Woke up at 2:45am to be able to pick up Gina and be at DFW for our 7am flight. Landed in LA around 8:30am and got an Uber to LA Union station to catch the train to Lancaster. Took about 2 hours. Lancaster was hot as hell. Then got on a bus to Lone Pine. Miserable. We arrived in super cute Lone Pine around 5. Found our Hostel and freakin scored the women’s dorm to ourselves for like $30. We both agreed on bbq so we headed there for an early dinner... the people working looked like they definitely did meth so I figured hell they probably smoke weed too and since The closest dispensary was 80ish miles away, I asked when I went to pay for our food and left with an 8th of Cali Kush. We walked the alley to the post office to mail a package back home and had a mini photo shoot wherever we felt the need. It was fun. Went back to the hostel and went over our packs. Then passed out.
Whitney Portal Hostel
Aug 17
We headed out the Hostel door at 7am for coffee and breakfast. I had a Belgian waffle and sausage, Gina had eggs, hash browns and toast. We were entertained by the hostess talking to a table of two elderly men. She knew their names so we assumed they were regulars. We left in a hurry to meet Lone Pine Kurt for our ride to the visitor center and then on to the trailhead. He insisted he go in with us. Him and Gina buddied up and pushed their way to the front of the permit line lol I just hung out outside. He was a just a great guy. He gave hugs when we left. We started on the trail in high spirits. We didn’t make it far today but we met a wonderful soul we had been hearing about the entire time. Trilby. She has been an absolute gem.
3:04am. This is like trying to sleep between 2 grizzly bears... when we all stopped for water earlier, I went back up the trail and forward to scout out a place to camp. I found something I thought would work up ahead of us and figured that would be best and we wouldn’t have to turn around. Wrong Cindy. Well, what I thought were good tent sights ended up being way too sloped. After I went back down to the creek to carry trilby’s pack back up to camp and she shuffled along with me, she decided she was going to “cowboy camp”. I said “there is no way in hell I am setting up my tent if you aren’t”. She laughed and we waited on Gina to get back from getting water to see what she thought... and that is why I’m still awake. I’ve been sliding all over the damn place all night. Gina and I were laying on the footprint for our tent to protect our sleeping pads but I’ve aborted that due to the slope and Gina sawing logs. Now I have moved my sleeping pad and feel somewhat better. I am on the side of a mountain in California sleeping cowboy style and that is just so badass. All thanks to a 78 year old woman. Life is so cool.
Word of the day: Badass
Cowboy Camp
Aug 18 4:48pm
Trilby is on our minds today. You know when you have been under water for awhile and come up for air? That’s what it feels like up here constantly. My lungs are gonna be in super shape when I get back. Anyway, we’re afraid she’s not going to make it to her resupply but we had to leave her this morning bc her pace and our time limit are not friends.
She told us “the universe or god whichever you want to call it” has been trying to tell her something bc she has been seeing dragonflies, not only real ones but pictures, pins, and prints. She thinks it means good fortune. Her friends have been asking her “what if you die out there?”. She looked at us with big eyes and said “I can’t think of a better way to go! As long as I don’t suffer.” She was a real one with a very very interesting and challenging life. I really hope she makes it...
We were given trail names today lolololol by a man named Frank from North Carolina. We met him on a mountain top and when we met back up with him at camp, he practically ran out to the trail to meet me. “I’ve given you trail names!” I already knew what Gina’s was going to be. He said “you are Koala! But I really wanted to say Great White but you never know in this day who might get offended”. I laughed and said great white will be perfect. When I introduce myself to people I have to say “Sydney, like Australia” or I get called Cindy every damn time. He named Gina, Tortuga. Nobody argued that lmao. It’s 8:55pm and Gina is back into her Grizzly bear state. We were supposed to hike up Mt. Whitney tomorrow but I think it would be a stupid idea since we can barely make the small mountains. So with that being said, we’re taking a glorious 0 day. Maybe. We’ll see in the morning.
WOTD: Names
Whitney Creek Junction
Aug 19, 8:07am
We’ve decided to move on and the way the mosquitoes are moving in, Gina better hurry her ass up. We met a man about 65 years old, born in Lawton yesterday lol bit of a potty mouth and I love it. He came up to our camp this morning “Oklahoma?!” Lol I said wassup! “I thought I made it to the top of that bitch and I was WRONG”. Lmao he camped at a little stream bc he thought he’d made it to rock creek. He was very impressed with how far we made it. 13 miles seems like a lot until you start talking to people like Nick (from the Lancaster shuttle) who did 26 miles yesterday. Helllllll naw.
