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Side Picture: Blood Red Sunset from Round Top Lake Tahoe to Mount Whitney: Your Backpacking Guide to the High Sierras Side Picture: Lost Cabin Mine
View of the Mokelumen from Summit City Creek
Round Top Sunset
North Mokelumne River Valley viewed out the end of Summit City Canyon. Underwood, Lake, and Horse Canyons visible from Left to Right.
 lost Cabin Mine

 

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Backpacking
Granite Flat Campsite
to the
Lower Ford of Summit City Creek

Hiking the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail in the Mokelumne Wilderness

 

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The art of walking

 

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Trail Guide
INDEX

Carson
Gap
to
Lake
Alpine
TYT
Guide
North

Telephone Gulch
to
Camp Site
TYT
Guide
South

Camp
Irene
7.5 Topo
TYT
Map

Telephone
Gulch
to the
Lower Ford
Big 7.5 min
TYT
Topo Map

Summit City Creek
to
Mount Reba
30 min
TYT
Topo
Hiking Map

Echo Summit
to
Lake Alpine
TYT
Carson Gap
to
Lake
Alpine

MILES
AND
ELEVATIONS

TYT
Map Index

Carson Gap
to
Lake Alpine

Local
Weather

Sierra
Weather

EL
Dorado National Forest
Tahoe
to
Whitney
on
You
Tube

View out the End of Summit City Canyon from a Sweet Campsite

Looking out the end of Summit City Canyon.

Mount Reba is the second peak sticking out from the Left, with the little barb on its peak.

Well, that is one of the two Mount Reba Peaks listed on the USGS maps. That's the Western Mount Reba pictured above. That ridgeline has two almost equal peaks, so I guess the USGS decided to share the "Mount Reba" designation between 'em.

The peak to the Left of Mount Reba in the image above is Peak 7632. Between 7632 and Reba sits Lake Valley. Behind Mount Reba we can see the much larger Horse Canyon. Horse Canyon runs up to the Bear Valley Ski Resort.

On the West flank of the peak to the Left of Mount Reba, Peak 7632, the great granite ledge that we cross over the top of on our way into Underwood Valley is very brightly lit up, rising out of the sea of shadow blanketing the surrounding mountain flank.

Yes, we are going to climb up from Camp Irene to cross the flat top of the upper granite formation on the Western flank of Peak 7632. We then bend around the Southwest corner of Peak 7632 into Lake Valley for the rest of the hike up to Mount Reba.
Our Southbound Tahoe to Yosemite Trail leads us up to the Northeastern of the two "Mount Reba" peaks along that crest, which is out of sight behind Peak 7632 in the image above.

Check out the map for details.

Our Location at the Campsite at the End of Summit City Canyon

Latitude 38.580626°

Longitude -120.038911°

Summit City Creek to Bee Gulch
USGS 15 min hiking map

comments or questions?

INDEX

Video

The Campsite at the End of Summit City Canyon to the Lower Summit City Creek Ford

Distance: .97 of a mile.

Descending 540 feet of elevation.

Summit City Creek to Bee Gulch
USGS 15 min hiking map
Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
TYT Miles and Elevations

We hike South out of the End of Summit City Canyon from the fine campsite looking out over the vast canyon of the North fork of the Molkelumne River.

As with the previous sections of the trail coming down Summit City Canyon this short .97 of a mile section mixes followable trail with untrailed lengths.

Ducks can be in short supply early in the hiking season after heavy snows and runoff.

comments or questions?

INDEX

Backpacking Information
Miles-Elevations-Maps-Terrain

At the campsite overlooking the end of Summit City Canyon we are looking into what is subsequently called the canyon of the North fork of the Mokelumne River.

Campsite Location

Latitude 38.580626°

Longitude -120.038911°

The Granite Flat South
of the
Upper Ford, down to the Lower Ford

An Introduction
After the Southbound backpacker passes by the improved campsite at the South end of the granite flat, pictured above, a short hike past this stretch of granite flat brings us out the expanding mouth of Summit City Canyon and once again into some dense thickets of manzanita.
Our rather difuse "route" climbs up and away to the Southbound Hiker's Left from the course of Summit City Creek as it approaches the end of its namesake canyon. Summit City Creek begins cutting deeply into the mountain as it begins its run down a steep gorge until it flattens out into a jumbled channel of debris just above the lower ford point. We will pick up the course of Summit City Creek again at two points as we hike down the mountain above the Lower Ford.
These are both delightful locations.

