My little camp in the trees was so nice and cozy, I didn’t want to leave.

It was a good thing I checked the trail ahead. For weeks I have just let my water run out and then tanked up at the next source. I’ve been crossing little streams about every ten minutes. But I’m in volcanic mountains now and they really suck it up. I almost headed into an 8 mile stretch with less than a liter. But I did check, so I walked about ten minutes back down where I could fill up at a spring.

Absolutely beautiful perfect day walking the crest. This is what I like! I like these mountains a lot more than the high Sierra with all its stone steps. I like mountains with stuff growing on them, not just rock and ice.

The switchbacks in the foreground is the PCT.

Where I came from…

I felt good too, despite my heavy pack. My only ailment is my left ankle where my shoe is rubbing it, mainly on the downhills. Why my shoe waited 200 miles to start hurting is a mystery.

That trace on the left is the trail heading for that notch.

This is the kind of view that makes me think, “Damn. I’m hiking to Canada!”

There was a spot going down where the trail switched back, but most of it was covered in snow. I decided to “boot ski” straight down, which started out great. But the snow drift got progressively steeper and steeper, and towards the bottom I was shooting down this four or five foot face at really high speed! I hit the trail running and it’s a real miracle I didn’t crash and burn. I shouldn’t do that. It was a close one. Too close. Nevertheless, when it was all over, I thought it was pretty cool and wished someone was there to see it.

I hiked the ten miles to Sonora Pass by 1230. Jay wasn’t supposed to be there until two, but there was trail magic! Hank “The Tank” had come up from the Central Valley. It was his first time doing trail magic, but he had everything! I was most interested in the beer. I sat in a camp chair and drank beer and talked to Hank and other hikers until my uncle showed up around three.

I wish I had a scale to weigh my still full bear canister. That was probably ten pounds of weight that I hiked from Tuolumne Meadows that was completely unnecessary. I also got rid of my pile pants, sleeping bag liner, and a few other things I won’t be needing for a while (like a bunch of extra food).

I thought my pack would be feather light walking out of there but it was not. In addition to my resupply whiskey, I had asked Jay to bring me a six-pack of beer, but he brought 12, so I hiked out with 7 beers.

Needless to say, with all that beer both inside and out, I didn’t go far. Besides it was about 1730 when I left. I went less than two miles and found a nice spot to make camp and drink more beer!

Well, cowboy camping last night failed. I was so tired, I thought I’d try it, maybe see the stars again. But I couldn’t see the stars through the bug-bivy, besides they come out too late. Then a hard dew had fallen by midnight. The top of my bag was soaked. Then a breeze began to blow. Then it dropped below freezing. There was heavy frost on my bag when I broke camp at six. Cold.

Fairly nice trail up to Dorothy Lake Pass except for all the mud-holes.

WTF Yosemite? I thought this was one of our premier National Parks! I thought the PCT was a National Scenic Trail. You would think when the two come together they could make a nice trail.

I had a very nice lunch at Dorothy Lake. It was a bit breezy and I had to put large rocks on my stuff to keep it from blowing away while I was trying to dry it.

Almost instantly past the park boundary the trail got better and I got cell service!!!!!! I was able to call my Uncle Jay and he is able to meet me tomorrow (Tuesday) and not Wednesday as planned when I left Mammoth. This was a huge relief. I was all planning how slow I would go, even contemplating a nap when I realized I still had quite a few miles to go to be at Sonora Pass on time. So I kept walking until 1730.

I saw a nice looking coyote in a meadow. He was running off before I could get a good picture.

I wanted to get up high, away from the mosquitoes and bears, so I camped on this windy pass around 10,000 feet. Found this nice stealth spot nestled in some trees. Once I set my tarp up, it was quite pleasant in there! I took my shoes and socks off and was able to let my feet air out without fear of insect bites.

Stealth camping.

You can see my shelter now with the sun on it.

Very quiet and peaceful up here.

It was really awesome until I got bored. 1730 is kind of early to camp but there was nothing for miles after that, so….

