6/11/17 – Walking on the Windy Side

Day 49
Miles: 668.69 to 689.06
The morning was beautifully quiet with just a hint of color in the clouds that hovered high above us. I think we were the first ones out of the camp and with not a soul nearby we walked quietly through the morning, enjoying its serenity.  

The trail ahead of us did not seem steep but our legs told a different story. It wasn’t until we were couple miles into our hike that the grade became more friendly as the trail started skirting around a mountain side.

Grey Ghost and Daybreak were threading right behind us. They passed us around mile four. I watched them gaining more and more distance on us, until I no longer could see them. I wish I could move with such speed. 

The wind returned as the day went by and it grew stronger. During our lunch break at Fox Mill spring it felt good to actually sit on the sun. We decided to cook dinner for lunch there as we knew we would be dry camping tonight. Later I was double glad we made that decision as for the rest of the day we walked on the windy side and the wind, though not as gusty as yesterday, was annoyingly strong and cold as well. 

Camping approximately 17 miles past our last camp did not quite work out. There were no sites in the area until we finished our second climb for the day. Then we found beautiful sites right atop the ridge. I wish we could take one but the wind scoured the area and just standing there for minute or two made me shiver.

In the end we followed the downhill side of the mountain which was where the wind came from for at least two more miles and finally we set up lower down the trail where the wind was calmer next to Grey Ghost and Daybreak. It was very, very nice to eat dry dinner enveloped by the warmth of my sleeping bag.

Last night before Kennedy Meadows. Tomorrow will be an interesting day. Bittersweet too. We are happy to say good bye to the desert but up until now we did not have to do much more than put one foot in front of the other and walk where the trail led us and in a way it’s sad to let the simplicity go. Things will be much different after we leave Kennedy Meadows, no matter what our plan B ends up being like.