The High Sierra Trail 2022

 5:20 am Lodgepole campground : site 189 

June 29

I tossed and turned in between times of imitating a rock. I finally had to put my tights and jacket on around 2am because I couldn’t avoid the potty any longer. It was warm yesterday but got cold quick (just as we suspected). 

Jarron and I are taking the car back to town today while the girls go to the park post office to send postcards home. We all scored a permit to start today so we are a day early. Denise will be waiting on us at the end with a campsite at the Whitney portal. (She doesn’t know about the baby yet).

I missed this place so much. It was honestly a place I didn’t know if I would ever see again so I am extremely thankful for this trip. 

Yesterday we hauled ass to the park to score permits and do some site seeing. First we climbed Moro Rock, which was pretty amazing then we met a fiasco at the log tunnel. People were lined up waiting to take their pics. We left after our turn and went straight to the General Sherman Tree. We all walked down and had our pictures taken by strangers then returned the favor. We decided to walk the path of giant trees around the area while A mother bear and cubs were the main attraction for idiots who wanted to get too close. We were looking at a stump they had on display because it was about three of jarron’s wingspans when a guy looked at us and said “Hey I have a weird question. Do you work at Cafe Alley?”. Lmao we all looked like cartoon characters with our mouths wide open. I said “WHO ARE YOU?!” Lol! He said he worked at the refinery and they lived in Lone Grove! As they walked away we heard him tell his wife “I told you that was her!”. Small freaking world. 

We hiked out of there but not before Jarron made a  buddy. A father and son named Steve and Tyler (I see what he did there) who were doing an out-n-back to twin lakes. They were super nice and congratulated us. 

*skip ahead to

7:08 pm Big Arroyo Cabin camp

July 1

I haven’t been keeping up with my notes very well because I have been going nonstop. I’ll update you. Jarron and I returned the car to Visalia BUT it wasn’t that easy… I was carsick the whole way down just trying to survive. The road in and out of sequoia is by far the worst park road I’ve been on. By worst I mean like curvy. It was nothing but switchbacks for cars. We got a later start than we wanted and had to rush down the mountain and into town. We still had to go by the post office and return the rental car full of gas. Long story short, we ran to the transit station and arrived just before the shuttle…it was a 3 hour ride back up to the park… then get off at the museum and take a different bus to our campsite. We made it back around 1pm and had lunch with the girls. Then we all packed up and headed back to the freaking bus station to go to the museum then ANOTHER bus to the trailhead. We started too late. It was around 3 or so. We were hoping for 10 miles but got about 6. We stayed at an awesome campsite that wasn’t really a campsite but we could tell other people had camped there and we needed to stop. Most of us stayed up to watch the stars come out. 

    The next day (yesterday) we started around 8:30am continuing the rolling hill hike we started. We had a mid morning break/snack around 9 mile creek (I believe) and it was a super cool spot. After break Jarron and I started before everyone and got to another good place to stop and wait. I was also looking across the river at the switchbacks with dread. We stayed in the shade awhile until everyone joined us then started the climb… Ali caught up with us after awhile and we both ran out of water but I could hear it so we kept moving. We finally made it down to a wooden bridge over a river that was probably 200 ft below us… there was no way we could get to it so we just sat down in the shade to wait on Gina and a map. Jarron went ahead and came back about 15 mins later to tell us he found water and a spot to rest so we packed back up and hiked up about 3 switchbacks to a junction. After our lunch, we didn’t stop going up until we reached Hamilton Lakes. It was a very tough day and Veronica made a smart decision to go back the way we came the next day due to feet problems.

 

