Tamarack Fire Archives - My New Life on the Trail

Day 23, Saturday, July 24. TM 1737.7–(15.3 miles)

Goodbye Yosemite, hello Escher

Last night’s campsite was unanimously chosen as the most beautiful spot we have had the entire trip, so far. Nestled in a few trees in a meadow at the base of a snow melt that has grown into a nice pond. The melting snow is strong enough to keep several streams flowing through the basin. The only competition we had for our spots were from a couple of marmots that call this area “home.”

Not a crappy view to wake up to (I’m sure that’s a grammar violation)

It’s just 1.6 miles and 900’ up to the southern boundary of Yosemite. Bunny and I took off a few minutes ahead of Bear and Sassy, but they passed us before we’d even gone 0.7 miles. I was surprised at the number of people that had camped even higher than we had last night. There were some strong winds, on and off, through the early night. I had considered dropping my tent into storm mode, but didn’t have the energy to get up to do it.

I’m prepared in case Bunny falls in (she never does when I have my camera ready)

It was up and over Donahue Pass that we made a disturbing discovery. This is on the scale of having Jeffrey Dahmer as a next door neighbor—“I had no idea he liked to eat young men. He was so quiet.” There were marmots everywhere in the rocks around the pass. We wondered what they ate to survive. Now we know, and they are not nearly as cute as they once were.

Horses and mule trains regularly go up and over the pass. Don’t forget, the reason the PCT trail grades aren’t bad is because this is supposed to be a “horse friendly” trail. We came around a switchback to see a marmot with a mouthful of fresh horse poop scrambling off the trail. No doubt, he was building a poop-store to entertain desperate marmot women come winter time. Around October, the male marmots get out their bling and try to convince desperate women hanging around dried up horse poop in the trail, “hey baby, I’ve got a huge stash of fresh horse poop in my cave. I’ve got a pinch here in my mouth to prove it. Come on over and we’ll roll in it for a while and then eat your fill.” She’ll get over there just as the snow falls. It’s all very diabolical and predictable. “Baby it’s cold outside.” “I really should go” “Baby I’ve got horse poop” You know the rest.

At Donahue Pass, we leave Yosemite and enter Ansel Adams Wilderness, but it feels more like Escher Wilderness. We just keep walking down rocks that seem to go round and round. We never make any progress. After 4 turns, we’re right back to where we started.

Yosemite, it’s been fun, but we are moving on

By the time we made it over the pass and down to a small patch of shade, we were already beat. All 4 of us said our packs felt heavier. What a difference a 1000 calorie burrito makes for breakfast. We sat in the shade and nibbled on our snacks while the marmots did the same with all the horse poop in the trail. (They almost make me like cats.)

Someone is always wanting something from us. In this case, she’s searching for a fresh, moist, salt-lick

We ended up going over 2 passes (Donahue and Island) today. Not because we want to make miles, but we want showers. It’s will be 11 days since our last showers by the time we make it to Mammoth Lake. We can’t afford even one more day before we start getting confused with mountain goats coming down the trail. (I’m meaning the Royal “We.” In reality, Bunny, Bear, and Sassy are quite gamey. I smell more like like roses. Granted, the roses might have died a few weeks ago and been left to soak in the vase, but, a rose is a rose.)

Bunny and I have been dragging all afternoon. Since we had a moderate climb after a water break, we asked a nobo JMT hiker to have a long conversation with Bear and Sassy to slow them down. That way, we might actually make it to the top of a climb first for a change. (Yes, it’s not a race, but I hate coming in last all the time.) They caught us right at the top. The deadbeat didn’t engage them. No wonder we consider every hiker who passes as “dead to us.” They can’t even do us a simple little favor.

Down hill rock walking is still rock walking

Thousand Island Lake was really good looking, but most of the “islands” were just rocks sticking out above the water. Whatever happened to truth in advertising. I suppose “6 Decent and 72 Little Islands with a bunch of Rocks Lake” doesn’t have the same romantic appeal. It also wouldn’t make a good salad dressing name. We got water out of the lake overflow. It was a good thing we did because that was the last water we saw for a while.

Salad Dressing Lake aka 1000 Island Lake

After passing the lake, we met very enthusiastic female ranger, and her dog who was ambivalent, who asked about our permits. By permit, we are actually only on our 15th day. If she were to do the math, we would have to be averaging almost 20 miles/day to actually be here. The rangers that stopped us in Yosemite hadn’t looked too closely at our permits, or bodies, to realize that wasn’t even a remote possibility to be true. Rather than go into our “factionalized” account of the trail, I said, “We just showed them to a couple rangers coming out of Tuolumne. They’re buried in my pack. I’ll get them if you really want me to.” That satisfied her needs enough to let us go. She was busy moving the “Marmot Buffet” off the trail, i.e. shoveling horse shit and didn’t want to sanitize her hands to check our credentials.

Now, the race was on. We had a long roller coaster section of trail on the side of a mountain and a storm was trying to catch us. It took us over 3 miles of fast hiking where the rain started spitting on us, but we managed to outrun the it. Looking back, we could see Thousand Island Lake was getting the full force of the rain and storm, but we had dropped down in elevation and rounded the mountain to the point that we were free of it.

We found a camp that was just large enough to hold our tents and adrenaline drained bodies. The water source was a little over a tenth of a mile ahead. Bear and I got water while the ladies nest built. The flies in camp were bad enough that we decided to eat in our tents. Bunny heard pecking outside of our tent. Bears don’t generally knock, so I wasn’t too concerned. Looking around, we saw a woodpecker in the tree next to us. It was a fairly peaceful night punctuated with lots of groans and moans coming from both tents. This had been one of our longest days of hiking.

EFG

Day 22, Friday, July 23. Lyell Fork, YNP, TM 1722.4–(11.3 miles)

It was agreed that we would not leave Tuolumne Meadows until after the store was open. Even though the store, Post Office, and grille are very hiker friendly when they are in operation, they don’t have hiker friendly hours…at least for most hikers. We don’t mind sleeping in. The store doesn’t open until 9, but, they have a charging station and fresh brewed coffee. They don’t really have breakfast fare, so I made due with a beef, bean, and cheese burrito. 940 calories goes a long way on a level trail. Bear had a beef pie. Bunny and Sassy both ate conservatively—protein bars (no imagination).