I can’t believe how much food I have! Yes, I’ve made up two days, and therefore have two days of extra food, but I have more than that. At bedtime I packed and re-packed the bear canister until I just barely fit everything in. At last! Then I looked over and saw the super-size Snickers. Doh!

PCT 971-989, +4 off trail

Hiked my ass off today. 0545 to 1930. Very minimal breaks. Almost all of it was very steep with big stone steps.

I felt slow, kept tripping over my clown shoes and stopping for this or that, but things were going well until I made a wrong turn and hiked an hour in the wrong direction (probably two miles away from the PCT). Mosquitoes were swarming heavily when I figured it out and went to look at the map, or I might have realized I could keep going that way and connect with the PCT, but I retraced my steps back to the trail, thus costing me two hours (4 miles?) and shutting down my idea of a 20 mile day. I think I hiked over 22 miles, but it doesn’t count if it’s not on the PCT.

I’ve got to get to Sonora Pass and get rid of this weight (bear canister and all cold/snow gear). Scenario One is I can contact my uncle tomorrow to tell him Tuesday not Wednesday. All other scenarios come out best the sooner I can get there. I plan to push just as hard tomorrow unless I get service.

Only saw three hikers all day (all PCT).

Post-trail edit: What I meant by “Come on Yosemite” was the poor signage that caused me to get lost. Up to this point, finding the PCT was pretty easy. Once in Yosemite, all the PCT markers went away! There was a sign that said this way to Lake Tilden (that’s the PCT), then a second sign that said this way to Lake Tilden (NOT the PCT), and then a third sign that said this way to Lake Tilden (that’s the PCT). Do you see how someone could get confused? Would it kill them to buy some of those PCT stickers and stick them on the signs to indicate the trail? I don’t want to promote vandalism or the defacement of National Park property, but if I ever hike through there again, I might be tempted to put a sticker on that second sign so hikers don’t get lost.

PCT Mile 951-971

Big day! I was on trail by six. I had few miles of cruiser trail to start with but mostly it was straight up and straight down all day. I also had about seven ice-cold fords, including a knee-deep one (Virginia Creek). Still lots of people.

It was a brisk morning. Good for hiking!

I felt pretty good most of the day. Just really tired. All I can think about is how much weight I’m going to drop in Sonora Pass. My uncle has agreed to meet me there, bring me resupply, and take this fucking bear canister. Thing is, I told him to meet me there on Wednesday, but if I keep pulling 20’s, like I need to if I want to get to Tahoe on time, I’ll be there on Tuesday. And there’s no cell service or any way to contact anyone. I’m going to keep hiking fast and hope for the best.

The mosquitoes are out now. They’re not too bad, I only have a few bites, but I did put a little of the deet I bought in Tuolumne Meadows on in camp. I found another nice spot on a cliff to keep the bear and mosquito problems to a minimum.

  

So, I’m two days behind my stupid schedule. Except it’s not that stupid anymore. I’m two days behind meeting my Dad in Tahoe. But I’m ready. My pack is around 40 pounds, but my spirits are high and I’m going to see how many of those 48 hours I can peel off. I feel like everything up to this point, all the 700 miles of desert, all the high passes, it was all to get me ready for this.

I have a resupply package at the Tuolumne Meadows post office. I checked HalfMile’s app and it said 12 miles and 2000 feel down. I thought this could mean a good deal of “cruiser trail”, but instead was 2000 feet down in the the first mile or two, and then ten miles of flat through countless mudholes down Lyell Canyon. Nonetheless, I got to the PO/Store by 11.

  

This put me only one day behind, but I still put my whole resupply in my pack. I think this is my heaviest pack yet. 45 pounds? Also got a bonus burger for lunch while I sorted my food. I saw Puppy there (from Mt. Laguna)! She’s taking a few weeks to hike around in the Sierra. I was back on trail by noon.

Very crowded, as expected. Six miles in was Glen Aulin, notorious for bears, and I could see from the trail it was crowded. I kept walking a few miles and found a sweet spot to camp with a cliff on two sides. Definitely not on a bear’s regular route and the mosquitoes aren’t bad either.