NOW back to July 1 

THE CLIMB OUT OF HAMILTON LAKES IS BRUTAL. It is 5 miles uphill. Great views but my god I was dying. Everyone was. It took us about 5 hours and several false summits. We did get to see Precipice Lake and that was beautiful. We got to the top and I spotted a plaque nailed into a huge boulder. It said “Mount George Stewart named in honor of Col. George W. Stewart 1857-1931 the founder of Sequoia National Park”. We thought it was cool. We were all so excited to be going down that we just kind of floated until we had to run… Ali went ahead of us so she was waiting when we got down the first section. After that we had about 2 miles left to camp. And it was still downhill so we were making pretty good time… right before we got to a creek crossing I started to notice them. I’m swatting at my face and I can see them collecting on jarrons back. We rounded the corner where Ali was standing by the water and I said “DONT STOP!”. We basically ran across the creek (Gina ran right through it) and didn’t stop until we reached a junction. I threw my bag down and yanked out my tent in a panic. Ali and I climbed in with no poles or anything and just sat on the ground defeated lol we had to wait for Gina to make sure she knew which way we went. Jarron went ahead and found a camp near water. I jumped out of the tent when I heard him yelling and told Ali to wait for Gina. I slung my bag over one shoulder and jogged to where he was standing. We found a campsite and immediately started building a fire to try and ward off the army of mosquitos that followed us. I took the camp shower down to the river to fill it and have it ready for when they got here. The mosquitoes actually calmed down to a point where we could clean up. Everyone was washing hair and doing laundry when we started to hear someone yelling. Gina saw him first and he came over to our camp. He needed bug spray. The poor guy was covered in bites so I took my extra contact case and filled one side with anti itch cream. He lathered it on his neck and arms. It was a sad site. We sent him on with what we could spare and went back to finishing our chores and eventually eating dinner. I got mine down before the mosquito army returned. We are all back in our tents to escape the little bastards. On top of the blood suckers, Jarron and I are both so sunburned from the waist down. I have no idea why we didn’t use the sunscreen. 

July 2 

4:42am 

We went to sleep before the sun was completely down last night. That on top of this kid in my body are reasons I’m always the first one up. I have to get food as soon as I open my eyes or I am nauseous and miserable. The sky is getting lighter and the stars are starting to disappear. I can hear someone snoring, pretty sure it’s Jarron. I’m waiting for my oatmeal to fluff up and dreading our walk today lol at least our bags are getting lighter! Normally I want sweet things to eat but now it almost makes me gag. I prefer SALT! I’ve already blown through my slim Jim’s and I have been day dreaming about bloody Mary’s and pickles. 

    I’m back in our tent in the fetal position waiting for the Dramamine I took to kick in. I forced myself to eat almost all my oatmeal. I REALLY wanted the ramen noodles instead. Yesterday, I had the one and only miso soup I brought for breakfast. That helped my stomach too. 

July 3

2:30am

We left camp yesterday around 8:00am. We made it to the cabin where our bug bite friend was outside his tent and thanked us again. We started switchbacks going up after a short time of rolling hills. I was struggling. I have no energy. I have been thinking hard about going up Whitney and I think it would be best for me to skip it. Yesterday was 8 weeks and Im feeling it. We finally made it to the summit around 10:30am. We took a small break then started the downward process. We FINALLY had a decent little stretch of trail that was enjoyable. This section reminded me a lot of the John Muir. We caught back up with the girls around noon at the moraine lake junction. They were plopped down in the shade and responded to my “Lunch?” with “Lunch”. I had two packs of ramen noodles. I’m so ready for a fresh salad and I still want a pickle! After lunch we still had a long way to go. A miserable hike down to the Kern river. And once we got there, we still had 1.8 miles to go. Jarron and Ali are starting to realize how long “trail miles” actually feel. It seemed like it took us hours to finish. BUT we made it to Kern hot springs. We all threw camp together then headed down to soak. After a little hot/cold therapy we headed back to camp. We hiked 13.4 miles and you could see it on everyone’s faces. We were beat. We made a fire and had dinner while listening to Jarron ramble about whatever was on his mind. I had my dinner eaten first and took some of Jarron’s Scooby snacks for dessert. Gina informed us that tomorrow (today) we will have to do 9 miles to Wallace creek. 3 of those miles will be straight up… we all groaned but it is possibly our last “long day”. We watched the bats go to work on some bugs flying around the tops of the trees then stumbled to our tents after dinner. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit my pillow. 

6:19am

I’ve been awake since about 5:30. I started the fire back up and tried to get my oatmeal down (failed). Everything makes me gag in the mornings so I’m going to ask Gina if she has anymore trisquits for me. She is moving around but Ali and Jarron are still dead. Speaking of dead, my calves are DONE. They are so sore from the downhill we did yesterday and I can’t really rub them bc they are also sunburnt. 

July 4 

4:22am Junction Meadow Camp

We left camp at 9am yesterday (way too late) and it was HOT. At first it wasn’t. I was actually shivering as I hiked but the best thing to do is to keep moving. We walked through an entire burnt forest. It felt like we hiked through soot and ash all day.   We had lunch around mile 5 and gave up around mile 7. The heat is not my friend. It’s not anyones really. So we decided to camp at the junction and give ourselves a rest. We have had hard days since we started this trail. I told Gina “I don’t think I’d do this again” lol it’s almost all uphill. We got to camp around 2pm and started doing laundry. I rushed Jarron around because I know how long it takes to dry clothes out here. Once we were all clean and had clothes hanging, we sat around the fire (mostly smoke to ward off mosquitos) and made our dinners. It was about 4:30pm when a ranger walked up on us. His name was Rob and he was the Tyndell creek ranger. Gina told him about her bear sighting and he asked us to keep the fire down. He also told us that the burnt forest we walked through was caused by lightning 2 years ago. He loved his job. He said something about this being paradise. And in a lot of ways, it is.

