Small detour: Mile 1155

Well ever since we left South Lake Tahoe we've had some incredible hiking. We've been getting great weather and the trail has been meandering over small hills and exposed ridges.

Last night we camped up on the hillside and caught this amazing sunset:

Apparently there's a forest fire 40 miles west of where we are so it's making the sunsets very colorful.

We were hustling to get down to Donnor Pass Ski Ranch this morning and bumped into trail angle, Reno Dave! He said, "you guys look like thru-hikers. Want a cold beverage?" Reno Dave proceed to take off his backpack and pull out a bear can full of ice and PBR!!!! He gave each of us an ice cold beer and we chatted for several minutes. Apparently he tries to do this day hike as often as he can during the summer and just spreads joy to the PCT hikers. Thanks Reno Dave for spreading trail magic!

We also hit our 500th PCT mile this morning!!! This was a pretty monumental occasion because we're exactly 1/3 of the way to the Oregon/Washington border. I was so excited I almost jumped out of the frame :-P

Once we got down to the Donnor Pass restaurant we sat down and we were immediately handed a free bud light! The folks at the resort are super hiker friendly since the trail crosses the road only 0.2 miles east of the resort. We ate burgers, fries, onion rings, and ice cream. We were in happy hiker bliss but our luck and good times took a turn. As I was eating my ice cream, my bottom permanent retainer on my teeth decided to leave it's resting position of 12 years. The retainer bent down toward the bottom of my mouth and is now stuck in a painful position. At first it didn't hurt too bad, but slowly the pain took over my entire bottom jaw. It feels like I just got my braces tightened but 10 times worse because it's yanking my teeth into an anatomically incorrect orientation.

Our first solution to this problem was to hitch a ride into Truckee and find some tools at the ACE hardware store. I thought I might be able to either push the wire back into place or just remove it completely. Sure enough, ACE had a full set of dental picks! 

We hitched a ride back to the Donnor Ski Resort so I could attempt some quick self-surgery. By now, the Donnor restaurant was packed with 10 other PCTers and everyone was drinking beers and having a great time. Unfortunately, I wasn't in a super friendly mood so I rushed to the bathroom to start scrapping away the adhesive attaching the retainer to my teeth. No matter how hard I tried, I could only cause myself more pain instead of alleviating the tension from the wire. After about 30 minutes, I decided to leave my fate in the hands of a professional. We made the decision to stay the night in Truckee so I can go see a dentist first thing in the morning.

Although we didn't really plan on coming into Truckee at all, we still had such a great day. We get to split a hotel room with another couple, Vibes and Sunshine. We got to eat at a sushi buffet! All in all, we've had a great day. I really hope I can get this retainer fixed quickly and cheaply tomorrow morning so we can get back on the trail and head to Sierra City.

South Lake Tahoe!!! Mile 1112

Written 7/24/14

Posted 7/27/14

So much foooooood!!!! Ok, we eat a lot when we get to a town stop but this one takes the cake. We have gorged ourselves on cheap Chinese, pizza, local breakfast, and a fancy casino buffet. The belly hurts just thinking about it all! I was actually looking forward to eating my healthy hiking snacks today on the trail because my tummy felt like it might explode after that buffet!!!

After the rainy afternoon that we spent 3 hours in the cave (which we later learned that the area had a tornado warning that day), we ended up hiking 9 more miles before dark to make up for lost time. We had a very wet evening, it rained in the middle of the night. We woke up at sunrise, took out our earplugs, and heard a dripping sound. We quickly realized that the ceiling of our tent was essentially raining on our sleeping bags! That was an extremely unpleasant morning because everything was so wet and it was too early for the sun to shine through the trees so we couldn't dry anything out. Mike ended up stuffing the wet tent into his backpack and hauling and extra 3 pounds of rain water up our morning climb.

There was a group of volunteers working on trail maintenance for the PCTA and they gave us some fresh apples! That was a nice surprise and they all seemed so excited and happy to talk to us about our trip. Mike and I definitely plan to give back to the PCTA and do some trail maintenance work next summer. 