It turns out coffee and oatmeal might not be the most effective laxative. To save time, I had made use of the porcelain in the campground before the store opened, but the burrito/coffee combination proved to be potent and immediate. It was a very pleasant and enjoyable morning (the leisurely pace, not the double barrel, but that wasn’t all bad either). We headed out at 10:30.

Hard to believe Yosemite Valley was so dry with all this water

This was a pleasurable hike out. It was level for nearly 10 miles. The minute we turned on the trail, we saw another black tail doe with two fawns. They were so small, at first I thought it was a little dog running across the trail. We could see all three running, but if we hadn’t seen them enter the trees, we wouldn’t have been able to spot them. They blended In so well.

We’ve seen ground squirrels, prairie dogs, marmots, chipmunks, mule deer, black tail deer, hawks, snakes, all the usual suspects, but we still haven’t seen a bear. We’ve been out for almost 225 miles in the Sierra and are required to carry bear canisters. We’d like to see at least one (at a distance). When we’re out camping on the trail, I don’t worry about encountering them in camp. They are pretty timid. If they see something different than they expect, i.e, a tent, they usually avoid it. It’s when we get in large group settings that I get worried. While in Tuolumne Meadows, we made use of the bear boxes both nights.

There are many comments in Guthook that rangers are checking permits and bear canisters. We encountered several rangers in and around camp, but no one ever asked for anything. We just assumed that since the bubble has passed and the 4th of July holiday is old news, no one cared any more. In 4 years of hiking long trails, we’ve only been asked for permits twice and actually had to produce it once. Today, right after the junction of the John Muir Trail and the PCT, there were two volunteer rangers checking for permits and canisters. They didn’t look at them too close, because, if they did, we would have to be averaging 34 miles/day to be legal. In reality, we started a few days early and about 120 miles south of where we were supposed to. We will make up those miles after we get to Walker Pass. It’s all Bear’s fault for having to get off trail early to teach a college class for a new program he has created.

The walking was easy for 10 miles, so I had plenty of time for my mind to wander. This year is my 40th high school reunion. I won’t be attending as I had few friends who went to my school. I hung out with a few guys that were 3 years older than me. Just before we headed out here, I got together with a couple of friends that I had in high school and all the way back to 4th grade. It was great to catch up with Todd and Kevin. I doubt if more than 10 people from my class even remember me (I am Easily Forgotten for a reason).

The reason I’m bringing this up is because last year when we were hiking the Tahoe Rim Trail, Todd told me my best friend from grade school, Joe, had committed suicide. From 1st to 8th grade, we were almost inseparable. The summer between 8th grade and high school, we had a falling out and said nasty things to each other (too much testosterone would be my guess). I always assumed that one day, we would be friends again.

In high school, we didn’t talk at all. His mom died and I didn’t even know about it until a year after. He left our school in senior year. I never tried to make amends or reach out to him even after I found out about his mom’s death. Looking back, Joe was always in great shape. When we had our falling out, he said he’d kick my ass if we crossed paths again. I knew he could, easily, but, deep down, I knew he wouldn’t. Now I think of the few times he tried to reach out to me, and I didn’t recognize it. Like, when he’d sit behind me in church so we’d have to shake hands in the sign of peace.

Multi use area, not the bear we thought at first glance

Joe killed himself almost a quarter century ago and I just found out last year. I contemplated contacting his brother, but I looked him up and he looked happy. I didn’t want to dredge up old pain for him. I just feel such a loss knowing that the best friend I had for 8 years needed help and I wasn’t there for him. He deserved better from me. He deserved batter from life. He was a great guy, maybe a little shy, but he deserved to be happy and live. I can’t make up for letting him down. I can only try to not make the same mistakes again. Hopefully, one day, I’ll get to see Joe again. I don’t really believe in life after death, but if it’s true, I will find him.

Sometimes, easy walking can be a burden. I have time to relive my mistakes instead of enjoying the now. The last 2 miles of today were not of lot of enjoyment, but the struggle kept me in the now. Bunny’s hip bothered her a little today, but what really got her was the heat. We had some steep sections today with grades over 1000’/mile. She tried to go too fast and got overheated. I should have mixed up some more electrolytes for her to drink, but didn’t. I got her to slow down. About half way up the climb, she finally tried my trick of soaking her sun shirt in a creek and putting it on. It cooled her down enough that she handled the last mile without much effort (although she’d say different).

Bear and Sassy found us a gorgeous camping spot below a snow field. We are camped at 10,200’. As soon as the sun went down, it started cooling off fast. With any luck, we’ll finish the climb up Donahue Pass in the morning before it gets hot.

We ran into lots of people today. Tuolumne Meadows is a popular spot. We met a woman who had just retired 2 weeks ago and was out doing a celebratory loop hike with her son and husband. We will be heading to Maine after we finish the PCT to have a similar celebratory hike with Peter and Marcia. They are our oldest hiking friends (meaning the couple we’ve known the longest). Marcia retired just before we started the PCT and we’ve been planning to hike the Hundred Mile Wilderness when/if she ever retired.

Maybe we’ll get into some snow on the pass tomorrow

I’m a little somber today. I do have regrets in my life. I wish I could be a better person. I think of all the great examples I have: My dad is constantly saying he’s had a great life and he’s thankful for all he has. My brother-in-law is one of the few true Christians I have encountered in my life. I wish there were many more like him. I think of how positive Mizman (from the AT) is. I think of Good Chip Norris always being polite and thankful to everyone we met along the way. Bear and Sassy are always happy and positive. I’m lucky to have so many people of quality in my life. I wish I were more deserving of the luck I have.

EFG

Day 21, Thursday, July 22. Yosemite Valley—(Zero Day)

Tourists for a day

If you visit Yellowstone, you have to see Old Faithful. We’ve been in Yosemite for 5 full days and we’ve seen beauty that the average visitor doesn’t even know exists. When we hiked into Tuolumne Meadows yesterday, we missed the idea of Covid because it was so damn crowded. We had to wait in lines for everything. We’ve been in the backcountry where the only waiting we do is for Bear and Sassy to get ready in the morning and Bear and Sassy only wait for us to climb a hill (be it 10’ or 1100’, it’s sad).