July 5

5:11am 

I’ve taken on the responsibility of making fires in the mornings if it’s really cold. Mostly because I’m the first one up and I have to eat. I’ve been munching on Gina and Ali’s leftover trisquits to sooth my stomach. Our bug bite friend showed up around 5 yesterday. I was starting to worry about him when he didn’t show up but he said he camped at the kern junction instead of going another 1.8 miles to the hot springs like we did. We are trying to leave camp by 7 this morning. We are starting the day going uphill but I’m pretty sure it’s all uphill from here anyway. We are trying to make it to Crabtree meadow tonight for camp. That is where we meet up with the John Muir Trail. Surely there will be more hiker traffic as well. We have only seen a handful of people out here. We can’t decide if it is because we are stupid for going during the heat or because this trail is extremely hard. Last night, I asked Gina if she would text Denise to see if she would bring us a jar of pickles. Lol that’s all I’m looking forward to. And maybe a fresh salad. And maybe tea. I just waved one of my tortillas over the fire to warm it up and maybe it tasted like pine but at least it was something different. 

5pm 

Crabtree Meadow camp 

Another very exhausting day. We climbed all day. Again. 

Jarron and I arrived at camp around 2:30pm and the girls shortly after. We all met PCT hikers on our way here. One guy was from Japan. I asked another guy “are you on the PCT?”. He responded with “Hell yea”. We’re only 3 miles from guitar lake so we are going to sleep in and leave camp around 2 tomorrow afternoon. We are at a camp full of PCT and JMT hikers calling each other by their trail names. I’m jealous. And speaking of trail names… Ali is now Snooze and Jarron is Pete…

11:06pm 

I just got back into the tent. I finally gave up and went to my bear can for a tortilla. They are one of the only things that sooth my stomach. I swear it’s like as soon as I open my eyes it’s warfare. I also had to put on another pair of socks bc it is freezing up here. Earlier, We heard some guys by the bear box talking about hiking up Whitney to watch the fireworks… I’ve never liked the 4th of July enough to freeze to death on a mountain but to each their own. We watched them hike off in shorts. 

    Gina got in contact with Denise and Meridyth. They said they will have enough food to feed an army at the campsite when we finish. She said s’mores for dessert, French toast, pickles, cocktails, who knows what else. I am so ready to see their faces. I am also so ready for dinner and breakfast at the Whitney cafe. All I can think about is coffee and waffles. 

July 6

7:07am Crabtree meadow 

I almost puked in the tent so now I am wrapped up in my sleeping bag outside in my chair. This is the coldest it’s been. And I can only imagine tomorrow will be colder. Jarron and I can either hike 3 miles to guitar lake today with Gina and Ali or take a zero here and hike all 12 miles out tomorrow. Im not really sure what I want to do. Im sure guitar is super cool but it’s at even higher elevation. But 12 miles is also a no so I am at a crossroads. 6 miles up and 6 miles down. I was reading the notes on our map app and it said there were 97 (no joke) switchbacks coming down at the end of the trail. Idk, we’ll probably just go camp at guitar and make the next day easier on ourselves. 

8:32pm 

Guitar Lake 

We hung out until about 2:15 today. We were aware there was little shade up here so that is why we left late. That and we only had to do 2.7 miles. We were all sitting outside our tents facing Crabtree meadow when a guy walked up and made friends with us right away. He put his bag down and stumbled over to our little gathering. This was around noon. While he was talking to us, another man walked up and said he was lost. Kinda but not really. He was headed to Whitney but just took a detour to the meadow ultimately having to backtrack. He stayed with us awhile too. We talked about Fred Becky and cycling. He was from Minnesota. Jarron got his number lol while ALL of us were sitting there, a young, native looking man walked up and asked if we had seen a pack train. One of the guys asked if he was a ranger and he responded with “nope, I’m just a man”. He also asked what we were doing with a hint of smartassness lol it was an overall weird encounter but jarron was fascinated by him. He did have a cool hat and a wicked cowboy aura. He left us and went to sit on the bear box. About 10 mins later we saw why… about 10 people with the exact same day packs on walked up. So they paid MONEY to have these ranchers pack their supplies in and out while they just carry water and snacks. 