We are climbing up out of the throat of Summit City Canyon while the creek begins it's descent in a rocky gorge, which will bring us across a combination of exposed manzanita between arms of dry forest.
On this section of our hike we will be roughly paralleling Summit City Creek's flow. mostly hidden in its gorge as we make the drop down to the lower ford of Summit City Creek. This is a section of trail where the creek is inaccessible, moving our route to the East, through what I call "The Wash," around this impassable section.

One year I pushed over to a location where you can see a section of Summit City Creek within its gorge, with great pools along this section, but they are virtually inaccessible, with the one exception mentioned above.

The good news is that it is all down-mountain to the lower ford of Summit City Creek, once we climb out of the mouth of Summit City Canyon. The other good news is the route is mostly through a massive maze of manzanita.

Thickening manzanita characterizes this segment of the route from the top of the bluff just South of the upper ford all the way down to the lower ford of Summit City Creek.

Though we are following a "trail," we quickly see the manzanita presenting us with many choices of routes through the underbrush-covered sections of the terrain.

As we begin descending off the end of Summit City Canyon mouth we take in expansive views short and near of the terrain. We use these vantage points we encounter to take a look at our map, and locate our position. We carefully bserve the complex lay of the land, so every decision we consider to guide our subsequent selection of paths through the manzanita is optimally balancing the best nearby path against the most direct overall route to our goal.

***

I make it policy to pick the easiest paths through the manzanita that keeps closest to what I perceive is the best route towards my goal through the terrain. Note the route as defined on the topo map.

Unlike the route down Summit City Creek to this point, where we found much less resistance from crossing the terrain if we could find and stay on the old trail route, the manzanita through this section has many paths through that will bring us down to the lower ford. So don't freak out. Just maintain your more or less parallel path with the unseen Summit City Creek off to your Right. Since the creek is blocking our route to our West, we can't veer too far off route in that direction. So we've got to make sure that we don't veer too far East, to our Left...

There are a couple of sections where it looks like the trail is heading East. Nope.

The animals who do most of the work maintaining these paths are concerned with the best route through the terrain, though their destinations differ from ours, so their fine paths can only take us so far along our route.

Animals are not through-hiking, but traveling to their various grazing and feeding opportunities. A lot of the animal paths through the manzanita track to the East along the mountainside, away from our Southern route down to the lower ford. And the terrain looks nice over there, better than our route down, but our route roughly parallels the course of Summit City Creek falling down its steep gorge. Keep going down the mountain.

So don't drift too far to your Left, to the East, following the animal paths through the manzanita on your way down the mountain. They look like, and are, fine paths along the mountainside. But they will not bring you down to the lower ford.

This brings up an important tactic of cross country travel. Make sure you take note of the upcoming terrain and your destination at every point you can obtain long views. These sightings will help guide your subsequent selection of individual route choices as close to the best and most direct route to our destination through the observed terrain.

It is also good to look back up the mountain too, as both the forward and rear perspectives on our location are vital for ascertaining our exact position in the terrain in our head and on a map.

When we have properly located our position on the map while standing in the terrain, we can note the compass point of our next likely destination point in the upcoming terrain and use that bearing to maintain the proper general direction through offsets and blind spots caused by challenging terrain.

These techniques are not so important here, in this manzanita maze, as we are basically paralleling the fall of Summit City Creek down to it's junction with the North Fork of the Mokelumne River.

To be perfectly honest, I stopped carrying maps through this section ten years ago, and have applied observation, experience, and dead reckoning to navigate my way through the challenging sections of these completely non-trailed sections.

I DO NOT ADVISE, RECCOMEND, OR ADVOCATE ANYONE ATTEMPTING THIS SECTION WITHOUT MAPS.

This is a hard section with maps. I had passed through this section at least ten times over the years with maps, before hiking it without maps.

Then I decided to write this guide and began kicking myself for not bringing maps on all my trips to better identify local landmarks.

***

When we can't see our overall position in the terrain when in dense manzanita or thick forest we will have to remember and rely on the terrain elements and direction from our last observation, and use these observations to maintain the proper direction until we can get another overview, and again ascertain our current position.

I call this grand fun.