5:05pm. We’ve been at our campsite since about 4pm now. Our neighbor turns out to be a guy originally from Georgia but now resides in Oregon bc he was offered a job there during his PCT attempt in 2017. Now he is back on the trail trying to finish. A man he met on the trail last year bought a boat and is doing the loop around the arctic circle, the Northwest Passage. He said he’d only have a 4 man crew on his boat so... ok as I was typing this I realized I hadn’t introduced myself to this man we’ve been talking to for over an hour... “I feel like an asshole, I’m Sydney”. I hold my hand out to shake his and he’s in shock lmao “I’m Luke”. His trail name is Batman. Anyway, he told that man he wanted to put his name in the hat to be on his crew. The man was ecstatic and asked if he could cook. Turns out Luke is a chef. Two people meant to meet up... Today has been a phenomenal day. We were stopped for a break after our first big incline when a solo woman walks up. Her name was Michelle and she was doing a project about women on the trail. She asked if it was ok to interview us for her video to hopefully inspire more women to hike. We were pumped lol! She was from San Diego and was on her last day of the John Muir... Omfg I am so stoned with our neighbor Luke. Lmao and some man just brought a flask of whiskey over here. I was moving my bag when I noticed he was packing a 1 hitter. I said “WHAT IS THAT” he freezes and goes “weed?”. TODAY HAS BEEN SO GANGSTER. I told Michelle she was gangster for doing the trail by herself. Slim, Caucasian, floppy hat tied under her chin, Halloween stickers on her journal (where I wrote my name and email), Michelle the GANGSTER walked this trail by herself..Luke is having dinner next to us (im seriously into my food and not looking around) and he says “There’s something very zin about watching a Japanese man take a bath in a river”. I look up and there is an old Japanese man in the mf river. Today is love. Nick stopped on his way by earlier and said he’d come back down maybe later... Gina is turnt. The man with the whiskey, his name I just found out is Bret. He’s doing a part of the trail with his dad and has convinced me to buy Altra trail runners. Also, he now has on moon boot looking down sandals that I’m extremely jealous of but they look goofy as hell lmao like a puffy jacket for your feet. Any man who will wear that out here is too gangster. No fux.
7:54pm Gina is almost asleep and I just got settled in and am making circles with my feet and listening to the nearby creek. I would take this over anything on the planet. The emotional but also humbling, inspiring, famliy-like side of backpacking are what people don’t see from all the photos. I am just so thankful to be living this life. Oh, Luke’s trail name is Batman bc his one hitter looks like a baseball bat. Goodnight.
WOTD: Gangster
Tyndall Creek
Aug 20, 9:03am
We started earlier today due to the hearsay of Forester Pass being brutal. Bret passed us and had to leave his dad behind to take a 0 day from fatigue.
11:59am
I’m almost to the top of Forester Pass. A girl coming down stopped for me to pass and said “how are you?!” I responded “dying” she said “No you’re not! You’re living!” I just started bawling. It’s so true. This is living.
1:59pm
We’ve been at the top of Forester Pass for about an hour just enjoying the company and view. Met a man named Mark from Sydney, Australia. He was waiting on his friend Paul. Paul’s trail name is Pelican bc his legs damn near reach his armpits. Mark was funnier telling us that. I cannot express how nice and friendly everyone is. Like everyone greets everyone with a smile and “Happy Trails” or “Have a good hike!”. It’s so cute. Gina and I found a perfect campsite and since we skipped Whitney are a day ahead of schedule. She emailed Mt. Williamson hotel with her GPS and they are allowing us to move our reservation up a day! We’ll save our 0 day for down the trail when needed. We’re camping next to a group of 4 who Gina thinks are German. We’ve met people from Holland, Slovenia, Georgia, Arizona, Colorado, Australia, North Carolina and can’t wait to add to our list lol it’s been amazing so far and we’re in HIGH spirits =) Pun intended. Also, Gina and I have decided she is not like any regular Tortuga. She’s more of a snapping turtle so that’s what she is called, Snapper.
WOTD: Living
-Bubbs Creek
Aug 21
3:22pm
We made it to camp early today bc it was a short trek. We made it as close to the pass as possible so maybe tomorrow won’t be so brutal before heading into town. We have to be in the parking lot by 3pm. We finally talked to the couple we’ve been yo-yoing since Whitney Creek. Julie and omg I can’t remember his name! I want to say Shawn but idk. They’re on the same route as us so they’re here at the lake too. We got to the Junction today and stopped for lunch. A girl, who kind of reminded me of myself, a German man, and his wife had lunch next to us. The Germans are going over Forester tomorrow and asked how it was... we did not lie lol the girl with them will be on our shuttle bus tomorrow to Mt. Williamson hotel and is camping a little past us. We saw a hummingbird at lunch. Reminded us of Rainier.
