The High Sierras – Margo’s version

I’m going to add a few more things.

The scenery was absolutely beautiful, it was like in the Lord of the Rings, the endless snow covered mountains, the waterfalls, the wild forests and lush green meadows, and two very hungry hikers.

Previously in Kennedy Meadows (the end of the desert), there were a lots of fear talks between the PCT hikers about the snow and dangerous high passes. It made me worry a bit as well. Some hikers packed ice axes, some decided to wait a week until the snow melts more, some decided to skip this part entirely and return later.

We knew there will be lots of snow, but hoped for the best, so we decided to just start with micro-spikes only.

We started our hike with Spyglass (Tommy). Previously we hiked with him big sections in the desert and he wanted to stick with us, because Solid (Mike) is quite experienced in the High Sierras and we also enjoyed his company. The last 2 weeks in the desert Spyglass had experienced some pain in his right knee, and unfortunately it got worse. He tried everything to make it better, but eventually he had to quit the PCT and went home to Denmark. He is a great hiker, and it was devastating for him as well as for us that he had to leave.

After Tommy left, we saw another great hiker got injured and it really made us feel lucky and appreciate that we are still in this game.

I will have to write about Forrester Pass and Glen Pass.

Forrester Pass: After we climbed Mt. Whitney, we were back on the PCT and we were heading towards Forrester Pass. It’s the highest point of the entire PCT.

Mike is showing below where Forrester Pass is.

A night before crossing Forrester we camped at 12000 feet, 1 mile before the pass. We woke up with an alarm at 4:30 am. We didn’t sleep to well and we were awake before the alarm went off. Other PCT hikers were coming as well as the sun rose. One woman said that all she was dreaming about, how she’ll fell off Forrester Pass. All PCT hikers looked a bit scared but ready and determined. We must do this, we can’t quit now.

As we started climbing up on the snow covered south side of the mountain, we put our micro-spikes on. The snow was icy and our spikes worked great on the surface. Things are going well so far. I felt like I’m part of an Everest expedition. We were going slow and watched all our steps carefully, watching out for each other. We did a few switch backs and getting close to that famous most feared snow chute.

First Mike went, then I did. The danger zone was only about 35 steps, but one wrong move and next thing you know, you are back to base camp. I didn’t look down, I just looked ahead, left foot, right foot, left foot…

We survived. At the very top there was one more sketchy spot, but we did it!

The north face of the mountain had even more snow, and it’s always like that. It’s time to go down.

As the air is warming up and the sun is hitting the snow, the snow starts to melt. Our micro spikes will work less and we could post-hole. We made it down safely with a few post holes.

A small mustard yellow plane was cruising between the white mountain peaks and flew close to us. We waived at each other and I thought the view is just breathtaking.

Glen Pass:

Glen Pass made Forrester Pass a piece of cake. Going up was easy, but coming down was frightening. The north face was covered with snow and it was the steepest high pass that we crossed. I thought my leg will not get sore after 800 miles, but it did. We went down fast but we constantly had to focus and put the breaks on.

The scenery after was spectacular.

The High Sierras is one of the most beautiful place on Earth. The John Muir Trail and the PCT overlap each other here. During this 2 weeks we experienced one of the most prestigious hike in the whole world!

The High Sierras

Hi, this is Mike writing while Margo is making dinner.

We’re in Mammoth today after a long stretch through what is probably the most beautiful part of the PCT – the high Sierra. It’s been a long haul for us, and we’re both tired and thrilled with the scenery we’ve seen.

The section started out of the little tourist town of Lone Pine. Before starting, we spent a couple of days with my friend and mountaineer extrodinaire Mihai, who just moved to Bishop and was kind enough to host us for a couple of days. After eating all we could and getting as much rest as our bodies would take, we headed back south to Lone Pine and up into the mountains for a long, tough stretch. Or next resupply was 10 days and 6 snowy passes away.

We took a day to summit Mt Whitney along the way. This is off the PCT, but since we were so close and already pretty acclimated we couldn’t resist. It was a fun day with great weather and gorgeous scenery. It was Margo’s 2nd 14er (her first was Mt Sill, which is significantly more difficult). It was a worthwhile detour for sure.