Shortly after, we all started packing up camp. Our new friend “Sherpa” took over our campsite when we left. We gained only 1000 ft in elevation up to Guitar lake but it sucked the entire life out of us. We will gain 2000 more in 3 miles tomorrow morning. We stopped to let a pack team go by us on the way up and found it’s receptors at the top. A group of older people (Gina and I like to call them the safari’s) had an entire kitchen set up complete with freaking catering chafers. They also had those old school metal/aluminum with like a plaid design lawn chairs all set out in a circle. We got a kick out of that. 

July 7 

Whitney Portal family camp

Gina and Ali left camp around 4am from guitar lake while Jarron and I waited around until about 6:30. I actually got up when the girls were packing up and could see headlamps bobbing in the dark already. After dawn, we left a freezing camp and shuffled up the first set of switchbacks. There was a stretch of flat-ish ground then we headed up again. We gained 2000 ft of elevation over 3 miles. Jarron was fighting altitude sickness and being pregnant mixed with altitude makes me slowwwww. It sucks all the energy I have out. We hit the mount whitney junction at about 13000 ft around 9:30am. We sat and had a snack before heading over to trail crest where we met some nice people then started the trek down. On our way people were asking how it was or if we made it to the top which I explained why we didn’t go. Jarron and I decided several days ago that it would probably be smartest to not go up due to the lack of oxygen. People were congratulating us on the baby. We got fist bumps from older men who were excited to know before we have announced it lol! We got down the horrendous switchbacks and stopped to get water at a lake where a JMT hiker was lounging on a rock. I apologized for disrupting him but he was super nice and talked to us for awhile. He was a lawyer from Chicago. We left the lake which was at Mount Whitney’s trail camp… that place was the trashiest we’ve seen so far. Emergency blankets just hanging on to rocks, food in the water, trash on the ground, toilet paper everywhere where just a few things I noticed before I had just put my head down and move on. It was my daily reminder of why I hate people sometimes. We hiked down another long stretch of switchbacks before we HAD to take a short break. My stomach was growling. I hustled Jarron from our pit stop and we continued down. We met some girls who asked us about water and I asked how far we had left… she said we were moving at a good speed so she’d give us 2 HOURS. Ugh. We thought we were only doing a 9 mile day. It was supposed to be 3 up to trail crest then 6 down when it was actually 3 up and 9 down… 11+ miles freaking total if you count the walk to the store for burgers and then down to family camp. We made it to a junction where a couple women were telling everyone how proud they were of them lol I couldn’t help but tell them I didn’t go up. They asked why and long story short, when Denise and I drove by their campsite that evening she ran out to the car to give me a pickle! They were very nice. After we talked to those ladies we kept descending until I heard “Sydney?!”. It was Denise and Meredith! I ran. I was so happy to see them I almost knocked a girl off trail with a passing “I’m so sorry” but kept running. We told them about the baby and now they are planning a trip to Oklahoma for the shower. We hiked down the rest of the way with them. They wanted to get ice cream from then store while Jarron and I shared the best burger I’ve ever had. (Not really but today it was) We hiked down to camp and immediately got in the river to try to wash up. Meredith, Denise, and Jarron had drinks shortly after so when It was time to go pick up the girls at the trailhead, Denise just handed me keys and said we’re going lol Jarron stayed with Meredith to set up the whole table spread of food they brought. Gina and Ali didn’t make it down until about 6:45pm. Jarron and I were hurting for them on the way down. They did close to 15 miles…We grabbed the burgers they ordered and headed back down to camp. When we got there, Meredith had an entire charcuterie board laid out. I ate all night. We also had s’mores for dessert! They are making us French toast and bacon for breakfast. They are absolute angels. We are all headed to lone pine today after we have to check out of camp. Denise said we are in search of Mexican food lol. Her and Meredith are staying the night in lone pine with us as well. It’s going to be so fun. 

July 8

We got up and had a delicious camp breakfast but had to be out of our campsite by 11am. After we packed up, we headed up to the Portal store to meet Lone Pine Chuck who was giving us a ride into town. We got down to Lone Pine fairly quick but couldn’t check in to the hotel until 2 so we walked down to the grocery store for shower supplies. After that we hung out at Jake’s Saloon where I had one of the best Virgin bloody Marys EVER lol. Everyone had a couple drinks then we went to the Mount Whitney Cafe for lunch around 1. After that it was time to check in and I wasn’t feeling well so while I showered and laid down, Jarron did all our laundry. (Best baby daddy ever) Around 6 we all headed down the street to Merry Go Round, an Asian restaurant that was phenomenal. Jarron made friends with the owner because he was wearing an apron with trains on it. After dinner we all hung out around a picnic table outside the hotel. I was the first to call it a night. 

