Melody:
On day 38, we climbed under the dominating mass of Mount Lyell, over Donoghue Pass
and out of Yosemite. What a beautiful stretch we had covered in Yosemite!
On the South side of Donoghue Pass, we saw a baby marmot. I’m pretty sure that baby
marmots are the cutest things in the world. OK, baby wombats are up there too. But
that little thing so pudgy and fuzzy, that I nearly passed out – or was it the
altitude?
Later that day, Catweasel and Mango Nick popped out from behind a tree at Thousand
Island Lakes. They had been hiking around for the last week (or two). Although still
reeling from encounters with mosquitos, the boys were all shiny with backcountry
glow and full of stories of travels with a mountain man of legend, Petey T.
We all followed a llama train (better than the mule train that stayed at the lake
with 15 Austrians) up to lovely, little Badger Lake. Giving a show to the llama
ladies across the lake, we swam and sun bathed on striated slabs. Stars shot through
the sky and a weird light flashed near the mountain tops.
In the morning, we left for Red’s Meadow after a much more brisk swim. The hike was
mostly downhill so we scurried along. The flowers were out of control (as usual) and
the guy pointed out wild onions.
We briefly parted ways and Catweasel and Nick met us at Red’s Meadow with a cooler
full of beer and other yummy snacks. We beached ourselves there until Beer Snob and
Elizabeth Mackey showed up. By far, my two favorite moments at Red’s Meadow were my
hot spring shower and everyone pulling our sunken picnic table out of the ground.
Oh, and for those of you who are counting, our gear lists on the site don’t include
the clothing we’re wearing.
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
We had a great morning with our friends from the Bay Area and from the trail at
Red’s Meadow. Elizabeth, Jon and Nick pampered us with funny stories, products we
miss, a propane stove and encouragement for the miles ahead. They had each decided
not to hike on to Iva Bell Hot Springs with us, so we hung out for a while before
hitting the trail. This was the last time we’d see familiar faces (other than Beer
Snob’s) until we see my parents at Kennedy Meadows.
I had heard about this magical place called Iva Bell Hot Springs for a few years.
It’s hard to know, sometimes, which places are truly amazing from second hand
accounts of personal journeys. But Iva Bell is without question a gem. The five
pools, dotting a steep, grassy hillside, are invisible from more than a few feet
away. A creek cascades along one border, filling the area with the sounds of falling
water. Leopard lilies and columbines bend in over the crystal clear water in the
lower pools. Thinking of it gives me chills.
On a tip from both Jon and Nick as well as four guys in Tuolumne, we hoofed it to
the upper pools. We made camp above these pools in a small site with a huge, furry
juniper tree and a stunning view down through the canyon and to the fading ridges
beyond. Sunset in the upper pools settled us in for our rest the following day.
And man, did we rest. Aches and pains became distant, foreign memories. Each pool
had its charm and swallowed us up for a while. A violent, but infrequent thunder
resounded through the canyon, but the sun shone in part of the sky almost all day.
The nephology was spectacular as thunderheads whipped over the mountains. We got
water from a cold spring by our camp and it tasted like that soft, bottled spring
water. We found a hot waterfall just begging for someone to work on the pool beneath
it. It’s a trip I’d love to do. Iva Bell treated us so well.
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
All thoughts of trying to hike back in to meet Mike and Linda faded when we awoke at
the Tuolumne Meadows Lodge. Sati and I hadn’t had a rest day since Desolation
Wilderness and were wiped out from the long, hurried hike from the day before. I was
really sad to miss those guys because we had never had the chance to hang out in a
small group before. We hoped they wouldn’t be worried and that they hadn’t carried
out too much extra stuff with us in mind. They were hiking into a gorgeous area
though, and at the very least I took solace in the fact that we had motivated them
to backpack with their son to such a special place. I’ll feel better once I can talk
to them and explain why we missed them.
I had Blair’s phone number and luckily she was running late. We planned an alternate
rendezvous at the backpacker’s camp.
Sati and I walked over to the post office to pick up our resupply package and bounce
box. We sent home our ice axes since we haven’t needed them at all.
Our little world came together while we were hanging out in a resupply pile. Beer
Snob showed up fresh off the trail. He had seen Craig’s tent (the guy who needed a
rescue) the evening before and had directed a ground crew to it that morning. It
turned out that for some reason, they hadn’t been able to spot his tent from the air
the night before. I was perplexed that with GPS coordinates, a detailed description
of the tent and location and a hint on which direction (north) from which the tent
would be visible from the air, that they couldn’t find him. Beer Snob knew Cypress,
but had no clue that’s who all the fuss was about and was a bit sad that he had
passed by quietly not to disturb him. It was good to see a familiar face and catch
up on what was what.
We also bumped into Johnny, one of the trail crew guys we had met on the trail near
Truckee. He’s working in Yosemite now and we hung out with him for a bit. He was all
good vibes and we laughed a lot about how small the world is.