From there we started crossing the high passes that stripe the Sierras. Since the passes are a lot easier to cross in the morning when the snow is hard, we got into a pattern where we’d camp at the base of a pass, then get up early (usually 5 am, but sometimes earlier) and get over the pass by mid-morning. Then in the afternoon we’d hike to the base of the next pass and repeat the process the next day. We did that for about 7 days in a row, and it definitely wore on us by the end.

Forrester pass, the PCT high point

Margo crossing a nerve wracking chute on the way up to Forrester

It was also our longest stretch without resupplying with more food, and by the end we were running pretty low on stuff to eat. The last couple of days we were surviving off protein powder and dehydrated peanut butter. I’m not gonna lie – it was tough. I had to poke a new hole in my belt as my waist continued to contract.

But, the scenery was absolutely amazing. Day after day of epic vistas, pristine lakes, snowy peaks, and swollen streams. It was absolutely stunning. I loved it despite the hardships, and it was a joy to share the best parts of my favorite mountain range with Margo.

Rae Lakes, a famously gorgeous spot along the PCT

Tomorrow we’ll head out to finish the Sierras. In a couple days we’ll pick up some more food in Yosemite National Park, then push through to the end of the Sierras in South Lake Tahoe about a week later. The scenery will still be great, but sadly I know the best part of this trail is now behind us.

Chapter 2 – Sierras

We are still at Kennedy Meadows, waiting for a package with my micro spikes and an extra battery for Mike, so we can watch TV shows at night.

We are ready. Mike is antsy to go! We carb loaded with pancakes, pizza, beer, banana-split, sundaes, hamburgers etc.

The weather conditions look okay, could be better. There will be snow and our shoes will get wet, but we are excited to see the beautiful Sierras and know that the desert has been accomplished.

We got our bear canisters, ton of food. Thanks to Mike’s Mom to send us our next 8 day dehydrated food supply. She even baked us special cookies and put a heart shaped post-it note on it. It made us very happy, I took pictures of it with Mike, which I’m not able to attach, but I will once I can.

Mike exchanged his backpack as the old one was used up.

I took 2 showers in 3 days for $6, money well spent.

Again we might won’t have cell service for days.

This is a rattle snake on Grumpy Bear’s wall. They put a little alligator head on it, but still it’s a big one. Hopefully we won’t see more for a while.

May 16 – May 20: Ending the desert.

I got cell service, so I’ll summarize our last 5 days, since we left Tehachapi. (I’m in our tent, resting).

We are 3 days from Kennedy Meadows, where we end the desert and start the Sierras.

The last part of the desert was beautiful to me, some hikers are ready to be done with it, but we are still enjoying it. We can now see the South Sierras as we walk North and we are heading straight at it. My compass shows North most of the time, and we are crushing the miles. Currently at 656 mile, we passed the 1000 km sign 2 days ago.

We are having a great time, and can’t believe the desert is coming to an end.

When we got back to the trailhead after almost 3 days of rest, we had butterflies in our stomach. It’s strange, I guess we were away for too long and got worried for no reason. After 2000 feet straight up, we were feeling better and then another 2000 feet up on the same day, and 17 miles later, we felt that this is our home now.

We camped all nights by pine trees, if we were higher or Joshua trees when we went lower.

The truth is the Sierras should be the most beautiful part of the PCT, therefore most hikers are very excited about it including us.

It will be the total wilderness feeling, gushing waterfalls, huge granite rocks, endless mountains, beautiful redwoods, pine trees and so on. Mike and I have hiked many times in the Sierras, including in Yosemite, Mammoth, Mike did The John Muir Trail (JMT), but I know this will be different.

PCT is a lot of fun, but requires planning and work, meaning hike at least 18 miles a day from morning to late afternoon. We thought we’ll have so much free time during the PCT. It turns out, not so much. Wake up, breakfast, pack our backpack, hike 11 miles, lunch, hike another 9 miles, find a campsite, put up the tent, cook dinner, go to bed.

After we get to Kennedy Meadows, we will no longer have to carry more than half liter of water at the time, that’s great news. Water will be everywhere. We’ll carry bear canisters instead, but hopefully still less total weight.

