(
click on any photo to enlarge) What an epic day! Its not often that you get to walk on the actual Sierra crest for very long periods of time. Today we were on it most of the day! We had some amazing views today. Our first objective was Kirkwood Pass out of Kennedy Canyon. Out of camp we started the slow climb up the canyon and were treated to more meadows through the morning.
We left camp by 7am because today we meet Kent at Sonora Pass for our first food drop. Yes, we are spoiled hikers and planned to never carry more than 4 days worth of food on this trip. The next four days to Echo Lakes we have to average about 20 miles a day, so I wanted to go as light as possible. Sonora Pass is about 1hr 45mins from our home so we bribed Kent to bring us treats and our food for the next four days. We also get to drop our bear canisters off with Kent. That means that my pack will be 2 lbs lighter! The climb up to Kirkwood Pass was a little harder than expected but we were all rolling well. We then started the long treeless switchbacks that lead one up to the Crest. The PCT follows the Crest for about 8 miles then descends down to Sonora Pass.
In the photo above , you can see Christi and T-Funk on the upper switchback and Funk on the lower switchback below me. The lunar landscape was very cool. You could almost see to the ocean to the West!
We were to meet Kent at 3:00pm so Christi was on a mission. We stopped for lunch after the one and only snow crossing for the entire trip.
Christi HATES snow crossings. I was surprised to see her kicking steps and tackling it like a seasoned mountaineer. I thought T-Funk would have issues also but she walked right through it like 'no big deal'! It was neat to see. After lunch we stayed on the Crest and weaved in and out of windows between rocks and ledges. We stayed above to 11,000ft elevation for most of the day.
We then descended 1200ft in 3 miles. At the end of the descent we spat out on Highway 108. This road is also known as Sonora Pass. This is the highest paved road pass in the Sierra.
Within an hour Kent drove up with all of our goodies. He seemed so CLEAN! He smelled good and his clothes were clean. Its funny the things you notice when you've been sleeping in the dirt for a few days. So we stuffed our faces on chips and salsa (Thanks Kent!) and packed our packs with four days worth of food. We hung with Kent at the picnic area on Sonora Pass but there is no camping at the picnic area. So with full bellies, we said goodbye to Kent and shouldered our packs to walk the couple of miles into the backcountry. We found, after about an hour, a suitable spot to crash for the night in the trees. All in all a great day. I think I was asleep before the sun went down.
(click on any photo to enlarge) What an epic day! Its not often that you get to walk on the actual Sierra crest for very long periods of time. Today we were on it most of the day! We had some amazing views today. Our first objective was Kirkwood Pass out of Kennedy Canyon. Out of camp we started the slow climb up the canyon and were treated to more meadows through the morning. 
We left camp by 7am because today we meet Kent at Sonora Pass for our first food drop. Yes, we are spoiled hikers and planned to never carry more than 4 days worth of food on this trip. The next four days to Echo Lakes we have to average about 20 miles a day, so I wanted to go as light as possible. Sonora Pass is about 1hr 45mins from our home so we bribed Kent to bring us treats and our food for the next four days. We also get to drop our bear canisters off with Kent. That means that my pack will be 2 lbs lighter! The climb up to Kirkwood Pass was a little harder than expected but we were all rolling well. We then started the long treeless switchbacks that lead one up to the Crest. The PCT follows the Crest for about 8 miles then descends down to Sonora Pass. 
In the photo above , you can see Christi and T-Funk on the upper switchback and Funk on the lower switchback below me. The lunar landscape was very cool. You could almost see to the ocean to the West! 
We were to meet Kent at 3:00pm so Christi was on a mission. We stopped for lunch after the one and only snow crossing for the entire trip. 
Christi HATES snow crossings. I was surprised to see her kicking steps and tackling it like a seasoned mountaineer. I thought T-Funk would have issues also but she walked right through it like 'no big deal'! It was neat to see. After lunch we stayed on the Crest and weaved in and out of windows between rocks and ledges. We stayed above to 11,000ft elevation for most of the day.
We then descended 1200ft in 3 miles. At the end of the descent we spat out on Highway 108. This road is also known as Sonora Pass. This is the highest paved road pass in the Sierra.
Within an hour Kent drove up with all of our goodies. He seemed so CLEAN! He smelled good and his clothes were clean. Its funny the things you notice when you've been sleeping in the dirt for a few days. So we stuffed our faces on chips and salsa (Thanks Kent!) and packed our packs with four days worth of food. We hung with Kent at the picnic area on Sonora Pass but there is no camping at the picnic area. So with full bellies, we said goodbye to Kent and shouldered our packs to walk the couple of miles into the backcountry. We found, after about an hour, a suitable spot to crash for the night in the trees. All in all a great day. I think I was asleep before the sun went down.
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