While there, we also met Richard, a Brit who lives in Toronto. Like Sati, he teaches
high school Biology and Chemistry, so it was obviously meant to be. He was just
getting off the trail to head down to check out San Francisco. Blair showed up and
we all went back to camp where we met Easy, an AT guy from Brooklyn who was just
starting a hike who knows where. We all hung out late into the night. After the
previous day’s drama, some beer swilling, story telling, guacamole munching and of
course, much giggling felt so good. I hope that Mike, Linda and John were doing the
same by a beautiful, swollen waterfall.
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
We left the gang after a lazy morning. Jon and Nick were scared of mosquitos or
something, so are meeting us at Thousand Island Lake tomorrow instead of hiking with
us from TM. We ran into Ranger Sally on a horse this morning and she told us that
they finally helicoptered Craig out yesterday after rangers found him on foot. They
aren’t allowed to say much, but she was able to tell me that he is in the hospital.
At least we know he’s alive. Hopefully, he’s doing well and with any luck he’ll be
back on the trail to finish his journey. He seemed like a real sweetheart and a
tough cookie.
We hiked along the Lyle Fork of the Tuolumne River with thoughts of Blair’s yummy
tomato, basil and mozzarella salad, dark chocolate and port in our minds. It really
lifts my spirits to see friends out here. Tomorrow, we should meet up with the
bug-fearing duo. We’ll see if they’re man enough!
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
We made it over Muir Pass today. At the saddle of the pass, an emergency shelter
sits like a stone igloo. The Sierra Club built the hut for hikers caught in storms.
In that rugged, rocky landscape, it would be hard to find a flat sheltered spot to
camp.
Beer Snob had signed the register on July 31st and we came through on August 2nd. We
had a rest day at Iva Bell, but he’s still really flying. I guess his foot isn’t
broken. Maybe we’ll see him in Independence or on top of Mount Whitney.
We’ve been seeing a family we met at Iva Bell along the trail ever since. They’ll
summit Whitney either the same day as us or the next day. They just got some
property in Mexico and said that someday they might rent palapas and kayaks. Sounds
good to me.
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
When Nick was out here he asked if I get used to the beauty out here. Ho hum,
another waterfall. It was a good question and I suppose that it happens to people
who live in a beautiful place. They might forget the gap it leaves in their lives
when they are away from it.
Every day, I find myself in awe of the landscape out here. I’m sure that my
ramblings about it or photos could ever really do these places justice. I guess I
write and take pictures to try to remember as much as I can. It’s amazing to me to
think that I could ever forget a place like Cascade Valley with its raging creek
tumbling down through its voluptuous granite canyons. But to pass through the
wilderness on the scale of 700 miles, I can’t possibly remember each perfect
swimming rock or secret nookie spot or each carved granite staircase. I guess I’ll
always remember the trip as a whole and those spots that couldn’t be scraped from my
brain. I’m excited to see the pictures from the beginning of this long walk and to
remember as many of these places as I can. I can’t say how many times I’ve said, “I
love this place,” and meant it so completely.
The last couple days brought us through more brain-shattering valleys, more pure
alpine lakes, more sky-licking passes and along more wild creeks. It’s all stuff
from dreams.
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
On email lists while researching this trip and along the trail, people have spouted
rumors or personal accounts about possible resupply places. A bunch of PCTers flamed
the Vermillion Valley Resort for bad food, high prices and unfriendly service. The
first few hikers we met on the trail had such wonderful reports to relay. Then we
met the bunch who had gotten there on the fourth of July and VVR had run out of
food. I hear they have good, if pricey pies. Actually, we passed a trail crew guy
who was carrying in a pie to the huge tree they were removing from the trail. I
would have liked to have checked the place out to see for myself, but the way our
schedule worked out, the Muir Trail Ranch was our sixth resupply.
The Muir Trail Ranch is a 200+ acre inholding in the John Muir Wilderness. The
family has had the land since the 1800s and it is about the sweetest place we could
have asked for. A spring water spigot is ready for filling up with delicious water.
Pat, the woman who took care of us, was gracious, funny and had lots of good stories
from her years on trail crew back in the day. She showed us to a shady spot to sort
through our packages and hung out with us when she wasn’t busy running around.
I’d love to be able to come and stay there sometime. The entire place can be rented
out by the week by up to 20 people. It has access to amazing terrain and has hot
springs near the log cabins. Horses can take guests on trips into the wilds. Some
PCT hikers scoff at the $45 fee they charge for a resupply box. It felt good to me
to support a place like that.
We just met a 73 year old woman who is hiking the JMT. She is rad and doesn’t look a
day over 60. Her sons hiked in to meet her and are cooking a steak for her right
now.