No more rattlesnakes will jump out behind a random bushes. That nonsense has to end and I won’t miss it. We’ll see some bears, but not to worry about them.

It’s dinner time, to be continued..,

May 16-May 20: Ending the desert, Part 2

Our trail names: Werewolf (Margo) and Solid (Mike).

Werewolf: I already mentioned this before, I eat a lot (more than Mike), don’t sleep too well during full moon, my feet have grown and my sense of smell is strong as ever.

A few days ago 4 trail angels Margy, Bill, Ann and I forgot Ann’s husband name, did trail magic and we ate strawberries, eggs, quesadillas and drank a huge bottle of Gatorade. After that we went straight up 2000 feet and I passed Mike and our friend Tommy behind without any extra effort. It doesn’t happen to often, so I’m proud of it. Ok. Werewolf was back!

And Mike got his name a few days ago Solid. He knows all the analytics of the PCT, and plans ahead and knows his stuff.

This is his plan for the next 8 days in the Sierras, which includes Mt. Whitney (the highest peak in the continental US), Forester pass etc.

Tommy aka Spyglass joined our duo, as he asked us to do the Sierras together. Most solo hikers prefer to join a group, as it’s safer. Tommy gave Mike his trail name, which he well deserves. I gave him hippy feet, but since he got crocks, his feet are clean(er).

Kennedy Meadows 2 nights, rest day

We are at Kennedy Meadows with bunch of PCT hikers.

It’s amazing what this trail does to you. You accomplish personal records every day, and tell to yourself: Did I just do that?

Few of my great accomplishments so far: No shower for 8 days, and still doing great. Then on day 7, on the way to Kennedy Meadows I drank olive oil straight out from the plastic bottle.

We are at Grumpy Bears restaurant now, nothing fancy, but they got food. We had a wonderful breakfast and they offer unlimited pancakes.

A very nice hiker next to us just grabbed leftover country potatoes from another table, from another hiker plate who already left. You never do this in a restaurant during normal circumstances. She felt a little embarrassed, but we encouraged her. You don’t leave food behind on the PCT.

Hiking food for the next 8 days until Kennedy Meadows

We are about to leave Tehachapi, we liked it here so much, but the Trail Is Calling!

I won’t have internet for the next 8 days, so I’ll post after we arrived to Kennedy Meadows.

So here is my food for the next 8 days. Mike’s food looks exactly the same plus a jar of peanut butter and a quarter pound of cheese.

As you can see it’s the exactly the opposite of a Farmer’s Market fresh produce selection.

The hiker food needs to be LIGHT, high in protein, calories and not too expensive. God help us!

For breakfast: it’s oatmeal with raisins and coffee. Healthy and we like it. Oatmeal also lowers cholesterol, which is great, since my cholesterol level is a bit high, (also genetic in the Contreras family). However, I figured after hiking the PCT, my cholesterol level will be dangerously low. I usually drink a cup of coffee, Mike drinks a liter.

For lunch: I carry tortilla and olive oil. Mike got the cheese and peanut butter. We put one or the other on the tortilla, or all. I like it.

For dinner: in two ziploc bags we still have some homemade dehydrated food with vegetables and meat. That’s gold. The rest is Knorr sides and Idaho potatoes. I’m scared to read the ingredients on the package, the probably all cause cancer, but after 20 miles, you’ll love it.

We also have tuna, ramen, nuts and crackers for snack that we eat throughout the day.

The Amazing Joshua Tree

I’m fascinated by Joshua trees. They are very rare on the Planet Earth, but they thrive in the Mojave desert. It’s not really a tree, it belongs to the genus Yucca. It only exist in the United States and only in California, Utah, Arizona and Nevada mainly in the Mojave desert, where we are now. It has a biblical name Joshua, Mormons who crossed the Mojave, named it. The tree unique shape reminded them when Joshua reaches up to the sky.

