Kendall Katwalk

A couple of us hiked Kendall Catwalk (spelling seems to be confused for this hike).  We had a great time crossing the catwalk, and enjoyed the views.  This is a great hike.

To read a complete review, complete with video footage www.teamramble.com/Pages/Templates/Kendalcatwalk.html

Did this hike on Tuesday October 10- on the trail at 0855, not as early as I intended, but better than work, right? I was liberal with rest breaks, water breaks, photo breaks, etc, and made it to the Katwalk by 1230. Trail is in good shape still, a little muddy in a couple of places, and frosty in shady areas near the top. This was my first time on this trail, and I cannot say enough good things about it- sunrise on Red Mountain was awesome, the fall coloring was beautiful, once I got out of the trees it was tough to take my eyes off the views and look where I was going. I spent about 40 minutes at the north end of the Katwalk lunching & dressing a blister, then ventured about a mile farther along to see a little more of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness before turning around to take photos (my trophies!!) and race the sun down the mountain. Saw nobody on the way up, after reaching my turnaround point I saw 4 backpackers, 9 hikers, 1 trailrunner, a dog, and somebody not dressed for hiking doing some impromptu trail work with a pocket saw around 2 miles from the trailhead. All in all, a great day, a great hike, and I'm looking forward to going back.

I chose to get up early yesterday to avoid the crowds. I hit the Kendall Katwalk trail (PCT) at 5:30Am hiked up to the Katwalk. I was at the katwalk by 8AM, I kept going, it was so beautiful and no one was up yet. I went past Ridge and Gravel Lakes, past Alaska Lake, to Joe Lake. I stopped at the foot of Huckleberry Mountain.  On the way up I ran in to no one at all until I was past the Katwalk and ran in to a family of four. I saw some folks in tents at Ridge Lake but didn't see anyone on the trail until I turned around and started back. I started counting people when I hit the first hikers at Ridge Lake on the way back. I walked past 122 people on the way back to the trail head. That included one ranger checking permits and three WTA folks working on the trail. (Also eleven dogs) I was off the trail and headed home by 1PM. Trail was in very good shape, and it was obviously well used

Great place to go, but be aware that every kook knows about this hike and it will be crazy crowded, unless you out-kook them and go early like I did.

Well, I did this hike on Sat Jul 22. It was supposed to be a blazing hot day but when I got up in the morning, it was completely overcast. I had forgotten to set my alarm so didn't start the hike until 10:30AM. Sleepy head! Fair number of cars in the parking lot. Probably should have been more cars, but people probably got scared off by the initial weather reports from the week. So I got going and realized that despite the lack of heat from direct sun, the air was humid. And I was sweating, a lot. I made it to the Katwalk in 2 hours and 20 minutes. Passed a fair number of people going up and coming down. Lots of trail runners. Since I had been to the Katwalk before, I decided to press on a bit to the lakes. Made it to Ridge and Gravel Lakes in another 40 minutes. Crossed 3 very small patches of snow. The bugs were out and were quite bothersome. Decided not to eat lunch at the lake but find a saddle/ridge where the wind would be blowing. Started back and found a spot about halfway back to the Katwalk. A leisurely 40 minute lunch later, and a few bug bites, headed back. Excluding the lunch, the return trip took a surprisingly long time, 2 hours and 45 minutes. The sun finally did break through the clouds later in the day but by the afternoon, the humidity had dropped. It was a nice hike. I consumed a little under 2 liters of water for the entire hike. I'm 39, male, and in good shape.

This was my second hike and I could do it easily Its a pretty easy hike. Its a bit long , but the views are great. Recommended. One tip start early.