DAY 3 | LYELL CANYON TO THOUSAND ISLAND LAKE | JMT
MILES HIKED PER GARMIN | GUTHOOKS: 15.4
MILES ON THE JMT: 13.2 [SOBO mm. 30.7 -43.2]
PASSES: 2 [Donahue + Island]
WILDLIFE: Deer [3] + Marmots [6]
BLISTERS: 0 new
The night before, we discussed what our plans were for the coming day. Our goal: Thousand Island Lake.
My alarm went off bright and early at 0600. By approximately 0730, I was on the trail, along with Annie and Stu taking the lead. As we made the ascent towards Donahue Pass, we hiked on at our own paces. I was quickly hiking solo once again. There were a lot more hikers on the trail today, so I was never alone.
The hike up towards Donahue Pass was much more gradual than I expected. In all honesty, I didn’t know what to expect. The trail out of Lyell Canyon began in the forest, which soon opened up, bringing Lyell Glacier into full view. I saw a number of marmots, seemingly admiring the same view down into the valley where my day’s journey had started.
Mile 34.4 [Southbound] marked the first “get your feet wet” water crossing. With so much of the day left, I decided to remove my Altra’s and put on my Shamma Warriors that I brought for water crossings. The water was just above ankle deep and freezing cold—it felt so good! There were two additional water crossings before Donahue Pass noted on Guthooks, neither of which required getting wet.
Snow.
Aside from mosquitos and water crossings, snow was one of the most discussed concerns about the trail. People were posting left and right about canceling permits out of concern for snow, even in August. Once I was on trail, the snow concern decreased. Most of the people I talked coming from the south said that crossings were no longer an issue. The snowfield before Donahue Pass was small, less than 50 feet, divided into two smaller sections. There was a clear path leading to the trail at the opposite side. Even with limited snow experience, I felt comfortable without microspikes.
I made it to the top around 1230 and was welcomed by several other hikers. There was a spotty cell phone signal, so I made a call to my parents as promised. The first milestone was officially complete. Thousand Island Lake was another 7 miles. Most of the trail was downhill aside from Island Pass. Up until this point, mosquitos were not an issue. As I descended down the other side of Donahue, hikers warned to have bug spray and a head net within easy access. Boy were they right. Mosquitos became worse and worse as I got closer to Rush Creek. Stopping for water meant being eaten alive, despite being covered in bug spray.
I made it to Thousand Island Lake between 1730-1800 and started hiking the minimum 0.25 miles in from the trail to find a spot. I was hungry, tired, and ready to set up my tent and relax. Every spot I saw already had a tent, was too small to fit my Duplex, or right next to water—meaning the mosquitos were even thicker. After more than thirty minutes, I was frustrated. My tracker showed that I had walked a mile before finally turning around and returning the only spot I had found. It ended up being the perfect size, when factoring in the help of rocks to set up, as there was not enough ground to stake the tent.
