High Sierras Pack Trips

Introduction
California USA
Take a week, pack up, and really get away from it all. Join us on a week-long pack trip into the Eastern High Sierras of California. On horseback we will explore regions of the Sierras like the John Muir Wilderness, the Ansel Adams Wilderness or Mount Whitney. Explore, relax, fish a bit, talk about nothing or everything around the campfire - just be you for a while.

Our riding excursions will explore the vast areas of the John Muir Wilderness throughout the summer. This is a land of snow-capped mountains with hundreds of lakes and streams and beautiful meadows. Elevations range from 4,000 to 14,496 ft. Lower elevations slopes are covered with stands of Jeffrey Pine, incense cedar, white and red fir and lodgepole pine. The higher elevations are barren granite with many glacially carved lakes.

Other rides will be in the Mount Whitney area. Mt. Whitney is the highest peak in the lower 48 states. The peak lies within the John Muir Wilderness and the Sequoia National Park Wilderness. These areas were set aside by Congress and the President to provide opportunities for solitude and unconfined, primitive types of recreation. Wilderness areas are places where the earth and its communities of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain.

Or chose to explore the Ansel Adams Wilderness. Ansel Adams is characterized by spectacular alpine scenery with barren granite peaks, steep-walled gorges and rock outcroppings. Elevations range from 3,500 feet to 13,157 feet and there are several small glaciers on the north and northeast facing slopes of the highest peaks. The Ansel Adams Wilderness contains the headwaters of the North and Middle Forks of the San Joaquin River.

Accomodation

Accommodation
These are pack trips and all nights are spent camping (camp locations vary depending on the program chosen).

Description
We have a wide variety of tents available (single, double, or family), so please let us know what type you prefer. There is a solar shower and privy with toilet seat and tent at the campsites. There is no generator on our trips -- no electrical source is available.
We do not provide ground mats or sleeping bags, so you must bring your own! 



Meals
All meals are included from breakfast on Day 1 to breakfast on the last day.

Food is typically sourced from local establishments. We strive to provide a deluxe dining experience and tailor our menus to reflect the tastes of our guests. We prepare breakfast and dinner.

A hot breakfast is prepared fresh each morning. Fresh fruits, vegetables, and salads are available at lunch and dinner each day.
Lunch is a build-your-own affair, typically completed before breakfast is served. Sandwich makings, fruits, and snacks are available for you to create your own take-along meal.
Each dinner has a different entrée (beef, chicken, pork, etc).

Alcohol is not included in this trip, but guests are free to bring their own.

Dietary Restrictions
We can cater to vegetarians with prior notice.

This trip includes and can accommodate special dietary requests.

Riding


Pace
Riding experience is considered when fitting you for a mount. There are plenty of horses and mules to choose from to fit your expertise. All trips go at a walk. Our crew will help you get comfortable before we leave the pack station. We ride as few as 2 hours or as many as 6 hours in a day.

Horses
Approximately 130 horses and mules are the backbone of the operation. Pack mules carry the provisions for trail riders, hikers, and those wishing to have their gear packed to a wilderness campsite. Mules typically carry 150-240 pounds of equipment, food and dunnage and work from June through September. During the off season, livestock graze fields in the Owens Valley.
Horses and mules come to the pack station as four to five year old green broke. After a couple of years of training they spend up to another twenty to twenty-five years working in the Sierra.

Tack
You are encouraged to bring your own saddle if you have one. However, if your tack doesn't fit our stock, or we deem is unsafe, you will not be able to use it.

Guides
Each year young men and women bring youth and enthusiasm to a crew of senior packers and cooks. Most of the crew come from ranch backgrounds and once they start packing with us, they have a hard time ever leaving. Every member of the crew carries on the traditions of the talented men and women who started the business in the 1940s. New employees learn the trails, traditions, and develop skills to serve another generation of guests. Only the most able, hard working and those with exceptional people skills succeed as staff.

Itinerary


Each of the different departure dates will have their own specific itinerary, but all of them will follow the below guidelines:
- Your arrival and meeting at the Pack Station will be for 7:00am of Day 1 and most rides start at 7:30am. On the last day of the trip, a van then meets us to take us back to the pack station where we started from - Generally we arrive back at the pack station around for 4:30pm to 6:00pm.
- On the longer itinerary their are layover days where you can ride and explore the area from camp since we are not moving camp locations. Most of our camps also have opportunities for fishing during the day.
- Because the trip starts in the early morning, we highly recommend you make arrangements for an extra overnight in a local hotel the night before to experience minimum stress when finding the pack station and arriving on time.


7 day trip, AP Lake of the Lone Indian from Rock Creek - Click here for full itinerary
This seven-day trail ride goes through the most remote areas of Fish Creek and Mono Creek backcountry. Trip itinerary includes Mono Pass, Silver Pass and Jackson Meadow. Several layover days allow riders to further explore the surrounding lakes and meadows, Peter Pande, Wilbur May, Grassy, and Olive lakes.

6 day trip, AP Mono Creek Trail (not offered in 2022+) - Click here for full itinerary
Start and end at Rock Creek. The fantastic fishing and beauty of Indian Summer make this time a favorite for the oldtimers. We'll set up a camp near the confluence of Hopkins Creek and explore Pioneer Basin, Hopkins Basin and the Recesses.

