justHiking: Tour of Tokopah and the Tablelands 9/5/15

On September 5th I took a day trip up to Wolverton; I climbed Alta Peak then traversed through the Tablelands and back via the Lakes' Trail. The smoke report from the Rough Fire forecasted no problems in the Lodgepole area; they were right, as I only smelt a faint whiff once or twice. But the smoke driving up the 180 was like driving through the valley fog. I started on the trail at 6 sharp and made it to the top of Alta in an embarrassing 3.5 hours. A 20 minute break at the top then I started east along the ridge, dropping down to an unnamed pond and climbing back up to overlook Moose Lake. I spent some time here, walking up and down, admiring the sea of granite and the dozens of small lakes and tarns. I decided to head north, not quite sure how far or where, but north. I passed the typical granite slabs and made my way through a series of ponds. I kept north and finally made it to the overlook over Table Meadows and Lake 10,559. Turning back I passed many more lakes before paralleling the Kaweah and following a drainage/use trail west. After looking down on another meadow one ridge northeast of Pear Lake, I climbed the pass and took another break by the Matterhorn. I dropped down to Pear and after filling up with water started back to the parking lot at 3. A quick jog later and I was at the parking lot at 5, not too shabby! Ice cream at Stony Creek was a welcomed relief before heading back down the hill.