Miles hiked: 22.
Crossed over a wood and cable suspension bridge first thing this morning to get across Woods Creek. Right on the other side was the mile 800 marker; pretty cool to have walked that far. The trail climbed up along Woods Creek, which flowed over long slip'n'slide slabs of granite and pouring into deep pools. Then all of a sudden the rock changed from light to dark and the creek began plunging over 10-20 foot cascades. The trail continued up past Twin Lakes, in a basin surrounded by high jagged red and black peaks and inhabited by hordes of ravenous mosquitoes that made for quick walking.
The peaks surrounding Pinchot Pass are stunning and unlike anything else I've seen in the Sierra; steep and angular and in various hues of red and orange. On the lower flanks where the ground levels off some, grassy meadows are dotted with tarns and cut by meandering little trickles of snowmelt.
From the top of Pinchot, I could look north toward familiar country, into Upper Basin, which the PCT goes through, and also toward the pass that leads in to Lakes Basin, which I travelled through on a trip 5 or 6 years ago. That pass coming out of Lakes Basin into this fork of the Kings River is where the old route of the JMT is, from before they carved a path up Mather Pass.
Mather is my next major landmark for the day, and to get there I first drop down off of Pinchot, trekking poles clicking softly through talus and boulders then along the grassy shores of Lake Marjorie and her neighbors, and finally down through Lodgepole pine to the Kings River. After a short rest and crossing the river on some fallen logs, the process was reversed as I headed back up into Upper Basin. The climb was gradual but I was tired, having stayed up past my bed time last night. But I was also on a little bit of a schedule to get to VVR to meet Libby and also before my food ran out. So I plodded on, up into he alpine wonderland around treeline, rock-hopping little streams and dodging south bound JMTers. Before the final climb up he headwall of the pass, I found a flat rock along the shore of a little tarn and took a quick nap while Rosy-finches twittered around me. I woke feeling much better and decided that I wasn't also feeling tired from rationing my food a little. The climb up the Mather switchbacks was easier than I remembered, and only a half hour later I was at the top looking at that stunning view of the Palisade Crest jutting up over 14,000 feet right above the two lakes that share the same name.
On down the steep northern side of Mather, looking out over successive terminal moraines from the old glaciers. My knees are starting to feel the miles and two passes of the day, and I'm trying to take it slow for their sake, but also know that the Palisade Lakes are farther away than they look, and I won't have dinner until I get down there. It's incredible how one's perspective is tested in this landscape; from the pass it seems like you could practically throw a rock into Upper Palisade Lake, but it's really still an hour of hiking away.
Finally to the granite slabs at the outflow of Lower Palisade Lake, just before the water and trail both plunge 1,500 feet down into the lower Palisade Creek canyon. I decide that if I can make and eat dinner efficiently I will try to get another mile or two done before bedtime, remembering a couple little bivy spots along the switchbacks coming up. The setting sun pinkens the Palisades as I spoon mashed potatoes and vegetables with bacon bits, olive oil, and Parmesan cheese mixed in. With a full belly I packed up and headed out into the fading light, with the high peaks still glowing, and the trail miraculously switchbacking down what is practically a cliff. I only made it about 1.5 miles before I started to get into the mosquito zone. I rolled out my bed on a little ledge where it looked like many PCTers have slept before. I cleaned my feet and had a little snack then went right to sleep, not even trying to do my journaling tonight. 22 miles in the Sierra makes one tired.
Birds:
Stellar's Jay
American Robin
Hairy Woodpecker
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Olive-sided Flycatcher
Fox Sparrow
Warbling Vireo
Oregon Junco
Mountain Chickadee
Wilson's Warbler
Sooty Grouse
Brown Creeper
Clark's Nutcracker
Cassin's Finch
White-crowned Sparrow
Hammond's Flycatcher
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Gray-crowned Rosy-finch
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