I’ll take a moment to thank my mom, sister, daughter, and sons for their emotional support in phone calls over the course of this adventure so far. It has kept us (me) on trail. I’d like to thank our sons for their support getting us our gear, running to GGG and shipping and receiving. I’d like to thank the countless members of our village who are covering in our absence and making it easier on our family.

This adventure is hard and long, but we’ll be home before we know it. In the mean time, Bob and I are doing the work, seeing the sights, meeting the people and altogether, in the end, enjoying the experience.

Day 48

4.70 // 707.8

Kennedy Meadows was a big stop for us. It was a huge accomplishment and milestone. We arrived yesterday at 8:30 AM. And are leaving today at 6:30 PM. We had a lot of gear switch. We had the boys send us our bear cans and a Z rest, Bob’s ULA Circuit backpack because his current backpack is not big enough to accommodate the bear can. We got hoodies ordered and delivered, I got new insoles, and Bob got new poles. We did laundry, took showers, resupplied, got all of our chores taken care of and wanted to get back on the trail because it’s not as fun to take a zero in a tent, even when all your needs are getting met. It was hot. And we can’t escape the heat so we are anxious to get back on the trail. When Bob was trying to get his UL circuit fitted for the bear can he broke the frame. This was at 4:15pm so he still was able to run to 2 Foot Adventures (two trailers on the KM parking lot full of everything hikers need) and buy a backpack, and we are able to package up and send home the ULA Circuit. It was a last-minute switch with lots of gear changing. We will be learning how to set up and pack up in a different way now with these bear cans and with Bob’s new backpack. We are just wanting to get some miles under our belt get back on the trail. We found a great spot. We are camping alone. We hiked from 6:30-8 pm and got just under 5 miles. It’s already beautiful.

Day 49

18.07 // 725.4

Bob and I both slept lightly last night. It was a great spot, but the moon was very bright all night. We got up and going by 6:30am. This time I put all the food in the bear can and put it inside my pack, then filled things on the side. I ended up putting the tent on the outside of the pack because I couldn’t get my pack closed. We went .4 miles to the water source and filtered 2 L. We will probably be able to carry just 2 L while we’re in the Sierra’s depending on conditions. The forest this morning was lovely. It’s exactly what you hope for. It’s cool, it’s shaded, it’s rocky. There are new sounds today. Different birds (no I don’t know which ones), cicadas, and things like that. It was interesting that we noticed. We did do a lot of elevation gain today. We took a break at the South Fork Kern River at mile 10. This break was lovely as we were able to get in the water and sit on the sandy bottom. It was cold but not too cold. Many people were congregating there overtime. We were there about an hour and then we decided to get back on trail at about noon. We were only on trail for about an hour before Bob realized he needed to nap. He’s been feeling not as strong today. Not sure if it was sleep deprivation or lack of enough calories yesterday. He felt drowsy so at about 1 o’clock we found some shade underneath a big pine tree and took a nap. It helped enough to get us back on our feet and back on the trail. We then needed to climb. Over the next 8 miles we climbed 3000 feet from 7000 to where we set up camp which is at the summit at 10,550 feet. It’s been a while since we’ve been this high up and it did take a bit of extra energy to get us up here. We were hoping we’d get a little farther on the other side of the summit but we decided once we reach the summit we just stay here. So we set up camp at 6 PM. We were able to have a little downtime at camp. We’re eating a good meal with lots of calories, protein, and we’ve added bone broth to it. We’re having our protein shakes and hopefully getting our bodies what it needs for tomorrow.

Day FIFTY!!!!!

18.03 // 742.8

Bob and I slept well. We got up but were moving slower. I tried packing my backpack a different way yet again. Three ways in as many times. My hands were a little cold so they weren’t able to roll the top of the backpack well. Bob was having trouble too getting everything in his pack. He was trying something different as well.

We left camp at 7am. Everything was downhill for a while. We stopped at the first water source and collected a liter each. We had a nice day, good weather, lovely forest. There was a five mile climb after the water. Bob is having some trouble. I think it is the altitude. He gets drowsy in the afternoon. We took a nap, Bob fell asleep immediately. It was a short nap though. We saw Owen Lake, which is a lake with no water. Apparently it’s the lake they used to provide water to Los Angeles. We meandered downhill to a camp site with water. It is lovely. We arrived by 5:30pm, so had time to do laundry and wash up. Bluegrass arrived shortly after and so did the rest of the tramily!!! As well as a number of other hikers. It’s a good stop. We had dinner together and there is a couple here who invented the bear vault. It was fun to talk to them too.

Day 51

19.10 // 761.7

We left this morning at 6:50am with the tramily. We had a beautiful day!!! Great temperatures! Great scenery! So comfortable. We stayed up around 9,000-11,000 ft most of the day. We came to our first ALPINE LAKE!!!! Chicken Spring Lake was at mile 9. We arrived before 10am which means while I was hot, I was not hot enough to go in for a swim, but I did lay down for a quick rest. We drank water and filled up again. We now mostly take 2L.

We headed back on trail and marched uphill, over a saddle and to the another view. Bob and I kept good pace. We took a siesta around mile 12 at a flat-ish spot by a creek, ate and drank again and then finished our day. We were sluggish. It was mostly downhill the rest of the way, but we were slow. We were also careful as it was very rocky. Not technical, just many opportunities to twist an ankle.

We made it to the Rock Creek Campsite. We are right on the creek. Bob loves being able to clean up after hiking. He washed some clothes and hung them up. I was not up for chores. Too tired and hungry, so I focused on that. We are here with a couple of other tenters. Looking forward to bed….as always!

Day 52

7.06 // 767.5

This may have been my favorite camp site. We shall see. Maybe I’ve said that before….

We had only a short way to go today because we are planning on summitting Mt Whitney.

Our first task was to cross our first river crossing. We crossed via a large log down river and then proceeded to….yes, climb! The first mile was steep and slow. The altitude is slowing us down. But the scenery is BEAUTIFUL!!!!! And it is cool in the morning, so we are quite happy. It is interesting to see the forest with sand and rock, not green vegetation undergrowth like we have in Minnesota. So much space between trees too.

Bob’s left knee has been bothering him since before Kennedy Meadows. He is very cautious on the downhills and it slows him down. Hopefully it will get better or get used to the steep climbs and descents.

We took one small break and arrived at Crabtree Campground by the “Crabtree Ranger Station” around noon. This station is quite remote and rustic. The park ranger was there however, so we were able to visit with her and get some good information. Most importantly, that we should expect to be able to do less miles than we are planning. Something we have heard, but had trouble believing. The snow will slow us down as well as the altitude. This first week out of the desert and into the Sierras is a whole new ballgame. 

We filtered water, had dinner with the tramily who arrived around 3 pm.

Bob, Lighthouse and I plan on getting up at 3am to hike Mt Whitney tomorrow.

Bluegrass, Happy Meal, Sushi and Spaghetti Bags all plan on getting up at midnight so they can see the sunrise on the summit.

We have eaten, prepped for tomorrow and are climbing into bed at 6pm. Perhaps we will sleep, perhaps not….

Happy trails,

Julie

@JulieandBobgoforahike