Sayles Canyon.

After intersecting the now unified trails run down to Highway 50 East of Camp Sacramento where the Sayles Trailhead is located.

We will continue South through this junction towards the next junction in this series, the Sayles Canyon trail junction .85 of a mile South on our combined TYT-PCT-TRT route.

Highway 50
Sayles Canyon Trailhead
Google Roadmap

View South Upper Truckee Trailhead, Meyers in a larger map

All the High Sierra Road Maps

Echo Summit to Carson Pass
Backpacking Miles and Elevations

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Miles: Post says 4 miles to Showers Lake hiking Southbound on the Pacific Crest Trail.

I put it at 3.72 miles.

Miles: The sign puts it at 4 miles to Highway 50 at the Sayles Canyon Trailhead above Camp Sacramento.

I put it at 4.26 miles.

Considerations at the Sayles Canyon trail junction

Sayles Canyon Coyote?

Fantastic Photo by Bill Finstead

Living Things Forum

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Explaining the Differences

These differences between my mileage figures and those on these trail posts may very well be because I'm measuring the "modern" route from the Echo Summit Trailhead. These ancient posts may well be measuring out the mileage of the old routes.

As you can see from this 1976 USGS 30 minute topo map of this route, the route has been significantly modified over the last few decades. Compare the 1976 map with the route depicted on the 1992 USGS 7.5 topo map.

The 1976 map shows that the original trailhead was actually at Echo Summit, rather than its present location West of the Summit. The trail also appears to have been lengthened significantly from the footbridge up to the outlook point, and from the outlook to the top of Peak 8905.

The fact is that the mountains are in constant motion, and so too are the trail routes. Forest managers are constantly rerouting trails to stabilize drainages, protect springs and meadows, mostly to limit human-caused damage to the terrain caused by trail erosion.

It's not what human feet do directly to the terrain, but what happens to that damage as the weather goes through its annual cycle. The rains, runoff, and runoff from Spring Thaws expand any cuts or damage on the terrain into raging rivers.

Each of our seemingly minor physical effects on Nature are amplified over time by the physical powers of Nature itself.

These powerful forces translate into rail routes in exposed areas that can change significantly in a very few years, making the USGS maps, trailhead and trail post signs, and trail guide mileage figures inaccurate measurements of a trail's ever-changing length.

Or never-changing. We are also going to hike across great spans of trail cut directly into and through solid rock as we continue South to Whitney. Places where the trail will remain stable until great changes in the weather and the Earth itself resculpts the range.

Post your comments-questions-experiences on mapping and miles issues.

The lodgepoles' relentless march into the top of Bryan Meadow around the trail junction is slowed by the soft soils.

But, trees are relentless. Forests move onto rock by using the bodies of their fallen brethren as fertilizer to create soil for their continued march into solid rock.

They have little trouble with meadow.

The fallen Lodgepole brought up a big root ball up with it.

I am looking for an update for this image. Post up through the comments link below.

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Sayles is to the Southbound hiker's Right.

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More Information
Backpacking Groups

Backpacking Trail Guide

North

Almost
to
Sayles Canyon Junction

Backpacking Trail Guide

South