7 day trip, AP Northern Yosemite - Click here for full itinerary
Ride north on the Pacific Crest Trail to visit the treasures of the Yosemite Wilderness. McCabe Lakes, Matterhorn Canyon, Smedberg Lake, Benson Lake and Kerrick Canyon are highlights of this journey.
This pack trip has a lot of ups and downs over some slick rocks.  

7 day tip, AP Kern River & Golden Trout- Click here for full itinerary
This seven-day pack trip provides a unique opportunity for both novice and experienced anglers to enjoy some of the best fly fishing the High Sierra has to offer. Guests travel by horseback into remote areas of the Golden Trout Wilderness and Sequoia National Park to fish for isolated species of Golden Trout and Kern River Rainbows. The waters of the Kern Plateau hold the purest strains of Golden Trout in the world, a fish so unique and colorful, that it has been named the official state fish of California. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife rescued 52 Golden trout on September 19, 2016. They were aided by some of our trusty mules and wranglers. Here's the video.
Equally impressive, the waters of the nearby Kern River are home to the Kern River Rainbow, a close relative of the Golden Trout and one of the most sought-after fish in California.
Guests spend two full layover days fishing for Kern River Rainbows from a beautiful camp situated near the banks of the world class fishery. Along the journey to and from the Kern River there is the opportunity to fish the Golden Trout’s native waters, Golden Trout Creek and Volcano Creek from our camp at Little Whitney Meadow.

6 Day Trip, AP Mt. Whitney Trail Ride- Click here for full itinerary
Pack your tackle for the ultimate Golden trout fishing adventure. Experience the subalpine beauty of Sequoia National Park with camps at Tyndal Creek, Wallace Creek, Crabtree Meadows and Rock Creek.

6 day trip, AP Triple Pass
Experience the beauty of countless streams, lakes and meadows carpeted with wildflowers. Route covers a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail and crosses Mono, Silver and Duck Passes. Opportunity for trout fishing - mornings, evenings and two layover days. Side trips planned to Hopkins Lake and Grassy Lake.

6 day trip, AP Fish Creek Trail Ride - Click here for full itinerary
The fantastic fishing and beauty of Indian Summer make this time a favorite for the oldtimers. This trail ride goes through the most remote areas of Fish Creek and Mono Creek backcountry. Trip itinerary includes Mono Pass, Silver Pass and Jackson Meadow. Layover days allow riders to further explore the surrounding lakes and meadows — Peter Pande, Wilbur May, Grassy, and Olive lakes.

6 day trip, AP Silver Pass - Click here for full itinerary
The ideal trip for those that like to see new back country. Spectacular trail riding as we cross Mono and Silver passes to reach Cascade Valley. Enjoy the camaraderie of those who enjoy a good trail ride and beautiful scenery.

10 day trip, AP Evolution Valley Trail Ride - Click here for full itinerary 
When you ask Sierra backcountry adventurers which areas are their favorite, Evolution Basin, Le Conte Canyon, and Dusy Basin are always on the list. This trip combines all of these incredibly scenic regions into one trip. Stunning glacial-cut mountains, beautiful lakes, and tumbling rivers all contribute to one of the best trips in the Sierra.

5 day trip, AP Virginia Lakes Trail - Click here for full itinerary
Experience a section of Yosemite National Park that few visitors see. Virginia Lakes to Tuolumne Meadows.

5 day trip, AP History of the Sierra - Click here for full itinerary
Immerse yourself in the Natural History of the Sierra Nevada.
Join Fulbright Scholar and retired National Park Ranger Dr. Nancy Muleady-Mecham for a once in a lifetime chance to learn all about these mountains and the nature within them. We will explore the night sky in the truly dark skies of the backcountry. We’ll learn about animal adaptations, birds and mammals; Sierra geology, glaciation, and weather; dendrochronology (the science of tree-ring dating), the mixed conifer and alpine forests, wildflowers, fire ecology; and indigenous people through time. You will learn to make arrowheads and to use an atlatl (ancient spear-thrower). Bring binoculars, cameras and your sense of wonder.

6 day trip, AP Kern Peak Trail - Click here for full itinerary
Explore the Golden Trout Wilderness with a loop heading over Trail Pass into the meadows and stringers of the Kern Plateau. This is a secluded wilderness area with vast meadows and trails to explore. We make a loop with camps at Little Whitney and Big Whitney Meadows crossing both Barringer and Cottonwood Passes. Trails are good. A great trip for those that enjoy riding and seeing lots of new country every day.

6 day trip, AP Winchester Trail - Click here for full itinerary
We camp near creeks that comprise the native habitat of the golden trout, providing ample opportunity for anglers to catch these beautiful fish.

5 day trip, AP Mt Langley Trail - Click here for full itinerary
Layover days provide ample opportunity for anglers to catch golden trout, or explore the beautiful meadows filled with wildflowers.





Note: This tour is operating under permit with the USDA Forest Service through Special Use Permit on the Inyo National Forest.

Rates and Dates for High Sierras Pack Trips

Dates Note:

Other Info
Meeting: Pack Station/ Bridgeport
Airport: Mammoth Yosemite Airport (MMH)
Transfer: --

Climate:
                                            Bridgeport area