Navigating this maze of manzanita requires in-close path finding skills, rather than the general navigation skills that finding the correct gap on a complicated Sierra crest line requires. Across the previous section of trail route down Summit City Canyon we essentially followed a rough route down a narrow valley, and will be OK as long as we keep heading down the valley. Once we get onto the manzanita mountain side things really open up. Now we are falling off the edge of the hanging canyon that Summit City represents along the massive canyon of the North fork of the Mokelumne River. If we cannot maintain our route along Summit City Creek we can get seriously lost in here.

People do get lost in here. Make sure someone reliable has your exit time and place of exiting, and knows which Ranger District Station to call in case you are too overdue. Figure your exit time then add a day or so. I ask those monitoring my trips to respond to a late exit from National Forests like this:
If I do not exit at the forseen time, be alert. If I do not exit the next day, be worried. If I do not exit on the third day after my projected exit time, call the Ranger Districts of the forest I entered and the forest I was supposed to exit.
Three days late indicates I am possibly injured or in trouble, and having a Wilderness Ranger ride (not possible here) or hike the route to ascertain my location and condition would be a very good thing.

At the very least, if we can't maintain the optimal route through this maze we will work much harder than necessary, hike further than necessary, and take longer than necessary to get through this rough section.

That's why one day late only provokes an alert, rather than worry. Stuff happens... and I'm all about self-repair and self-rescue, if at all possible.

***

To speed your development of general navigational skills as you develop your backpacking skills you should start studying each approaching crestline as well as the major geographic features of all the locations you are hiking through, line them up with your map, and attempt to predict exactly where the trail route will carry you across the local terrain and through the next crestline.

If you carry a map in your hands as you hike you will get used to lining up your map with the terrain and your compass to figure out the upcoming route through the terrain on well marked trail routes. This will help develop the observational, map reading, and navigation skills required to understand the terrain sufficiently to navigate unmarked routes.

The first travelers in the Sierras, and the first Western explorers, all depended upon experience, common sense, good practices, excellent preparation and supplies, and astute observation of the terrain to work their way through. None of them had maps.

They had skills.

comments or questions?

Mileage

2.51 miles between fords.

1.19 miles from the Granite Flat South to the lower ford.

Elevation: 6560 to 5540 feet, or a change of 1020 feet between the upper and lower fords.

comments or questions?

INDEX

On this page

View out the Mouth of Summit City Canyon

 

VIDEO
End of Summit City Canyon to Lower Ford

 

Introduction

 

Miles and Elevations

 

INDEX

 

Forum, Comments, and Members

 

Campsite at the End of Summit City Canyon

 

Upcoming Route

 

Manzanita

 

Complex Terrain

 

Cascade

 

Enter jumble along Summit City Creek at base of descent

 

Some Ducks

 

Ford Spot Ducks

Weather and Road Information

Below find the closest Ground Stations, Point and Regional Forecasts near Our isolated position along Summit City Creek.

Satellite and Radar Imagery provides Long Range and Regional overviews.

Point Weather Forecasts

NWS
Point Forecast
Carson Pass Point Forecast

NWS
Point Forecast
Ebbetts Pass Point Forecast

NWS
Point Forecast
Lake Alpine Point Forecast

Regional
Forecasts

NWS
Regional Forecast Greater Lake Tahoe

NWS
Regional Forecast
West Slope Sierra Tahoe to Yosemite

All
Carson Pass
Regional Weather Information
All
High Sierra Weather Resources
LOCAL
Real Time

Ground Reporting Stations

Carson Pass

Caples Lake

Schneiders Camp

Forestdale Creek

Silver Lake

Ebbetts Pass

Stanislaus Meadow

All Ground Reporting Stations

MesoWest N Calif Stations

Calif Snotel

Road Conditions
Caltrans Hwy 88        Caltrans Hwy 4

Big View
Radar

North Sierra Radar

Big View
Space

Western US Satellite

All Weather and Fire Information

All High Sierra Weather Resources

Comprehensive High Sierra Fire and Smoke Information

> Forum <

POST UP!

All backpackers can post text comments about the following section of trail through the comments links on all the trail guide pages. Registered Members can post up stand alone post about the trail with text, images, maps and videos in the Trails Forum that supplements this section of the Trail Guide.