Lambert Dome near Tuolumne Meadows—not to be confused with Lambert, home of the thrower rolls

As always when we come into crowds, we can smell the brand of laundry detergent of the people we pass. Thank god Axe seems to be falling out of favor with the twenty-something males. We present a unified single smell to the tourist, a subtle mixture of sweat, dried urine, and the occasional whiff of dead flowers since we forget we can’t fart in public. I’m thinking we’ve all become pretty deft at the clenched cheek SBD (silent but deadly). It’s fun to walk 50’ behind a hiker in a crowd of tourists and suddenly see the crowd disperse. It brings a tear of pride to the eye.

The Yarts bus schedule said there would be a bus to the valley departing at 8:31. I am my grandfather’s grandson. He told me three things as a little kid: 1) more than a mouthful goes to waste (hmm, that may have been part of my dad’s sex talk), 2) always go to the funeral, and 3) if you’re not 20 minutes early, you’re late. Bear suggested we leave the campsite at 8:15. I countered with let’s be at the store by 8. Bunny and I were cold and lonely until they arrived at 8:15. We all got on the same bus.

One of numerable alpine lakes on the way to the valley

It’s an hour and a half ride down to the valley. Not once do we leave the park. This is an amazingly large and beautiful place. It can also be scary driving by a few controlled burns that are active as well as seeing the results of recent, uncontrolled burns. After 7-10 years, the areas begin to look inviting again.

Other than burns, there are amazing alpine lakes with sandy beaches, stunning views, more granite domes than I ever knew existed, and then, there’s Yosemite Valley. We were expecting crowds: they were there. We were expecting high prices: check. We hoped for cell service and/or WiFi: got it. We thought we had seen the best of Yosemite already: hold the phone, we have and haven’t.

We made it, but…the stuff we wanted to do was closed because of Covid and it was over 100F

Yosemite Valley is a 2000’ deep box. The valley floor is pretty flat, level, and square with the walls. Usually a valley has an arced rise up the canyon walls. Not so here. It’s as square as nature can get. About 100 million years ago…wait, let’s go a bit further back, to pre cell phone times. The domes we see now were once lava flows that pushed up thousands of feet but didn’t break the surface. Over time erosion washed away the softer rock and dirt covering the granite domes. Then, 100 million years ago, (I knew I could get us more current) in a huge ice age, glaciers almost a mile deep pushed through the valley pushing all the sediments off of, and fully exposing the domes and valley walls. When the glaciers receded and melted, they left behind 2000’ of sediment that was trapped in the ice. The valley is actually 2000’ deeper than it appears. If we dug out the 2000’ of sediment, we’d have a granite floor that matches the walls we see. Instead, we have Half Dome, El Capitan, and the other formations we all know by sight, but only in their stunted 2000’ form.

The falls are a bit slim in the current drought

That’s really what we wanted to see, the canyon walls and the familiar formations we all know from Ansel Adams. Since we could see the actual items in his pictures, we chose to visit his gallery to see the pictures of what we saw outside so we could say “I just saw that” and not feel obligated to pay $7500 for a picture that isn’t even framed (did I mention we expected high prices?).

After that was accomplished, we had a few more tasks in mind. Mainly snacking followed by eating, followed by dessert, and another bite to tide us over until supper. We might be getting our hiker appetites after a mere 200 miles of hiking.

Once we got off the bus, we needed a snack to tide us over until we could find a meal. The first place we came upon was a coffee shop with a bakery. Cinnamon Rolls and coffee will work for the 20 minutes it takes us to walk to the Ahwahnee Hotel, a grand old hotel near the base of Half Dome. Here, we could have a semi-sit down meal.

Afterwards, we explored the hotel and took advantage of the presence of cell signal to call family we haven’t been able to talk to for almost 2 weeks and make use of WiFi. It was here that we discovered our Good Samaritan act we performed on July 11 was all for naught. I’m talking about the small fire we reported just off of the trail North of Sonora Pass near the rock formation known as the Nipple. What was a little smouldering burn of less than an acre has now grown into a major burn of 40,000 acres with less than 4% containment. The Forest Service opted not to extinguish the fire when we reported it and the storms about a week ago that pinned us down, hailed on us, and scared Bunny, whipped the fire up and allowed it to jump over the ridge. The PCT is still open in the area, but many hikers heading towards it are rightly concerned.

This would be cozy in the snow, not needed in the heat

We tried to go to the visitor center to see a film about Yosemite and some of the history of the area, but it was closed because of Covid. We wanted to have a canyon bus tour, but they were cancelled because of Covid. So we did what we know best, we had ice cream and I had another cheeseburger to hold me over for the hour and a half ride back to Tuolumne Meadows and supper. I think we ingested enough extra calories to cover our deficit for the next 3 days into Mammoth Lakes. To be on the safe side, we won’t leave until after the store opens in the morning and we can get one more high calorie meal…say a giant burrito and coffee.

I’m glad we did the side trip, but I wish it could have been cooler and non-pandemic

EFG

Day 20, Wednesday, July 21. Tuolumne Meadows, YNP, TM 1711.1–(12.7 miles)

Burgers or bust

As agreed, we all got going early. Sassy voluntarily got moving at 6. Bear started loudly clearing his throat around 6:30 to make sure we were awake. To speed things up, I had prepared the coffee, oatmeal, and orange Julius at dinner last night. All I had to do was boil water. Even Bunny could have finished up this morning since she claims all I do is boil water (all done while she sleeps).

Our neighbors were very quiet last night (and far away)…our alarm cough barely came through

All four of us were ready by 10 before 8. Even more amazing was that we were all at the top of the climb at 8. The race was on. Traditionally, (on this trip at least) we haven’t been hitting the trail until 8:45. We usually go about 3 miles before our first break around 10:30. We put in another 3 miles and have lunch around 1:30. That leaves us about 7 to finish the day sometime between 6:30 and 7:30 so we can set up camp before dark. That’s our typical 13 mile day.

