Day 3 on the Tahoe Rim Trail: Digging Holes

• Miles they walked: 16.6
• Miles covered: 18.1-34.7
• Miles remaining: 140.3
• No. of holes dug: 2

It was a good start to the day and I felt strangely optimistic. We had some breakfast, Ben made his morning coffee and we took down our tent. Since I run the tent, it means I can’t pack completely by parcel until the tent is inside. But I’m getting used to packing my sleeping bag, and the clothes I sleep in, in their dry bags while I’m getting ready in the tent, so when it comes to packing by pack, it’s just a matter of putting all the dry bags in.

The excitement of pit toilets

It was only a two mile walk from where we had camped to the Mt Rose trailhead where there were very clean pit toilets which was exciting. This was the first bathroom we found since we started and it was nice to not have to bend over. We both made use of the pit toilets and noticed how clean they were. It was the Friday of Labor Day weekend and there were clearly a lot of hikers arriving to park and walk.

We also made a little plan for the day since we would probably be at Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park for the night and camping there is restricted to three campsites. Therefore, our goal was to reach the Marlette Peak campground.

The joy of a tap

It was just a bit further to Mt Rose campsite where there was a tap and we were able to refill our water bottles and wash our hands with water instead of just hand sanitiser. This in itself was exciting since having dirty hands made me feel dirtier overall, and hand sanitizer just didn’t give me the same «clean hands» feeling.

I also felt like my cough was about to go away and I felt much better than yesterday. Although we were still at altitude, it was lower than yesterday’s peak and I didn’t have the same breathing problems as before.

The water filled up and returned to the trail and not long before there was another set of toilets at the Tahoe Meadows trailhead. Definitely something to take advantage of. We bumped into four older ladies out for a walk with their dog and they were eager to know where we were going, so we had a quick chat with them and then we were on our way.

You never want to have to dig a hole quickly

The trail headed into a forest and that’s when my stomach started to feel sick. Bad timing given that not long ago we had gone through two sets of very clean pit toilets.

With no pit baths for over ten miles I had no choice but to dig a hole with our small bath trowel and then repeat this feat not long after. The trees in the forest were quite spread out and the trail was somewhat of a loop, which meant that trying to find a more hidden spot was difficult. The ground was soft enough that digging a hole wasn’t too difficult. The challenge was more to align everything…

On the way to find a suitable spot I also managed to step on some loose branches that were on the ground, which sprouted and cut my leg, so now add a bleeding leg to the mix. Note: over a month later, I still have scabs and scars from this.

One of the many giant pine cones on the trail.

Just enjoying being on the road

We were going at a good pace since the trail was quite flat. There was a section across some large rocks that I enjoyed – there was no need to climb the rocks themselves. We stopped for lunch in the shade. I took off my shoes and socks to air out my feet and before I knew it, an ant was walking around carrying the lint from my socks somewhere!

boulders on the road

The trail after lunch was fine and there was a short uphill switchback. Nothing like yesterday’s climb and I no longer felt like I was having trouble breathing, which was fantastic. My stomach had calmed down too. And overall I really enjoyed this section of the trail. The views were fantastic, especially of Lake Marlette, and I felt like things were going well.

Views of Lake Marlette and Lake Tahoe

My left pinky finger started to rub a little and as the afternoon went on it became more painful, so I was sure a blister was forming. Very unusual as I was wearing well-worn trail shoes and had never had a blister in them before. My bag started to feel heavy and my shoulders hurt.

The trail then splits into a north and south option. The south, according to Far Out, was more scenic and well worth the longer distance. However, north was more direct to the camp. It was the end of the day, I was tired and hungry and my energy and enthusiasm were now waning. We opted for the shortest northern route. It still looked a bit long and was right between the trees. In retrospect, we should have gone with the panoramic option.

Camping in a real campsite

We arrived at the campsite and set up our tent. There were several sites in the camp. One spot was already occupied, but the rest were free, so we chose the one we liked and settled in. It turned out to be the only night along the way that we camped in a real campground.

Each site came complete with a picnic bench, so there was no need to sit on the rocks, and a bear box, so there was no need to try to fit all of our food and toiletries into the bear canister.

I had Spanish rice for dinner, which took much longer to cook than the instant noodles and the portion was huge, so I shared the leftovers with Ben. Ben, in turn, had instant mash for dinner. Our dinners were basically a rotating mix of instant noodles and Spanish rice for me, and instant noodles, instant mash, and macaroni and cheese for Ben.

Waiting for the Spanish rice to absorb the water

Before it got dark, we went to the hand pump to collect water. It seemed very old school but it worked well. We filled our bottles and I also washed my legs and feet. It was really nice to have clean legs, especially after cutting my leg earlier in the day. I’m glad I also packed my Crocs to wear at camp, as it makes a big difference to be able to air out my feet and not always have my trail shoes on.

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