Day 54: A Little Bit of Snow

Granite boulders - cowboy camp under Trail Peak
Mile 734 - 748
Total 14 miles

The full moon was up all night. The mosquitoes were also up all night, but I was happy they weren't able to fly through the thin walls of my little bivy tent. With first light I got up, walked past a few hikers still asleep in their tents, and reached a saddle with a view deep down to the east. The pools of salty water on the valley floor are all that remains of Owens Lake - this used to be a large lake full of life, until water flowing into the lake was diverted into the Los Angeles aquaduct.
Here is also a rare spot with cellphone reception and so I spend more time in the saddle, cooking breakfast and updating the blog posts from last couple of days. Among the hikers passing by is a very brave hiker who hikes all naked (except shoes). This is because today is the summer solstice, longest day of year, and "naked hiking day". I'm not a mosquito lover like him and so I chicken out and don't follow the tradition.

The next section of trail winds through rocky terrain towards the flat valley of Diaz Creek. At first the water looks a bit dirty. However there are trouts swimming in the creek so the water can't be too bad. Still I'm glad I decided to keep carrying my water filter through the Sierras. With another hiker "Shadow" from Texas we tank up water, eat lunch and watch the colorful trouts. Shadow is a very swift hiker; he started from Mexico on 18th May.

After a long break I head back on trail, climbing higher and higher through sparse forest of conifer trees. This is how the forest in the southern Sierra Nevada looks like: the trees like to keep a big distance from each other.

The PCT has reached its highest elevation since Mexico border: 10,800 feet. That is even higher than back south on Mount San Jacinto. Back there the Sierra looked like an unreachable dream; now I'm privileged to walk even higher! From Cottonwood Pass and Trail Pass, the swamp of Horseshoe Meadow can be seen deep down. There must be clouds of mosquitoes down there. Up on the ridge the mosquitoes are quite OK, they only seem to be active in the morning and evening. A gentle breeze also helps.

A little bit higher in east facing slope of Trail Peak I hear bubbling of water. A strong flowing spring is emerging between the rocks, and above the spring I touch the first little bit of Sierra snow. It's just enough snow to build a little baby snowman.

About half mile further there is another strong flowing spring fed by recently melted snow. I clean my whole body in the tumbling current. It is great to be in an area with abundance of water - from now on, hiking one week or longer without washing is a thing of the past!

From the spring I cross over to other side of the ridge and in almost 11,000 feet (3300 meters) elevation find a cozy hidden spot behind granite boulders and old twisted trees.

There's no need to build tent for tonight; the mosquitoes are just a few and inexperienced. I cook supper, hide the bear canister between rocks in a safe distance, and fall asleep on a warm summer night, higher than I had ever camped before.