In August 2019, eleven Army Reservists from 156 Regiment RLC, a Reserve supply regiment based in Liverpool, conducted an arduous adventure training expedition through the Sierra Nevada mountains in California. Classified as a high risk and remote expedition by the Army’s Adventurous Training Group, this represented a real physical, mental and, in some-cases emotional challenge for everyone. Our mission was to complete the North Lake to South Lake Loop within the John Muir Wilderness. Crossing over three high-altitude mountain passes, this route is recognised as one of the most beautiful high-altitude treks in the world. This is our story over those six testing days.
Preparation for NORTHERN HIGH SIERRA II started in earnest in the New Year understanding lessons from a previous Regimental expedition (that had also been supported by the Ulysses Trust in 2017). A key lesson was fitness and correct kit selection; all team members were expected to attend at least two mandatory training sessions in the Lake District and Snowdonia. These preparatory treks proved to be mini-adventures in their own right and certainly helped drive the group dynamic and forge bonds within the team. For some soldiers fresh out of basic training, this proved to be invaluable experience, especially facing the horrendous weather conditions across Snowdonia’s Carneddau range as part of our final preparatory weekend. With torrential rain and poor visibility, this was a true exercise in self-reliance, navigation and keeping calm under pressure. After 8 hours in the mountains, we passed our final test and everyone was ready for our US adventure to begin!
Arriving in Las Vegas, Nevada on 10 Aug, the group steeled themselves in readiness for the two-day acclimatisation package ahead. Opting for super-sized SUV hire-cars to ferry us about and carry all our equipment, the road-trip through Death Valley National Park was an early highlight. Reaching temperatures in excess of 40O Celsius, the group paused for photographs in the shadow of Corkscrew Peak before heading off to our base-camp near Bishop, California.
After settling in at Big Pine Creek campsite, early-starts were the order of the day to beat the midday heat. Carrying bergens weighing up to 25 kilograms, we’d reveille at 4am and start our acclimatisation treks. Our hiking destination for the first day were the spectacular turquoise lakes formed by the Palisade Glacier, one of the southern-most glaciers in North America. Clearly over-excited to be in America, our ambition got the better of us and we turned back within 800 metres of our target. Lesson learnt – we needed to be slow, very slow at this altitude. Day two of acclimatisation proved equally challenging in other ways. An unusually large amount of snowfall had led to high and fast-flowing rivers throughout the region. This also cut-short our second-day of in-country training as we physically couldn’t cross a river. Ready or not, we’d hit D Day and the North Lake trailhead beckoned us for the challenge ahead.
Following a light breakfast, the group set-off early on Day One and immediately hit our first river obstacle. A couple of individuals suffered vertigo crossing the narrow make-shift log-bridge, but with effective teamwork, everyone helped get the guys across. Crossing over the Piute Pass at 3,481 metres, we were rewarded with a magnificent vista down through Piute Canyon cradling glistening lakes and dense forest. After 8 hours trekking, we decided to make camp and bathed in the crystal-clear rivers before settling down in front of a roaring campfire to reflect on our first-full day on the trail.
Day Two and Day Three were spent meandering through Piute Canyon and down into Evolution Meadow. The scenery remained a constant source of inspiration, with every twist-and-turn revealing yet another breath-taking view. Mosquitoes proved to be a persistent nuisance throughout and this species were clearly impervious to military-grade DEET. Needless to say, if we were to run this expedition again, it would be in the cooler months to avoid the mosquito plague that besieged us every day.
Day Four saw the group cross the Muir Pass, our second highest point to date at 3,644 metres. No transit through the Pass would be complete without posing for photographs in front of the iconic Muir Hut. Built by the US Sierra Club in 1930, it serves as both an emergency shelter and as a memorial to John Muir, the influential American-Scottish naturalist who campaigned for preserving wilderness regions throughout the United States.
By Day Five much of the discussion was on food. Having sustained ourselves on light-weight instant noodles, porridge, beef jerky and sugary snacks, our imaginations ran wild with talk of fillet steak and McDonald’s hamburgers. All of the food we carried had to be stored in hard plastic bear-proof cannisters and stored at least 10 metres away from our camp site. The Sierra Nevada mountains are home to America’s native black bear population, so precautions against uninvited guests had to be taken every night. To our relief and minor disappointment, we never saw a single bear through our entire journey.
Day Six saw us cross our highest point, the Bishop Pass at 3,649 metres and so began our long descent to South Lake. We hit the high plateau just as the sun rose over Dusy Basin and posed for more pictures in front of the elevation sign. Morale was high as we crisscrossed our final few rivers and stepped back into civilisation at the South Lake car park.
Completing 64 miles over six days, the group basked in our collective achievement and celebrated with an American hamburger and tortilla chips in a nearby café at Aspendell. Secretly we had all carried our doubts and fought mental demons through this strenuous expedition, but now we could ride-high on conquering the North Lake to South Lake Loop.
The group was superbly led by Captain Hendrik ‘H’ Steutel as our qualified Mountain Leader, who generously passed on his vast experience with characteristic enthusiasm and humorous vignettes. As a result, several members of the group have now embarked on their own mountain leadership qualifications to benefit the wider Regiment as AT instructors.
Pte Luke Hindley aged 21 from 234 (Birkenhead) Supply Squadron commented,
“It’s been really good for helping me develop my military skills like map-reading and field-craft. I’ve had to carry heavy weight in my bergen, which has brought on my physical fitness. I’ve been able to get to know other members of the Regiment on a more personal level which can be difficult on a Reserve training weekend. I’ve also found it difficult getting up at 4am every day, trekking through the night over difficult terrain under torch-light. It’s been hard and arduous, but I’ve really enjoyed it throughout.”
Upon our return to Las Vegas, we completed the almost the obligatory sight-seeing excursions to the Hoover Dam and the famous Strip. No trip to this part of the United States would be complete without ticking these off the list!
Everyone came back significantly richer in experience and with a thirst for more mountain adventures. As with the previous 2017 expedition, NORTHERN HIGH SIERRA II was generously supported by The Ulysses Trust who have helped furnish a lifetime of cherished memories for all the participants.
