Day 7 on the Tahoe Rim Trail: getting soaked to my panties

• Miles they walked: 14.7
• Miles covered: 58.1-72.8
• Miles remaining: 102.2
• Number of rubber snakes consumed: 6

I woke up with an upset stomach and a very, very dry mouth: the air was very dry. We had breakfast and broke camp. And then we went out to walk the two miles to refill our water.

The mosquitoes return

I had imagined a stream of crystal clear water. Instead, the water flowed slower, protecting my numerous mosquitoes. After last night’s mosquito attack I didn’t really feel like adding more bites. We stopped long enough to collect and filter water and then set off again.

Fortunately, the mosquito situation so far had been much better than I had anticipated compared to what I had read before I started. I think walking towards the end of the season helped a lot with that.

It wasn’t long before my stomach started feeling sick again, so we ended up with a longer rest in the morning while I dug holes in the woods.

Summer in a ski resort

We spent most of the day walking around Heavenly Ski Area, so we saw lots of chairlifts, trees with padding around them, and colorful ribbons tied to the trees. It was quite strange to see a ski resort in summer as it didn’t even look like it was possible to ski there, it was so full of trees.

The chairlifts were hanging, like ghosts, and had a sense of abandonment, while there were hints of how busy the place is in winter with the large number of chairlifts and all the signs.

Walking through a ski resort

It was a mix of climbs and flatter sections and it was overcast so it was colder than before. We stopped for a late lunch with good views and saw the sky an intriguing pink color in places. We also heard thunder in the distance and our phones suggested light rain later in the afternoon.

The sky warning us of what was to come

And then he absolutely threw it in the rain.

The trail crossed back into California from Nevada, meaning we had now completed the Nevada section of the TRT – start of a mini celebration.

Back in California

It wasn’t long after this that the weather changed. We put on our raincoats for the first time and continued walking through the drizzle and then the rain. The trees offered little respite despite how many there were. However, it wasn’t that bad and we knew we didn’t have to go that far since we had planned to camp somewhere near Star Lake.

As we approached Star Lake, the wind picked up and the rain became heavy. Just before reaching the lake we saw that someone had set up their tent and we thought we would stop nearby since there was space. However, tomorrow I would have had to walk longer. We decided to move forward.

Walking was miserable, but then the wind really picked up over the lake and the rain came at us horizontally thanks to the wind; It was a Scottish-style horizontal rain that soaked us in seconds. I went from being a little wet and miserable to soaking wet. My wet skirt was sticking to my legs and it was easier to keep it a little away. It was wet and cold. My skirt was leaking. I had no idea how wet my backpack was or if my raincoat had managed to keep the water out.

There was no shelter and we were not allowed to camp as close to the lake as the trail. We huddled behind a rock and briefly decided whether to continue or turn back. We decided to continue and had about a half mile of being scarred by rain and wind.

Then we turned a corner and although it was still raining, at least we were somewhat protected from the wind. We walked another half mile or so to find a place to pitch our tent and stopped at the first available spot. That half mile felt much farther than it actually was.

Wet and sheltered under Ben’s umbrella, but finally out of the wind.

Dry off and try to warm up.

I was so cold now and my fingers felt numb. We put up the tent and I was shaking trying to take off all my wet clothes, even my panties (underwear) were wet. Ben put me into both sleeping bags to warm me up and I was glad that the contents of my pack had stayed dry so I had some dry clothes.

We both took shelter in the tent trying to stay warm and heard the rain outside. I wasn’t expecting rain like this and I was so glad I pushed to switch from a tarp to a tent. It meant that at least we had protection on all four sides. Ben set up a clothesline in the tent and we hung some of our wet clothes on it in the hopes that they would be a little dryer the next morning when we had to put them back on.

Sometimes chocolate is an acceptable dinner.

The rain continued. The wind did it too. We couldn’t face trying to cook outside, so dinner consisted of peanut M&ms, a clif bar, and beef jerky. The rain finally stopped and we went out to brave it just before bed.

This website contains affiliate links, which means The Trek may receive a percentage of any products or services you purchase using links in articles or advertisements. The buyer pays the same price they would otherwise pay, and their purchase helps support The Trek’s ongoing goal of bringing you quality backpacking information and advice. Thank you for your support!

For more information, visit the About page of this site.