Hiked this section of the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail lately?
Post up a
Scouting Report

Check out the Tahoe to Whitney .org Backpacking Trails and Topics forums

comments

Campsite at the End of Summit City Canyon

  Ready to Rock!   Heading past the campsite South of the Granite Flat. This campsite is on the South side of the flat.  
  Pack almost ready for my back, Summit City Campsite   Campsite below flat  
   

The next 1.19 miles from the campsite at the end of the Granite Flat to the Lower Ford will mostly consist of a steady steep descent through various densities of Manzanita. This descent is down a South facing slope, so it may be a very hot hike down.

Sun protection is vital through this section.

 
  Just strap on the tripod, the external food bag, and sleeping pad, and we're off!  

Campsite Location

Latitude 38.580626°

Longitude -120.038911°

 

Hiking South

  Fine terrain with access to the creek continues a ways past the improved campsite on the granite flat.      

A deep cold water pool with a fine sparkling green water. These are great places to sneak up on fish, and take their pictures.

If they hear your heavy footsteps approaching, they will flee or hide, so tread softly when you approach fish.

 
  Summit City Creek below Camp site       Summit City Creek flat below campsite  

This section features a nice cascade surrounded by granite plates and boulders.

comments or questions?

Next year I will spend a full day here. There's a lot of fine terrain details to explore in this flat.

INDEX

 

The View of the upcoming North Mokelumne River Valley, crowned by Mount Reba, opens up before us at the end of the Granite Flat

 

Heading South, down to the end of the narrowing Granite Flat. We can see out the end of Summit City Canyon into the vast canyon of the North Mokelumne River heading Southwest towards its grand bend to the West. The lower ford of Summit City Creek, far below us, precedes the confluence of Summit City Creek with the North Mokelumne River.

The flank of the massive ridge line in the distance, Bloods Ridge, bounds the Southern Shore of the North Fork of the Mokelumne River where Horse Canyon drops into the drainage.
We're heading up the valley on our side of the tip of first peak we can see on the Left of the image below, which is Mount Reba.
The North Mokelumne River itself is unseen, sitting 2000 feet below our position, winding its way at the base of this valley between us and Mount Reba. We are seeing the North Mokelumne's canyon walls long before we get close enough to view its waters.

We won't see the North Mokelumne River at all until we arrive at Camp Irene, unless we seek it out while crossing the Enchanted Forest. See the subsequent trail guide pages for details on amazingly secluded places to camp on the North Mokelumne that are rarely visited, let alone camped in...

Climb to Mount Reba

 
  A view of the Mokelumne River Valley from Summit City Creek  

The picture above reveals much detail about our upcoming climb to the top of Mount Reba.

The top of the first peak visible on the very upper-Left of the image above is Mount Reba. Lake Valley sits to the Left of Mount Reba, and Underwood Valley is the next valley to its Left.

From the upper-Left of the image above looking from Left-to-Right the valleys we see are Underwood Valley, Lake Valley, and Horse Canyon. Horse Canyon is a huge valley on the far side, the South side of Mount Reba.

Camp Irene is out of view behind and below the pointed granite feature located just a bit to the upper-Left from the exact center of the image. Can you see that pointed granite feature? That is the top of the huge granite feature dividing the Enchanted Forest on its North side from Camp Irene on its South.

MAP

Above and to the Left of the pointed granite feature we can see the great granite slabs under the mouth of Underwood Valley lit up by the brilliance of the rising Sun shining through Underwood Valley.

We will climb up and over these grand granite features along a serpentine route passing under the mouth of Underwood Valley and into Lake Valley.

This is very complex terrain with very faint "trails."

As the Southeastern base of the pointed granite feature between Camp Irene and the Enchanted Forest gets its roots wet in the waters of the North Mokelumne River, and that it flows past both the Enchanted Forest and Camp Irene we can see that this image gives us a pretty good general overview of the lay of the land, but not much in the way of granular detail.

Well, keep reading.

We have figured out the relationships between the Enchanted Forest, Camp Irene, the granite features we climb under Underwood Valley, Lake Valley and Mount Reba... now we will hike them!

MAP

Summit City Creek to Bee Gulch
USGS 15 min hiking map
Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
TYT Miles and Elevations

scouting reports?

comments or questions?