  

I left Mammoth at 0830 and was on the trail by 0910. A fellow hiker, CatWater, was getting a ride to the trailhead from her sister who was visiting for a few days and they gave me a ride. It was a nice, mostly sunny morning and everything was freshly washed from the recent storm. A lot of vegetation was still wet and it smelled good.

It was pretty much climbing all day up to the pass. The clouds would build and threaten, and then dissipate.

  

I started drinking the whiskey around two (to lighten the load), which improved my outlook greatly. Unfortunately, I neglected to take into account all the sobriety checkpoints. By that I mean raging, icy streams, with stony banks, that are crossed by walking over some wet, skinny log. Like, six of them. But I made it.

Hit the pass (entered Yosemite NP) around 1730. I didn’t go too far after that. Just down enough to get back to treeline. I might have gone more but I saw a bunch of tents down there.

After I was all set up and dinner consumed, a thunderstorm came over and rained and hailed some, but it didn’t matter much to me.

I guess the other thing I’ve been thinking on the trail and that I haven’t talked enough about is the pain. The PCT has introduced a whole new world of pain.

For instance, on a scale of 1-10 (1 is good, 10 hurts), I think what used to be 6 or 7 is now a 4.

Most days I start out feeling OK, and at some point the pain starts. Often in the morning, like 8. And I say to whatever is hurting, “You can go ahead and hurt, but we’re still walking for 10 more hours.” I just “walk it off”.

And after 900 miles I know some of my pains very well. The heel pain I’be been having for 700 miles? Yeah, whatever. Hasn’t stopped me yet, ignore it. It’s the new pains that get my attention, and I seem to get those pretty regularly. So far I just walk them off, maybe go real slow for a few minutes.

Sometimes out of nowhere something (foot, heel, knee, hip) starts hurting REALLY badly. It brings me to a full stop and it seems that I cannot go on. I ponder my options for a moment and decide I must keep moving, no matter how slow. And then, within 5 or 10 minutes the pain totally goes away. What the hell was that all about?

And of course, the night pains. It’s crazy how much it can hurt when you’re done, just laying there in your bag! There’s no way to lie for more than a few minutes that doesn’t hurt. Tossing and turning trying to get comfortable.

Well, I didn’t/don’t want it to be easy. How’s it go? “if it doesn’t kill you, it’ll make you stronger.” Yeah, that.

Honestly, that’s how I’ve felt a lot of times on the trail.

At first it was the water. At every source you need to figure out how much you need to get to the next source. And you need to decide if you will be camping before you get there, and if so, carry enough for that too. Then you walk away and that’s it: you’re committed!

Like the day I left Tehachapi with “16 miles” of water. I really would have liked to stop at mile 10, or 12, or 14, but I wouldn’t have any water. There’s really nothing for it but to keep walking no matter how bad I feel, or what the conditions are.

Now that I’m in the High Sierra there’s a similar dynamic with the passes. I can spend all day climbing a pass and get there in the late afternoon, dog-tired, but there’s nowhere to camp up there. No matter how bad the snow is, or what the conditions are, or what my condition is, I must get down to camp. There really is no choice about it.

I hate to think that my options are: 1) Keep Walking, or 2) Die, but it certainly feels that way. I could probably survive 12 hours with no water, and in an emergency I could camp on the trail itself, but you know, those are desperate measures. Survival mode. I’m trying to avoid that.

And then of course, there’s my stupid schedule. I predetermine how fast I will hike and then I’m kind of stuck. If I leave town with eight days of food, I need to be back in town in eight days. Again, I could survive a day or two without food, but yeah. Trying to avoid survival mode (and I certainly don’t need to lose any more weight!).

To a large extent these pinch points are unavoidable, and so far I have navigated them successfully. But my vision when I left was that with such a long trail I could just load up with some food and go hike. I would hike for 12 hours or so a day and get as far down the trail as I got. It hasn’t been like that. There’s always something pushing me. No rest for the weary. Trapped on a dirt treadmill.

It’s not fun feeling pressured like that, and it’s definitely affecting my enjoyment of the Sierra and the trail in general. I plan to stop it.