Off to new food! Yay! Snickers! Past Primavera! Woot!
oh, sorry that was my belly writing…
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
My goodness, the mountains have gotten much bigger! We hiked from up Evolution
Valley and into Evolution Basin and the scale of everything just exploded. We made
camp on a peninsula of boulders in the middle of Evolution Lake. The camp has a flat
sandy spot with granite walls and small pinyon pines. We sat in wonder at the place
as the sun finally set at the farthest end of the canyon.
The Basin is a giant bowl of boulders and slabs ringed by jagged 14,000 foot peaks
named by John Muir for evolutionists. Our camp sat beneath Mount Darwin, the biggest
of them all. The stone landscape is softened by all manner of high altitude flora. It
is a place that diminishes life outside it.
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
When we woke up in Le Conte Canyon, Sati immediately began working on rigging a fix
for the missing connector between the solar panel and the digital camera. Somewhere
along the way, we lost it. I don’t like to point fingers, but the marmots around
there and one quite bold deer had been sniffing around camp all night. Without the
connector, we’d have no more juice to take photos. Two tiny pieces of aluminum foil,
a teeny piece of duct tape and a bit of a twig later we were back in business.
Sati had mentioned while planning this trip that we would climb the Golden
Staircase. My fuzzy memory of his description was a stretch of 5,000 granite stairs.
Fearing such a climb and aware that most of the stairs along the trail were built
with taller people in mind, I had a hard time stepping away from our elevensie to
approach the staircase.
The blood, sweat and tears that went into this trail are palpable as soon as the
trail rises above the forest. Climbing this dizzying slope, it’s impossible not to
try to imagine the toil of blasting, digging out and arranging the boulders. Here
and there, a gigantic boulder sits in the trail – I imagine they must have tumbled
down and rested there at some point during the Bush administration. An awesome
waterfall splatters Palisades Creek down through the burned forest. The switchbacks
are bursting with flowers that peek out from the boulders. And through all 2,000
vertical feet of it, are carefully places stones. I would love to read about the
making of this trail.
We decided to take our rest day at Palisades Lakes, so we looked long and hard for
the perfect spot. Nestled in the white bark pines above a stretch of slanted slabs,
we found a hummingbird haven we called home. Behind our site stood the looming
sawteeth of the Palisades.
That afternoon we fished, catching a trout at almost every cast. It’s become hard
for us to keep up with our appetites, so we were thrilled to have a little feast.
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
Our rest day was wonderfully lazy, spectacular, lazy and lazy. We ate and sipped tea
while watching the tiniest hummingbirds zip around our camp eating the mosquitos.
Hell yeah!
In the afternoon, Sati caught a 16″ trout. It was half a foot longer than most of
the fish that he’s been pulling out of the water. That beast looked mean with a
hooked jaw, filed teeth and beauty eyes. But it was a beautiful animal too, aged in
the pristine waters of upper Palisades Lake.
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
Melody:
Mather Pass was an impressive first pass of the day. From the top, I could see what
a harrowing adventure it would be when snow hides the jagged boulders, a cornice
hangs at the saddle and the slopes drop off on both sides. Gladly, only a speck of
snow remained and we crossed easily.
We picked up a kid named Dan on our way to Pinchot Pass. He’s a 19 year-old who has
seen more of this world than many people do their whole lives. He was happy to have
some company after a lot of solo hiking.
A thunderstorm had been gathering all day and it began to rumble as we approached
Lake Marjorie. We took some shelter there and waited out the storm. People on the
trail are on edge after a couple hikers, boy scouts I heard, were killed by
lightening last week below Mount Whitney.
By the time the storm settled enough for us to make it over, it had gotten late. A
huge meteor streaked across the sky and we took it as a sign to call it quits. We
plopped down near Twin Lakes in the last droplets of daylight.
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5
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Melody:
I can’t believe we’ve been out here for fifty days! My insatiable appetite, filthy
clothes, brown skin, gaiter tan, strong muscles, baggy pants, DEET perfume, duct
taped gear and this journal are my reality check.
We’re at Rae Lakes and the sun is finally shining after a day on the brink of a
storm. Sati and Dan are fishing and I’m all toasty in the tent. Tomorrow, we head
down into the desert for our last resupply.
It’s funny how up north, we were the lowly section hikers, hiking only 700 miles.
Most of the hikers we met were hiking 2600+. Now, we’re among weekenders and JMTers
who all make us feel like our hike is huge. It’s all in the way you look at it I
guess. I’m happy with the scope and pace of our trip. It took some getting used to,
but now that the distances feel natural, I am glad that we’re doing a big section at
a relatively average distance per day. To me, 20 miles per day is work and eight
miles per day is too much food to carry. Everybody hikes the trail differently. Most
people are happy with their trip. Some people get up to a pass and say, “Tomorrow’s
gonna suck!” when they see what lies ahead. I’m just really starting to appreciate
our mode.
melody
Photo editor’s note: All images from days 38-50 can be found at: http://www.xinet.com/tony/rol/disk5