August 2nd Mileage: 11.7 (207.6) I wake at 5 in the morning and cant get back to sleep.  Day is breaking and I watch my tent grow lighter by degrees.  My phone has a good charge so I listen to music, and consciousness comes over me gently.  I’m not really ready to be done with … More The Road to Rae Lakes

August 1st Mileage 16 (195.9) In the morning, most of us sit around in our little “kitchen” area and fiddle with breakfast items.  Aaron and Monique take off, opting instead to breakfast on the trail.  The rest of us talk about the day and I eat soggy, chewy cashews and sip on steaming coffee.  A … More Double Pass Day

July 31st Mileage: 11.4 (179.9) “Bear!  Bear on fire!” “mmmmfffgggg….huh?” “There’s a bear out here!  On fire!” “Oh,” I say. I had asked Aaron to wake me up when he and Monique started moving, and this was his method of doing so.  I stay in my tent for another 5 minutes, unwilling to get started … More The Golden Staircase

July 30th Mileage: 13.3 (168.5) At some point during the night the smoke cleared and the temperature dropped.  All five of us agreed it would be smart to get over Muir Pass as early as possible because weather was supposed to be poor today.  By 5 a.m. everyone was stirring and by 6 I was … More Smoke and Rain: the Travails of Muir Pass

July 29th Mileage: 17 (155.2) I wake to the sound of rain-flies being shaken out.  The swooshing swooshing snapping sound is coming from 3 or 4 different places, so it must be time to pack up and move on.  When I crawl out of my tent I look to the sky before doing anything else. … More Where There’s Smoke…

July 28th Mileage 7.5 (138.2) I am the last person to leave Marie Lake in the morning.  Somehow I overslept.  As I’m breaking camp Jeremy and Karley walk off and I learn they’re staying near Muir Trail Ranch in the evening, just as I am.  Before we get there we have another mountain pass to … More Deluge

June 27th Mileage: 15.2 (130.7) My current state of hygiene: every time I stop I am quickly surrounded by a swarm of flies.  That’s not a metaphor and its not hyperbole; that’s the reality of the situation.  I’m not sure if its an indication of my odor, which I don’t even notice, or the proliferation … More Thunder At 10,000 Feet

July 26th Mileage: 13 (115.5) I’ve found a new game to play since “The Bodily Pain Carousel” has stopped going round and round.  “Wild Animal, or My Stomach” is the name, and it goes like this:  when I hear a strange noise I stop hiking and have to guess if it was made by a … More Silver Pass

July 25th Mileage 10 (102.5) I let myself sleep in again, this time until 7:45.  Last night was very cold and I had trouble staying warm.  When I step out of my tent I am all alone again.  The two guys camped with me had already hiked out. The crisis from last night seems to … More The Salvation

July 24th Mileage: 18 (92.5) I made the mistake of pitching my tent on a slight slope with my head oriented downhill, which made it difficult to sleep.  All night long I felt like I was being crushed by the weight of my own body pushing me down, down toward Garnet Lake.  The nearby trees … More The Desolation