In two weeks I’ll be in Tahoe to meet my Dad and I can throw away my stupid schedule. Canada? Whatever. I have six months off and I plan to spend the rest of my time hiking more like I envisioned before I left. Hike all day (with breaks!) and camp when the day is done. Honestly, I’m afraid this hike will turn me off backpacking for good if I don’t start having fun.

The trail should get easier, and my pack should be lighter soon, and I’m in good shape, so in all likelihood I will still hike big miles and make it to Canada with time to spare. But for the next month or so getting to Canada will be secondary to living in the moment and not feeling pressured to push myself to the limit everyday. We’ll see how my priorities change as the summer and I progress.

In other news, yesterday was pretty nice here in Mammoth and I was doubting my decision to stay in town. I saw a few hikers heading out. But today was the day I was worried about, and it is already raining at dawn even though the real action isn’t supposed to start until after noon. My feet still hurt and I still feel tired walking up the stairs to my room, so the rest is probably good for me regardless.

Also, I woke up with toe pain this morning. One of my toenails is trying to go ingrown on me. Not good, but there doesn’t seem there’s much I can do about it. Hope for the best, I guess. I would hate to be taken off the trail by a toenail.

I head back tomorrow. Might still be a little damp, but it will be moving out instead of moving in. I’m going to try to mash some miles and see if I can only be one day behind my stupid schedule when I get to Tahoe instead of the two days I am taking off. Wish me luck.

Here’s what the National Weather Service says this morning:

INDICES CONTINUE TO SHOW IMPRESSIVE VALUES WITH A STRONG CAPE
GRADIENT OVER THE SIERRA, DECENT SHEAR, AMPLE MOISTURE, AND
8-9C/KM LAPSE RATES. DCAPES CONTINUE TO BE AROUND 1000J/KG AS
WELL. THESE VALUES SUGGEST STRONG STORMS TODAY WITH SOME
ORGANIZATION INTO SUPERCELLS LIKELY FOR SOME OF THE CELLS. GUSTY
TO DAMAGING WINDS ARE THE LARGEST THREAT AS TEMPERATURES WILL BE
NEAR 90 FOR WESTERN NEVADA WITH A VERY DRY SURFACE LAYER. GUSTS IN
EXCESS OF 65 MPH ARE NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION EVEN FROM A MODESTLY
STRONG THUNDERSTORM OVER A LOWER VALLEY. ALSO, A FEW OF THE CELLS
WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HAIL AN INCH OR LARGER IN DIAMETER;
THIS THREAT IS SECONDARY TO THE STRONG OUTFLOW WINDS. LOW LEVEL
HELICITY SUGGESTS THE POSSIBILITY OF A FEW FUNNEL CLOUDS AS WELL.
HOWEVER, THE LCL CONTINUES TO BE FORECAST AROUND 10000 FT SO ANY
FUNNELS THAT DO FORM WILL BE EXTREMELY UNLIKELY TO REACH THE
SURFACE. FINALLY, THUNDERSTORMS TODAY WILL HAVE AMPLE MOISTURE TO
FEED ON AS PWATS REACH 0.75″. ANTICIPATE VERY HEAVY RAIN FOR THE
STRONGER STORMS WILL HEAVY RUNOFF ESPECIALLY IN TERRAIN. SOME
LOCALIZED FLASH FLOODING IS POSSIBLE WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR
ROCKSLIDES AS WELL.

CONVECTION WILL LIKELY CONTINUE INTO THE NIGHT AS FORCING ALOFT
REMAINS STOUT.

WEDNESDAY…TROPICAL MOISTURE MOVES NORTHERN NEVADA AS LOW
PRESSURE PRESSES EASTWARD. PWATS WILL LIKELY BE AROUND 1 INCH OR
BETTER APPROACHING LOCAL DAILY RECORDS. WITH THIS MUCH MOISTURE,
PRECIPITATION WILL OVERSPREAD WESTERN NEVADA AND NORTHEAST
CALIFORNIA BRINGING PERSISTENT RAIN SHOWERS WITH EMBEDDED
CONVECTION. SOME SHOWERS MAY BE PARTICULARLY HEAVY AS
PRECIPITATION PROCESS BECOME VERY EFFICIENT. THERE WILL BE
CONCERNS OF LOCALIZED FLOODING AND HEAVY PONDING IN AREAS THAT
RECEIVE PERSISTENT RAIN SHOWERS. THE THREAT WILL INCREASE IF THERE
ARE ANY CLOUD BREAKS ALLOWING FOR SURFACE HEATING.