Kearsarge Lake
WOTD: Relax
Aug 22
We got up super early to be safe coming over the pass and make it to the shuttle by 3. Well, the pass only took an hour so we were in the parking lot by noon. We hitchhiked down with a day hiker who gave me extreme car sickness by hauling ass then slamming on her brakes before hitting the curves. She was nice though other than her driving. We got to the cutest hotel and was greeted by the nicest lady ever who brought us laundry baskets, our resupply, and bath salts. We immediately shed our clothes for them to wash. I hopped in the shower while Gina took my clothes to the office. She brought back “lender clothes” that were hilarious but also super nice bc we had nothing lol. I got dressed and took Gina’s clothes to the office while she showered. I called Kurt to see if he could take us to Lone Pine to mail some stuff we haven’t been using home and to shop around for other things we might need and a BURGER! Kurt picked us up at 3 on the dot and took us to the post office. I left a $20 in his cup holder when he wasn’t looking. Gina got a call at dinner about that lololol We hit up a couple stores before sitting down at the Mt. Whitney Cafe. They were busy and short handed but we were just happy to have some Tea and air conditioning. After scarfing down an appetizer tray full of anything you could fry, our burgers arrived and I was happy as ever. We left the waitress a nice tip bc she was having a shitty day and we’ve been there. We were walking down the street when a man passed us. I turned around and said “Pelican?”. He snapped his head around so confused. “Paul? We met you at the top of Forester Pass”. Recognition came over his face and he said “oh, yes! You tried to give me the candies”. He was struggling getting to the top so when he made it I tried to get him to take some of my Jolly Ranchers. He said he and Mark were at Jake’s Saloon having a beer and invited us to join. We told him we had some shopping to do first. We headed into Elevation to find some supplies when a guy came in smelling like total ass. John, the owner, told us (after the guy left) that the stinker and his friends were going to soak their clothes in vinegar to get the “trail smell” out. There is no way in hell I am hiking with a stinker like that. There are ways around being smelly and I just think people are lazy or ultralight so they don’t want to carry sanitary items like soap and deodorant. After we left the store we had nothing to do but wait on Kurt so we headed for the Saloon. I didn’t really want to drink a beer but I ordered one anyway bc I was sitting at the bar. Turns out the girl caddy corner to us totally sucked and butted in to most of our conversations. We couldn’t wait to get back to the woods. Paul paid for our drinks without us knowing so we tipped the bartender and left. After roaming around a little longer, I made an executive decision to get ice cream. We sat outside Frosty Chalet and waited on Kurt who was on his way from Bishop. After about 45 mins, a chocolate shake for Gina, and vanilla for myself, Kurt walked out to where we were sitting with a chocolate cone in his hand. He inhaled most of it then herded us out to his car. We missed the 5pm bus back to Independence bc our food at the Cafe took so long and it was a good thing bc I left our room key in Kurt’s car. Within a 15 min ride, Kurt told us about how he and his wife met and got married, the ages of his 4 children, and even called his wife to let us talk to her lol she was an dollllll. “It’s a beautiful night. I think I’ll go out on the porch and have a glass of water”. Sharon is an angel if there ever was one. We got back to the Motel and had Kurt take a picture with us and gave hugs before he told us he really enjoyed being our chauffeur lol we plan on sending him the pics we took and an Oklahoma postcard lol. We got back to our room and showered AGAIN except with the shampoo and conditioner Gina bought at the pharmacy. Fresh hair is the best hair.
Independence. Mt. Williamson motel
WOTD: Town
Aug 23
I woke up at 5am due to Gina getting messages and snoring like a damn bulldog. I love her anyway. After she finally came out of her slumber, we walked down the street to a shell station to get new smart water bottles. Our Sawyer filters fit perfectly on them...When we got back to the motel, Erin (the girl who kind of reminded me of myself) was sitting outside waiting for breakfast. We all went into the dining room and had a breakfast feast! Our motel host was an absolute queen and poured us orange juice, made eggs and bacon, then gave us all stickers to put on our bear cans. I will definitely return if we get the chance to come back. It was a great morning with good company before a ruthless 5 miles uphill. Also, about halfway up the mountain in the shuttle, I realized I left the ring I bought in Salem 3 years ago in our room. My heart stopped but then I decided it might be a sign of letting go of the past. That eased my mind a smidge. Gina still emailed Mt. Williamson to see if they find it, could then mail it to us. Hopefully. If not, it’s ok too. I ran out of water about a mile from camp so I hauled ass and left Gina behind. We found the perfect set up for going over Glenn Pass tomorrow. We just finished our Turkey Casserole and Mac n cheese. All is good in the woods.
6:11pm
Not ALL good in the woods. I accidentally filled all our water bottles and gravity filter with tadpole infested water lololol I just poured it all back into the lake bc I felt bad for them. They were so tiny we didn’t realize until I was already filtering... oh, and trail tip: Filter your water for the next day in the evening when you get to camp bc if you do it in the morning, your fingers will freeze and you will die. RIP.
WOTD: Loss
1 mile from Glenn Pass
Aug 24, 9:31am
We made it over Glenn Pass pretty quick and now we’re at the bottom taking a break. Yesterday was such a buzzkill with already having done Kearsarge once and knowing what we were hiking into that today feels like a carnival. We stopped to talk to a girl struggling to come up glen pass earlier and she says “When I’m going up, I wish I was going down. And when I’m going down, I wish I was going flat”. Gawwwwwd I felt that lol. Frank from North Carolina caught up with us today. I heard “Great White! Tortuga!” And there he was. He had an umbrella strapped to his right shoulder and joked he was Mary Poppins. His trail name is Powerless bc he says he is “powerless to the weather and powerless to the mountains”. He also had to go into town bc his power bank went “Kaput”. He thought it was funny bc he really was powerless. All day he’s been singing “this ain’t no party, this ain’t no disco”. Idk where the hell its coming from but he’s been a ray of good energy. He asked what my highlight has been so far. I responded “probably Forester.” He said Forester was also a highlight of his but for a much different reason than mine. He is a recovering alcoholic of 7 years and his counselor who passed away last year was named Scott Forester. He said God worked through that man. But the most special moment for him was spreading his sister’s ashes on top of Mt. Whitney. I thought that was really really sweet. He was going to camp where we stopped for the night but he is in a hammock and the trees were not in his favor so he went on without us. Hopefully we see him again. We are getting up at the ass crack of 5:30am to maybe make the next pass by noon. Gina wasn’t Trail named Tortuga for nothing. Hasta mañana.