July 9

We walked back across the street to the Mount Whitney Cafe for breakfast. I had been looking forward to that since we started. After breakfast we all walked down to the post office and after a scary few minutes, the man working found our box with the travel bags inside. We said our goodbyes to Denise and Meridyth then headed to the bus stop. We took a 2 hour shuttle to Lancaster where we boarded a busy train. We made it to LA Union Station around 4:30pm. We got an Uber to our Airbnb and when we pulled up, the neighbors were blaring Ice Cube- It Was A Good day. And it was. The Airbnb had LOADED orange, lemon and lime trees in the cutest back yard. We door dashed dinner then everyone crashed. 

July 9

We left the Airbnb around 9:30am and took an Uber to Ocean View Cafe in Manhattan Beach. We had a great breakfast then walked straight down to the beach to relax until our 4:30pm flight. Jarron and I sat with our stuff while the girls roamed the area in search of souvenirs. And if you’re looking for something like that, Manhattan beach is not the place. It is mostly a residential area with little to no shops. We left the beach around 2:15pm and headed to the airport. Jarron’s flight wasn’t until 11pm so he got well acquainted with his terminal. I scored a window seat but didn’t sleep at all. We made it to DFW around 10pm to a hostile group of people waiting for the Parking Spot shuttle lol everyone was just ready to go home. We made it back to Ardmore around 1am and basically dropped our things and headed to bed. From now on, if I am visiting the Sierra, I will pay the money to fly into Fresno. The trip to and from LA isn’t worth it. This will probably be my last trip here for awhile due to the baby anyway and that thought hit me hard on trail. But I cannot wait to show my child what all the world has to offer. I just hope they like to be outside lol 

Happy Trails - Great White 

Rae Lakes Loop- Kings Canyon National Park

 Monday June 21 9:00am

We are somewhere over the desert.  I’ve been thinking and I only have about 40 more years of this if I’m lucky… anyway, Denise is picking us up from LA, along with a lady named Sara, flying in from Utah. We’re here bc Denise wanted to come back to the Sierra to do the Rae Lakes Loop. It’s only about 40 miles but we’re taking our time… 8 days time to be exact. I am so excited to be back. I feel like the last time I was here, I was a different person. It’ll be nice to see it through fresh eyes. Y’all ever feel that way? I feel like I’ve lived 3 lives already. I like this one though. 

3:16pm 

We made it to the Gena Sierra Inn. It’s 100 degrees outside. Apparently a storm blew in and their pool is kinda outta comish so we decided to nap. Gina is down to her drawers bc it’s so hot in this room lol our little wall unit is trying it’s best. We stopped earlier for lunch at Big John’s Mountain Grill. After some tough love from our waitress who was probably in her 60s and possibly owned the place (and let me not forget to note that she was waiting tables in Ugg boots) , she started joking around with us and our sandwiches were delicious. We left the restaurant and drove 2 hours north. I slept a little on the plane and in the car but not enough to ease my crankiness so g2g.

9:03pm

I showered, got my bag packed, and am finally laying down. Brandi and Meredith met us at the Inn earlier and we had an great homemade dinner! We’ve all decided to leave at 6 in the morning to make it to the ranger station for our permit. 

Tuesday June 22 11:41am

We’re sitting (laying actually) downstream from Mist Falls having lunch and filtering water. We got up around 5:30 this morning to be ready to leave the Inn at 6. We drove 1:30 to the entrance of the park then another hour ish to the ranger station. On the way in we saw a sow and cubs. SO FREAKING CUTE. The cubs were the most adorable thing ever. ( we just witnessed a proposal by the falls) We finally got on the trail around 8:45am. Sarah and I were ahead of the girls when we met up with another group going forward together bc there was a bear up ahead. We stuck with them until we passed the bear then waited for the rest of our group to catch up. 

1:01pm 

I forgot how hard this was.

6,200ft

6:16pm Middle Paradise Valley 

I’m laying in the tent while everyone else is finishing dinner. The smells of pine and dirt are taking me back to the first time we were here. My life has been a roller coaster since that trip and I feel like (after almost 2 years) I just woke up from a strange dream. I’ve learned so much about myself and what I need from others. But I guess that’s part of growing up…I also learned the truest form of the meaning “ignorance is bliss”. 

