Day 1 out of Kennedy:
*Although always difficult to leave the comforts of town, we nevertheless entered into the magical mountains of the High Seirrras, filled with meadows wildflowers, and unfortunately, thunderheads. We lost Todd in a rainstorm, but when the coulds parted, we found ourselves camping at 10,000 feet to majestic views of snow capped peaks above, and glistening meadows below.
Day 2 out of Kennedy:
*We know, we know, only our 2nd day out and we're headed back to town-Lone Pine, known for its Alabama Hills, the set for many of our familiar westerns. But at least we hiked 23 miles to get there and when we reached Horseshoe Meadows, the place we needed to hitch from to get to Lone Pine, 20 miles away and 6,000 ft. less in elevation, we found no one but a few weekend campers. We waited for an hour and a half, and our last car, a minivan filled with 2 kids and a dog, stopped to pick us up. Thank you Scott, your wife, owen and cash! (Ben's famous last words: "That's a minivan and they have kids. They won't pick up a bunch of scummy, scary dudes like us." He was wrong).
*We know, we know, only our 2nd day out and we're headed back to town-Lone Pine, known for its Alabama Hills, the set for many of our familiar westerns. But at least we hiked 23 miles to get there and when we reached Horseshoe Meadows, the place we needed to hitch from to get to Lone Pine, 20 miles away and 6,000 ft. less in elevation, we found no one but a few weekend campers. We waited for an hour and a half, and our last car, a minivan filled with 2 kids and a dog, stopped to pick us up. Thank you Scott, your wife, owen and cash! (Ben's famous last words: "That's a minivan and they have kids. They won't pick up a bunch of scummy, scary dudes like us." He was wrong).
Day 3 out of Kennedy:
*Well, if hitching into town was difficult, how about hitching out. 5 hours, and 3 different hitches later, we made it back to the trail in the bed of a pick-up. Yes, we froze our buns off zooming up to 10,000 ft. at dusk, yes, our legs fell asleep as we crammed in amongst horse saddles and camp gear, but yes, we also made it back to the PCT. On another note: We believe gaining altitude invokes flatulence. Anecdotally, this proves true. Scientifically, we also believes this proves true because pressure builds at higher elevations. Shadow thinks it's because we ate velveeta shells and cheese that night, but we think Shadow is just shy about his own flatulated condition.
*Well, if hitching into town was difficult, how about hitching out. 5 hours, and 3 different hitches later, we made it back to the trail in the bed of a pick-up. Yes, we froze our buns off zooming up to 10,000 ft. at dusk, yes, our legs fell asleep as we crammed in amongst horse saddles and camp gear, but yes, we also made it back to the PCT. On another note: We believe gaining altitude invokes flatulence. Anecdotally, this proves true. Scientifically, we also believes this proves true because pressure builds at higher elevations. Shadow thinks it's because we ate velveeta shells and cheese that night, but we think Shadow is just shy about his own flatulated condition.
Day 4 out of Kennedy:
*Hail Mt. Whitney! A beautiful day, some serious river fords, our first alpine lake, a team of horses and riders(very western) and we reached Crabtree Meadows ranger station, our base camp for Mt. Whitney. Tomorrow, we climb to the top of the contiguous United States.
*Hail Mt. Whitney! A beautiful day, some serious river fords, our first alpine lake, a team of horses and riders(very western) and we reached Crabtree Meadows ranger station, our base camp for Mt. Whitney. Tomorrow, we climb to the top of the contiguous United States.
Day 5 out of Kennedy:
*Happy Father's Day! And on such a glorious day, we awoke at 5 am to frozen water bottles, excited, yet slightly apprehensive about our 4,000 ft. climb. As for Whitney, it's almost too difficult to describe. But we climbed over snowfields and felt like true mountaineers-albeit, without any true mountaineering gear (those at the summit with ice axes, crampons, and big puffy jackets looked quite impressive).
*Happy Father's Day! And on such a glorious day, we awoke at 5 am to frozen water bottles, excited, yet slightly apprehensive about our 4,000 ft. climb. As for Whitney, it's almost too difficult to describe. But we climbed over snowfields and felt like true mountaineers-albeit, without any true mountaineering gear (those at the summit with ice axes, crampons, and big puffy jackets looked quite impressive).
*Not only were our water bottles frozen, so were my shoes. After banging them on a rock for 15-20 minutes I was off to follow Ben, Shadow, and Rocketman to the top of Mt. Whitney's 14,496.811 ft summit. All the hard work was worth it, I even didn't mind getting ridiculed for wearing my straw beach hat all the way to the top.
Day 6 out of Kennedy:
*What do you do when fear stares you in the face? Sled down that motha! We reached Forrester Day, an infamous mountain pass due to sheer size and difficulty. We climbed for close to 9 miles over alien territory (snow and rock and a few marmots) to this tiny notch separating 2 mountain peaks. At the top shadow and Ben raced down the snowfield on the back side of the mountain, clutching their sleeping pads beneath them. Paul followed behind on his butt, a method called glissading in alpine climbing terminology.
*What do you do when fear stares you in the face? Sled down that motha! We reached Forrester Day, an infamous mountain pass due to sheer size and difficulty. We climbed for close to 9 miles over alien territory (snow and rock and a few marmots) to this tiny notch separating 2 mountain peaks. At the top shadow and Ben raced down the snowfield on the back side of the mountain, clutching their sleeping pads beneath them. Paul followed behind on his butt, a method called glissading in alpine climbing terminology.