WOTD: Highlight
Wood’s Creek
Aug 25 12:35pm
We left camp this morning around 7:15am in hopes of making the pass by noon. Well we lollygagged, pussyfooted, dicked around seriously all morning lol we were both like “Naw” today. We passed Frank at his campsite and exchanged our good mornings. He caught up to us pretty fast singing, “This is the day, this is the day that the lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it”. Then he moved on to another song that I couldn’t make out bc I had stopped to wait on Gina. I’ve made a photo album called “Waiting on Gina”. I made it to the top of Pinchot Pass in 20 mins. It is easier for me to keep moving than to do the whole stop and go dance Gina has perfected. So here I am. Waiting on Gina. We dread these passes every day but once I’m up here it’s like wow, so worth it. I rolled my ankle earlier. Not like 2007 bad but just enough to scare me for a sec and that’s why I’m not taking my boots off until we get to camp. Luckily the creeks and lakes are equivalent to sticking your foot in an ice bucket so that’s on my to-do list once we quit for the day.
12:45pm. Gina just made it to the top with a Gina record of 35 mins. One thing about her is she doesn’t quit. AND every single toe she owns is housing a huge glacier looking blister. It makes me hurt just thinking of them. Go Gina *SZA voice.
7:10pm
We made it to camp, set up the tent, did laundry, and had dinner ready by 6. It’s amazing how the thought of oncoming mosquitoes will light a blazing fire under your ass. Gina ripped an exquisite hole in her lightweight pants right before the pass. She also has a hole in her shorts, chaffed legs, and since she lost her chapstick, tree bark looking ass lips lolololol she’s having hell and I’m just here for the show. I haven’t talked much about her in my notes so I guess today is the day. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for her and for that I’m forever grateful. She keeps cussing the mosquitoes and it’s just the right amount of comedy I need. I hopped from log to rock to log across the river earlier right next to our camp while she stopped to put on her water shoes and got swarmed by mosquitoes. She stumbled up with welps on her neck. While we were eating dinner she told me one landed on her heel while by the river and she just looked at it and said “good luck biting through that, fucker”. I almost spit out my spaghetti. Now she is blowing up the noisiest air mattress in the world and we are about an hour from Snore City. This morning she told me “Mornings are for snot rockets and evenings are for crusties”. And if that ain’t the truth out here idk what is. Apparently 2 days ago I hugged and patted her in my sleep. We laughed until I was close to tears while she was telling me bc we are not really huggers or criers. Even though we have had a few emotional moments, nobody was out here to see them so did they really happen? We’re shooting for around 12 miles tomorrow but we’ll see. The excitement of starting a new hike has worn off but we’re both still so happy to be here. Every day has been a new wonder and we have about 13 more to go. I don’t even remember what I packed in my resupply but I hope it’s more chocolate.
7:53pm Gina has arrived in Snore City.
WOTD: Partners
S Fork King’s River
Aug 26, 10:47am
The first group of 4 men I passed as I was going up Mather Pass seemed too quiet. The last guy in their group mumbled a “be safe” when usually it’s a “happy trails!”. You always hear of things like this happening but it’s not real until you are present. As I was rounding the second to last switchback, almost to the top, I was stopped by a man telling me someone had fallen and died. I thought he was joking at first but he was very serious. And after, I realized, I could feel it. Everyone coming down was silent. Then I started thinking of Frank bc he was ahead of us. I pictured him singing his goofy songs. Tears started working their way to spilling over when another group stopped to ask if I’d been told of the tragedy. I said yes and asked what the man was wearing. They said he was in all black and they had wrapped him in an orange sleeping bag. I couldn’t exactly remember what Frank was wearing so I said “did he have an umbrella?” He paused for a couple seconds then said “No, but we saw the umbrella guy!” I started hyperventilating and tears rushed down my face. I must’ve stumbled to where he thought I was falling bc a man, not from this country, grabbed me under my arms and held/hugged me until I could breathe normally again and then I realized he was crying too. Kindness knows no race. On our way down, a man, by the trail-name, Glider, waited to help us scramble down the rocks to avoid the snow where the man had fallen. His body was still there but we had to move on before the helicopter arrived. He turned around to me after we had made it to the next switchback and said “You know, things like this will hopefully make us even more grateful for each day, especially out here. That man pitched his tent for the last time last night”. Tears started rolling down my face again. He asked where we were from and when I said “Oklahoma”, he giggled and said he noticed a little accent. He played Tennis for USAO in Chickasha when he was in college. It’s such a small world. We went ahead and let Gina make her own pace down the mountain. Which was in her favor since she had her emotional breakdown coming down from the pass while I had mine going up. I stopped at the first water crossing I could get to while Glider kept moving on. He is maybe 125lbs, about 5’6, and got his trail name for his speed going downhill. Gina and I had lunch at the little stream and got, what we thought was, all our tears out. We watched the helicopter make circles trying to figure out how they were going to remove this man from the side of the mountain and answered questions from people going southbound. That could’ve been any of us. And the reality of that, we decided, was very sobering. He crossed a snow patch early this morning that had frozen overnight and fell, resulting in a massive head injury. An ER nurse who was hiking with the group of men who covered the body pronounced him dead. As grim as it is, we were just glad it wasn’t us who found him.
