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In addition to the descriptions below, the web site Ski Tours in the Sierra Nevada offers detailed waypoints and route descriptions for Ostrander, as well as a number of other great Sierra ski tours.
New: GPS Waypoints for Horizon Ridge Trail
Route
Description for Going Into Ostrander Lake
Get
to Badger Pass in Yosemite National Park, then register and get a Wilderness
Permit at the National Park Service "A" Frame located at
the bottom of the ski slope (even if you have reservations for the
Hut). This is also a good place to check with rangers about conditions
and weather forecasts.
The standard route follows a (usually) well-groomed trail on the Glacier Point road for about 4 miles. After you leave the road, the trail is no longer groomed and you hope someone's gone in ahead of you to break trail. Both routes are marked by yellow signs on trees, some with reflective tape on them. The last 1 1/2 miles into the hut are marked about every 50 feet with a reflective sign.
Most people take all day to go the 10 miles in to the hut. During mid-winter when the days are shortest, as many as 40% arrive after dark, so everyone should have a headlamp! Start early and see the recommended equipment list and a list of what I carry, for ideas.
You have three route choices (see Topo Map):
The first option is:
Bridalveil
Creek
This is the first Ostrander turnoff you come to on the Glacier Point Road,
about 1 mile past Bridalveil Creek. It's the easiest of the two routes and
is less steep. This trail follows an old fire road into the hut and is about
5 miles once you leave the road. This is the best route if you don't have climbing
skins are are not in tip-top shape (it's the most gradual climb). Skins are
still a good idea, though. The trail winds fairly gently through Lodgepole
forest. After about 2 1/2 miles, the grade increases, but not too badly until
you join the Horizon Ridge trail at the base of the dreaded Heart Attack Hill.
Here it climbs semi-steeply for the last mile. The last 1/4 mile is downhill
to the hut.
The second option is:
Horizon
Ridge Trail
About 1/2 mile beyond the Bridalveil Trail turnoff, is the turnoff for Horizon
Ridge. This is steeper, but shorter by perhaps 1 1/2 miles. It also has much
better views. It is only recommended for skiers or snowshoers in excellent
shape who have climbing skins with them. From the road, the trail climbs sharply
to a small ridge then stays level for a mile or so. It then climbs very sharply
for another mile to Horizon Dome. You can either follow the trail markers that
traverse west below the summit of the dome, or continue straight up over the
dome for the view (do this only in good visibility!). From the summit, you
can see most of Yosemite. You then drop a mile down to the base of Heart Attack
hill (which after going up Horizon is an anticlimax) and join the Bridalveil
trail for the last 1 1/2 miles into the hut.
The third option is:
Merced
Crest Trail (not shown on the map).
This leaves from either the top of Badger or by skiing behind Badger
and joining the trail. Merced Crest is recommended only for very
experienced skiers who have been into the hut before and who have
good experience with map & compass.
It's harder to follow and is physically more demanding because you're not on
groomed trail for any of it. Also, unless the snow cover is good, it can be
a real thrash. There's also a couple of places where you're exposed to avalanche
hazard. It's better to go out this way if you want to take it and is also best
in spring.
Waypoint
Data to program a GPS unit
The following data is from long-time Hut user (and the person responsible for our originally getting solar lighting) Guy Alcala. He did a much more accurate survey of the course and this replaces my data of several years ago. As always, it's not enough to just follow GPS coordinates blindly -- you have to also have map and compass skills. Know the basics of GPS -- what Datum your map is in and the Datum your GPS is using!
From Guy Alcala (2006)
There have been some small changes from the ones I sent you before. These are accurate to 30 ft. or less, often 20 ft. or less (at least according to my friend's Garmin Map 60C GPS). I was trying to put myself in the head of someone who'd never been to the hut before, traveling in bad visibility without a track, so I've added a few optional waypoints which I think might be helpful. Note waypoints BVDJCT, between H12 and H13, HA1 between H13 and H14, and HA2 between H14 and H15. The first is the actual Bridalveil/Horizon junction point (as opposed to the 1.5 mile sign), the second is the first signed tree about halfway up the open slope on Heart Attack, and the third is about halfway between the tree line on Heart Attack and the Snowcourse turn. None are strictly necessary, but the turnoff is non-obvious if you are heading out in blowing snow and it's untracked, the second acts as a handrail (and a re-assurance) to keep people from veering too far to the left on the open slope, and the last hopefully keeps people on the road, on the right of the ridge running down from the snowcourse. If you decide to include any of these, you'll probably want to renumber them and the subsequent waypoints (you can probably leave BDVJCT alone). Oh, in the description of H8, I used "Re-entrant", an orienteering term which may be unknown to people. It refers to the V-cut gully you cross at the base of the open slope on Horizon. From the map it doesn't appear that it's a stream bed. If you think "re-entrant" is too obscure, you might want to change the description to "Gully crossing" or somesuch.