Wait. 65 MPH gusts? One inch diameter hail? Daily record rainfall? Funnel clouds????

Now, I’m pretty tough, and I was totally heading out this morning when my friends and relatives convinced me that discretion is the better part of valor. It sounds like I might spend most of tomorrow hunkered down anyway, so why not hunker down here in my nice hotel room and watch the lightning from the jacuzzi?

This will probably mess up my stupid schedule to meet my Dad in Tahoe, but it is what it is. Truth be told, I’m still pretty tired. I’ve been pushing myself to the limit for nine weeks and two more days of rest will probably be good for me.

So, I’m going to get some beer and food and take a nap. I’ll probably do a post or two of all the thoughts I’ve been having on the trail that I haven’t had time to share with you!

I slept in today, all the way to 0630! I wish I would have slept more, but I’m glad I got up early because, like most zeros, there was a lot to do today.

First, I updated this blog. Then I made some necessary phone calls and caught up on my emails (sorry Facebook friends, Facebook is such a time suck it’s low on my list and may not get there before I head out again). Then I planned out my menu for the next two weeks, made a shopping list, and walked most of a mile to the grocery store to buy it all. I brought the food back to my room, repackaged everything for backpacking, and sorted it all into what I am leaving town with, what I am mailing ahead to Tuolumne Meadows, and what I am mailing to my uncle (who has graciously agreed to drive up from the Bay Area to Sonora Pass and trade me the food I sent for my bear canister – can’t wait to get rid of that thing). Then I walked to the Post Office to mail the packages and pick up some new socks my Dad mailed me. They seem a lot thicker than the ones they are replacing even though they are the same brand. I hope they work as well as the old ones. Then I had to go to the drug store, back to the outfitter for camp stove fuel, and the convenience store for beer, smokes, and candy bars. By then I was so hungry I went across the street and ate McDonalds for lunch. I paid bills online, downloaded some RadioLab podcasts in case I’m stuck in my tent, patched the hole in my air mattress, made arrangements to get a ride back to the trail tomorrow, and packed up a little.

I am SO tired today. By the time I thought I should fit a nap into my schedule it was after three, which is kind of too late for napping. “Hiker Midnight” is 9, and I’ll be lucky to make that, although my ride doesn’t leave until nine so maybe I can sleep in more tomorrow.

I got some bad news from home. My car was involved in an accident and the air-bags deployed and the phrase “like a can-opener” was used to describe the driver’s side. My car was supposed to be parked in my backyard while I am gone. I’m not upset with my friend for driving it, and it sounds like it wasn’t his fault, but that wasn’t really the news I wanted to hear from home. Hopefully the other guy’s insurance will fix my car. I won’t be home for another three months, so I hope it’s all over by then.

Tired as I am, I am still heading out tomorrow and try to get in 15+ miles. The spice this week is some weather. Probably some burly thunderstorms tomorrow afternoon and then Wednesday looks downright stormy with possibly rain all day, high winds, and violent thunderstorms. I suppose it will be a good test of my rain gear before I get to Washington. If I wasn’t on such a tight schedule I might stay here and rest for two more days (Mammoth Lakes really is a nice town), but that’s not an option.

Most of my pushing big miles is to hike around Tahoe with my Dad. I’m really looking forward to that, but I hope after Donner Summit I never use the word “schedule” on this blog again. After Donner I plan to change things up and hike as fast or as slow as I want. I’ll hike for six months and I’ll get to Canada or I won’t. Whatever. I could be having more fun, and that’s my plan. Actually, once I get rid of that bear canister and my pack weight goes back down I think I will be fine.

So, I’m going to rally and go down to the jacuzzi and pool for one last soak, get some food delivered to my room (zpizza was awesome last night BTW), and crash and burn in flames.

I think service will be better going forward. They have service in Yosemite, right? I should be in Tuolumne Meadows in three days.