3:40pm
The helicopter flew over us as we were making our way down the “Golden Staircase” (which they should’ve named Hell’s staircase bc it sucked) making the events of today all the more real and the tears come creeping back. We hardly took pictures bc it felt so wrong to be smiling. The patch of snow the man fell on was only about 15 feet long which made it so unbelievable for everyone bc we crossed much worse coming down Forester and other places along the trail. It just makes you think of how it could happen at any time no matter the danger or difficulty.
7:16pm
We are both mentally and physically exhausted. We were going to try to make it about a mile and 1/2 more but Gina said she saw the “done” look on my face. And really I am done today. This morning I woke up at 5:22am with Disney songs stuck in my head, ready to make breakfast, and have a great day. Everything changed so so fast. Our hearts go out that that man’s family and friends. Even trail friends bc it was said he made many on his trek. I hope he’s hiking the most beautiful mountains in heaven.
WOTD: Sobering
Glacier Creek
Aug 27
We got up and around by 7:30 this morning and made our way 3 miles down to the junction. We decided today was going to be a chill day after what all happened yesterday but I didn’t sleep well and the grim feeling was still lingering. As we’re sitting down for a short break, we started talking about adding a 3rd upbeat personality to our clan. I said “my friend Ross from home would be the perfect hiking companion. He’s always willing to help, not a complainer, pretty positive, just a fun dude”. I look up and see Luke looking at the trail sign. “Hey, I think that’s Luke”. “ I yelled for him several times before Gina had to use her Manager voice. He came over and we all decided we weren’t going to do the Pass today . So instead, we agreed on a camp around 5 miles ahead. As we made our way up, we met A couple guys Luke had camped with. Brenten and Pete. Pete is battling either altitude or food sickness and not feeling it....We got here around 1pm and have been having a blast since. We had discussions about the trail, the restaurant business, and God. I’ve never heard anyone explain religion so well in my whole life. I feel like I’m doin alright. Luke said when he started focusing on his blessings, things started happening for him. I told him “You don’t know this, but we needed you today”. We had just talked about needing a third fun personality to the mix and there he was. Where he was meant to be. Gina and I took a nap when we had to retreat to the tent due to rain and woke up to someone talking to Luke. I got up and went out to the fire pit to meet three ladies doing a section hike. One had crossed the creek in her boots so was using our fire to get them somewhat dry. Gina came out later on and we were the last to leave.
Big Pete Meadow
WOTD: Destined
Aug 28
We left camp around 8am. The latest yet. And about a mile in we both decided we felt like death. The trek up to Muir Pass was absolutely no fun. Beautiful but miserable. Luke lead the way and waited on us at the Muir Shelter. Majority of people we met on the trail today were of Asian decent. I said “Have a good hike!” A cute older man said “Yes, very good.”
We were all hot and crabby coming down from Muir Pass but we made it to Evolution lake and it’s gorgeous. Gina and I immediately bathed lol Luke joined us for dinner and we all three listened in to our neighbors conversations. Gina thinks they’re ex military friends. One lost his tent off his bag somewhere before the pass. I’m not sure who was letting him sleep with them bc they’re all in solo tents lol
Evolution Lake
WOTD: Mars
Aug 29 5:54am
We’ve been up since about 4:30 since the neighbor guys are like a herd of elephants. I got up around 3:30 to pee and the stars out here are phenomenal. I decided yesterday that heaven IS a place on earth. Only a few of us go find it. This part of the trail is like if the moon had grass and flowers and water. Just so cool.
6:10pm
All together we put in 15.2 miles today. And 15.2 trail miles feels like 1000 regular miles. It’s always about 3pm we start dying and becoming snappy with each other. Thankfully today was all downhill from Evolution Valley but sometimes that is the silent killer. Especially for people like me with a stupid knee. Muir Trail Ranch was actually pretty cool. Everyone was saying bad things about the owner being a grouch and all but I found so much stuff!!!! Like freaking toilet paper that I didn’t pack in my resupply 🙄. Gina lost a water shoe and I broke a trekking pole. We’ve hit our hump. I also packed contact solution in the wrong resupply so I’ve been asking everyone around with no luck. I’m waiting to ask our neighbors, 2 girls, one from Colorado and one from Michigan... One asked how we knew each other (like everyone else has) and I finally said “we’re gay”. Lmao Gina was too busy telling the other about our stay at Mt. Williamson to notice. But then she told them we work together and asked why they said “ohhhhhhhh”. Smh.