We topped out our climb, dried our things, and then continued on north. There was another 1,300 foot climb later on in the day and my legs were so tired and my pace was slowing. In order to keep me motivated, Mike decided to lead  and set pace for the steep hill that was completely exposed to the sunshine. Usually I lead and Mike follows because he's a much faster hiker than I am but he slowed down and set a good pace for me. It's fun having a partner help you and push you! 

At this point we started running into a lot of day hikers from South Lake Tahoe since we were getting so close. We got our second trail angle surprise of the day when we got to the highway and the forest service volunteers gave us a bounty of fruit and sweets! The station where they were working has been very kind to PCT hikers over the last few years. In addition to the food, they also had a scale to weigh ourselves on. Mike has lost a whopping 25 pounds since the start of our hike! I've lost about 8 pounds which is exciting! It feels so good to be fit and in shape! (of course we probably gained all that weight back in town)

That night we finished only 9 miles from the highway into South Lake Tahoe (SLT). It's only a 10 mile hitch so we got to the road and stuck out our thumbs while holding a "SLT" sign. We were getting weird looks and gestures, until we figured out that we were hitching on the wrong side of the road! Once we started hitching from the eastbound side of the highway then we got a ride within 5 minutes. SLT is easily the biggest town that we'll encounter on the trail so we decided to splurge. We got ourselves a two-night stay at a swanky motel (Motel 6) and started feasting! 

SLT is a cool little mountain town and the lake is huge! The casinos are just across the border in Nevada and we couldn't pass up the chance to play a little slot machine poker! There's $2 I'll never see again...

Both Mike and I had new toys waiting for us at the SLT post office. Mike got new shoes from REI because his original pair had already blown out. Luckily REI was cool about it and gave them to him for free! I love that store! I had a new hip belt for my pack sent to SLT because my other one was too big for me now and one of the straps pulled out of its seem. Plus we got to finally mail out our bear cans. They're no longer required so we mailed them back to Mike's dad. Good riddance! Now we're each hiking with 2 pounds less!!!

We did also get to see the Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and it was pretty entertaining. We spend a lot of time on the trail talking about movies so when we get to a town with a theater it's hard to resist! Needless to say, our time in Tahoe was relaxing, entertaining, and fabulous!

This morning we said goodbye to town luxuries and got a ride back to the trail. We got dropped off at the Echo Lake Resort at 8am and hiked by several gorgeous, turquoise lakes. We're officially in the Desolation Wilderness Area now which we've heard a lot of hype about and so far it hasn't disappointed! It was a really pretty day of hiking and we're happy to be back on the trail again.

Big miles! Rainy days continue: Mile 1057

Written 7/20/14

Posted 7/22/14

Well we successfully made it over Sonora Pass and into the Northern Kennedy Meadows resort. After the hail storm deterred our initial attempt to get to NKM, we woke up 6am the next morning to regroup ourselves, dry our things, and re-attempt the pass. Once we climbed over the ridge, the trail stayed above 10,000 feet on extremely exposed barren terrain for roughly 6 miles. Needless to say, we were very glad we decided not to attempt the pass in the hail storm.

We hustled down toward the resort and caught a hitch immediately. We were eating cheeseburgers and drinking beers by noon. 

After resupplying and taking a quick shower, we decided not to stay the night and instead hitch back to the trail. After waiting 40 minutes for a ride, we got to the trailhead and hiked a quick 7.5 miles making 18 total for the day, including our 3 hour stop at NKM. We were pretty impressed with our progress!