INDEX

The North Mokelumne River Valley from the end of the Granite flat

 

This is the same view as the image above, but from 15 years ago, and from a position nearer the end of the granite flat, just a short distance from where our route will begin to head down mountain, into the exposed manzanita. Note how we are climbing up and away from the flat to our Left before the creek drops off the mountain side.

As you can see from this MAP, our "trail" route here is climbing away from where Summit City Creek begins its steep descent down a ravine down to the lower ford.

 
  At the edge of the granite flat we climb out of the drainage, and the valley of the N fork of the Mokelumne River comes into view.  

Again, Mount Reba is the barbed peak on the center-Left of the image, the second peak from the Left edge of the image. Peak 7632 is the peak to its Left. Camp Irene sits far below the Northwestern flank of 8353, which is on the far side of the granite feature rising out of the bottom-middle of the image above.

The South end of the Enchanted Forest is established by the North flank of this granite feature, Camp Irene lays on its Southern base just a bit downriver along the North Mokelumne, and our trail route passes around the backside, the Western end of the granite feature where it is buried by the rising Western flank of this huge canyon.

This image is looking almost directly South as we hike up and away from Summit City Creek coming out the mouth of Summit City Creek's awesome hanging canyon.

The angle of this image above better illustrates the distinction between Mount Reba and Peak 7632 than the second image above, which depicts the same section of crestline. A slight change of perspective is the only difference between these images. Mount Reba's 8720 feet is actually much higher than Peak 7632, which gives us an idea of how much closer Peak 7632 is to our position than Mount Reba.

To be perfectly clear, we are hiking up to and then across a flat granite ledge high up on the West flank of Peak 7632, then up into Lake Valley between the two peaks on the Left of the image on our way up to the top of Mount Reba.

MAP

Camp Irene, at the Northwestern base of Peak 8353 (check the map above: Peak 8358 is out of view on the Left of the image above, though we can "see" where Camp Irene is located behind the massive rock in the lower-Center of the image above) is five and a quarter miles from the top of Mount Reba, while the high point of our trail across Peak 8353 is 2 and a quarter miles closer to our position. Check the miles and elevations page for more details.

From our current position and perspective we can make out the mouths of Horse Canyon and Lake Valley, the faint line of their mouths defined by the outlines of their surrounding mountain ridges. The perspective of the image above also gives us some feeling for the impending descent we are dropping into. Let's take a look at where we are on the Summit City Creek drainage from a completely different perspective, from the South.

This IMAGE gives us a view of our current position here along Summit City Creek from Mount Reba. To find our position on the view from Mount Reba linked to above, look at the bare patch below the forested section just below the point marked "upper ford."

This bare section drops down to the lower ford of Summit City Creek, and is where we are about to encounter the manzanita maze divided up by a few arms of dense forest.

Between the map, images, and trail guide you should be getting a good idea about the nature of the unique terrains through this section, and the advanced skills and fitness required to pass it without excessive danger. But it's not over yet.

The next very short section between the lower ford and the Munson Meadow trail junction is the most challenging segment of this section of trail between Carson Pass and Lake Alpine.

Trail and Route dissappear, and you are left on your own ass-ass-assets...haha...

No big deal. We've developed the skills to deal with this.

If you have any further questions or comments, don't hesitate to post them through which ever trail guide page that concerns you most, or shoot me an email.

top of page

scouting reports?

comments or questions?

INDEX

The Manzanita Thickens

  Dropping off the Southern edge of the Granite Flat feels like we have fallen into a big Manzanita bush.       Pushing through the interface between Manzanita and Rock.  
  Into the brush below Campsite, Summit City Creek Many tracks in the Manzanita below the campsite on Summit City Creek  
  A multitude of paths radiate through the Manzanita. You may scramble atop a boulder to view your options.  

 

  If the boulder is not capped with manzanita.  
  Manzanita and rock along the lower section of Summit City Creek  

A typical scene of manzanita, rock, and bird.

INDEX

Yeah, a Bird

Bird on rock along Summit City Creek on the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail.
The bird was shocked to see me. Rather than fly off it just sat there in disbelief. I kept going.

 

A look at the North Molkelumne River below Mount Reba.

As we drop down the mountainside to rejoin Summit City Creek we clearly see the granite features marking the route of the North Molkelumne River.

The North Molkelumne River flows along the base of the shaded formation on the upper-middle Left of the image.