6:51pm
I just got back from scrambling (and falling) across the river to where the guys are camping and hanging out in the hot springs to see if anyone had contact solution. Negative. How in the hell does nobody wear contacts. There is a silver lining though. One guy said he saw some in the first aid hiker box. Score. So we won’t get to start as early as we like bc they open at 8am BUT I might find some. One guy was like “you came all the way over here to ask us that”. Yes fam. I’m seriously freaking blind and I don’t want to wear my glasses with the way this sun has been set up lately. Anyway, an older, naked from the waste down couple yelled at me asking where the hot springs were “bc I looked like I knew where I was going”. A little jog never hurt anybody... I just said “This way!” . So when I came back across the river, WHERE I FOUND A ROPE TIED THE ENTIRE WAY ACROSS TO HELP FROM FALLING, I made sure to give a little “hey guys” before I rounded the trail to their personal shower lol to tell them how to get there.
I found some organic hot chocolate in the hiker box. It’s not Swiss miss but it’s ight. Tastes kinda like the milk after you’ve eaten all the Cocoa Puffs...
7:35pm
Today has been weird. Shit has gone wrong, I’m super tired, and HO LEE MF CANOLI as I’m typing this, swear to the trail gods, someone just came up the hill saying “contacts?! Who needed contact solution?!”. Well it’s not solution but it’s eye drops that’ll get me through the night and my eyes won’t be so dry in the morning. Man. Im laying in our tent and was looking up at the sky noticing how it turns this cute shade of purple trying to find something else to gripe about when something nice comes my way. I don’t deserve it. So tomorrow I’ll do better. Peace and love love love.
Muir Trail Ranch
WOTD: Thankful
Aug 30 7:13am
Gina is looking for her phone while we wait for the ranch to open. She is always losing something lol mornings are not her thing. Mornings ARE my thing. Seriously, I love them. It’s a new day. Annnnnnnnd her phone just fell out of her sleeping bag she packed earlier.
11:10am
The smells of sage, lavender, pine, and lemongrass are all so vibrant sometimes.
(Making my way up Seldon Pass)
6:47pm
I’m sitting next to the fire Luke and Brenton made, having my mexi chicken & rice. Pete hung back and hiked at a slower pace with an older gentleman while Brenten continued on with Luke. They caught up with us a little after we stopped to talk to the herd of elephants I mentioned yesterday. Lol they’re actually pastors doing this to raise money for an organization called Manna and more like the 7 dwarves. One has actually eaten at cafe alley which is wild lol we made it to the top of Seldon Pass and had lunch with the guys. A very fun and entertaining lunch. I made them explain how to use their ice picks which Luke called a Whippet. Brenton put a rock on the ground and used his like a golf club lol We hiked with them the rest of the day and made up games as we went along. It made the time fly and now we’re at camp without even feeling like we did 13 miles. I gave Brenton the trail name “Facts”. He’s told us so many stories and knows everything about anything it feels like. We renamed animals around the fire. Marmots are ground beavers, otters are Creek Puppies, deer are Tall Horned Dogs and from now on our little trail family will be know as the Alpine Camp Bandits lol
Bear Creek
WOTD: Facts
Aug 31
9:02pm
Wow. What a great freaking day. We headed out from Bear Creek around 7:15 this morning and the guys caught up to us soon after. They glided uphill as Gina and I struggled for breath and I found them waiting for us on a flat patch of trail. Luke had come up with a master plan for us all to stick together as a trail family bc today was the day they were supposed to head to VVR while we went north towards Red’s Meadow. We decided to go with him and Brenton to VVR for lunch then head out towards Silver Pass around 4pm... Well when we got here I started looking around and noticed “Is that Frank?” Luke said “Yes. That is Francis and Denise!” Then I noticed Glider from Mather Pass and the man we talked to while we were stopped for lunch watching the helicopter. Luke also knew a couple he’d spent some time with in Lone Pine. We had burgers, fries, beers, root beer floats, orange sodas, and ice cream for lunch. Then decided since all our friends were here, we might as well stay...Frank’s real name is Francis Xavier Cane and he met Denise after the accident on Mather. Denise’s hiking partner had to be flown out via helicopter from an ankle injury so she was solo until meeting Frank. I was afraid of seeing frank again due to all the crying I did on the pass thinking the dead man was going to be him. We had told Denise our side of the story which she sneakily relayed to him. He found me later to thank me for caring about him. Tears were not avoided. Frank wanted to quit after the day on Mather Pass. He told me he was there 10 mins after the accident and had to check for a pulse then helped with putting the man in his sleeping bag. It really could’ve been him. Him and Denise ran into each other at the perfect time and like everyone says “the trail provides”. Gina and I think they’re just perfect. Frank bought us all BBQ for dinner while Denise and I provided the drinks. Gina and Denise buddied up and decided where we should hike to tomorrow as a trail family. I will never forget these people or this feeling of things being so aligned. Everything was set on our plates today. We missed the ferry but got a ride in the back of a truck to the resort and found everything and everyone we’ve been missing. I absolutely cannot wait for the pancakes I’m going to order for breakfast and the day ahead of us. The Alpine Camp Bandits ride again. Lololol
Love and Mountains.
