We woke up at 6am and left our campsite by 7am. It really doesn't take an hour to pack but we lay in bed too long thinking about getting up before actually doing it. This was our earliest morning yet. We knew we had a really bug day and a great reward ahead of us. Thankfully, we had actually camped farther down the trail then we had thought, only 2 miles from the Big Meadows trailhead. We crossed Hwy 89 and continued for another mile or so for BF.
My spirits were way down after BF. I had a bad cliff bar (cookies and cream) and then my stomach just could not handle the oatmeal. My knees had been giving me trouble, even with the help of the hiking poles. The terrain was flat for once, but I just could not get going fast. Grant was somewhat annoyed with me. Frustration, pain, lack of energy caused me to through down my bag, take off my shoes, eat GORP, and start crying. (it is amazing, all these emotions and basically, I was just hungry). It is in these moments that Grant shows how amazing his love is. So patient and giving. He carried my backpack on his front for the next 30 mins on a very flat section of the Pacific Crest Trail (the TRT piggy-backs on the PCT for the west side of the lake)
We crossed many streams/headwaters of the Truckee River. There was no more taking off the shoes for the crossings, there were just so many of them that I just told myself that I was going to get wet and dirty... I would have a shower that night.
We ate lunch at Showers Lake, which really did sound like a shower because of the wind and the snow melt trickling down the rock walls which made a C shape around one side of the lake. This is where the trail started to get tricky...
Snow patches became more frequent. At times, the snow was so thick that we lost the trail. This is when your other senses come into play. Did you notice that there were signs on the trees? Did you notice that there seems to be rectangles carved out of the trees every now and then? Oh look, there, where the log has been cut. Look I see footprints. Plus we had the map and compass. We had steep downhills by a waterfall, a very serious steep snow crossing that ended with a "I just need to hold you, I am so glad that we didn't fall to our death" embrace. Bursts of energy came out of no where that kept us bookin' as fast as we could. We got real good at boot skiing.
As we got closer to the next trailhead, there were several trail crossings and signs that rallied us on. We came up on Echo Summit Trailhead to find a search and rescue squad in full force. They were organizing the troops of volunteers looking for a older mountain biker with some mental problems who had disappeared the previous day or so. We didn't ask anyone anything. We just used the outhouse, sat down on a rock, ate a snack and watched for a few moments. Only 1.5 miles to the Chalet. Can I say it again? Only 1.5 miles to a building where I can sleep in a bed, clean up, and rest for the next 24 hours.
At 8:15pm (after 13 hours on the trail) we landed at Echo Chalet. Showers, Dinner (the best quesadillas ever!), Washing ALL of our clothes, (which meant sleeping naked), Body Massages (and other activities) to Celebrate our HARDEST day on the trail.
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