August 14-Ugh! More of this damn food!

Miles Hiked: 14.29 Total: 122.88
Elevation Gain: 1784 ft

"In summer the days go by in almost constant brightness, cloudless sunshine pouring over the forest roof, while in the shady depths there is the subdues light of perpetual morning." ~John Muir

OUR NATIONAL PARKS - pub. 1901

[John]
We broke camp before the mosquitoes thawed out from the night before, taking some photos of the peaceful still beauty of the lake and surrounding peaks reflected in it.

After ascending Selden Pass and stopping a while to snack, enjoy the view and take some photos, we began the long descent into MTR. It was getting drier and the steep canyons of Kings Canyon National Park were coming into view, but we did encounter some pretty aspen groves with prolific wildflowers on the way down.

Descending Seldon Pass

We spent a couple hours at MTR, where southbound and northbound hikers were converging to pick up their food drops or pick through the hiker buckets chock full of all kinds of food and supplies other hikers were discarding. Much to our surprise Karen and “kids,” who we hadn’t seen since Lyell Canyon seven days prior, were among those picking through the buckets. And, shortly after we arrived, Toshio and Masao showed up.

We left about half of the food we had shipped there. We gave away all the Landjaeger sausages (Karen’s group ended up with them) as we just couldn’t stomach eating any more of them! We did recognize that the remaining 100 plus miles of the trail would be more demanding, requiring more calories, but we couldn’t fathom the thought of eating more sausages, the thought of which made both of us feel nauseous.

Looking back at Marie Lake from Seldon Pass

Regardless, the weight of our bear canisters doubled or tripled, and we eventually began climbing again sometime mid-afternoon. We continued up the canyon, hiking alongside the roaring south fork of the San Joaquin River, stopping to soak our feet along the way. We camped among the trees along the river that night about a mile short of the Goddard Canyon Trail.

[Christi]
Well, it's become very clear that the food choices for this trip were not good ones. I'm sure it's a combination of being too tired to eat and just not liking the food we had but, regardless, the food situation was not good and wouldn't be getting any better until we exited the trail. Another lesson learned, I suppose.

We must have left 15 lbs. of food behind at MTR, mostly flour tortillas, Landjaeger sausages, olive oil and some more bulky dinners. We left with cous cous, cheese, trail bars, smoothies, hot chocolate, and GORP to sustain us the last 8-10 days on the trail.

August 15-Water, water everywhere!

Miles Hiked: 17.69  Total: 140.57
Elevation Gain: 4824 ft

“But in every walk with Nature one receives far more than he seeks.” ~John Muir

STEEP TRAILS - pub. 1918

[John]

Lake near Muir Pass

Determined to get over Muir Pass, this turned out to be out the day we hiked the farthest. The morning was lovely, ascending from the south fork of the San Joaquin up into Evolution Valley. I was intrigued by the ability of trees to eke out a living high among the steep granite rock of the canyon and much enamored by the falls as we approached the infamous Evolution Creek crossing.

We completed the crossing around 9 AM.  It was a bit deeper and faster than Bear Creek, but still posed no problem, other than my having to stop afterwards to change out of my wet socks.

This was one of the prettiest days. McClure Meadow was stunning and I could understand why the northbound guy we met at MTR the previous day told me he sat in front of a tree the previous afternoon watching the sun set across that meadow, and the simple beauty of the place brought tears to his eyes.

It was a really hot day, but we kept trekking beyond the many lakes in the Evolution Basin, eventually reaching that little lake below Muir Pass late afternoon. After a week’s hiking, Christi seemed to have found her legs and kept leading me onward throughout the day. In contrast, I was feeling the heat and draggin’ my ass.

Snow field leading up to Muir Hut at top of Muir Pass

We stopped for one of our "yummy" couscous dinners at that lake below the pass, then headed up, reaching the summit around 7 PM. After taking in the view and leaning on a northbound PCTer who was waiting for his hiking companion to snap some photos of us in front of the shelter, we tackled the snow and ice on the darkening south side of the pass, intending to descend as much as possible before it got too dark. Once again, we ran into Karen and “kids,” who were also on the way down seeking out a campsite.