The last two days we did 20 miles back to back since the terrain has gotten easier. This is a first for us and we'll definitely be getting to South Lake Tahoe sooner than we expected. Yesterday we caught up to our friends from Pullman, Ford and Mariah (now Ferd and Dangit). We knew that they were on the trail and that we were close to them but this was the first day we actually stumbled upon them. After recounting our stories we figured out that we almost crossed paths several times but kept missing each other in between town stops and side trips. Since they started a week before us at the exact same place where we started, this just goes to show you how close but far away you can be to other hikers. It was great seeing them and catching up with them, they're a lively couple and full of stories. We camped with them at a small lake where we had a great little campsite and enjoyed a very scenic evening. 

They are also headed to South Lake Tahoe for some time off but are moving a bit slower than us. We woke up this morning, are breakfast, and packed camp before they were even awake so hopefully they'll catch us in time to hang out in Tahoe.

Today's weather looked promising but it started thunder storming by 1p. Since we got out so early this morning we put in enough miles to find cover and wait out the storms this time. Instead of hiking sopping wet and cold, we parked ourselves underneath and enormous rock roof and caught up on the blog.

The hiking has been getting easier because it's flatter and the trail is nice and soft from all the pine needles. The views have been just as beautiful and the wild flowers are everywhere!!! We found a fantastic tree to take our lunch break on top of a ridge yesterday.

We're very excited to get in to Tahoe! Buffets, a hotel room, beds, laundry, and showers await us. Although we've been able to swim and shower the last two weeks, we haven't washed our clothes since Mammoth. So, despite how clean we may feel, I'm sure we do not smell that great. It seems like there are a lot of hikers that we know that will be in the Tahoe area so hopefully we'll run into at least a few of them. 

While in Tahoe we're going to do our first official grocery resupply. We've been picking up tips from other hikers about what meals to get from the store. Although our boxes have been great, we're ready for a change in pace of food. Mike has been getting especially sick of his breakfast routine and wrote this poem about oatmeal. 

Ode to oatmeal

O oatmeal

Mucky, muddled, mush

Drab, deplorable dullard

I curse your maker

That smug little Quaker

Who grins at my every upheaval

Though I need your nutrition

It's against my intuition

To consume your hot, instant meals

You're a culinary bore that I've come to abhor

A detestable dish that I wouldn't wish

For the next hundred years to be eaten

And try as I might

To improve every bite

My efforts are repeatedly beaten

Peanut butter and fruits cant rescue your flavor

Honey and spices won't allow me to savor

Your bland and soggy cardboard taste

And texture like paper mâché paste

Why couldn't you be a bagel, doughnut or muffin?

Even a danish, some pancakes; give me somethin'

That tingles my taste buds or makes me drool

But alas, you're just oatmeal....

Oh how I dread my next spoonful

Hail to the PCT: Mile 1008

Written: 7/17/14

Posted: 7/22/14

For the fourth time in a row we end our day in a wet tent huddled in our sleeping bags while our clothes hang to dry. The only difference of today is that it ended with us in our tent by 4pm. We had our most miserable experience to date when we got caught in a flash thunderstorm near the top of an exposed climb. Things started out warm and sunny but by 1pm it began to rain. We made it to a nice covered campsite and waited out the storm with Guy On Buffalo. Guy had started from Mexico on June 1st and had caught up with us (averaging 25 miles/day)!!!! We all stayed dry and happy and took off when the sun reappeared.

The skies looked clear as we continued our climb, then all of a sudden it got dark and very windy. Mike and I decided to take cover in a small grove of trees which were becoming considerably more scarce while Guy pressed on. As soon as we took refuge and nestled in the trees, the rain started back up and quickly progressed into hail. This was almost comical at first but the hail continued to come down harder and larger. After about 15 minutes of getting pummeled with now marble sized hail it wasn't looking like it was going to pass in the near future. When a bolt of lightning struck near the top of the ridge, we decided to make for lower, less exposed ground and immediately scrambled down the hill. Another 15 minutes and the hail had subsided and turned back to rain and the storm seemed to be over. We were cold and a bit shaken but decided to press on since the horizon looked less cloudy. The trail was completely covered in a layer of hail, making it look like it had just snowed; not something we anticipated in mid-July. After walking for about five minutes the skies turned grey again and we heard more thunder; this is when we decided to call it a day. We hurried back down the switch-backs for about a mile down canyon and set up shop. This is the first time we were forced to turn around and retrace our steps on the PCT but it was definitely the right decision. Our stuff was wet but we got our tent up in a good site and are relatively comfy. Things could've gotten ugly had we continued, and we're hoping that Guy made it safely over the ridge. That was easily the most danger we felt since we started hiking but we were able to get out of the storm quickly and safely. I wish we had the time to take pictures of the storm in progress but it was so crazy!!! Here's a picture from just before the hail storm:

We started the day in happier spirits, as we officially left Yosemite's boundaries and passed PCT mile 1000 (our 350th mile)!!!! 

The scenery has already started changing pretty dramatically as it's turning more desert like again. The hiking is getting easier since the ups and downs are smaller. If the weather cooperates and the miles remain this mellow, we'll be in South Lake Tahoe in no time!!! Our fingers are crossed that we get a dry day tomorrow. We only have 10 miles until we get to Northern Kennedy Meadows resort where our next resupply and perhaps a rib-dinner await! 

Here are some pics of the sunset at our camp last night:

Wet, wet, wet: Mile 978

Written 7/15/14

Posted 7/22/14

It feels more like a day spent in the Pacific Northwest than in Central California. We walked through hail, rain, and thunderstorms today. We did manage to still hike 18 miles despite the bad weather. After descending 2,000 feet this morning, we climbed up 1,500 feet to Benson Pass. The heat and humidity this morning was wretched and we were looking forward to jumping in Benson Lake in the afternoon.

As we were coming down from Benson Pass, we bumped into a bunch of people doing trail maintenance on the STEEPEST DOWNHILL EVER!!!! We stepped down 3,000 vertical feet over the course of 4 miles. It was pretty awful and our knees were crying for it to stop. About halfway down the climb we bumped into Lady Mac and Gourmet. We hadn't seen them since Yosemite Valley so we chatted and had some snacks. While we were resting, we heard some thunder and saw some very large ominous clouds heading our way. Mike and I left and started racing to get to the bottom. The clouds caught up with us and soon we were in a downright windy, cold hail storm! We finally got to the bottom of the descent and took refuge under some massive pines while we filtered more water.

We started climbing to the next pass and bumped into a very long winded couple from the south. They were talking to us about how they were going to do the PCT this summer but couldn't because of various obligations. Most of the time I enjoy chatting with people on the trail but in this instance I just wanted to climb up the hill before it started raining again! After they finished telling us about their retirement plans, we finally made our way up the climb. Shortly after, it started raining again! We got to the top of the climb and sat under some trees while we waited for the rain to stop. At this point I was pretty cold, soaking wet, and extremely hungry. It was still only 4pm so we couldn't justify stopping for the day. We struggled through the last 3 miles and finally made it to camp.

We quickly set up the tent, made dinner, and filtered water before the next downpour started. Luckily we were able to get all of our chores done and now we're laying in the tent watching it fight against the wind while getting pounded with rain. The roof makes a perfect rain funnel as a large pool of water keeps collecting and bowing in the roof. I sure hope we don't wake up in the middle of the night to a tidal pool of water after the tent has reached it's maximum capacity.

Today I had two very unpleasant things happen. First, I was trying to pee at some point while it was raining and a mosquito bit me right in the crotch! I've had mosquitos bite me on the butt, and this is WAY worse!!! Second, I got a super gnarly blister on my big toe. We haven't posted any nasty pictures of blisters yet, so here you go! 

Hopefully tomorrow will allow us to dry out our stuff and won't be as difficult as today! 

Goodbye crowds, hello PCT: Mile 960

Written 7/14/14

Posted 7/22/14

Right now we're laying in a rain coated tent for the second time. Fortunately, the rain started tonight just moments after we arrived at our campsite so we were able to stay completely dry. We've been hearing the sounds of thunder for most of our hike today as the storm seemed to chase us. We thought that we were going to avoid adverse weather but it caught us in the end. 

