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Took a shortcut on the Sierra High Route near Bishop and it backfired badly
I thought I could cut off 3 miles by following a side creek drainage instead of going over the pass. Ended up bushwhacking through alder thickets for 2 hours and had to turn back. Anybody else try to save time on that stretch and just make things worse?
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craig.sage1mo ago
Dude same exact thing happened to me two seasons ago. I learned the hard way that if you see "alder" mentioned anywhere in the trip report notes it means thick hell. Now I always check for any creek drainage that drops steep off the ridge before trying it. The trick Ive found is to actually pull up satellite imagery before heading out, you can spot the thick brush lines that way. Saves so much misery.
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blake_bell292mo ago
Learned that lesson the hard way myself a few years back. Those side creeks are total bait, they never seem to drain like you expect and end up just being thick nasty brush. Ended up losing way more time than I saved and came out all scratched up and pissed off. Now I just accept the extra miles on the actual trail even if it feels slower. The alder hell is just not worth it.
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