8 a and already at the top of our first climb

That’s a problem for us today. We need to get 13 in before 5 if we want to get a hamburger from the grill at Tuolumne Meadows. We had motivation to get up early, but would that be enough to ensure we make it on time to order burgers.

It’s a good thing cows are ahead or these bad boys would be in real danger from the killer bunny

After cresting the hill, we let Bunny lead because she tends to be fastest hiking downhill. We agreed to have a break at 10 to check our progress and make any necessary adjustments. When we stopped at 10, we had 5.2 miles in. We were smoking. Behold the power of beef!

Don’t let that sweet smile fool you, her hips hurting and she’s hungry…BE AFRAID

The next agreed upon stop was Tuolumne Falls which was a total of 7.4 miles from our camp, leaving 5.3 miles with a half mile road walk. We have not eaten a single lunch this trip before 1. We were done with lunch and hiking before noon. Granted, our lunch was quick because we didn’t have much food left. Bunny had a pack of tuna, I had a pack of chicken, and we split a beef stick. Between breakfast, lunch, and snack, Bunny and I could not have had more than 500 calories. We also skipped all electrolytes in our drinks. We were “all in” on the burger and fries. If we ate a week like this on the trail, we would be walking zombies (if we could still walk).

Getting close to our lunch spot on the Tuolumne River

Now we were in the home stretch with less than 6 total miles to go. Our goal was no later than 4, but now we faced some uphill hiking. It was time for the A team to take the lead. Bear took over pole position with me in caboose. Bear had us knock out the climbs in a 4 mile uphill section in about an hour and 45 minutes. This is phenomenal if you know how slow Bunny and I handle inclines.

This is an area not seen by the majority of park visitors

We had less than 2.5 miles which was mostly level to downhill. It was hot. We were wearing sunglasses. Our hoods were up. It’s put up or shut up time. Who do we turn to? Bunny had the lead. Normally Bunny is not too food motivated, but after yesterday’s caloric scare on the first big climb, she was primed for a cheeseburger. In pilot vernacular, Bunny was a dot.

Bear claimed people were jumping off the trail as we passed them and then they would ask Bear “what’s up with the two smelly hikers flying down the trail?” He explained that we were trying to finish the PCT and that we have been out for 3 weeks, and that Bunny was not a vegetarian rabbit. There’s a cow in danger and the rabbit is taking it out. In other words, she’s a killer bunny with huge nasty teeth.

We made it to the grille a bit after 3. We needed to pick up our resupply boxes. We needed to find out about camping. We needed to make reservations for Mammoth Lakes. We needed to repair the bleeding gash Sassy had put in my leg when I slowed down unexpectedly. But all that could wait until we had burgers. Bear and I took our places in line while the lady folk found a picnic table and guarded our food. I ordered cheeseburger combos for us which included potato wedges and UNLIMITED refills on soft drinks. We had won the lottery again.

When we got our food, I was crushed. Our burgers were great. That wasn’t the problem. Bear and Sassy had gotten double burgers and bacon. It was devastating to see them get so much more food. Then Bunny proved why I love her. “If your still hungry, get another burger. Oh, and get me a twist ice cream.” She knows the way to my heart

We lost the trail along here causing a brief food panic

As I was heading back to the line, Bear said “get me a twist as well.” What about Sassy. “She doesn’t want one.” Wiki Task Force, what’s wrong with that woman. Little did I know, we were facing a major crisis. Sassy had ordered a gluten free bun—very good thing. Sassy plus gluten equals bad times for trees along trail. What none of us paid attention to was the potato wedges were breaded. If she gets another gluten exposure this close to the last, she could be out of the game for days.

It’s difficult to feel stress with this view

I came back to the table with the ice cream and Sassy was gone. Bear filled me in on the potato crisis and told me Sassy was in the bathroom. I enquired if she might induce vomiting to get rid of the gluten. “She might. I’ll check on her once I finish my ice cream.” Sassy came back from the bathroom with no obvious signs of recycled food on her clothes. She started reaching for straws. “Maybe they used rice powder in the breading.” Right!

Bear went in to check (once his ice cream was gone—creating an additional crisis by wasting ice cream will not lessen the first crisis). The first answer was they didn’t know what the breading was. The wedges come pre-breaded. Bear got a bit more persuasive and said “we ordered a gluten free bun. We have someone seriously effected by gluten we need to know (or she will paint your grille brown).” The guy went back and cut the ingredients label off a box of fries. I’ll be damned if it wasn’t rice flour and tapioca. Code brown averted!

A throw back shot of the falls from lunch

Now all we had to do was get our resupply boxes and camping worked out. We ran into Train who was with us at Kennedy Meadows. He already had a site and told us what we needed to do to camp. Bear went to find cell signal to call about hotels in the park (no chance!). Bunny and I got our resupply box from the post office. Whoever put it together did a phenomenal job. We have everything we need. (Actually, our Trail Angel, Digit Alice, came through again. She had acquired the majority of food for us, but I put it together and mailed it because she is recovering from hip surgery. This was a group effort.)

We set up camp then returned to the store to buy salads for supper. We sat at a PICNIC TABLE in our camp (high living on the trail) and talked with Train while we ate supper. Bunny called Sarah to find out how her grand baby is doing. The baby is fine but Sarah has major morning sickness and has already declared “one is enough.”

Advanced trail civilization…picnic tables and toilets!

EFG

Day 16, Saturday, July 17. Falls Creek, Yosemite, TM 1663.6–(15.9 miles)

We finally enter Yosemite, and are not disappointed

I heard Bear and Sassy mumbling about 6:30. I looked out the tent and saw 2 Nobo’s leaving camp. Like an idiot, I started to boil the water we needed for breakfast. I’d already prepared everything last night, so it was the fastest we had gotten breakfast complete. Just as we were finishing our food, Sassy yelled “Take your time. We haven’t started any packing yet.”

