PCT: California Section J

 “Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind.”  -Bruce Lee

Kennedy Meadows North to Ebbetts Pass:  August of 2013

We are now a gang of four and we  get a ride from our Kennedy Meadow's neighbor, Steve,  to the top of Sonora Pass to pick up the PCT again.    It is a welcome lift and we are all really happy to be back on the trail.

You can see the expectation of a really good time ahead on our faces and in our body language. 

I lead and feeling the pressure,  take off too fast and I am soon gasping for breath from the climb and the elevation.

Big  sweeping views are our trail side friends.  From the pass it is- thankfully- down.

We enter into a world that has lava formations and some granite. 

Fields of flowers,

give our avid photographer a reason to crawl around.

These shrubs look like they are turning yellow for autumn, but on closer inspection we discover they are covered in some small organism.

It is another day of turquoise skies, billowy clouds, red rocks, wildflowers and babbling brooks.  10 miles have us camped on the east fork of the Carson River amidst the forest and under a ghoulish carving in a tree that I didn't photograph because it creeps me out.    

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Carson River to Wolf Creek:

The new day dawns clear, but soon clouds blow in and thunder chases us along the trail.

We enter cattle country and are serenaded by their bells.  This was the first time we saw cattle along the trail and it brings sweet smells of home.

 

I love cows! I think this one was embarrassed by her bell. I know our cattle at home would be. 

It threatens rain all day and spits on us off and on.   I keep putting on my rain gear and then taking it off again.  We've gotten caught in downpours before and it is hard for me to recover warmth after a drenching, so I try to be safe.

This day is lazy and meandering and  easy. Some of the trail winds through forests, other parts along brush covered ridges and by rock jumbled points, lava as well as granite.  We see two huge mounds that are very similar to Devil's Postpile.

Camp at Wolf Creek has us sitting around our stoves and talking.  Conversation falls to  marriage.  We share that the secret of our 32 happy years is, 'lowered expectations'.  We always get a laugh out of that, but acceptance is key to a happy marriage; we know that sometimes we will each fail to do our best, and that's OK.    We have high expectations for ourselves, but don't expect too much from each other.  We do what we do for each other out of love, and not out of a need to get something in return.  At least on a good day.

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Wolf Creek to Ebbetts Pass:

This day starts out beautiful too and we have high hopes of doing some swimming later.  We get to this little lake too early in the morning and decide to wait for the next lake.

The terrain opens up, becomes more bare and we can see smoke in the distance.  A lot of smoke.

The sky turns dark.  Our afternoon swim vanishes in a pool of smoke.  The bitter taste burns my throat.  I put on a mask to protect my asthmatic lungs.  It is very eerie.

I invent elaborate stories in my head to entertain myself.  We are fleeing a volcano.  It is after an Apocalypse and we are the last humans on earth.  You get the idea.

As ash falls like snow, disappointment weaves itself into all our hearts.  We begin to get a sinking realization that this is a big fire event and besides all the devastation it will probably also end our hike.

And it does. While our plan was to hike to Lake Tahoe, Ebbett's Pass is the end of our trail this year.   Naked Dave's sister picks us up (thank you!) and we learn that the Rim Fire is huge and the smoke not expected to blow the other way.  This is another case where an ability to lower your expectations comes in handy.

(It is strange too how these things can turn out for good, if you have eyes to see.  My mom,  who has Alzheimers,  had fallen and had a cerebral bleed.  Because we exited at this time, Mark and I get to be with her for the last four days of her life.  She held my hand, she smiled.  We can tell she is comforted with us there.)

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Ebbetts Pass to Echo Lake:  August of 2020

Ebbetts to Pennsylvania Creek:

PCT Mile 1048-1055

We are finally back on the trail again at Ebbetts Pass.  We hastily departed the trail here a number of years ago in thick smoke from a raging forest fire. Our intent was to come back and continue the next year, but we didn’t.   Time went by and other things took precedent.  Now we are here and it feels so good.   We remember seeing odd rock formations in the smoke before and it is wonderful to see them under clear skies and along an easy stretch of trail.

We are currently enjoying our camp perched above Pennsylvania Creek and under the shelter of some foxtail pines.  We hiked seven enjoyable miles today after a long drive.  My face is sore from smiling. 

We got a late start because after driving 6 hours from home we also got a flat tire parking our truck at Echo Summit. In case you are wondering, granite rocks are sharp.   We are doing a self contained PCT section hike this year because we are in a pandemic!  

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Pennsylvania Creek to Lost Lakes:

PCT Trail Mile 1055 to 1069.7

Great sleep, great day of hiking and we are now camped out after a refreshing swim.   What can I say- our favorite kind of life. 

 We are camped near a jeep road, but it is blissfully quiet.  Birds tweet and the wind sings quietly through the evergreens above our heads. 

The trail today traverses dry and mostly ‘Marscape’ terrain.    We love the wide open views.  The trail also goes in and out of some evergreen forests and by  many lakes.   We appreciate both as the day is warm.   It’s been many years since we hiked mid summer and we had forgotten how warm and pleasant it would be.  There are some climbs today and the last one  kicked my butt a bit.   I am glad to arrive at a lake to swim and camp at.   Funnily, we stopped today at about the same time we started yesterday- 4 o’clock ish.   

There are quite a few day hikers and backpackers we meet along the trail. One man’s dog totally gives me an adrenaline drop when it lunges at me.   Thankfully it did not bite.   Afterwards, I was left with limbs shaking. Then it lunges at Hawkeye and my head spins too.     His handler did and said nothing.   So weird.   

Our favorite encounter today though, is with Dan, who is out on a fishing trip for his 84th birthday.  We have a great chat and he is a charming, old school gentleman.   He has been packing in these mountains for many years and told us about the best fishing lake around here that is full of cutthroat and golden trout.  I won’t give away his secret.  Although we did pass 4 young men with fishing poles heading to the same lake, so maybe the secret is already out.  

We also enjoy spending time watching a helicopter scoop water from a lake and take it to a smoldering snag.  This area has had a lot of thunderstorms recently and we are guessing that’s what started the fire.  A lot of the plants we walk by today look torn up and beaten down as well.   It must have been a heckuva storm.  We are glad that today is nice.  

Now it’s early to bed, for an early start tomorrow to beat some of the heat.   Did I mention it’s only 7 pm?  

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Lost Lakes to Echo Summit:

PCT Trail Mile 1069.7 to 1092.3

Wildflowers:

Casual, like weeds

Random in spacing and placing. 

Nature, the Master gardener,

Is an extravagant gift giver. 

Freely giving

Even where no eye will see-

But we did see,

And in awe passed through.  

Camped tonight in the back of our truck at Ebbetts Pass.  We got to Echo Summit, got in our truck and came back to the Ebbetts Pass trailhead where our car is parked.  It is very late, as we hiked a long ways today and then drove too.  The big takeaway today is flowers.  Gazillions of them.   

Good Night. 

Tomorrow we are destined for Donner Summit and another section of the PCT.