16,949 steps

June 23 1:36am 

I’ve been ignoring that I need to pee for long enough but the fact that we have seen 5 bears in the last 24 hours makes you a little nervous. Also, fun fact, I’m pretty blind… I’ve been laying here wondering who put up a light at our campground. Honestly, I was like “that is something Denise would have. A freaking lamp post”… well it’s not someone’s light, it’s the moon! Lol it’s so bright that it’s illuminating the entire camp and, from here, it looks like it’s hung in a tree. In other news, I’ve been having the most vivid dreams. I was visited by someone, who is definitely dead, a couple weeks ago and it was so spooky, it’s been on my mind a lot. We both knew he was dead, that was the weird part but maybe that was us making peace, hell idk. I’ve had dreams about people that were true. That’s fun. It’s weird how we’re all connected, that’s all I can say. If you think about something so much, you start seeing it in your dreams, good luck lol… I just heard a stick snap.  Gina is snoring loud enough that this can go two ways. The bear thinks he’s home or it’ll scare him off. 

June 23 6:38pm Woods Creek

I just crawled into our tent. We’ve had a helllll of a day. We were warned by oncoming hikers that there was a bear ahead so we proceeded cautiously but never actually saw it. We think it was in a tree bc we saw some unbirdlike movement. After the excitement died down, Brandi decided to take the lead. Probably 5 mins later she goes into a full blown panic (I thought bear) and it was a freaking rattlesnake! She didn’t lead the rest of the day. We stopped for lunch at a cute spot by the river and hee hawed around for a little bit before Denise rallied us back together. We continued uphill for not long before I ran out of water in my reservoir, but thankfully I still had some left in my water bottle from lunch. I told Denise I was going to hike ahead bc I needed water. I hiked by myself for awhile until all the fiber I’ve consumed and Sarah caught up with me (which I was glad bc I’m not trying to run into a bear by myself) at a stock fence. We took off together and finally made it to the suspension bridge. We put our packs down once we crossed and waited for the others. Denise was first but not feeling well. So we all started putting her tent and sleep system together so she could lay down. As Gina and I were working on our tent, I stood up from staking the vestibule down and probably 30 yards from our tent stood a bear. I immediately sprang into action by hollering BEAR! Lol Sarah grabbed my aluminum bowl and started banging on it with a trekking pole lmao we all stood together and yelled, clapped, clanked poles together, and this dude just continued snacking on grass and just looked at us like chill outttttt. But he kept sniffing in our direction and moseying closer and closer so we had to start launching whatever rocks we could find at him until he ran away. After that circus, I was up on the hill taking pictures of the huge granite walls and I hear a guy say “did you see the bear?!”. We started chit chatting and he is on the PCT. Chris or “Heavy Pack” is from Germany and has a YouTube channel for his travels! It’s called Chris on Tour. He was taking a couple days off to rest due to a lower leg injury. I sent him on with some of my KT tape bc I haven’t had to use any of it so far. We think Brandi is going to hike out early bc she has small children so we’ll be down to a 5 woman pack. Tomorrow we have a short hike to Arrowhead lake (about 4 miles) to set up camp then take off on a day hike. I also told Sarah about my fight (I told y’all my life has been crazy) today as we were hiking together… She laughed and laughed and said “You?!”. Then it was quiet for awhile until she burst out laughing again. 

