Whew!

Where to start...? Passed the 1,000 mile mark and while the high Sierras have been unimaginably beautiful, like the desert, they've also been quite the challenge. Despite coming through later in the season there was still plenty of snow, given the record snow levels, to make for some adventure ;) Definitely had some scares and more solo time which once again brought me to the brink of quitting.. Weird to have so many ups and downs mixed together.. The beauty... The hardships faced alone.. Had me seriously questioning whether or not I wanted to continue... What's the point if one isn't enjoying the journey..? Well after much thought and deliberation (keeping my mind plenty busy while hiking), and tons of support from my family, I've decided that the opportunity for personal growth on a probable once in a lifetime adventure was reason enough. There was also hope on the horizon of easier terrain, free of snow, as well as some excitement of finally having some music to hike with - sooooo much thanks to my sister, Katia! :) Personally I'm not crazy about the idea of hiking with music and being a bit disconnected from the natural world I was hiking through. On the other hand I could definitely see how it could bring some joy and positive energy to harder times and even enhance the experience of these beautiful places. And it has :) Music is love... And listening to it has me feeling the love :)

Finally saw a bear, a beautiful blonde one, just up and to the left of the trail in some boulders in the forest, half a day north of Sonora Pass.

Tuolumne Meadows to Sonora Pass.... Those four days contained more anxiety-inducing experiences for me than the rest of the trail combined. All of it solo. First there were the three afternoon thunderstorms that quickly rolled in while I was climbing passes each of those days. Thunder and lightening while climbing up = yikes!! I know it's not what you're supposed to do but I was near the top each time, below tree line always, and hiking towards clearer skies... But I got caught every time.

The first afternoon I simply hiked through the cold heavy rain, the trail turning into a stream of waterfalls.. made for a cold wet night making camp and the just as unwelcome sensation of putting on cold wet clothes the next morning :P Thankfully the storms were all fairly short-lived, about an hour or so of nature's fury and then calmer skies allowing me to set up my bivy and tarp without having it raining very hard while doing so.

The next two afternoons I broke out my tarp and simply draped it over myself and my pack to wait out the storm. Both times thick with hail, around the size of lemon drops, turning the air and ground white, and making traversing patches of snow that much more fun given a marble-like action underfoot :P

The first storm was a complete surprise.. Hadn't had rain since the second and third days of the trip! The second rolling in at almost the same exact time, around 2:30-3 pm, began to feel like a pattern. Prepared for it to happen again around the same time on the third day, once again it caught me, this time showing up at around noon :P but I managed to quickly rig the tarp up with my two trekking poles holding up two corners in such a way as to allow me to sit somewhat comfortably and prepare/eat lunch with a view of the nearby pond, providing shelter to me, my pack, and the mosquitoes..

The rains of course made already flooded trail conditions that much more wet.. and made water crossings that much more exciting given higher water levels and stronger currents.

Then there was this narrow canyon (Kerrick or something..? have to go back to maps to look up) with Falls Creek (or maybe it was Rancheria.. soo many, can't remember..) running through it.. The creek was swollen from all of the rain and snow-melt runoff and full of fierce rapids and falls. I knew I was going to have to cross it soon. The trail traversed a side of the canyon which was pretty steep a rugged and covered in long stretches of steep slippery snow. Below the snow, boulders. Below the boulders, the raging creek. Sheesh.. Ok, suck it up, take it slow, don't slip, don't fall, try not to think about the upcoming crossing, and hope to find a spot to camp for the night, allowing the water level to drop. Thankfully I found a spot to camp in a level clearing a bit above the creek - yessss :) while fixing and eating dinner I studied the rapids below the site and was once again thankful to see that the level looked to have dropped at least a foot or two by the next morning. The crossing was still fun as I searched for a spot the was wider and not too deep, but nowhere as treacherous as it could've been the evening before.. Deep breath, glad to get through that one, whew!

Then there was the last day.. clear skies, a climb up to the top of a high ridge with amazing views.. Some stretches of snow on the way up but not tooo bad. Able to see for miles and nothing but clear skies to the west (from where the thunder storms had come each day prior), I stopped and enjoyed a lunch at the top (drying out my shoes, socks, and tarp in the sun and strong breeze at the same time). An *amazing* ridgewalk with breathtaking views all afternoon. And then I turned a corner to start my descent down to Sonora Pass and the road.. to find a pretty scary sight... The trail traversed the backside of the ridge's huge steep slopes, hundreds of feet high.. They were covered in substantial stretches of steeeep snow. And below the snow, steeep nasty looking rock. Gulp.. Looking back to where I'd come from I didn't really see any other way down.. Steep rock everywhere. I immediately cursed myself for having sent my ice axe and microspikes home too early - damn it! Breathe... I started the traverse, kicking steps into the snow and basically rock climbing down sections of rock until I found myself in a precarious spot facing a really steep section of snow with an ugly looking runout should I slip and fall... So teetering on the edge of some steep rock I begin to remove the mud basket from and collapse one of my trekking poles. That's when I notice the dark clouds and my already high blood pressure and anxiety levels climb even further.. I really gotta get down from here.... I couldn't tell if the system was headed my way, it really did seem to be skirting the area I was in, but I didn't want to wait and see if I was going to get hit. Damn it.. Unfortunately the pole locking mechanism wouldn't re-engage which has always been finicky and why I just leave it locked at the same length - has been all trip. Ok, so lower sections into the side pockets of the pack and upper third in hand I start plunging it into the snow to have an anchor should I slip and fall. I slowly make my way down and across, kicking in steps and plunging in my partial pole while crossing the snow, and basically rock climbing down the sheer rock and scree fields as I encounter each. Eventually I get to snow I can somewhat normally walk on (with one normal length pole and one super short) when I slip and fall sending me sliding down the slope. Fortunately I'd made it to an area where the runout was all snow so I just go with it and ride the slope down, eventually coming to a stop a hundred or so feet down the mountainside. Big sigh, take a sec to breathe and be thankful :) Taking another look at the map I start off crosscountry through scree and saturated ground to regain the trail. But once I find and continue along the trail I continue to run into the steep snow stretches and rather than risk slipping and falling again I decide to just bushwack my way down avoiding the snow as much as possible and figuring out a way down w/o the trail, an adventure in itself :) Finally down to the highway..... I can still feel my nerves on edge, almost shaking with anxious energy... Slowly I begin to relax... Realizing that I've made it safe and sound... Just have to find a hitch, or some combination thereof, 30 miles to the east and then south to get to Bridgeport, a hotel room, a freshly made meal, a hot bath, a warm shower, a TV w/ HBO and movies, and a comfortable bed... Life is good :)


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Location:South Lake Tahoe - mile 1,093