Resupply VVR, and Kearsarge pass?

imported
#1

Is VVR right on the trail? if not how many miles?

Also resupply up and over and back up and over for Kearsarge Pass, Worth it? How many miles?

I’m thinking of skipping VVR because Reds Meadow is only two days away. Is it worth the time to check VVR out? And with Kearsarge Pass, it’s only three days short of WP. So is not having the 4.5 to 6 pounds of food on my back worth the trek to Onion Valley? Is the resupply right of the trail or do I need to hitch somewhere to pick up my resupply?

Sorry for writing a book of questions, my trail guide and maps have not arrived yet.

tick tock… tick tock…

Thanks!

JW

#2

I to am waiting for some trail info I sent for. With the permit process behind me it is now time to look at resupply. JW posted some ligit questions. Is it worth the hike and time off trail for resupply or should we just carry what we need. – Sometimes the trek off trail can be rewarding. What about this area?:girl

HAMMOCK HANGER

#3

I found that VVR made for a nice restfull day off, it’s a short walk then a boatride from the trail.
I resupplied at Mammouth, and MTR taking on 10 days of food at MTR. For me it was well worth the extra weight to avoid leaving the trail at Kearsage. 10 days of food was a bit too much, I finished quicker than that.
Many hikers did resupply at Independence after a hike to Onion Valley and most were quite happy with that decision also.
I have permits to hike the JMT again this Summer but later (Aug 16 start). I will resupply at Tuolumne, Mammouth and Muir Trail Ranch but I will likely take a day off at VVR.

RichardD

#4

JW you will get a lot of opinions on this question and here is mine. Try to lighten your pack as much as you can by carrying as little food as you can to do this we had food resupplys at Red’s Meadow and VVR. Red’s is almost right on the trail. There’s not much at the store for resupply but a great cheeseburger at the Mule House Cafe also free hot showers are close We liked VVR not much for resupply but great food at the small cafe. It is six miles off of the trail and then a five mile ferry ride. You could also send a resupply to Muir Trail Ranch if you wanted to.

No Trace

#5

jw the JOHN Muir Trail Guide by Elizabeth Wenk is great. It has lots of great info

Unbreakable

#6

Here are some answers and some opinions:

From the JMT to VVR, it’s about 1-1/2 miles to the boat landing on Edison Lake. From here you can take the boat to VVR at the other end of the lake (runs twice a day, $18 round trip), or walk another 4.8 relatively shadefree miles.

I agree with you re the necessity of resupplying at VVR. Especially if you’re thru-hiking south, it doesn’t make any sense, because the carry from Reds to MTR is easy, and you’re going to want to load up at MTR for the stretch south of there. When I hiked, my friend and I did a resupply at Reds, then again at Muir Trail Ranch. We went off to VVR and spent a day there, but we did not resupply there. If I hiked again, would I go off to VVR? Probably not.

From the JMT over Kearsage Pass to the Onion Valley trailhead is about 7-1/2 miles, depending on which cutoff you use from the JMT to the pass. It’s roughly 2-1/2 miles from the JMT up to the pass, then 5 miles and roughly 2700 vertical feet down to the trailhead. From there it’s a 12-mile hitch down to Independence, which has groceries and a post office but is not a major resupply center like Bishop. The trailhead parking lot is pretty good-sized – I would guess 30 or 40 cars worth – so there would be some traffic in and out, but not a lot.

I can’t say whether going off here is worth it or not. When my friend and I hiked, another friend of ours carried in a resupply for the two of us over Kearsage Pass, then went the rest of the way with us to Whitney Portal. It wasn’t until this summer, when I hiked up from the Onion Valley trailhead over Kearsage Pass with a relatively full pack, that I realized how thankful I was that we had this option available to us.

How you handle any resupply south of Muir Trail Ranch is going to be one of the major decisions of your hike. A lot depends on how fast you’re hiking and how much time you have. If you decide you do need to resupply, and time is at a premium, you could always consider a packer resupply (see Wenk p. 238-9 for some names) but those are not cheap. Otherwise, unless you’re walking pretty fast and are willing to carry a heavy load out of MTR, you may be looking at a trip out.

Good luck!

Snobird

#7

My brother and I did the Kearsarge pass resupply.
It was kind of a pain but here’s what we did. We started off in Mammoth, rented a car for one day, drove up to Kearsarge, hiked 7 miles in and left a bear can hidden in the bushes near the trail. We then hike back down, drove to Whiteny Portal, dropped off our car and then drove the rental back to Mammoth.

The whole thing took a day (driving, hiking 14 miles, more driving). I’m not sure it was worth it. Depending on the time/ cost factors it may be more convenient to pay for a resupply. Car ental, gas AND time make it an expensive propsition either way.

Jalan

#8

On the PCT i hiked down to Onion Valley and hitched to Independence and Bishop and skipped VVR, going to Mammoth via Reds.