The Enchanted Forest lays between that shaded formation and the bright naked formation in the upper-middle of the image.

Camp Irene lays on the far side of the bright naked formation in the upper-middle of the image above. The North Molkelumne River flows around the Left side of the base of the bright naked formation in the upper-middle of the image above.

We can suss out that the North Molkelumne River makes a nifty S-Turn snaking its way around these granite features.

Mount Reba is the second visible mountain peak on the upper Left of the image.

We can see that we are almost down to the elevation of the North Molkelumne River.

Summit City Creek to Bee Gulch
USGS 15 min hiking map
Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
TYT Miles and Elevations

comments or questions?

INDEX

About a Third of a Mile South of the End of Canyon Campsite

Flat along Summit City Creek, Tahoe to Yosemite Trail.

Above: Looking Right (West) towards Summit City Creek as we hike South.

Off to our Right we see an inviting flat and mysterious granite features. Though the trail continues down mountain this flat draws us to our Right, towards the channel of Summit City Creek off the faint line of route we've been following.

scouting reports?

 

Granite flat along Summit City Creek.

As we approach this inviting flat we hear the sound of falling water and see a granite slab projecting out over Summit City Creek.

Summit City Creek to Bee Gulch
USGS 15 min hiking map
Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
TYT Miles and Elevations

INDEX

 

Waterfall along Summit City Creek.

At the end of this fantastic granite flat we overlook the late-season flow of the waterfall.

comments or questions?

 

Pool above Summit City Creek waterfall.

A Jeffery Pine and Junniper shade a small circle of soft soil cupped in the end of this granite overlook. We are sitting in their thin shade looking down at the pool feeding the waterfall.

It's a little scramble to get down to the pool below for water, but this small flat can hold a camper, while the nice flat off the slab can hold a few.

scouting reports?

INDEX

Looking Downstream

Summit City Creek, Molkelumne Wilderness.

The granite slab is very slick when wet.

After exploring this nifty granite shelf above the cascading waterfall, we will retrace our way back to the last bit of the trail route bringing us down to the lower ford.

North: Telephone Gulch to Camp Site                              top of page                                    South: Camp Irene

Brittle rock, Brittle Dried Grasses, with beautiful purple flowers

  There are open sections on the way down. Here we see a slab of granite where this fine polished surface is transforming into expanding patches of roughness.  

Unknown purple flowers blooming in bone-dry exposed meadow, Mid-July.

Open sections of exposed mountainside alternate with deep sections of manzanita. Neither offer much cover from the scorching Sun.

 
  Cracked Granite Slab with tattered polish   Dry grass with purple flowers  

This surface of this rock is slowly changing, transforming into a finish of grainy weathered brittleness from its fine glacial polish.

comments or questions?

 

The bright golds of the brittle dry burnt grasses were a fine backdrop for these vibrant, glowing purple beauties.

INDEX

 

Brodiaea

Attempting to identify this striking flower led me to a fine site, Sierra Nevada Wildflowers, by Mr. Jay Sullivan.

This site has a collection of striking photographs of Sierra flora. If you have the scientific or common name of a Sierra Flower, It is likely that Mr. Sullivan has an excellent photograph of that flower.

I say flora, rather than flowers, because Mr. Sullivan also includes fine photographs of Sierra Trees as well as Sierra Flowers.

If you have a guide, such as the Sierra Club's The Sierra Nevada, which cites many flowers but only presents line drawings, Mr. Sullivan's site is a boon.

Mr. Sullivan states that this purple flower is of the Brodiaea genus, though he could not identify this particular species. This is not surprising to me, as I could not even identify it as a brodiaea.

The Pacific Bulb Society cites sixteen species restricted to Western North America, noting the regional specializations.

Comments, questions, or more information about this fine flower?

top of page

  I was having a hard time getting a clear picture bending over with the heavy pack on. I was shaking with the weight as the flower was shaking in the light breeze.  
  Luminescent Purple Flower, backpacking the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail.  
Sierra flowers are a constant delight. The range of sizes, shapes, and colors are constantly surprising.

87 degrees at 10:30 am on the exposed descent

,, Outlines of shoulder straps, sternum strap, and hip belt all visible. And it is getting hotter as we head down mountain!  
  Hot days in Summit City Creek require lots of water  

It was a little warm. Stay Hydrated!

comments or questions?