All waypoints are at trail signs on trees, except for some of the stream crossings, where a trail sign is within 50 ft. or so.
NAD27 all 11S
H0 0270955 4171930 Glacier Pt. Road/Horizon
Trail junction
H1 0271369 4171588 Top of initial climb.
H2 0271642 4171335 Red Fir Mdw.
H3 0272042 4171288 Stream crossing, Trees.
H4 0272210 4171031 Stream crossing, Trees.
H5 0272445 4170652 Stream crossing before Horizon.
H6 0272550 4170483 Base of Horizon.
H7 0272758 4170092 Top of first leg of climb, Traverse to re-entrant/open
hill.
H8 0272965 4169959 Re-entrant crossing, bottom of open hill/base
of dome proper.
H9 0273302 4169796 Tree at top of steepest climb, slight
Right Turn. H10 0273369 4169591 Tree, traversing.
H11 0273496 4169295 High point, west of Dome top.
H12 0273706 4169082
Dead Tree on dome flank, Left Turn off dome proper.
BDVJCT 0273985
4168815 Bridalveil/Horizon Trail Junction.
H13 0273991 4168788 "1.5 mile" to hut sign at base of Heart Attack
hill open slope.
HA1 0274205 4168663 Tree in middle of Heart Attack hill open slope.
H14 0274385 4168535 Enter treeline at top of Heart Attack open slope.
HA2 0274592 4168377 Midway up enclosed part of Heart Attack hill, slight turn to Left.
H15 0274805 4168246 90 deg. Right Turn by Snow Course.
H16 0274571 4168088 90 deg. Left Turn at open corner.
H17 0274762 4167882 ".5 mile" to hut sign.
H18 0275080 4167744 Top of last climb, right turn.
H19 0275100 4167554 Traverse.
H20 0275161 4167448 Start downhill to Hut.
H21 0275070 4167255 Ostrander Ski Hut.
WGS84/NAD83, all 11S.
H0 0270875 4172129 Glacier Pt. Road/Horizon Trail junction.
H1 0271287 4171787 Top of initial climb.
H2 0271560 4171534 Red Fir Meadow.
H3 0271962 4171487 Stream crossing, Trees.
H4 0272130 4171230 Stream crossing, Trees.
H5 0272364 4170851 Stream crossing before Horizon.
H6 0272470 4170682 Base of Horizon.
H7 0272677 4170291 Top of first leg of climb, Traverse to re-entrant/open
hill.
H8 0272884 4170158 Re-entrant crossing, bottom of open hill/base
of dome proper.
H9 0273222 4169995 Tree at top of steepest climb, right
turn.
H10 0273288 4169790 Tree, traversing.
H11 0273415 4169494 High point, west of Dome top.
H12 0273626 4169281 Signed Dead Tree on dome flank, left turn off
dome proper.
BDVJCT 0279905 4169014 Bridalveil/Horizon Trail Junction.
H13 0273910 4168987 "1.5 Mile" sign at base of Heart Attack hill open
slope.
HA1 0274124 4168862 Tree in middle of Heart Attack hill open slope.
H14 0274305 4168734 Enter treeline at top of Heart Attack open slope.
HA2 0274512 4168576 Midway up enclosed part of Heart Attack hill, slight turn to left.
H15 0274724 4168445 Right Turn by Snow Course.
H16 0274490 4168287 Left Turn at open corner.
H17 0274680 4168081 ".5 mile" to hut sign.
H18 0275000 4167943 Top of last climb, right turn.
H19 0275020 4167753 Traverse, slight left turn.
H20 0275081 4167647 Start downhill to Hut.
H21 0274989 4167454 Ostrander Ski Hut.