My philosophy is always to resupply more often and carry less and I thought people were kinda nuts going 200 miles with so much food on their back. I thought lugging all the extra weight would ruin what is supposed to be the highlight of the PCT.

That being said, Kearsarge/OV was a big time time killer. Not time waster, bc I needed the rest and refuel, but it took me a morning to get down off the JMT/PCT, a zero to get my chores done and half a day to get back up to the trail.

Next time, I’ll go straight thru and carrying more food and check out VVR. I was on a personal quest not to stop at VVR the first time, as I’d heard it’s a major money pit.

A-Train

#9

Independence is a great town, but I have always found hitching a ride back up to be very difficult. Took me 1/2 a day one time and a full day one other time.

Robocop

#10

I resupplied at Kearsarge and then skipped VVR for Red’s Meadow/Mammoth. Yes, you add several miles and another pass to go out via Kearsarge. But I thought that Bullfrog Lake and the Kearsarge Pass area were two of the most beautiful spots in the Sierras. Also, the trail down to Onion Valley is very gentle, and the climb back up was a breeze. I got hitches very quickly coming and going, but I heard some other groups had long waits.

If I had to do it over again, I’d resupply exactly the same way. I watched friends of mine come out of Kennedy Meadows suffering under the weight of 10 days of food plus bear canister, ice axe, extra clothes, etc. I left KM with 6 or 7 days of food and could still take my time (I think we did a couple of sub-10 mile days in that stretch of trail just for the heck of it). If you go straight through to VVR, you’re going to be under pressure to get the miles in before you run out of food.

Burger

#11

I’m surprised I never hear of anyone trying Cedar Grove as an alternate resupply. It’s about 10 miles (I think) off-trail in the opposite direction from Kearsarge (then another 4 miles on a road if you can’t get a ride to/from the trailhead), and much flatter. I haven’t been there, but it seems there is a camp store, and lodge, where you could probably mail something. It might not be any better than other options, but it’s at least an option, and might be kind of interesting… especially if you’ve already hiked the PCT before and are looking for something different.

Jonathan

#12

The hike out from the LeConte Ranger cabin over Bishop Pass is long, but easy and beautiful. Bishop Pass is low and round topped. You will never regret a night in Dusy Basin (we were there for the Pleiades meteor shower!) There is a lot of traffic at South Lake so getting a hitch into and out of Bishop is less of a problem than Independence. Bishop has everything.

Turtle Walking

#13

I resupplied only once at Muir TRail Ranch. Very doable, close to halfway, and right on the trail. Depends on what you need for your hike, we did not carry a stove, went with dried fruit, nuts and jerky. Gets boring but you certainly won’t starve.

LA

#14

Good info,

I was thinking of going stove/fuelless. Do you think you would have been able to bring a pot and have the ability to light a fire in camp most nights?
I realy looking forward to improving my menu and shave some ozs at the same time.
With in campfire reqs of corse.

Your menu is my basic diet on the trail, plus mashpotatos and tea, hence the need for fire.

JW

#15

One thing that i don’t think is brought up enough, and that i didn’t appreciate until going through the JMT twice with different methods, is that whether a sidetrip resupply is worth it or not has a lot to do with how nice the side trail is.

Kearsarge Pass is really really beautiful. More beautiful than 95% of the JMT itself. So for me it’s worth the time to resupply there. MTR has the hot springs. Again, worth it. VVR is easy to get to but kinda ugly (relatively), so for me not as worth it. I’d love to hear how Cedar Grove is, and i think i might be able to check it out this summer.

markv

#16

Been there done that. I enjoyed the hike down from around the Golden Gate of the Sierra to roads end. Very beautiful, but a huge descent. I bailed out around June 12th skipping snow after forrester and glen passes. Cedar Grove has everything, but is very ah… Quaint. Your still like an hour from the bigger (yet still small) grocery store in the park. I got a hitch from someone I met on the way down. Good chance to see the big trees though. Just hitch that hour, forget the roads end store, well good showers there and ice cream and a small restaurant. See the big trees, get a campsite, then hitch back that hour. Definetely a different experience, the trees are neat. might be a little more time consuming though. Also that drop from around 8500 I believe on PCT to somewhere in the 3000’s at roads end is a biggy. Dont hitch out to Fresno, that place sucks and is pretty scary downtown. Though it would be an oppurtunity for a dispensary visit if your dr has approved.

Muir Trail Ranch is a great place to resupply, but it’s also really close to Mammoth via Reds meadow. Only a fool wouldnt take the bus to Mammoth. Though if your into time saving a box to Reds Meadow would be ok. Showers and Pool and the Mammoth Mtn Inn rock though. They want 5 bucks for the unlimited shower and pool, but why not take a few hours pooling it. You can camp right behind the Mammoth mtn inn too. It’s all forest, though I would see 3-4 bears a night while a night janitor there.

Guino