I changed up my order of things. Normally, I entirely pack up before I get out of the tent. Bunny pretty much does the same but gets out first for her morning beauty ritual. Today, I made the command decision, poop before pack. I headed up from camp and had my spot all picked. I did one final look around and saw Sassy waving at me. Mission abort. I took a wide circle around her (she was done) and headed further up. I dug my hole, laid out all the paperwork, and took one final look. I had a direct line of sight to Bear and Sassy’s tent. It was mission critical that I not abort. I had only one option, keep staring at Bear in case he sees me. I always try to hold eye contact with non participants which tends to give you a wider birth in future outings.

Wildflowers vs what I’m talking about here

Bear never saw me. I suppose Sassy told him my general whereabouts and he chose to not intrude upon my moment of zen. I filled out my paperwork as quickly as possible then returned to camp. Bear saw me and announced a changing of the guard. While Bear was imitating the pope, I quickly packed up and took down the tent. Bunny and I decided to get front row seats to observe how Bear and Sassy get ready. As they were taking down their tent, a pole slipped and hit Bear in the eye. This was the moment Sassy had been waiting for. While Bear was hurt, she got to give him the “hurry up” hand roll like he had done to her when the same thing happened in reverse a few years back.

It was a level to downhill walk the first 5 miles today, yet I managed to get overheated. It wasn’t hot, I just can’t be allowed to be in front. Like Bunny and Sassy, I outpace myself trying to make sure I’m not holding anyone up. The next Creek we got to, I soaked my sun shirt, hat, and bandanna to try to get my core temperature down. Sassy gave me a couple of salt tablets to make up for all the sweating I had done. I don’t want to get behind on electrolytes again. It’s too hard to get straightened out on the trail.

Under normal hiking circumstances, it’s got to be confusing as hell to our bodies what is going on. For 6 days, we expect maximum physical output on a reduced calorie diet. By reduced, I mean we can only carry about 2500 calories worth of food for 6 days and we are burning in excess of 3500 calories (it would be more if we were putting in bigger miles). To help confuse matters, we’ll come into a town and consume 5000 calories per day and reduce demand on our bodies while we rest. It’s amazing that our bodies function as well as they do under the conditions we subject them to.

Not our thousand mile mark, but “A” 1000 mile mark

A major highlight for today was entering Yosemite National Park. We could see the park boundary by the mountain size change as we crossed Dorothy Lake Pass. There was still snow clinging to crevices. We’ve heard plenty of Nobos say that Yosemite is the most difficult section of the Sierra. Today was the exception as the first 10-12 miles in the park heading south is a gentle decline. We made good miles today, but we’ll pay for it tomorrow.

Bunny’s left hip is good for about 11-13 miles as long as the terrain isn’t too rocky and loose. We had a few miles of that prior to and right after entering Yosemite. We took a break at the 11 mile mark to see how the old Hare was holding up. She said she might have another 5 in her if she took one of her meds and applied some CBD oil. She did both, but it started to wear off before we made our goal. She kept pushing, though, in the hopes of a shorted day tomorrow.

For some reason, I was leading after Dorothy Lake. A hiker was coming towards me and yelled “10 and 5.” I was shocked that this guy was yelling at me and didn’t know what he was talking about. He continued yelling “you’re the 10th woman and 5th man I’ve seen today. Isn’t is great that women outnumber the men on the trail?” Just then Bear and Sassy caught up and he yelled “11 and 6.” We tried talking a few minutes, but I was a bit uncomfortable with the yelling. When we moved on, Bunny said he had hearing aides in, but possibly the batteries were going dead.

A few minutes later I saw 2 girls coming towards us. It took every bit of will power I had not to yell “12 and 6; 13 and 6.” I frighten women enough in the back country without yelling at them.

We finally got to our spot hoping it wouldn’t be full. Guthook says there’s lot of flat spots all along Falls Creek, but we had seen very few camping spots. We hit the jackpot tonight. This turned out to be our best spot so far. Falls Creek runs nearby to the site and there are several flat boulders in the creek. The four of us sat on the boulders soaking our feet while cooking and eating supper. It was the perfect end to our longest day of hiking so far this season.

EFG

Day 15, Friday, July 16. Kennedy Canyon Creek, TM 1647.7–(11.0 miles)

Life continues on the PCT

At breakfast, we actually met 5 other Sobo section hikers…we are not alone. They even talked to us. We all agreed to try to commandeer the first shuttle out at 10. We know of at least 5 Nobo’s that are planning on heading out this morning. The van can only hold at most 10 people. After getting packed up, the 9 of us all took our packs out to the van area rather than the PCT hiker area…we kind of jumped line, but in reality, we were the first hikers to request the shuttle and the first lined up. Additionally, we’re all older hikers so the young pups can wait for their elders to hit the trail.

Happy to be back on the trail after just a single day

Ron, the driver, dropped us off at Sonora Pass. 8 of us are planning on heading to the same campsite tonight. We have a 1200’ climb up to 10,850 feet elevation. Bunny and I immediately drop to the back. Her hip isn’t hurting today and we want to keep it that way. There’s a group of 4 women who call themselves the “Jay Walkers.” They started at Truckee on the 5th of July. It’s pretty doubtful that we’ll ever see them again after today if they covered the same distance we did in 3 fewer days. They seem to have more testosterone than our group does.

It’s easy to see the trail ahead when you’re above treeline

Something else about today—it’s a dry day. We spent most of the hike above 10,500’ and there wasn’t any water. It was 10 miles between water sources which meant we had to carry a bit more water than usual combined with a full 6 days of food. Surprisingly, we handled it pretty well.

Billy Goat was out again today. We ran into him about 6 miles in. His companion, Soul Flower had packed up some bear canisters for him to reduce his carry. A couple of assholes had the nerve to open them up and take some of his food. Since we had met everyone heading both directions today, we were able to determine who the culprits were. We had even talked to them at the top of the climb. Bear had good enough signal to call Kennedy Meadows North and give a description to them. Ron, the driver, and all the staff at Kennedy Meadows know Billy Goat so they will handle the matter.