They grow really slow, 3 inches per year and after 10 years, they might bloom between February and May. Once they bloom they can finally branch, and finally start to look like a tree. However if it doesn’t freeze during winter, or there is not enough rain, it won’t bloom. The locals say, they only bloom every 4-5 years, so that slows down the branching process. It’s a beautiful and rare occasion when it happens the same time across the Mojave desert. The trees on the picture are 500-800 years old. It’s hard to guess the Joshua tree age, as it lacks of growth rings as a regular tree. They mainly guess the age of the branch system.

Once they bloom, the trees are pollinated by the yucca moth, which spreads pollen while laying her eggs inside the flower. The moth larvae feed on the seeds, but enough seeds remain to reproduce. This creature is essential of the future of the Joshua tree.

Sadly the climate change threatens this wonderful plant and they predict that 90% will disappear by the end of the 21st century.

I am lucky to see this wonderful desert icon. I even saw some with the white huge flowers yesterday, hopefully the yucca moth did its job and spread the pollens around Tehachapi so we can have Joshua trees for many years in the future.

May 13 – May 15

We are heading to Tehachapi. 17 miles. We get off the trail at mile 560.

On our way we met Daniel (trail angel) in the middle of the desert. He talked about his childhood and how the desert changed throughout the years. He said, it used to rain 20 times during winter, now only once or twice a year. He misses the old desert where he used to hike. I think it’s still pretty, but true this area burned down a few years ago and then a really strong windstorm blew down the trees. So he likes to put green apples out as it brings colors to the ‘dead’ desert in this area. He also had other goodies, like chocolate cake and boiled eggs, it was a Mother’s Day special.

After eating at Daniel’s trail magic, and walked about 15-20 minutes, I realized I left my hiking pole behind. The Chilean side of my family, the Contreras has this problem, that we often forget and loose things. I can’t help it, it’s genetic. Mike is used to it by now, so he sat down by the trail with both of our backpacks and I ran back to Daniel’s trail magic and in no time I was back to Mike. It was nice to run free, without a backpack, free and boosted by chocolate cake. I do miss running.

As I mentioned earlier, we are getting closer to the Sierras. 8 days from Tehachapi to Kennedy Meadows. We decided to take two rest days for various reasons in Tehachapi. One, Mike needed to see a doctor (he is okay now). Secondly, hikers who started earlier (or faster than us) are already crossing high, snow covered-passes in the Sierras and most still use ice axe and definitely crampons to do that. We would like the snow to melt more, as we are planning not to use ice axes and for safer circumstances. Third, we really like Tehachapi, the locals are welcoming to hikers and the food is great here. First night BBQ, then in the morning German bakery, then the impossible happened, after 2 months, I got to eat my favorite Vietnamese pho, and next day Mediterranean hummus, kebab, falafel. Meanwhile salad, strawberries, apples (for Mike) banana, whole garlic-rosemary grilled chicken from the grocery store with chocolate cupcakes, cheese and fresh bread. Yum!!!

I’ve never experienced in my life, that I need 3 days of constant eating to finally feel full.

Also the doctor measured Mike’s weight and it turns out he didn’t loose 30 lbs, just 20. I guess we can trust this scale better than Hiker Heaven’s.

May 11 – May 12

We passed the 500 PCT miles and did almost 20 miles again. Lots of up and down.

The weather cooled down, and we are just avoiding the rain. The cold air is coming from the ocean. We thought it’s going to be so hot as we starting to hike in the Mojave desert, but the temperature is fine.

Tonight there was a hot shower again, behind a small supermarket on the road. We camped there with many PCT hikers and had chicken sandwich, Mike had grilled cheese sandwich, although he should eat more protein. Additionally we both had a small bowl of salad, and then we were still hungry so we ordered pancakes regardless that it was close to 7 pm. Finally we went to bed not hungry.

Our total weight loss is 40 lbs. Mike lost 30, he needs to eat more!

May 12: we started early for a big day. More than 20 miles again, walking along the Aqueduct, extremely flat. PCT hikers worry about this hike as it can get really hot, but again the weather was cooperating with us. I listened to music, audiobooks etc. We were walking on a wide dirt road, so I didn’t have to worry about rattle snakes and I could turn on the volume.

We went through Joshua trees and a huge wind farm.

We camped in the wilderness.