Day 9 to 12 – Passes

DAY 9 – TENTSITE IN THE BASE OF GLEN PASS TO TENTSITE IN THE BASE OF PINCHOT PASS – 12.7 MILES

At 5 on the road at 6:30. Last night it was actually my worst sleep night on the path. Even so, I felt quite well when we got up.

Glen Pass was quite easy. Maybe I’m getting used to the heights. We had a snowfield along the way, he felt quite safe. There was a path of about two feet deep through the snow, sliding me would mean falling on my butt, not sliding down the mountain.

A beautiful series of lakes followed Glen Pass. They seemed so welcoming. I would like it to be later in the day to be able to swim. Throughout the lakes we met a Connecticut boy scout troop, which make a trip here every year. Lucky boys.

The rest of the day we follow Woods Creek. The best holes were impossible to arrive from the path. Before each crossing, we were sure that our shoes would end up wet. They were too rocky and fast to cross barefoot. However, expect enough time, and a clear path will appear. Frequently, when younger hikers with better eyes show up and point them.

A bear visited the camp twice while we were cooking dinner. The second time, I loaded and chased and the bear ran out. Until I stopped chasing, then he slowly moved away, looking back occasionally to see if he was still there. The site is being filled with backpackers, hopefully the number of people here will keep it away.

Tomorrow we approach Pinchot Pass. Hopefully it is as fun as Glen. Happy paths!

DAY 10 – TENTSITE IN THE BASE OF PINCHOT PASS A TENTSITE IN THE BASE OF MATHER PASS – 11.1 MILLAS

I just shouted «Hey Bear» once last night. There are a group of people in the camp and we are all quite together. The growl sounded as if the bear was in the store, as soon as I shouted that Meriwether woke up, the growl stopped, and realized that I should have waited before the alarm sounds. Meriwether can snore as a professional.

Typical morning routine.

We had 5 miles for skewers. Coming from the south, Pincchot Pass is cunning. You can never really see it from a distance, suddenly we are at the top.

We left in the pass with Arnaud, Peter and Laura for a while. This was JMT’s first pass that I felt comfortable by taking my pack and I didn’t feel that I needed to endure for my life.

We met Arnaud last night. He is French, who lives in San Francisco. It is on a mission and leaves the miles. We saw it a couple of times today, but it is moving quickly.

We met Peter and Laura in the ferry leaving Mount Williamson Motel and we have shared campsites with them every night. They are from Belgium and excellent to share conversations while we passed the path and while we ate.

They are much younger than us, but they reached the path directly from sea level. Once acclimatized, they can move much faster than us. They have fired around the world, but this will be their longest trip.

My mood has been constantly better than in the AT. When we left Virginia, I felt a bit melancholic. Since I was on the way, I have felt fantastic. This desert is impressive.

Tomorrow we conquer Mather Pass, then walks down the hill for miles and miles.

DAY 11 – TENTSITE AT THE BASE OF MATHER PASS A TENTSITE IN PALISADE CREEK – 12.4 MILES

Mather Pass was a little harder than Pincchot Pass. Part of the path was not wide enough for my liking, especially with the steep falls. I could drop my backpack on the top and enjoy the views.

We jumped to Frog with Peter and Laura again today. In addition to being very fun, they brought excellent homemade / dehydrated foods. Laseña, Thai noodles, in addition to looking very good, as the wind changes, we can smell the wonderful.

It was quite hot today. So warm in fact that Meriwether took a dip in one of the mountain lakes. Of course I joined her. Anything to hit dust and sweat.

Meriwether running towards Lake Del Flaco Dip

After the dip, we began to descend the golden ladder. Yesterday I was quite sure we could climb the staircase. After lowering them, I am very happy that we would have dropped. The stairs are very exposed and steep and continue by miles. I felt that all backpackers rose, even more for the one with a prosthetic leg. It was quite impressive.

We found a great camp next to a quite large. After configuring and filtering the water, I had a dip in the stream. The water was quite cold and very clear. I had not been in a long time when I noticed 5 trout swimming around my legs. I landed my hand in the water and I could have grabbed one, but I wasn’t sure what I would do if you captured one.

After dinner we sat on some soft rocks and discussed the plan for tomorrow. Today everything was down, tomorrow will be on the hill.

Muir pass in two days!

Day 12 – TENTSITE IN PALISADE CREEK TO Lake Wanda – 14.2 Miles

The walk this morning was through a beautiful forest. We could see the mountains in the background and the meadows right next to the road. We go down for a few miles and then for some more before appearing on Telelline.

The plan was for a rather short day without passes. We arrive at the tent site planned at 1:00 this afternoon. We hadn’t hurried. We stopped in search of water and some food and review the map. Muir Pass was less than two miles. It was promised to camp a few miles on the other side of the pass. Meriwether said we are going.

The land this afternoon could not have been more different in the morning. Very few plants, without trees, such as being on the moon. The sun was brutal.

We meet Peter and Laura at Lake Wanda. Peter had found a handful of tent spots at the northern end of the lake. I think the rigid breeze kept the Mozzies away from our tents. They were rampant right next to the lake.

We only have about 18 miles to the Muir Trail ranch, the location of our next resume. It would be miserable to try to do it in a day (and I was sure that we would not address Muir Pass today), so we will probably do 10 miles more or less to get to MTR early in the day. Hot Springs!

Happy paths!

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