You can’t “accidentally” open a bear canister

It did give us the opportunity to spend more time with Billy Goat. He first climbed Katahdin in 1958 (the year Bear was born). He found out there was a trail from there to Georgia and right then he decided he wanted to walk it. He began section hiking and finished his first pass of the AT in 1987. Since then, he has hiked the AT 3 times and is finishing his 10th time on the PCT. He has 26,500 miles on the PCT alone. He was worried he might have to turn around if too much of his food had been taken. The women in front of us had given him some food and I’m sure everyone on the trail will contribute if he needs more. I pointed out to him that if he turned around and headed back to the pass, that would be considered the start of his 11th PCT hike and he’d be obligated to finish that one as well. He said he’d wait for Soul Flower to catch up before he made a decision. I’m sure he will continue on.

There was water if you are willing to climb down a few thousand feet…we weren’t

We got high for lunch. That is, we stopped around 10,700’ when we found a clump of stunted trees that gave us a little shade. I’m pretty sure that something was up that I shouldn’t share completely with our young readers: Bear said he wanted some afternoon delight and Sassy asked to borrow my Vagisil. That’s not entirely true, Sassy traded a Snickers for my Payday and the use of my Vagisil. She also borrowed a couple of safety pins to pleat her shorts which had been chafing her thighs this morning. She and Bunny are now “pleat twins.” And Bear’s “afternoon delight” consisted of borrowing the orange bag of relief and disappearing into the woods. Word is, he did wave to Sassy when she relieved herself. Alabama folk!

The mountains around us are just fucking stunning. I’m sorry, there is no other way to describe them. But we have to remember, these mountains are Yosemite rejects. We don’t enter Yosemite for about another 7 miles. We will have walked from Lake Tahoe to Yosemite National Park tomorrow, and we’re just barely under way for this year. We’ll still have two more National Parks to go.

I’m just in awe of the natural beauty we are seeing. Everything looks like a painting. We can see the trail for miles at a time. It’s just hard to capture the scale of what we are seeing in pictures. I’m taking way more pictures than we can post and we’re having a tough time of what to include. We still have 300 more miles to go.

We got to camp a bit before 6. We chose spots close to the trail and were over ran with nobo hikers heading into Kennedy Meadows tomorrow. The nobo people we ran into today seem less uppity. I think the people that are only 1000 miles in right now are realizing they are going to have to flip up North if they are going to stand a chance of finishing. Even worse, they see that they may end up like us and become lowly LASHers. Reality can be cruel.

EFG

Day 14, Thursday, July 15. Kennedy Meadows North—(Zero Day)

Finally, a day of rest

There weren’t any beds in the dorm last night, so we set up tents in the designated PCT hiker area. The biggest difference I’ve noticed between the PCT and AT trail communities is one of attitude and cliqueishness. From my perspective, the AT community is much more open and accepting of all people you meet on the trail. A day hiker or section hiker is not looked down upon (as much) as these lesser life forms are on the PCT. If we, as gods of the AT (we were thru-hiking) would have looked upon our lessers with the same attitude as a PCT hiker does to lesser hikers, we would have never become such good friends with Bear and Sassy.

Just in case you don’t know where we are

Even though they were mere section hikers at the time, we befriended them and introduced them to all our friends on the trail. They eventually brought us down a notch in the pecking order to become the social pariahs we are today—LASHers (Long Ass Section Hikers). We still love them even though they have ruined our trail image.

The first bear we see and it’s at check in

In reality, they are much stronger hikers than we are. Even a sick Sassy is hard for us to keep up with. Bear is the strongest and most detail oriented of our group. The only differences between older hikers and younger hikers is money, time, and physical recovery time. They have all three on us (yes, we are the younger couple of which I am the youngest in our foursome—that’s why I get to ride in the back of pickup trucks by myself while they sit up front in AC. I understand they need the extra space to “spread out.” It just hurts a little when the driver stops to pick up another hitchhiker and they make room up front. They will, on occasion, open up the rear slider to allow me to hear their joyful conversation while I’m sitting on a spare tire. It takes me back to my “dungeon days” in the Whites. My point in all of this? I forgot.) Now I remember, it wasn’t Bear and Sassy that ruined our trail lives. We did it ourselves by choosing not to risk our lives in deep snow. Bear and Sassy saved our trail images by agreeing to hike with “fallen” thru-hikers.

They cater to hikers with a well stocked store

North Kennedy Meadows has no connection to Kennedy Meadows South (other than the Kennedy name and being a meadow). This Kennedy Meadows was once owned by an asshole Irish immigrant who killed 2 men for fishing on one of his lakes. They didn’t know they were trespassing. Ignorance of the fact was no excuse. He shot one, made the other carry him back to his cabin, dig a grave big enough for two, and then hung the guy that did all the work because he wasn’t worth the cost of a bullet. Nice guy.

What do hikers want almost as much as food?

We took the zero day here to allow Sassy recovery time and to eat. The restaurant here has very good food with reasonably priced steaks since they raise their own cattle. This is, more or less, a horse camp. People come here to ride the trails rather than do the manly thing and hike. (Yes, Bear and I have manly wives. It’s why we are both so meek.)

A nice shower and laundry (that not all hikers choose to use)

Bunny and I resupplied here. The prices and supplies are pretty geared towards hikers. I felt a bit bad spending a little over $100 for six days of food until a nobo behind us in line spent $160 for his 5 days of food to get him to Lake Tahoe. I guess our hiker appetites haven’t kicked in yet.

Once the “royalty” of the trail packed up and left this morning, Bunny and I moved our tent into the shade closer to the water. We also cleaned up all the crap the spoiled, self entitled, brats left behind. They deemed us not worth talking to last night because by the time we showed up to set up our tents, we had already done laundry and showered. They had been here a couple of days and hadn’t bothered to do either (even though it’s included in the $30 price to camp here).

Bunny even sewed one of my legs to my ass

It wasn’t until evening that we started running into other lesser trail types who were also LASHing. We met a few couples that had also started in 2019 and had to skip large portions of the trail because of the snow. It’s really funny that the group of Nobo’s who left today were still so arrogant. Of the 2 van loads who went out, I would guess only one or two hikers actually have a chance of completing their thru-hike this year. Any hiker who is only to this point after more than 2 1/2 months of hiking, will have to flip north to have any chance of finishing. By their own definition, they are mere section hikers that haven’t done the math yet. I spit on them. The only nice thing I have to say about any of them is that they liked my Yoda pajama bottoms.