Vermillion Valley Resort
WOTD: Family
Sept 1
We started our day with big plates of pancakes, hash browns, eggs, biscuits & gravy, sausage, bacon and a million cups of coffee. Everyone tabbed out at the store and rushed to break down tents and get everything ready to be at the boat before 8:45. We finally got to the trail and headed North towards Silver Pass. Luke, Brenton, and I in the lead as the scout team, Gina in the middle, Denise and
Frank brought up the rear. I’m writing this today (the 2nd) bc I was so freaking exhausted the whole day, I couldn’t even think of keeping up my notes. I finally caught up with everyone after waiting on Gina and Brenton decides we’ll have lunch at the lake ahead. I said (huffing and puffing) “where the hell is this lake?”. His answer “AHEAD!” And zooms off 🙄 it felt like 50 more miles until Luke and I saw him in his drawers jumping in and out of the lake. Frank and Denise arrived a little while after and Gina was just starting to scare me when we saw her pink hat come into view. After lunch we had another hellacious uphill. It was the day of false summits. A short break and snowball fights at the top made everyone’s mood a little lighter. Frank and Denise hung back while the rest of us hurried down to find a campsite. We pushed on for several more miles and one last uphill until we found a great spot. The guys made a fire immediately to ward off mosquitoes while Gina went to get water. She came back up to camp angrily saying “I’m never allowed to be in charge of lids again!” She’d dropped the cap to our gravity filter. I said “You dropped it?! In the river?!” Yup. So I take off jogging down the trail and sure enough I see it floating. It’s about the size of a hockey puck thankfully so I made my way further down and waited. I finally see it coming towards me so I get in the water on a rock bc the river it about waste high. I reach to grab it, slip, go completely into freezing ass water and claw my way out of there as fast as possible then run up to camp holding the lid in the air. Everyone’s laughing lol I shuck my shirts as soon as I get into camp. Brenton ties up a line to hang all my clothes and I change QUICK lol after that fiasco we all sit down by the fire with our dinners and have one of the best fire nights yet. These guys have been such a blessing to our hike and I hope we always stay in touch. Only having about 5 more days is really starting to make me wish we had more. I told the guys today “Let’s all just keep going to Canada”. They actually weren’t against it. Wouldn’t that be a great story lol
WOTD: Heroes
Fish Creek
Sept 2
We woke up and started getting around slowly. The girls we’ve been yo-yoing came to ask our names. Theirs were Squish and Juicy J lol. We started climbing first thing and got an amazing view of Tulley Hole & Fish Creek. We stopped for a break at the next lake and listened to Brenton (Facts) talk about whatever he knew at the moment. Honestly, he’s one interesting dude lol. We roller coastered on until stopping for lunch at a creek. We barely had our lunch and a couple puffs down when it started raining. It was like a tornado drill at school. Lol everyone just went into action putting on rain gear, loading everything up, and moving quickly away from the building storm. Now top that off with being stoned. It was a ride. We finally got service and stopped to call home. Afterward we only had about three more miles of hiking for the day so we made it to camp soon and got our evening pile of firewood stocked. We had our dinner with another great conversation and all went to bed looking forward to our short day ahead and to meet up with Pete, Frank, and Denise. We were walking into Red’s Meadow when I said “Is that Glider?”. And yes it was. That guy is everywhere lol luke and Brenton went straight for the hiker box while Gina has I sorted through our resupply. They met juicy J and Squish doing the same thing and ended up doing work on Squish’s tent. We finally left Red’s on the bus into the ski resort. DUDE. CUTEST PLACE ON THE PLANNET. I love Mammoth. Seriously, the “help wanted” signs were tempting. We walked from the town trolley to the post office where Luke had a bucket waiting. We were all sitting outside in the shade when a women walks up “Hey Hikers! I’m a trail angel. Do you all need a ride somewhere?”. This was Pete’s first experience with trail angels and he almost lost it lmao So Gina, Brenton, and Pete (along with all our packs) rode with our trail angel to the airbnb. Luke and I walked bc we had some errands to run. We made it to the house and everyone was still disgusting lol “Y’all haven’t showered?”. Luke and I forget to get Laundry soap and since we don’t have loaner clothes, we’d all be sitting around the house naked. Lol So Gina and I took off to the store. When we got back everyone threw their laundry in a pile and took showers. The guys left for supplies for Taco Night while Gina and I finished the laundry. We only lost 1 pair of boxers, 1 regular sock, & 1 toe sock so I’d say mostly it was a success. Brenton, Luke, and Gina threw dowwwwwn in the kitchen while Pete and I watched and snacked. We had an amazing homemade dinner, everyone started watching a movie while I went upstairs to make a phone call and fell asleep before I could even get my shorts off.