Man, there was water flowing everywhere – on the trail, around the trail and anywhere else you can imagine! There were supposed to be some campsites around Helen Lake, but the whole area was flooded with water gushing everywhere. It was cold, and the ground was icy, snowy or soaking wet, and I was determined to find somewhere dry to set up camp.

Beyond Helen Lake a little after 8 PM, I noticed some higher ground with small trees so we headed there, found a little flat spot, donned our headlamps and set up our tent. I enjoyed the symphony of multiple waterfalls and streams throughout the night, but, again, didn’t sleep well, experiencing some of my “altitude apnea.”

[Christi]
OMG...again! Muir Pass. Today we intended to hike to Saffire Lake where we planned to camp in order to hike over Muir Pass the next day. We got to the lake about 3pm with lots of daylight to spare and no place really to camp.  Campsites we'd seen had already been taken. So we decided to go ahead and hike over Muir Pass. Good idea?

Muir Hut at top of Muir Pass

Hmmm....

On the way, we stopped at a beautiful pristine lake and ate dinner.  I'd all of a sudden become ravenous and needed food. John wasn't very hungry but ate a little. I wonder if it was the altitude that finally got my appetite going. We made it to Muir Hut at the top of the pass at about 6:30pm. We asked a PCTer who had arrived there before us to take our photo at the Muir Hut which is there for wayward hikers in need of shelter.

The light rapidly fading and the air increasingly cold, we needed to get to a campsite quickly. However, we hadn't considered that the first available sites would be 2+ miles away. We also didn't expect the amount of snow on the descending side of the pass.

We hurried down the snow-cupped snow fields as fast as possible but by 8pm, the light was well and truly gone.  We HAD to find a place to setup our tent and get out of the cold.John, suggested we head up an embankment where there were trees and just pitch the tent. Good idea...except many others had already had that thought and were already snuggled into their tents, all warm and cozy. We persevered and eventually found a spot just big enough for our tent nestled between trees and one of the ubiquitous granite outcropping.

We donned our headlamps and quickly setup our tent and got into our bags for a well needed rest.

August 16-A day of 'relative' rest

Miles Hiked: 12.23  Total: 152.80
Elevation Gain: 1509 ft

[John]
Knowing we didn’t want to tackle the steep Golden Staircase and Mather Pass late in the day, we coasted down into Le Conte Canyon enjoying the once again stunning scenery (and that damn tasty cold water) throughout the morning and mid-day, then started back up, reaching Deer Meadow mid-afternoon. We set up camp there fairly near the trail, availed ourselves of the Palisade Creek “laundromat/bathing facility” nearby and enjoyed a leisurely dinner.

Le Conte Canyon looking toward Mather Pass

For the first and only time, a ranger happened by and asked to see our wilderness permit.  She was apparently new to the area, having come up out of Cedar Grove and heading northbound over Muir Pass. She said it was her first time on the trail, prompting me to conclude that new rangers get assigned to do back country patrols as a way of familiarizing themselves with the area.

Before we turned in, Karen and her “kids” happened by once again.  That night I wrote in my journal that I was certain we’d be seeing them on Mt. Whitney.

August 17-It doesn't Mather...or does it?

Miles Hiked: 13.53  Total: 166.33
Elevation Gain: 4046 ft

“God has to nearly kill us sometimes, to teach us lessons.” ~John Muir 

SON OF THE WILDERNESS - pub. 1945

[John]

We climbed the Golden Staircase in the morning, passing by Karen and her “kids,” who had camped a bit up trail from us along the way. It was reunion time, as Toshio and Masao also slid up behind us as we labored up the Staircase switchbacks, and all 8 of us enjoyed a water break near the top a bit later.

Looking back...hiking toward Mather Pas

I remember reading about how long it took to construct the Golden Staircase in Hal Roth’s Pathway in the Sky: The Story of the John Muir Trail and could see why. It was essentially a sheer rock face out which switchbacks were eventually dynamited and pieced together. I could not imagine bringing a team of pack animals down this thing!

After the Staircase and Lower Palisade Lake, we stopped for lunch and to soak our tired feet, after which I had a little scare. Christi had started off before me and I missed about a quarter mile of the trail when I left. After locating the trail, walking another half mile or so and not encountering her, I doubled back along the trail to where we had lunch. No Christi! I began wondering if she had drifted off trail somewhere but could not see her anywhere in site.