All in all, this was a restful day of overindulgence. We were able to make up our calorie deficit we had created since South Lake Tahoe. We had showers and laundry. The only thing missing was an actual bed to sleep in. The dorm rooms above the restaurant were full last night. We could have moved into a bed tonight, but we heard from several people that the rooms were hot and noisy. It was much better sleeping next to a River that drowned out most of the camp noise.

A cleaned up camping area, thanks to the 4 of us

EFG

Day 13, Wednesday, July 14. Sonora Pass, TM 1636.7–(9.2 miles)

I’m not asking Sassy…I value my life

It was a good night’s sleep but not 100% rejuvenating. Bunny’s hip kept her tossing and turning and my having to get up…wait a minute. I didn’t get up. That makes 12 nights in a row. I felt physically tired still but mentally in a fog. In other words, a typical night on the ground. We decided we need a day off. We’re pretty sure Bear and Sassy want one as well, but we’ll let them make the suggestion so we can acquiesce. Someday, they’ll do the same for (to) us.

I’m finishing up our tent—notice the undisturbed tent beside us

It’s only 9 miles to Sonora Pass, so we took our time getting ready. This might have been a good time to tell the women we had a 2500’ climb which might have sped them up a bit. We chose to remain silent. Bear had said we have a 5 1/2 mile climb, but that didn’t quite sink in.

A couple of markers left for us last night

Sassy was more like herself. Bunny’s hip is always a bit stiff for the first half mile (especially if the first half mile is uphill). It’s no big deal for Bear and me to hike the PCT. We’re not in pain all that much. Occasionally, we’ll have bad days, but Bunny’s hip hurts almost every day. She will eventually build up more muscle to ease the pain in her hip and allow her to have bigger mileage days, but… Even on a good day, her pain is a 4 and gets worse the longer she’s hiking.

Our track record this section is not good. We’ve been hitting 4-5 miles by the time we take lunch, usually between 1 & 2. That’s when we start hiking by 8:15 or 8:30 at the latest. Today we started a little after 9. We’ve heard it’s an easy hitch to Kennedy Meadows, and that there was a later shuttle than the 3p we were hoping to catch. I wasn’t overly worried.

We don’t just hike with Bear and Sassy. We hike with several Bears and Sassy. There’s Safety Bear that analyzes all the risks we might encounter. There’s Concerned Bear when Sassy gets sick or in a semi-dangerous position (suck as walking on a steep, exposed trail—a daily occurrence in the Sierra). Then there’s Analytical Bear (Anal Bear for short) who over thinks all details of the hike (this is Off Trail Bear’s predominant persona—I haven’t seen it yet, but I KNOW he has a daily spreadsheet for this trip. He keeps referring to dates we “should” be there.) Today, we hiked with all the Bears at once.

By our first break at 2.5 miles into our 6 mile climb, it was apparent Sassy was not miraculously cured over night after our longest day of hiking so far. We all just wanted to get to “town” for a day of rest. To her credit, Sassy didn’t say much. As any man alive knows, when a woman doesn’t say much, there’s something wrong. As all men also know, if a man makes such a statement about a woman, or women in general, that man’s life is forfeit. I said it. I know it. It’s been a pleasure relating my experiences on the trail. I have already started digging my grave. I just pray for a quick, clean shot (preferably in the back of the head). There’s so much I still wanted to do.

At our second break, Sassy threw up a bit. Yes, I had planned to sit in that spot, but the space at the other end of the shade turned out to be much better even though I had to sit on a thorny bush. Sassy was in that quiet state women enter when you’re not certain if it’s anger, illness, or both (I’ve already said the grave is in progress, allow me a few last words). I thought this was a good time for Bunny to lead. (Bunny, by the way, has entered her “Energizer Bunny” persona and can walk the same pace for hours, uphill or downhill, without pause. It’s not fast, but it will eventually wear your ass down.)

We took off at Bunny’s uphill, pace. This worked for another 1.6 miles until we all stopped again. Now, Sassy lead. Sassy, who is sick and hates hiking uphill and wants to get to town, took the lead. We didn’t see them again until near the top of the climb, at which point Sassy took off again. Three of us thought the worst was over. One of us, who had analyzed the trail (guess who) knew better. We hit a section of 850’/mile. It didn’t slow Sassy down, but it did take the remainder of her energy.

The top section of the trail was a bit more than a mile of rocky trail at 10,500’ in full sun. Bunny and I were a couple hundred feet behind when I saw that Sassy had taken off her hat. I was convinced she was in early heat exhaustion doing irrational things. We caught up with them and she was severely nauseated. They dropped their packs to get her an antacid and told us to go on.

Bunny and I headed to the first shady spot we could find (1/2 mile ahead). I dropped my pack and headed back to them. I planned to grab Sassy’s pack. We need to get her off the trail. About 100 yards back, I ran into them coming down the trail. Sassy had her hat back on and said the antacid was working. She’s like a cat, except she has nine daily lives.

I stay behind…to be able to take pictures

We made it across the rock section to the break point where the trail starts heading down. There was a group of 7 Nobo’s all in there 20s sitting down in a depression. They had just finished the 3 mile hike up from the pass. We had heard that Kennedy Meadows’ internet sucked, at best, and there isn’t any cell service down in the valley. Every one of these “kids” was on their phones and had ear buds in. It was like an AA meeting had accidentally been held in a VFW with a free open bar. I’m not certain they even saw us pass by.

Deceptively green as we start to descend

Anal, excuse me, Analytical Bear had projected we need to be to this spot by 12:30. It was 1:17. By the time we had walked nearly a mile down, it was 1:47. We still had 2.4 miles to go if we wanted to catch the 3p shuttle to Kennedy Meadows. The trail was actually worse than Pennsylvania rocky. This is the worst kind of terrain for Bunny’s hip (which was supposedly tired from yesterday). Going downhill is harder on her hip, to boot (whatever the hell that means). Sassy stepped aside to release the hounds. She told Bunny it was the land of kittens, rainbows, unicorns, and bunny rabbits if she made it to Sonora Pass in time to catch and hold the shuttle. In the language of combat pilots…we were dots.

