Hey Everyone!
Do you think there will be water available in Rafferty Creek / Canyon about two weeks from now?
I ask because I'm considering doing the Lyell / Vogelsang / Rafferty Loop July 25th thru 28th. I already have my permit.
What I may not have is the fitness, so lets get that out of the way first:
My wife and I do a bit of dayhiking and we backpack once or twice a year. I've backpacked to Glen Aulin, Illillouette, Sunrise Lakes, 20 Lakes Basin etc; but we usually shoot for 5-6 miles per day. We've never been affected by altitude, even though we're coming from sea level. Breaking the hike into 5-6 miles segments makes it more feasible for us, and I can spend some time exploring and fishing.
My plan was / is:
Day 1: Drive in, hike up Lyell Canyon, camp somewhere near the the trail junction about 5-6 miles in.
Day 2: Climb up and camp at or near Evelyn Lake, which I believe is about 5 miles with 1700ft of climbing (per my Topo!) program
Day 3: Hike and explore and then camp somewhere part way into Rafferty Canyon, again about 5 miles total.
Day 4: Stroll down Rafferty Canyon back to the car and drive home.
My two concerns:
1.) Dragging myself up to Lake Evelyn, which I can really only answer for myself whether I think we can do it or not.
2.) Water availabilty in Rafferty.
So my main question is the water in Rafferty. If there isn't water, we'll have to either carry water, or make day 4 a longer hike, which I'd rather not do.
I'll also take any other advice and / or tips, including "Get in shape Fatso!"
Thanks,
Jason