June 7th
We joined Gordon and Sue for coffee before leaving, a nice treat as we have given coffee up on the trail. We’re still drinking it in towns; we just skip it on the hiking days so that we can get going without cooking in the morning. We then stop for a breakfast break of cold cereal or granola after an hour or two of hiking.
About a mile north of Kennedy Meadows campground we were encountered one of the common desert denizens, a Diamondback Rattler, guarding the gates to the high country. As we were leaving the desert, he saluted us with a flick of his tail and sent us onward to the high country, a fitting farewwll.
The new shoes feel good, the toes particularly love all the new room they have. Despite this the ankle is still tender and is now suffering from blisters where the ankle brace rubbed a raw spot on the heel.
We follow a fork of the Kern river, walking alongside a stream walk for first time in several hundred miles. As we get higher we enjoy meadows and cooler weather. A few glimpses of peaks ahead confirm we are entering the high Sierras. A few mosquitoes confirm that there will be a new set of challanges ahead. We are ready for the changes.
The desert is a rite of passage reqired to truly apprciate the high Sierra. The mountains are the pay off. And we are here to collect.
At lunch we catch up with “Strut” who has been hiking with a group of mostly women called the “Unit”. She has moved ahead of them, temporarily defecting so that she can meet her dad at Horseshoe Meadows, the same day we are meeting friends of ours there too.
The trail follows Cow Creek up to a saddle high on the side of Olancha Peak. After we all stop for water, Strut and I follow a well-trod trail alongside the creek, while the Carrot manages to make a poorly marked turn across the creek on the actual PCT. After a short while I realize we are on a wrong side trail and wait to see if the Carrot will catch up. When she doesn’t show, we hike ahead to rejoin the PCT and wait there. Still no Carrot. After about 10 minutes I hike ahead to a trail junction where we had previously agreed to stop for a break to get water. We have an agreement to wait for each other at all road crossings or trail junctions, so I am concerned that the Carrot is not there, having already waited for quite awhile. The two most likely scenarios seem to be that she has hiked ahead anyway for some reason, or is back on the trail with some problem. The only way to be sure is to hike back. A hiker camped nearby, Bob, has not seen anyone pass by. So I decide to hike back to our last break. Strut hikes onward and if she finds the Carrot will let her know that I will be along later. After run/walking 3.4 miles roundtrip I am assured that the Carrot has not had a problem and now must be ahead. I hike on and about 10 minutes later find her waiting, Carrot found. We lose some mileage, but are relieved to be reunited and with no problems.
We pass through several newly burned areas and hear a grouse drumming. We make camp on a saddle on the west side of Olancha peak, at 9,600 feet, our highest campsite yet. Great views, but cold. Olancha is a turning point, with the desert behind us and the high Sierras ahead.