Hurting hip Bunny was hopping so damn fast I couldn’t keep up. I begged her to slow down. She came to a complete stop. I’ve always warned people not to get too close to Bunny if she suddenly stops in the trail. It usually means a supersonic fart. In this case, it was even worse. She full roundhouse slapped me. “I love you. You’re my husband, but don’t you EVER get between me and “Bunny Nirvana” again.” Enough said. We covered the 2.4 miles in 44 minutes.

Now that we’re at the Pass, the blur has slowed down enough that I can take a picture

There were 3 people at the pass that directed us to the parking lot we had passed 1/4 mile ago. Back to the lot we went. There were dozens of cars but only one hiker who seemed to be following us. We asked if he knew where the shuttle picked people up at. He told us that he was only following us because we looked like we knew what was going on. By now, Bear and Sassy had arrived. While we were trying to figure out what was happening, the shuttle drove by the lot up to the pass where we had originally gone. Never trust a day hiker!

Ultimately, we flagged down the shuttle and made it down to Kennedy Meadows in time to make 5p dinner reservations. It may not have been “Bunny Nirvana,” but it was Hiker Paradise with flush toilets, hot showers, a grocery store, laundry machines, and, most importantly, free refills on drinks with dinner. We will live to hike another day.

EFG

Day 11, Monday, July 12. Spring & Campsite, TM 1612.2–(13.7 miles)

Sassy falls, but nothing new happens

10 nights in a row! Everybody, bend over and kiss your asses goodbye. I need to get to a town where I can drink a couple of gallons of iced tea.

It just goes to show you, if it’s not one thing (Bunny’s hip), it’s another (blisters on her toes)

It was Bear who returned from his orange bag expedition and declared the Sierra his best morning poop experience. There is no better place on earth that compares to the Sierra on a cool, bug free morning. Only Bunny has refused to weigh in on this topic.

Who can tell us what kind of bird this is?

Sassy was feeling better today. They think they’ve narrowed down what her problem was. Sassy hates to climb hills. We tried letting her lead yesterday so she could maintain a comfortable pace. Bear clocked her at 3 mph. She’s like a horse returning to the barn. This theory seemed to hold for the first 6 or 7 miles until she got sickly again.

At this point, we can’t rule out anything. She has described what she is feeling as all day long morning sickness. Could Sassy be pregnant? Who are the parents? Perhaps the aliens have lost their fascination with anal probes and moved on to new experiments. Alien implantation is the most likely answer which brings up another question—What species is the baby? Or, could Sassy have Covid? Bear had vertigo the first few days on the trail. Could Bear have given her a virus? Worse yet, could Bear have given me a virus last week? Sassy has been getting up to pee in the middle of the night (tent walls are thin) so we don’t have the exact same problem.

I don’t know how they got up to place the flag

We were hiking along in our standard formation: Bear in the lead to keep Sassy from running herself to death, followed by Sassy; followed by Bunny; with me in the rear. I use my position in back to take pictures and space myself further back so I can rest more often in the shade. I was thinking of how I would have run Medieval England as a benevolent king (I don’t use ear buds to listen to podcasts). I started to realize Bear likes the lead so he doesn’t have to watch Sassy in dangerous situations. As that realization came to me, Sassy affirmed it by falling.

Once she was on the ground, she started dragging her butt like a dog trying to express herself. I tried to tell her to relax a minute before she moved to make sure nothing was broken. She responded “I’m trying to get out of the sun.” Bunny and I tried to shade her as she continued expressing herself towards the nearest tree.

Fortunately, nothing was damaged other than ego. We agreed to take an extended break at the next water stop at the 9.5 mile mark. Even ill, I had a hard time keeping up with her. I’m sorry Sassy is feeling ill, but I like not being the weakest link in the group for a while. Even though Bunny did virtually no exercise in the off season, she already has her cardio back and can hike the same pace all day. I need someone else to slacken things up for a while. Sassy has stepped up for me.

Bear scouting out the stream ahead trying to find shade

After a long lunch by a cold creek in sparse shade, we wet ourselves down for the impending climb. It was a 2.5 mile walk with a gain of just over 1000’. This works out to about 400’/mile of grade. On the AT, this is known as “level.” The PCT is a much nicer and forgiving trail than the AT. If you ever take your eyes off your feet on the AT while your walking, you’re going down. Not so on the PCT. Most of the time, you can look around while walking without any fear of falling.

This is a smoke cloud from a fire up north

There were a few sections in this 1000’ ascent where we were walking on narrow shelves with significant drops beside us. I looked back to see that Bear was in front of Sassy. I stay in front of Bunny for the same reason. It only took us about an hour and a half to make the climb. Near the top, we encountered lots of smoke. There are several wildfires in Nevada and California, already. Bunny and I hope we can finish the PCT this year. It’s giving us fits.

Coming down the south side of the pass, we quickly dropped below the smoke. For some strange reason, I was still leading as we were descending. I saw an old man with skinny legs and a long beard approach me. Donkey and Chia had told us there was an octogenarian hiking the trail. I asked him how many times he had hiked the PCT. “I’m finishing up my 9th and 10th times this year. I have just a few hundred miles left.” This was Billy Goat. He’s 82 years old. We talked for about 15 minutes, all the while his back was to a steep fall. Every time he rocked back and forth, I got more nervous.

We had passed 3 old women prior to meeting Billy Goat. He told us they were his traveling companions. He’ll hike to where they’ve set up camp and cooked supper. He’ll eat what they’ve cooked then lie on the ground and go to sleep. He only Cowboy camps.

Being in back gives me more shade breaks—I seem to be the only one effected by the sun

Even though we made our 13 mile target today, we’re going to be just a bit shy of making it to Sonora Pass in time to catch the shuttle to Kennedy Meadows North on Wednesday. We went through all of our food and decided we have enough to spend an extra night out and catch the early shuttle on Thursday.

EFG