Crest Trail Shelter to Monarch Pass 6 mi :: 919 mi :: 12,150 steps :: Rain and fog I’m fortunate that I chose to sleep in the shelter. During the night a serious storm comes through and hammers the roof with rain. Once when I wake up it sounds like a creek is flowing outside,…

Baldy Lake Trail to Crest Trail Shelter 25 mi :: 913 mi :: 52,250 steps :: Overcast, afternoon showers I’m amazed! The morning is not too wet, or too cold! I change clothes in the open air to celebrate. Quickly though – it’s not actually warm out. The lovely rolling divide trail continues. At breakfast…

Los Creek to Baldy Lake Trail 24 mi :: 888 mi :: 48,300 steps :: Afternoon clouds When I wake up everything is sopping wet with dew. My tent drips with condensation. I decide that frost and ice may be preferable to this dampness that feels just as cold. To my relief the sun comes…

Spring Creek to Los Creek 26 mi :: 864 mi :: 53,900 steps :: Afternoon storms It’s cold out and the light is dim because the mountain blocks the sun, but I’m up at 5 am. I have to move constantly to stay warm. It feels better once I start the climb. I wave to…

Spring Creek Pass to Spring Creek 16 mi :: 838 mi :: 34,400 steps :: Afternoon storms I manage to get on the trail by 5:45 am. It feels good to start the climb up to Snow Mesa in the cold morning air. I don’t feel the sun until I clamber onto the mesa top…

Carson Saddle to Spring Creek Pass 19 mi :: 822 mi :: :: Light thunderstorms It’s snowing pretty hard when I wake up, so I go back to sleep. An hour later the sun is shining, but there are still little patches of dark clouds in various parts of the sky. I start with a…

Beartown Road to Lost Trail Road 24 mi :: 803 mi :: :: Sunny, light afternoon snow I sleep until the sun hits me, then step out into a bright, clear day. I decide to try an alternate route that spends a little more time on the divide. It takes up past an old mine…

Weminuche Pass to Beartown Road 21 mi :: 779 mi :: :: Partly cloudy I have breakfast with Ann in the morning and pack up the eight days of supplies she’s brought for me. The time comes to get going, and it’s hard to say goodbye. It also seems like this mode of operation could…

Squaw Pass to Weminuche Pass 12 mi :: 758 mi :: :: Cloudy morning, rainy afternoon I have all day to walk 12 miles today, so I sleep in. I’d have been better off getting up early – a waxing wind makes it colder by the hour. Just after breakfast I encounter the first person…

Palomar Mountain to Squaw Pass 19 mi :: 746 mi :: 42,150 steps :: Stormy Today is the summer solstice, so I should have plenty of daylight. Tomorrow the slow squeeze on hiking time will begin. At last, I remembered last night to spread out my shoes so they wouldn’t be so hard to put…