*If it had been a 3 way race, Paul would have blown the other two out of the water. A soaking wet rear end is a small price to pay for possibly breaking a record for speed and distance.
Day 7 out of Kennedy:
*Cliff jumping into alpine lakes, traversing snowy passes, and strolling through meadows of wildflowers foregrounding expansive mountain vistas, need we say more?
*Cliff jumping into alpine lakes, traversing snowy passes, and strolling through meadows of wildflowers foregrounding expansive mountain vistas, need we say more?
*Who would have thought that a lake at 10,000 ft elevation being fed by waterfalls from melting snowcaps would have been so cold? We were only able to recruit one other hiker to j ump in too. Itwasn't too much worse than Lake Superior. We are now playing a nightly lottery of whether or not Ben will have to sleep in my tent with me. One of his tent poles is broken and he claims that if it comes down in the middle of the night, he's going to crawl in with me. I, in the meantime, am figuring out a way to lock the door at night.
Day 8 out of the Kennedy:
*What is the quickest way to get down the side of a mountain? That's right, on your bum. After a strenuous morning mountain pass, Ben and Paul decided to have some fun on the second pass of the day. And so, they slid down the mountain on their bums, and had wet asses for hours. However, due to a late afternoon descent, there was some serious post holing. Consensus: Glissading, most excellent; post-holing, less than most excellent.
*What is the quickest way to get down the side of a mountain? That's right, on your bum. After a strenuous morning mountain pass, Ben and Paul decided to have some fun on the second pass of the day. And so, they slid down the mountain on their bums, and had wet asses for hours. However, due to a late afternoon descent, there was some serious post holing. Consensus: Glissading, most excellent; post-holing, less than most excellent.
Day 9 out of Kennedy:
*Post-holing: when walking along a snowfield and your foot or entire leg break through the soft snow creating a "post-hole."
*Post-holing: when walking along a snowfield and your foot or entire leg break through the soft snow creating a "post-hole."
Post-holing mania: when you decide to traverse a pass during late afternoon and every step becomes a post-hole. This includes, but is not limited to, snow bridges over rivers, shores of lakes covered in snow, and gaps between huge boulders.
Day 10 out of Kennedy:
*The world works in mysterious ways. Ben and Paul decided to chance their resupply through the Sierras with a hiker box (surplus hiker food) at Muir Trail Ranch. Well, word on the trail was the box was empty. However, on the morning they were set to arrive at the ranch, Ben came to a river ford to find two hikers in distress. One of them lost a boot in the river. Ben offered to scan the shore, spotted the boot caught on a log on the opposite shore, and Paul showed up just in time to retrieve it. The pay-back--cous cous for days!! SSN: Awesome!
*The world works in mysterious ways. Ben and Paul decided to chance their resupply through the Sierras with a hiker box (surplus hiker food) at Muir Trail Ranch. Well, word on the trail was the box was empty. However, on the morning they were set to arrive at the ranch, Ben came to a river ford to find two hikers in distress. One of them lost a boot in the river. Ben offered to scan the shore, spotted the boot caught on a log on the opposite shore, and Paul showed up just in time to retrieve it. The pay-back--cous cous for days!! SSN: Awesome!
Day 11 out of Kennedy:
*With a full stash of food, Ben and Paul began the day in high spirits and celebrated their good fortune with a nice long lunch(Ben-refried beans, Paul-red beans and rice). No worries to be had. Meanwhile, one mile up the trail and unbeknownst to either Ben or Paul, an older gentleman named Bill Sullivan was sitting in the shade of a sole pine tree. Why? Because he had just broken his ankle. He sat there hoping and waiting for someone to pass; Ben and Paul basked in the sun. Sorry Bill. But when we did find him, we shared our cell phones and we shared some conversation (to keep his mind off the problem at hand), and before we knew it, a helicopter circled above preparing to evacuate Bill. Good luck Bill!
*With a full stash of food, Ben and Paul began the day in high spirits and celebrated their good fortune with a nice long lunch(Ben-refried beans, Paul-red beans and rice). No worries to be had. Meanwhile, one mile up the trail and unbeknownst to either Ben or Paul, an older gentleman named Bill Sullivan was sitting in the shade of a sole pine tree. Why? Because he had just broken his ankle. He sat there hoping and waiting for someone to pass; Ben and Paul basked in the sun. Sorry Bill. But when we did find him, we shared our cell phones and we shared some conversation (to keep his mind off the problem at hand), and before we knew it, a helicopter circled above preparing to evacuate Bill. Good luck Bill!
Day 12 out of Kennedy:
*Headed for Reds Meadow for a meal and some resupply. A great day besides for Ben's poor decision eating 16 dried mangos, all for himself, none for Paul. He paid for it by digging cat holes all morning.
*Headed for Reds Meadow for a meal and some resupply. A great day besides for Ben's poor decision eating 16 dried mangos, all for himself, none for Paul. He paid for it by digging cat holes all morning.
Day 13 out of Kennedy:
*A few days to relax in the woods, visiting lakes, swimming, dipping candy bars into jars of peanut butter , and cooking dinner under makeshift shelters to combat afternoon thunderstorms.
*A few days to relax in the woods, visiting lakes, swimming, dipping candy bars into jars of peanut butter , and cooking dinner under makeshift shelters to combat afternoon thunderstorms.
Ben, how have you made it to the age that you are?
ReplyDeleteYour cousin Al