Day 76, July 2: Mile 1053 to 1077
Start: Mile 1053.2
End: Mile 1076.9
Miles: 23.7
Ascent: 4250 | Descent: 4596
I woke up in a very crabby mood as the wind had blown sand and grit onto everything in my tent overnight. I also did not sleep well, and hit snooze multiple times. All I wanted to do was sleep in, but I finally got myself up and going.
I put in my audiobook and tried to let the bad mood wash off of me. It worked for the most part, and I was soon happily taking in the beautiful scenery, which was very different from much of what we had seen lately. Some of it reminded me of Joshua Tree NP. Some of the multicolored hues were unlike anything I think I’ve ever seen. There were so many beautiful wildflowers, and my allergies gave me a sneezing fit that confirmed it.
The group, with whom I had been leapfrogging, caught up at the top of a small pass. A random hiker caught up to us and asked us if we knew about the trail magic coming up. No! we answered. He told us where it was, we confirmed on FarOut that it was only in 2.5 more miles, and we hurried off towards the promise of burgers, beer, margaritas, and more.
We came to a campground and it was a bit tricky to find the trail magic, but we finally did. It was hosted by Chanelle (who started her thru hike in 2020 but got off trail due to Covid) and Jake. They were camped out with a group of friends right on the shoreline to Lower Sunset Lake. Their setup looked like so much fun! They handed out hot chocolates with Bailey’s, White Claws, beer, chips and pasta salad. Unfortunately, hikers had completely cleared them out of burgers and any more substantial food the day before, but we were still so grateful for what they gave us. They also had three cute dogs; my favorite was Layla, who was an expert at fetch.
Reluctantly, we finally peeled ourselves away from the comfortable camp chairs, the music, the vibes. We thanked them again and started back towards the trail.
The next section wound through more hilly trees and boulders. I caught up with Jukebox, who I had met at Kennedy Meadows South, and his friend Flava Flav and I hiked with them for a bit, chatting.
Then came a big climb up to a windy ridge. There were beautiful lakes below, but I was frankly very tired of dealing with intense wind, so I got a bit cranky again. And my Achilles started hurting a bit but I just put my head down and cruised along as best I could.
I made the final climb up to Carson Pass. There was one snow field on the climb up that sketched me out as a slip would mean a fall down a steep rocky gully off the side of the mountain. Luckily, I was able to climb up and around the snowfield so I didn’t risk it. Others had left shoe prints in the snow but I didn’t feel comfortable so I didn’t.
Finally I made it to the highway near which the group was planning to camp. It was strange to see so many cars and a major mountain highway. I have a feeling this is just the beginning of the shock I will feel going into Lake Tahoe on the Fourth of July.
I hiked just past the parking area and found my friends. Thank goodness, I was exhausted. Many of them were done with dinner but some were still eating and hanging out, so I joined them and cooked, ate, cleaned up and got ready for bed as fast as I could. It’s supposed to get chilly tonight so I will be bundling up. Night!