Today we finally got back on the PCT after our five day hiatus; the last three of which were zero days. Our time in Yosemite Valley was very relaxing. On Friday, the day after we got down from Half Dome, we rested our weary bodies and took the day easy. We spent most of it being tourists; perusing the visitor's center museum and village art gallery and of course stuffed ourselves silly. Our fine dining experience included an 8-pack feast of ballpark franks roasted on sticks, adorned with stolen condiments.

The next morning Mike's dad payed us a visit and delivered us more goodies. Subway sandwiches, a cooler full of fresh fruit, and a schmorgasborg of desserts. He stuck around for the rest of the afternoon and we did a little day-hiking, mostly to waterfalls that were not flowing due to the draught. It was so great to see a familiar face and catch up with the outside world! Thanks for all the awesome food, Tom and Diane!

Since the Tuolumne post office was closed for the weekend and we couldn't get our resupply box till Monday, we decided to stick around the Valley for the World Cup finals. We found a hotel bar that was playing the game. When we showed up a half hour before the bar opened to ensure a decent seat, we found a line of Argentinians eagerly awaiting admittance. The cool thing about being in a National Park for something like the World Cup finals is that there are such a collection of ethnicities present. We got to watch the game with fans from both representative countries in a packed bar which made it all the more lively and exciting. It was a great game and although we missed most of the World Cup, it was nice to have a beer and watch the final match so we felt like we were a small part of it.

We were going to catch a shuttle bus from the Valley back to Tuolumne, where our resupply box awaited. But since we had a few hours to kill before the bus arrived, we decided to try to hitch. This isn't necessarily the easiest task, since it's a 60 mile drive and the cities that most people are going to are in the opposite direction. However, within 10 minutes a pair of guys from LA pulled over and picked us up and drove us the whole way there. They were really nice but they either didn't realize how out of the way this was for them or they just didn't care. Either way, they saved us some bus fare and made our day! We got back to Tuolumne hours before the shuttle would have arrived so we set up camp and got a good night's rest. 

We were really anxious to get hiking today  but we had a delayed start because the Tuolumne post office didn't open till 9am!!! Despite our tardy start, we put in some fast tracks making it 18 miles to a gorgeous lake. (Side note: I just had a minor freak out because a deer was making quite a bit of ruckus only 5 feet from our tent!) Anyway, we're so excited to be back on the PCT again. We just bagged our 300th PCT mile today and today marks the start of the fifth week on the trail. We probably lost pace with all the people we had interacted with so far on the trail due to our log detour but we met a lot of new hikers today. Looking forward to getting to know these folks better as we march our way north!

Rainy days and bear captures: Mile 942.5

Written 7/11/14

Posted 7/11/14

First I want to give a shout out to Mike's mom. She sent us a care package stacked full of yummy homemade cookie bars that we snacked on at every trail break. Thank you Barb!!! This was our first care package on the trail and it was so exciting to get some fresh goodies!

Before we left mammoth we swapped out our homemade  tarp tent with our fancy new FlyLite tent from MSR. For those of you who don't know the story, one of my Seattle friends put me in contact with one of the R&D members of Cascade Designs who are in the process of making one of the first ultra light weight tents on the market designed for thru hikes. They gave us a prototype to try out on our trip, so we are officially product testing the FlyLite tent! It was put to the test immediately because we experienced our first rain on the trail the day we left Mammoth. We finished our hike in the rain and attempted to set up the new tent for the first time. For future reference, I would definitely learn how to set up your tent before it's pouring rain and mosquitos are swarming you because it took us about 30 minutes to figure out how this new tent works. Once we got it setup we climbed inside, still soaking wet, closed the door and proceeded to kill the mosquitos that got inside (our normal nightly routine). One good thing about a storm is the cool colors in the sky.