Fortunately, I found her about 15 minutes later, waiting further up trail for me. We agreed to keep each other in site after that, or at least not let 5 minutes go by without locating the other person.

Switchbacks coming down Mather Pass

We reached the summit of Mather Pass around 4 PM that afternoon. The snow and boulders near the top were somewhat testy, freaking Christi a bit (despite that wonderful “training” she had had amongst the huge boulders below Donohue Pass several days earlier!).

My feet slowed me down a bit – I hadn’t worn my Injinji liners and let my feet get wet, so was developing some delightful blisters on a couple of my toes – but we made it down to the South Fork Kings River camp area before setting up camp for the night.  

[Christi]
Ugh! Eight hours and 8 miles later, we finally get to the top of Mather Pass.  It was already a really hard climb just getting up the Golden Staircase to the Pass itself. It still had snow on it so we were left with scrambling up snow fields and large granite rocks since the trail was under snow. This one really shook me up. I was way out of my comfort zone, for sure.

We made it to the top around 4 PM and then finally to camp by 7 PM...almost dark. Well and truly, pooped!

John has developed many blisters on both feet now. I'm not sure how we'll deal with this since we still have a way to go to get to the end.

Too tired to ponder the possibilities. Sleep awaits.

August 18-Didn't I vow to take care of my feet?

Miles Hiked: 12.33  Total: 178.66
Elevation Gain: 2761 ft

“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.” ~John Muir

OUR NATIONAL PARKS - pub. 1901

[John]
Yes, I did, and I was well prepared to do so, having read John Vonhof’s Fixing Your Feet, researching tapes and bringing some Leukotape, instead of my usual surgical tape, and tincture of benzoin along in our first aid kit.

View from Pinchot Pass trail looking back toward Mather Pass

Unfortunately, I never bothered to apply the tincture and had never tested the Leukotape before starting the trail. Early on, I had wrapped my big toes with the Leukotape because the calluses were hurting. The Leukotape, with its super-strong adhesive stuck the Injinji liners to my toes and, to remove the liners, I had to remove the tape, which tore big hole in my toes! I then had to use band aids on my toes and didn’t want to use the liners as they were all gummed up with the Leukotape adhesive. No liners + wet feet = nice blisters!

Trail leading up to Pinchot Pass in the distance

I began the day by promptly falling in the rocks at the first creek crossing.  After patching my shin with a band-aid, we continued up Pinchot Pass, enjoying a nice, hot cup of broth at the summit, where we took in the magnificent views and snapped some photos. There were a few clouds late morning and mid-day, which made the climb a bit easier. Ran into Robert Perky from the JMT Yahoo Group as I was limping along on the descent after an afternoon foot break, but my journal entry that night sort of sums up the day:

My feet are a disaster! I’m walking half my pace because of the blisters I have on my toes and heels. The multiple creek crossings didn’t help. I think I changed socks 3 times today – should have been 4. Tonight, like last night, I lance my blisters to let them drain. Two more passes and Whitney. I know I’ll do it but slower than I prefer!

[Christi]

Top of Pinchot Pass looking back at where we came from

Pinchot Pass day.  I'm still rattled by yesterday's Mather Pass experience.  I'm hoping this one doesn't make my state of mind even worse than it is.  Today my thoughts are that I just want to get out of here.  I'm not enjoying it any more.  Every hill looks like the last, every mile on the trail goes up and down just like the last several dozen miles we've already completed.  I'm not in the right state of mind...OBVIOUSLY!  I need a triumph...something to snap me out of it.

Turns out that Pinchot Pass wasn't as bad as I'd feared.  It was still quite a climb to get there, and the razor ledge that you finally get to at the top of the climb is a bit unnerving, but it wasn't nearly as bad as the previous pass. I'm feeling better about things now.

John's feet are really bad today.  We're hiking really slowly and he's in a lot of pain.  We're not sure what to do about it other than keep them clean and dry and give them time to heal.  We're just about out of bandaids.  I think we'll camp early tonight and give them some much needed rest.

Tomorrow is Glen Pass if John's feet are up to it.