22,426 steps

124 floors 

7:33 pm

Gina is OUT

June 25 4:03am Rae Lake

Remember I told y’all I have weird dreams? I think that’s why I’m awake. That and I had to pee. You think getting out of your bed at night to pee is bad, you have no idea… I skipped a day in my notes bc honestly, I just didn’t feel like writing. So I’ll catch you up. We left around 7:45am yesterday morning bc we made a new plan… Brandi IS hiking out early. Maybe today, maybe tomorrow depending on how quick we get over the pass today. We were going to hike only 4 miles yesterday then take a zero day but since Brandi is going out, we decided to hike with her as long as we could. We may still take our zero day but rumors of hiking out a day early have been flying around… this will be our 4th day going uphill. Gina, Denise, and I have actually already done Glenn pass. We came over it going the opposite direction on the John Muir Trail. I remember it vividly bc we met a girl coming up towards us and when we asked how it was going she said “when I’m going up, I wish I was going down. When I’m going down, I wish I was going flat”. Lol it’s going to be a big climb in a couple of hours. We saw deer, marmots, and a “fox”. (I think the altitude was getting to Gina). We stopped at dollar lake for lunch. I put my GoPro on (it was freaking dead) and dove in but didn’t stay long bc it’s so cold. I got out and sat in the sun for the rest of lunch. Brandi was in the lake by the time a group of 3 came to ask how the water was. They moved down the bank from us and got in themselves. One guy sang the lion king opening song as he was about waist deep lol then probably 20 mins later we hear yelling and cussing so all our ears perked up at the same time and everyone stopped talking. A small guy with a HUGE pack was walking toward us on the trail but yelling at the men who were swimming. “Fuck you guys. Go back to where you came from. You don’t belong here. I hope you have a horrible fucking trip” and that is just an outline of the real deal lol we were all just like whaaaaaat the hell. So when that guy got out of earshot, they all apologized to us from across the lake and Meredith asked them what happened… apparently when he sang the lion king song, it pissed the other man off and he told them they were disturbing the wildlife. Ok dude. So we finished up lunch and made our way up towards Rae Lake. I was with Brandi I think when we met a couple who asked if we had seen a man with a neon pink hat that says “send beer”. We said no and they told us to tell him they are ahead if we see him… The first campsite I found looked well maintained BUT crazy pants man was there and I was like “Nope, this group is too loud”. We’re gigglers. So we moved on and Denise found a spot she liked up high over the middle of the lakes. We arrived at camp around 2:30pm and today was laundry day so we all started on that as soon as we could. Around 4:50pm a helicopter came flying over the pass. It was a MedVac and it landed directly across the lake from us… I brought my binoculars on this trip so we were being nosey from afar. I was sitting down as we were all getting ready for dinner and Gina says “Wana see the video of the fox?!” I said, “obviously”… so she hands me her phone and I push play… yall… it’s a coyote lmaooo Denise insisted on going back to the ranger station to see if they had a map so Brandi and I volunteered to go with her. On the way out of camp, there were some PCT hikers hanging out by the lake saying hi as we went by. I stopped and said “does your hat say “send beer” on it?”. All three looked shocked and he said “yes, it does”. So I told him about his friends, I think they said Sam and Shiver, being ahead. They were excited lol I love how messages get passed along out here. We continued on to the ranger station where Denise could not believe he didn’t have any paper maps lol so we got a little info from him then made our way back to camp. I hadn’t even touched my sleep system so I started on that and laid down shortly after. 

23,666 steps

12:46pm Charlotte Lake

We left camp at 7:30. I was in the back of the herd for a smidge while Brandi and Sarah took off in the front. Gina and I stopped to shed some layers with Meredith and Denise in eyesight doing the same. After I changed, I started up by myself bc it easier for me to take short breaks and long climbs. I’m so thankful I brought my headphones bc my mind has not been quiet. Everyone made it to the pass in 2 hours and 30 mins. I was getting a little nauseous on the way up but it faded as soon as I put my bag down. Brandi, Sarah, and I were the first to arrive so we just watched and waited for the others. We cheered people on coming up and had a little photoshoot before we had to head down the other side. Brandi and I are sitting at Charlotte lake waiting for everyone to show up and I’m ready for lunch… 

4:22pm

We are all winding down for dinner. I am sunburned and tired lol 

8:33pm 

I think I’m wind burned too. Idk but I am laying in our tent and my face is roasting. I’ll hide in the shade tomorrow. A few of us are hiking up to the junction with Brandi in the morning bc there is a momma bear with Cubs around. We’ll come back to camp while she sets off on a 17 mile day. We’re going to hang out at Charlotte lake tomorrow and do some exploring. Only 3 more nights. 

16,606 steps 

109 floors

June 26 Charlotte Lake day 2

Gina is passed out in the hammock, Denise is passed out in her chair, and I just laid down in our tent. Sarah, Gina, Meredith and I got up to walk Brandi to the junction. When we got back, we all started making breakfast then decided to walk down to the meadow. We had just left camp when we heard a big splash. The neighbor boys were swimming across the lake… I caught a glimpse of the second one as he was diving in and said “is he naked?”. Someone said “No, I think he has on underwear”. Anyway so we kept moving down the trail until someone spotted them almost to the other shoreline… SO I pulled out my handy dandy binoculars and yep. Naked. I passed the binoculars around and we all laughed. The weird thing wasn’t them skinny dipping, it was them exploring the other side of the lake like that lmao. We did a little out and back then decided we should probably jump in too. Today is our layover day so there are no plans. 

