Kennedy Meadows to Bushcamp
9 miles
Mile 709.5
Woke up with a gnarly stomach ache. Probably a result of the massive dinner paired with the multiple candy bars I ate the previous night. Despite the pain, I ordered another hikers breakfast at Grumpys. The plan was to just pick at it as I sipped on my coffee, but before long I’d demolished the entire meal.
When Swift and Mike joined me in the dining area I learned they’d both endured a rough night of vomiting and nausea. I felt for them, as they both looked pretty bad.
Feeling even worse than before, I ran into Spikes and her parents as I made my way back to my tent for a mid morning siesta. They were dropping her off before heading back up to San Francisco. Diva was waiting on USPS to deliver a package, so we wouldn’t be getting an early start today.
Around noon I felt compelled to begin packing up camp in anticipation of getting back on trail. It took some time arranging and rearranging my bear canister until my pack fit properly.
Ready to go, Spikes, Diva and I killed time on the patio of Grumpy Bears waiting for the mailman to arrive. Mike decided he was feeling too ill to hike, while Swift decided he’d tough through it.
Around 2 Diva’s package arrived so Diva, Spikes, Swift and I hopped in Scott’s truck to be ferried back to the PCT. We made a quick pitstop at the general store for some s’mores making materials before reaching our final destination. Diva said bye to Scott twice…as he left his trekking poles in the cab and had to run after his truck to catch him.
On the trail again, we planned for an easy day to a campsite nearby. The trail was flat and scenic.
We walked along a creek for a bit, before crossing it on a neat bridge.
Just a few miles left…
Shortly after we arrived at our campground and setup shop. There was snow on the forecast, so I opted to pitch my tent rather than risk cowboy camping as Diva did.
We made a great fire and spent the rest of the evening goofing around while munching on s’mores.
Feels awesome to be back on trail and into the Sierras proper!
Cheers!