Page 5: Commonwealth Basin to Park Lakes

Along Kendall's Catwalk

Tuesday
It was a bit overcast this morning when we got up. I knew my ‘luck’ would hold true!  I had a leisurely breakfast of instant oatmeal and coffee. And we didn't pack up and leave until 11:25 AM!

This section of the PCT is so bizarre! They’ve got you doing these long switchbacks up the side of Commonwealth Basin and then contouring all the way back to go over the pass just east of Red Mountain. And there is no water until you hit Ridge Lake, which is where we stopped for lunch.

The part of the trail that they blasted out of the side of Granite Mountain is quite picturesque and very deadly during early summer, when there’s still snow at this elevation.  It's called Kendall's Catwalk and it precariously hugs the sheer mountainside.  Airy … exposed; yeah, -- those are the words that work.  There were a lot of lakes below the crest on both sides, but they were not accessible from the PCT as they were several hundred feet lower with no obvious trail down to them.  I suppose adventuresome souls could reach them, but it would be easier to access them from trails in the valleys below.

See that ridge in the distance? There's a picture later of this same lake from that ridge.

I'm glad there it was overcast, because I would have died doing this section in hot weather. It was an absolute grunt.  The worst part was when we hit this knob on the shoulder of a mountain (I think maybe it was Huckleberry?) and I looked down at another one of these lakes I’ve been talking about, but I saw a trail this time. Then I saw another trail going west, high on the side of the mountain on the other side of the lake. I thought to myself, ’Wow, I wonder where that trail goes? I'll have to check that sucker on my map tonight.’ 

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