WOTD: Mammoth
Sept 3
My alarm went off at 6:00am. I still needed to find some coffee and electrolytes so I walked to a nearby grocery store. I marveled at how cute Mammoth was the entire trip. Man, I would live here. Anyway, I grabbed everything and headed back to the Airbnb avoiding the complex’s sprinklers. When I got back we used the eggs and tortillas I got and leftovers to make breakfast tacos. “Did you mean to get coffee beans?” Damnit Cindy.... so I was like “I’m not going back to the store. We can figure it out. We’ve lived outside for weeks”. Lmao so we used a blender to grind the beans. BEST coffee. We headed out the door towards the post office then to the trolley station. We got our ride to the resort then hopped another bus toward Devil’s Postpile. All 5 of us piled out and headed towards the monument that isn’t that cool until you see the bottom. We started going up. Rolling up I guess until we made camp at Rosalie lake where we met Denise. Frank had walked her pack up the hill for her and we met him on the way up. He hiked slower to be with Denise so he had to bail out at Mammot Lakes. “I went for a waawk and fell in love (New York accent)”. We all had dinner around the fire and played HeadsUp. A couple camping in the area came up to tell us to quiet down. Lol they were nice but awkwarrrrrrd. We played another round and then retreated to our tents.
WOTD: Love
Sept 4
Honestly, it’s 6:41pm on the 6th. The last two days were a blur to me. I’ve really been trying to soak it all in. Pete disappeared yesterday and about 2pm today we ran right into Frank. His flight got cancelled due to the Hurricane. He left notes all down the trail for Denise. I cried when they walked down the trail together. Like how freaking sweet. Frank said Pete was already at the Meadow. We made a group decision to camp one last night out here before we go our separate ways tomorrow at Toulomne. I’m laying in the tent listening to everyone talk around the fire. I’m going to miss this so much. Luke and Brenton going back and forth on a movie scene complete with accents, Frank’s songs, Denise’s humor and positivity, all the trail greetings and goodbyes, even Pete's constant state of surprise. It’s going to be hard going back to reality after this. All the kindness we’ve met or witnessed on the trail have been so eye opening. Everyone out here is willing to help each other and the woods just radiate positive energy. The views we’ve seen are mind blowing and I could’ve never imagined the feeling of intimidation the mountains put out. We have about 5 miles of hiking tomorrow then Gina and I will bus to Yosemite. I’m super excited for a burger and ice cream lol
WOTD: Reality
Sept 7
6:29am
I’m waiting for my biscuits and gravy to rehydrate and thinking of how this is just about over. I thought this would feel like the longest trip of my life but in all reality, I want to keep going. I don’t want to leave this peace or these people. I truly feel like we’ve made lifelong friends.
9:18am
I just stopped to let the UCLA running team go by. Weirdest thing I’ve seen yet lmao
7:39pm
I’m watching Luke roll his and Gina’s chicken brats around on our fire grate. I have a turkey sandwich.
We all made it to Tuolomne meadows around 11am and hung around until Brenten, Pete, and Denise continued their hike. I’ve never cried over strangers but I cried for these people. I couldn’t have asked for a better group to go on this journey with. Luke, Gina, and I decided to camp here since it was the weekend and every other campsite was full.
Pete- dark Curly hair, lime green “YOLO Stone” trucker hat, 1 shirt, Always surprised, caries rich people butter, humble, penny pincher, found God, always hungry
Brenten- Energetic, full of random knowledge, blonde hair and mustache, likes headbands, camp chef, unbelievably positive and helpful, commercial driver, freelance artist, carpet cleaner, born and raised on the Oregon Coast, freebird
Luke- Batman. Bartender, chef, walks tall, full of wisdom, musician, Georgia Native, belongs in the mountains, patient, kind
Francis- Infectious smile, funny guy, Yankee, longest stride ever, here for a reason, motivator
Denise- Pilot, college professor, mayor, sneaky funny, extremely intelligent, strong, role model,
Luke, Gina, and I got up and peeled all our frozen clothes off the parachord Luke tied to a tree while we did laundry the night before. We fumbled around with frozen fingers until I got frustrated and made a fire. Camp was finally put into packs and we all headed to the cafe for breakfast. We waited there until the bus for Yosemite Valley pulled up to take Gina and I on to our next destination. It felt weird leaving Luke. He was the first one with us and the last. He showed up exactly when we needed him. And after, everyone else fell perfectly into place. I kept holding my hands out like a plate when we were trying to decide something as a group. It was all there for us. All we had to do was enjoy it. It’s weird how things work. Sometimes when you aren’t looking, what you’ve been looking for shows up. We watched two people fall in love. We walked by a dead man. We made lifelong friends and met unmatchable kindness along the way. I would take this walk or one like it every year of my life. And that’s exactly what I plan to do. I will never forget the Alpine Camp Bandits.
Happy Trails.
Frank. Francis. "Powerless"
Pete. Princess. "Cold Soak"
Denise. "Roots"
He never told us his real name. "Glider"
Brenten. "Facts"
Nick. "From the Lancaster shuttle"
Mark. From Australia