INDEX

top of page

Drawing close to Summit City Creek's Lower Ford

As we reach the bottom of this descent down the manzanita covered mountainside from the granite flat we note that Summit City Creek and our route are again drawing closer together.

Summit City Creek was unapproachable for the majority of its steep fall down from the granite flat.

We will soon be able to safely approach Summit City Creek, which we can see is converging with our route from the Right.

This point of convergence between the trail route and the creek happens as Summit City Creek and our route run together into a flat section preceding Summit City Creek's intersection with the North Fork of the Mokelumne River.

Map

As our trail route approaches a parallel track with the creek we will again be able to hear and see bits of the creek. As the terrain ahead begins to flatten out we will see a channel of trail carved by trail crew through hard rock off to our right, which leads us down a short section of perfect trail down to the creek side jumble of debris just as the terrain flattens out.

This little bit of hard rock trail will bring us down to the creek side flat and into a strange space, a small narrow channel where the timber carried down the mountain by previous flash thaws along Summit City Creek jams up into a slot of dark forest growing in the flat alongside the creek.

You will notice that there is a tremendous amount of old rotting shattered tree debris packed between and around the big trees within this creekside slash of forest.

All of this debris is a product of the disastrous early Spring rains that caused a catastrophic melt of the snow cover during the Spring of 1998, if I remember correctly. I entered the Canyon a couple of months after the flood.

This massive early Spring rain in 1998 sparked snow-melt floods that swept a huge amount of timber down Summit City Creek, smashing it into bits as the flood waters cascaded down the mountainside ravine.

At the lower elevation of our ford the cascading debris coming down Summit City Creek joined the great grinding pool of debris that backed up behind a log jam that blocked the North Mokelumne River between the flat where "The Enchanted Forest" sits and Camp Irene.

The flood down Summit City Creek was nothing compared to the wall of water that traveled down the North Fork of the Mokelumne when this logjam broke. We will observe the remnants of the flood damage as we progress down the trail along the North Mokelumne River.

From this point approaching the lower ford until we climb across the high water mark of the flood climbing South out of Camp Irene we will observe remnants and clues in the terrain this powerful event left behind. We will be able to see both the signs of the power of nature to destroy as well as the equally tremendous power of nature to heal.

Observe carefully through this upcoming section, between the lower ford and just South of Camp Irene, as the current character of the terrain has been deeply affected by this event. This flood is what swept away all indications of the trail through here, leaving a deep mat of shattered tree debris that has since been filled in by runoff carried sand and soil.

Here, where we enter the creekside flat, we will begin to see a series of small ducks, pictured below. These ducks lead us about 40 yards downstream through this jumble of wrecked trees within this deep stand of timber to the lower ford.

As we head downstream we keep our eyes peeled on the opposite shore, where a channel through the rock wall along the opposite shore will lead us up to a short length of well-defined trail.

Then it's on.

The lower ford has been well and multiply ducked on the opposite shore every time I've been through here. But it may not be so in the future.

comments or questions?

Enter the Jumble

Jumbled terrain above Lower Summit City Creek ford.

Hiking below the waterfall we plainly see the finger of green growing up along the course of Summit City Creek, up to where the creek comes out of its naked granite ravine. Our route and the terrain coming down the mountain are moving us towards the upper end of this finger of green where it meets and covers the naked creek.

It is a passage into darkness, an abrupt transition of light to dark, hot to cool, open terrain to closed. Any semblence of a trail disappears. This is a nifty transition.

We exit the bright light of our hike down the exposed mountainside entering what is a short scramble along Summit City Creek down to its lower fording point. I measure it at around 220 yards.

It's dark. It's surface and terrain are composed of boulders and downed trees and snags making up a three dimensional jumble. We've got to watch our footing carefully, manuver around all the downed timber stuffed in here, and keep an eye on the other side of the creek for the ducks marking the location of the lower ford of Summit City Creek.

The lower ford is about 220 yards downstream.

Summit City Creek to Bee Gulch
USGS 15 min hiking map
Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
TYT Miles and Elevations

INDEX

comments or questions?

scouting reports?

A Fool, Finger Polish Lady, Defaces the Lower Ford of Summit City Creek

Defacement of boulders approaching Lower Ford of Summit City Creek.

Defacement of boulders approaching Lower Ford of Summit City Creek.

Photo by Hobbitbook.