5:19 pm

I just finished my dinner and I’m swinging in denise’s hammock. We heard from Brandi around 3 saying she had made it to the trailhead by 2pm. That is FAST. I’ve learned I am not good with zero days. Nero, I can do (nearly zero) but zero is hard for me. Being out here again makes me want to do the PCT even more. Brandi and Meredith said they would section hike with me! (I don’t really wana go alone) We’ve come across TONS of pct’ers on this trip. Yesterday, a man took a picture of everyone at the top of Glenn pass bc majority were women. He was from Michigan and had young daughters he wanted to show that girls do this too. We thought it was really sweet. And that’s what it’s all about. Tomorrow is going to be a steep climb out of this lake then 6 miles downhill. We’ve decided to visit sequoia national park after this! I’m so excited. The last 3 miles of the trail will feel like 20. 

11,998 steps 

31 floors 

June 27 5:05am 

Denise said we are leaving no later than 7:30. So now it’s a challenge. I am so ready for a shower lol all I can think of is that Airbnb waiting on us at the end. 

2:36pm

We made it to a hell of a camp. It’s big, shaded, right by a river, AND we can have a fire tonight. We’re all going to smell terrible but the fire will be nice. It’s too cold at night to just hang out without one. The south side has been extremely beautiful so far. We’re all very impressed. I love this park. I love them all but differently. I can’t wait until I’m employed by these people lol if you can’t beat em, join em right? We met a mother/daughter duo coming down into the meadows. We asked where they were headed and the mom said “Canada!”. I was not expecting that but seriously it made us all smile. They told us the daughter (maybe 14) made it up Forester Pass in 20 mins… y’all I swear was going up that for hours. The mom said she did it in 37… that’s the mom I’d want to be. 

“Which is more important,” asked Big Panda, “the journey or the destination?” 

“The company.” said Tiny Dragon… 

6:49pm 

This may be everyone’s favorite campsite. We all had our dinners and talked about how perfect it is. Usually I could stay out here forever but I’m ready for a burger and a beer. The sound of the river is going to lull us all to sleep tonight and we aren’t in any rush to get up early in the morning. The water was warm enough that we played in it for an hour or so. Gina and I had stripped down to our underwear and were making our way upriver,  along the bank when I stumbled, tried to correct myself, tripped on another rock with my recovery foot so I had no other option than to lay flat out and just dive. GINA. WAS. CACKLING. Meredith also saw the show and gave me 10 stars. I had pebbles in my hands, my knee is scraped up but I feel like this was god giving Gina 50 yard line tickets to see me face plant.  

(We didn’t have a fire, too dry and scary out here) 

8:17pm Junction Meadow

I’m alllllmost asleep when I hear Meredith say “are they yelling bear?”. Then I hear it. Along with the banging of multiple camp items starting and we were like “yup”. So we all jump out of our tents. Sarah and I walk down there to see bc we don’t know how many people they have… this was the biggest bear I’ve seen. Not cute like the first 5. This one was scary. Long arms. Athletic walk. I wanted to puke lol but they threw some rocks at it and scared it away… in our direction. BUT he was going uphill too so we all stood around camp and watched until we couldn’t see him. Denise and I went up the trail a little bit and marked our territory. If you think I’m getting out of this tent when the sun goes down, HA. 

16,512 steps

June 28  8:23am

I slept until like 7 something. But I’ve had horrible dreams on this trip. I told everyone this morning, I’m going to see a witch doctor. They said okayyyyy but there is this light therapy thing that is supposed to redirect your brain or something idk. I would rather just erase my memory but they spoke out against it.

3:43pm Sphinx Junction

The best thing about doing short miles is making it to camp early so we get first dibs on the nice ones! We’re right next to a creek that has perfect pools. We got here around 12:30 and headed straight for the water before starting our camp chores. We had been sitting down, having random conversations when the first drops of rain hit us. Now we have all retreated back to our tents. The sounds of thunder and rain hitting the tent are so homey. We can also see flashes of lighting every now and then. This is our last night. We are going to get up and leave camp early in the morning to make it to the car before 10. We want to go to the kings Canyon visitor center and then into Sequoia National Park to play tourists for the day. I realllllllly want to do the PCT. But I’ve got to figure out timing. People normally start in mid April and finish in September… TBA. 

8:38pm

I was about to fall asleep but can tell that it’s still light outside so I decided to use the little girls room now instead of in the dark. Denise is cowboy camping in her hammock tonight. I wana be her when I grow up. I keep calling her our Fred Becky lol 

14,954 steps

Mid-July 

I haven’t had the headspace to finish my notes because I’ve been going nonstop. I hope whoever is reading this takes the time away from the average everyday adult world and finds their inner child again. I used to go into the woods on my family’s land and try to get lost. I’d follow animal trails just to see where everyone was going. And look at me now lol It’s my favorite place to be. In the middle of nowhere, no service, no pressures of life, just being me. Safe travels everyone 💕

Love, Syd.