Bushcamp to Bushcamp
11.2 miles
Mile 804.7
It was a surprisingly warm night, despite the frozen snow surrounding us and being well over 10,000 ft in elevation. As per usual, we were on the move by 4am.
It was a slow start. We kept losing the trail, so our morning escaped without many miles to show for it.
Just as the sun began to rise we reached a pretty gnarly river crossing. It was freezing out, so walking through the frigid water wasn’t exactly appealing to me. After checking up and down river, it was clear that there would be no dry crossings available, so into the water I went. Brrrr!
As the day progressed we wound our way down into the valley where the snow had melted revealing the green undercarriage of the forest floor.
There was also water…lots and lots of water. I lost count of our river crossings by noon. It seemed we couldn’t walk a mile without hitting one.
We treat each crossing a bit different based on it size and speed. If we’re lucky, we use rocks or a log to dry cross, if not, we decide whether to remove our shoes or not based on the what the river looks like. It stinks hiking in wet shoes, but it’s better than getting injured.
Inevitably, the rivers and creeks feed into alpine lakes tucked through the range. Today we passed Arrowhead Lake, where just last week a hiker had to be rescued after breaking his leg.
As the day progressed, we enjoyed a mostly visible trail. It wasn’t until we began our ascent of Pinchot Pass that things got rough.
It was past noon and we still had miles to go before we’d be at he Pass. I had wanted to make it over today, but as the snow conditions worsened the post holing began, sucking all desire to continue hiking from us.
We decided to call it early, just a couple miles from the Pass rather than endure the pains of post holing and sketchy snow conditions on the mountain.
We hope to get an early start to tackle Pinchot and Mather Pass tomorrow.
Cheers!
P.s. and here’s my toe…
You ever consider getting snowshoes for this portion of the hike? Post holing sucks!
Howdy Steve! Not really…just can’t justify carrying something that heavy.
Great adventuring.
None of my beeswax and you two are the one’s out there getting it done but . . . . (from the photos) I might suggest Spikes unfastens her pack when crossing streams so she’s able to shed it in a flash if she’s being carried away. Also, attaching her Garmin to her shirt or some part of her body so, in the event she loses her pack on a stream crossing, she at least has her nuclear emergency button still on her to bring help. Just a few suggestions I’ll leave with you. Again, you’re more expert than I am by this point.
You’re living the dream man. Hope to be there in a few years as well. Safe travels and thank you for sharing.
Hi Rick!
Those are both outstanding suggestions! Normally we do unfasten our hip straps when crossing streams, guess you caught us being lazy! And the Garmin suggestion is totally correct! I’ll get onto her about that!
Thanks for reading and offering useful feedback! Defiantly get out here, it’s unlike anything in the world.
Cheers!
Hey there’s a new floor on the Woods Creek bridge, cool.
I was through there last summer . I thought that area was the best part of the JMT.
I’ll be back there in a month going north.
Take care of those feet.
Thanks George! Absolutely gorgeous out there!