June 4 Mileage 18 Mile 886.5 to mile 895.5 plus 9 miles on the Duck pass trail It's cold again, but this time not too cold. I wake once to pee and the milky way is there, smeared across the sky. I crawl back into my sleeping bag and drift off again, curled into my … Continue reading Day 41: Mammoth Lakes of Awesome

June 3 Mileage 20 Mile 866.5 to mile 886.5 I'm almost, but not quite, too cold, and I sleep in a tense little ball- tight to keep in the heat. When I wake there's frost on my bag and I ache all over- my back, my hips. I feel almost hungover from sleeping all balled … Continue reading Day 40: molasses where my blood should be

June 2 Mileage 28 Mile 838.5 to mile 866.5 I sleep better than I think I will, all hopped up on caffeinated fruit snacks- I'm lulled by the warm, stuffy hut, by the sound of my friends snoring. I wake up to pee once, stumbling barefoot out into the hard snow, squatting below the milky … Continue reading Day 39: a long beautiful day to a cold lake

June 1 Mileage 18 Mile 820.5 to mile 838.5 We wake at 6 a.m. I've only slept four hours, but I don't care. I'm so glad to be back with the group, so glad to not be wandering alone in the seemingly empty wilderness that is the Sierras in spring. It's strange how that happens … Continue reading Day 38: Muir hut day

May 31 Mileage 25 Mile 795.5 to mile 820.5 I underestimated how demoralizing it would be to go over these snowy passes alone. I sleep until 7:30, when the sunlight touches my shelter. I must've been more exhausted than I thought after going over Glen pass- that's the latest I've slept on the trail so … Continue reading Day 37: Pinchot while panicking, Mather in the dark

May 30 Mileage 14 (6.5 on the PCT plus 7.5 on the Kearsarge pass trail) Mile 789 to mile 795.5 We wake up at 5:30 to pack up for the 6:15 bus that will take me to Bishop for my box and everyone else to Independence, where they can hitch to the trail. I feel … Continue reading Day 36: glen pass is fucking sketch and the trail is covered in snow

May 29 Mileage 7 (on the Kearsarge pass trail) We wake late. Condensation soaked my sleeping bag and I was cold but then it froze into an insulating crust and I was warm again. I slept awesome overall, waking up to pee the milky way burning like fire overhead. We hike weary over pretty Kearsarge … Continue reading Day 35: rest day fail

May 28 Mileage 19.5 (18.5 plus 1 towards kearsarge) Mile 770.5 to mile 789 Another cold morning and then a stream crossing right away- the streams are deep right now, as we're in the Sierras early, and the water rushes over the would-be stepping stones, ice cold. Everyone else takes off their shoes to walk … Continue reading Day 34: postholing to transcendence

May 27 Mileage 21 (17 to whitney + 4 on the pct) Mile 766.5 to mile 770.5 I wake in the morning and I'm fucking pumped. I eat a bunch of dark chocolate (thanks Egg!) and I get even more pumped. It's really cold outside- maybe 30 degrees? But I stuff my things away with … Continue reading Day 33: Mt. Whitney day!

May 26 Mileage 25 Mile 741.5 to mile 766.5 There are wild amounts of condensation in our campsite and I toss and turn in the morning, cold in my damp bag. I guess I should've set up my shelter. But I love cowboy camping so much! Sleeping on the earth. I love sleeping on the … Continue reading Day 32: party on the tilt-a-whirl