Arrrg!!

Graffiti along the Tahoe to Yosemite Trail.

This is the mark of ignorance defacing the boulders approaching Lower Ford of Summit City Creek.

Self Portrait of the fool who committed these crimes against nature and other hikers.

Photo by
Hobbitbook

Last Observed Defacement by Finger Polish Lady
Granite Flat Campsite along Summit City Creek

First Observed Defacement by Finger Polish Lady
Horse Canyon Trail Junction

Johnny removed the markings in 2015.

Summit City Creek to Bee Gulch
USGS 15 min hiking map
Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
TYT Miles and Elevations

comments or questions?

scouting reports?

INDEX

Forested Slot along Northeast Bank of Summit City Creek

Jumbled chaos approaching lower Summit City ford point.
Jumbled chaos hiking the final distance down to the lower Summit City Creek ford point.

 

Rock, forest, and huge debris blocks our way.

Rock, forest, and huge debris blocks our way. Keep your eyes on the ground for footing, ahead for a route and wild ducks, and all around for the critters in here.

scouting reports?

INDEX

Some Ducks

  A big duck on an old smashed tree fragment.       A very small duck. Look carefully, it's on the Left side of the rotting tree fragment.  
  Summit City Creek Lower Ford Ducks       Summit City Creek lower ford ducks  
After you exit the Manzanita covered mountainside you enter a section of timber holding a thicket of of the remnants of ancient shattered trees in a small, tightly packed forest section along side Summit City Creek.

You will parallel the creek for about 40 yards, then look carefully to your right for the fording spot.

comments or questions?

 

 

No trail along Summit City Creek.

No trail hiking down to the lower ford along Summit City Creek.

Your route is where you put your feet...

Summit City Creek to Bee Gulch
USGS 15 min hiking map
Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
TYT Miles and Elevations

INDEX

 

Mixed debris and chaotic terrain.

Mixed debris and chaotic terrain.

This series of images of the jumble along the creek are in the order hiked (as are all materials on this site) and well represent the variety of terrain along this short span of our route.

But not to worry too much. The total length of this finger of jumbled chaos from entry to ford is about 220 yards.

comments or questions?

Early Season Fording Conditions

Mokelumne Wilderness Volunteers crossing Summit City across the lower ford.

Mokelumne Wilderness Volunteers crossing Summit City across the lower ford. They are moving North across the creek.

Thanks to Ranger Reed for the image.

comments or questions?

INDEX

Ducks on the South Bank

Duck on the South side of the lower ford of Summit City Creek.

Duck on the South side of the lower ford of Summit City Creek.

Summit City Creek to Bee Gulch
USGS 15 min hiking map
Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
TYT Miles and Elevations

comments or questions?

The Tahoe to Yosemite Trail continuing South

Ducks on the South shore of Summit City Creek.

Ducks on the South shore of Summit City Creek. The Southbound Tahoe to Yosemite Trail climbs the riverbank on the far side of the fallen snag.

scouting reports?

comments or questions?

INDEX

North: Telephone Gulch to Camp Site                              top of page                                    South: Camp Irene

The Lower Ford of Summit City Creek

From the position pictured above you have a convoluted 40 yard hike alongside Summit City Creek down to the ford.

Unfortunately, I deleted, misplaced, or never shot key images of the terrain between the lower ford and the Munson Meadow trail junction. Repeated searches of my old film and new digital record has not turned up these key pictures. Though I have many images of the upcoming section, they are not the key shots that I would prefer to present. Sorry.

I will carefully and accurately describe the conditions you will encounter between the lower ford and the Munson Meadow junction, though I'm still peeved that I can't find all the pictures. Well, this is an excellent excuse to head through this section next Summer.

 

comments or questions?

 

7.5 Hiking Topo Map: Lower ford, Summit City Creek over Mount Reba to Bee Gulch

30 min Hiking Topo Map: Carson Gap to Lake Alpine

 

Miles and Elevations

South: Camp Irene

Backpacking Trail Guide

North

Telephone Gulch to Camp Site

Sierra Nevada Trailguide: North is Up, South is Down.

Backpacking Trail Guide

South

Camp Irene

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Section: Carson Gap to Lake Alpine
Location: Granite Flat to the Lower Ford

North: Telephone Gulch to Camp Site                                                                      South: Camp Irene

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