We woke up the next morning fairly early because we were soaking wet from all the condensation that had built up inside the tent. We laid out our sleeping bags and backpacks on the rocks and are some breakfast while we let our things dry out. I was a little discouraged by the tent performance the first night but wasn't willing to give up on the FlyLite quite yet. Luckily it hasn't rained again and we've grown to like the tent the past 3 nights. It has tons of space inside, is a breeze to set up, and it's super light (lighter than our tarp tent!).  But we still prefer ours.

After we left Mammoth we rushed to our next stop, Tuolume Meadows, in two days. The terrain is getting easier so we were able to cruise through those 36 miles and arrived earlier than planned. They had an amazingly well stocked

grocery store, so we spoiled ourselves with fresh strawberries, chips, and beer. We bumped into a few friends there and had a fun night at the backpackers campground. We joined Story-teller, Tasty, and Crawfish around the campfire for some beers and stayed awake till 10pm! That may be the latest we've stayed up in the last 4 weeks!

From Tuolome Meadows, we wanted to depart from the PCT to take a side trip to Yosemite Valley. It's a bit out of the way, but we were so close that we couldn't pass up leaving the mountains just yet. We got permits to do a single-night trip to hike into the valley and we chose a short 17 mile course. We ascended up to Cloud's Rest the first day which stands at 9,900 feet; one of the highest points in the area, towering above the valley floor. Cloud's Rest is a popular day hiking destination but we were zooming by the day hikers with our strong PCT legs hauling our backpacks. It feels so good to be super strong! Cloud's Rest was well worth the climb, the views were amazing! 

That night we camped near the trail junction to Half Dome, the other destination we had lined up. The ranger that gave us our permit warned us that where we were staying has some of the highest bear activity in Yosemite, which we were naturally very excited to hear since we hadn't seen one yet. As soon as we got to our campsite, a ranger greeted us and informed us that the bear management team was camping nearby tonight. There were reports of a pesky bear that had been getting ino people's food and possibly nosing around in their tents and they were there to try and capture said bear!  Their plan was to leave a messy campsite to lure the bear in, then dart it with a sedative so they could tag and place a radio collar on it to track it's whereabouts and behavior. At first they told us to stay in our site and yell if we saw the bear, and basically stay out of their way as to not interfere with the process. But wouldn't you know it, Miss Problem Bear was spotted about 50  yards from our campsite, and that's where they darted her! 

Mike and I were laying in our tent, playing cards, when all of a sudden we heard four sets of feet rushing by our tent into the woods. After the bear was properly sedated, they came over and told us that would could gather round and watch if we wanted. Of course we rushed over, and Mike and I, plus about 6 other lucky campers, got quite a show. It was a 175 lb female black bear, which wasn't all that menacing up close, although she was unconscious. The lead team biologist was really cool and let us get within a few feet of the procedure, and gave us the play by play of what was going on. They put tags on both her ears, a microchip in the scruff of her neck, and a GPS radiocollar necklace. They also took skin, hair, and blood samples for analysis. 

Although it was cool to see all this happen up close, we couldn't help but feel bad for the bear. All this poking, prodding, and attaching seemed pretty invasive and excessive, but we were told it was for her own good. If they couldn't change her behavior of making her rounds from campsite to campsite every night, which seemed to be her routine, she likely would start getting aggressive towards people, which would end in her euthanization. It's just kind of sad that that is the course of action they have to take. Although it's the protocol for saving a "problem bear's" life, it's the fault of sloppy campers that caused her behavior. A few careless people that didn't properly store their food in a way that bears can't get it (something you're supposed to be trained for before being issued a backcountry permit) gave this bear a taste for human food. And that's why she's been stopping by these campsites, and ultimately might be responsible for her demise. It must be a frustrating job being a part of bear management in the area, as they are likely fighting a losing battle in educating people on camping etiquette in bear country.  Anyway, they finished their work and let the bear sleep off the drugs and be in peace. This was a very unique event to witness and we feel privileged for that, but we hope the next bear we encounter will be wild and in their element. 

