Rincon Peak (Happy Valley) Water

[andrewp]

I'm planning a trip to tour the Rincons at the end of April and am looking for some water information. From what I can gather there's essentially no water available along Heartbreak Ridge so pretty much nothing between Happy Valley CG and Devil's Bathtub. Is there anything between Happy Valley CG and Rincon Peak?

Right now I'm planning on starting from Miller Creek, setting up camp at Happy Valley, then taking the afternoon to bag Rincon Peak. The next day I'll make my way to Manning Camp. I'm trying to figure out if I should plan on hauling 2 days worth of water to Happy Valley CG or if I might get lucky on the way back from Rincon Peak.

Based on the ridiculously dry winter and information I've been able to dig up I'm mentally preparing myself for another 25lb water carry, but I'm keeping my fingers crosses that there's a reliable source that I'm not aware of.

[chumley]

By the end of April after a dry winter I wouldn't reliably count on water at HV unless you've gotten a recent report from somebody confirming it. But I think that little silty puddle is more reliable than the only other reasonable chance which is a drainage that crosses the trail and has some bedrock that holds water at 32.132813, -110.520832

[LindaAnn]

@chumley Is that the drainage you cross not too far below (maybe a mile or so) the summit? If so, it had a trickle of water last week. The rocks were wet and less than a quart a minute if you could find a place to scoop it up. There’s still some snow above that spot that is melting off, but I don’t know how much I would trust it to still be there at the end of the month.

[ShatteredArm]

I came down Miller Creek Trail from Heartbreak Ridge just a few days ago; it's exceptionally dry for this time of year. No water along Miller Creek trail until the low parts. I didn't go down Rincon Creek trail to the campground, but heard from some hikers at the trail junction that there's no water. There was still some visible snowpack on the north side of Rincon Peak, though. That's probably your best bet, but who knows if it'll last through the week...I'd definitely plan on carrying all the water you need.

Edit: I would actually bet if you go down Rincon Creek trail a ways to where you start seeing exposed slabs, you might find flowing water. But that's just wild conjecture.

[toddak]

I hiked to Happy Valley saddle on 3/26 from the west side (Rincon Creek trail). Didn't spend a lot of time in the saddle but at the trail junction there was zero flowing water, I only saw 1 small stagnant pool under some tree roots. I didn't see any water on upper Rincon Creek trail either. Extremely dry out there

[andrewp]

Thanks everyone for taking a moment to respond!!

I guess I knew the answer before I posted, but was holding out hope that someone would respond with better news. Looks like I'll be hauling the BIG pack on this trip