The next morning we got up early and started the short 2.5 mile climb up to Half Dome. We wanted to beat the crowds to the cables so we could climb in peace. With our light day packs we cruised to the top in about an hour and a half. The cables were steeper than I remembered, and the rock was more slick than I remembered.

It was pretty frightenening because it was so exposed and dangerous. I kept thinking "how did my mom ever let me do this when I was little!?!?" But we made it up and down safe by 9am, before the big rush of people started the cables.

Last night we stayed in the backpackers camp in Yosemite Valley, which we'll be calling home for the next 3 nights! We have a long layover here because we'll be hanging out with Mike's dad tomorrow all day and then hanging around to watch the World Cup Finals on Sunday! There are a ton of tourists in the Valley but we're doing our best to fit in. We even took showers this morning! Oh man it feels good to be "clean" again. Looking forward to being real people for a few days before heading back to the PCT.

Leaving the Sierras: Mile 898

Well, we're checking in from Mammoth Lakes after a well deserved zero-day. We arrived here, by chance, ahead of schedule. After taking a side trail to check out an afternoon swimming spot, we accidentally discovered a shortcut to Mammoth that wasn't mentioned in our trail guide and saved us a shuttle ride into town. We didn't splurge for a hotel room this time since we arrived Saturday night and there was no room at any inn or campground! Much to our surprise, you can camp for free outside the established campgrounds since Mammoth is situated within a national forest (as long as you're 2 miles outside of town). So, to save money we pitched a tent as if we were on the trail and walked into town as necessary. Mammoth is a cool little mountain town that has no shortage of great eateries, bars, and shops. They have a great free public transportation system that makes getting around town a breeze for hikers. Our first night we stuffed ourselves with delicious pizza and salad, something we had been craving since Independence. We then stopped by the local bakery for a variety of desserts, including a slice of carrot cake! 

We rounded out the night by checking out the local brewery, Mammoth Brewing Company.

On our way down from Washington we had met a former Mammoth resident named Mark while we were climbing Mount Shasta. He had given us the key code to the pool and hot tub area of his condo complex. To our delight, the code worked on the night that we arrived and we found that we had access not only to a pool but also showers and laundry! Score!!! This was going to serve as a one stop shop for all of our errands and save us a bunch of money. When we came back the next morning to take advantage of all of these amenities, we found that the code changed!! Perhaps the presence of two dirty, shady, unfamiliar characters aroused suspicion from the condominium residents. Our thrifty plan was totally ruined. We still got to use the laundry but we had to pay for showers at the RV park and we didn't get to swim :( We also got to go to the movies and grocery shop like real people. Even though we feel like we have a pretty loose budget, we're finding it easy to spend more than we would like in this tourist town. Food and entertainment bills rack up quickly, especially when you can eat like a horse.

The last few days on the trail went by really quickly. The elevation changes are gradually becoming smaller as we make our way out of the high Sierras. We finished two of the last major passes, Seldon and Silver. The only pass we have left is Donohue which will be the last time we'll be above 11,000 feet for quite some time. The major passes all started blurring together at the end but we came up with a little lymeric to keep them in order:

For Glenn, Pinching Mattered More, So Sylvia Departed.

(Forester, Glenn, Pinchot, Mather, Muir, Seldon, Silver, Donohue)

As hard as these climbs are, we're going to be sad to be leaving the Sierras and the alpine landscapes. 

We'll be leaving Mammoth tomorrow morning after we make a quick stop at the post office. We'll be picking up the new FlyLite tent sent to us from the guys at MSR. We're sad to have our last night in our homemade tarp tent tonight but excited to product test a new system.

The next stretch of the trail will take us into Tuolomne Meadows, where we'll be hiking a 20-mile detour into Yosemite Valley and up Half Dome. Although the PCT doesn't go to Yosemite Valley, we have enough time and energy to make the trip so we may as well!