South Lake Tahoe – North Kenedy meadows

Day 92 Sun Sept 24th
Echo Lake trailhead – Tentsite 2 after Carson pass
1561.8 – 1580.8
Approx. 3035 ft ascent + 3924 ft descent
19 Miles

After 3 wonderful nights and 2 days in South Lake Tahoe we finally got back on trial.

Last night we stayed with Liz and Ben and their son Riley in their condo in South lake Tahoe. Liz was one of Sarah’s old Gosford hill teacher colleagues.

Both Liz and Ben were unbelievably kind and welcoming allowng us into their home for the evening.
They also allowed us to send our surplus /winter gear and additional supplies during the trail, which has been an absolute godsend and a lifeline for us.
I think it’s something that is easily taken for granted by US hikers having the ability to easily switch out gear by sending / receiving stuff from back home.
It has felt amazing to have this kind of support and we are eternally grateful
Having this level of help when you’re out here vulnerable away from home makes such a difference.

Liz and Ben showed us around Lake Tahoe.
Showing us some of the local hotspots + they both seemed very much at home here.
We even crossed over the state line into Nevada. It was as simple as crossing a street. You could see the streets were lined with casinos, similar to see in Vegas although on a smaller scale.

Finally our hiker hunger seems to have kicked in and in tahoe we feasted.
Day 1. We filled our boots with multiple McDonald’s orders.
Day 2. We hit up the pizza joint over the road from the motel.
Day 3. Corey kindly bought us breakfast to the motel.
This was followed by a Chinese chicken rice bowl before we checked out.
Then at the condo we had a delicious take out Thai meal with Liz and Ben.

All were delicious and set us up nicely for today’s hiking shenanigans.

Adjusting to our new bear canisters and additional winter gear took some work this morning.
We spent at least an hour trying different configurations to try and get everything to fit which proved rather stressful.

I can only apologise for mixing up Ben’s name with Mark on more than a number of occasions! It was very embarrassing!
I think my it was because my mind was racing with all the last minute caos and preparations required before we hit the trail.

Around 07:00 we got a ride back to the trail and could see frost lining the fields on the drive up.
After we said our goodbyes to the amazing Liz and Ben a couple of nobos passed us at the trailhead. They were dressed in all their winter gear, saying how cold it was last night and well below zero.
It might be cold but at least the sun’s out and what a difference compared to when we rolled into Lake Tahoe.
Hopefully we can handle cold nights especially now we have picked up Sarah’s winter sleeping bag and liners + additional winter clothes.
Our new double walled MSR tent will also make a big difference.
Let’s hope the weather stays as nice as
this and we’ll just have to keep our fingers crossed for the coming weeks.

My new ski mittens that fit over the top of my liner gloves are working well.
I picked these up from a gear exchange/ thrift store and funnily enough they matched perfectly some ski gear that Liz had back at the condo.
I promised that after were done she is more than welcome to the gloves as a token of our appreciation, expecially as she will then have a full matching outfit.

It feels weird having a bear can strapped to the outside of my pack with the next 4-5 days worth of food in it.
Normally the food sits in a bag in the middle of our packs, but currently as we are carrying 2 tents the bear can doesn’t fit inside. So I have strapped it externally yk the top of my pack with the intended Y-strap.
This means the centre of gravity is different and I’m now a little top heavy + will need to be careful with my balance whilst I get used to this.
Luckily Sarah’s pack allows her to position her cannister inside so hopefully she will not have the same issues.

In Tahoe I added another addition to my fishing arsenal, buying a small 3 ft ice fishing rod and reel kit. I intend to use this for lure fishing and hopefully in these colder conditions it will prove more successful.

As we hike up the first climb the air is fresh and it almost hurts to breathe in. Its similar to the feeling you get at a ski resort.
Sarah also wonders whether the elevation is affecting her breathing she’s becoming short of breath.
I’m hoping that it’s because we’ve been in town for the last few days at lower elevation and its a short term issue and that we will both adjust just fine.

My sore ankle has also improved a little from the rest.
The addition of compression socks to offer more suport and help with the swelling seems to be working.

The trail is nice weaving through large granite boulders and pine trees, but the gradient is much steeper and it certainly given our quads a good workout.

As a reward for reaching the top of the first climb we sat and ate chocolate croissants filling our boots in the sun.

Not much further down the trail we met a group of section /day hikers.
Bill – trailname “Goat blister” (who looked a little like Vince Vorn) and his pal Bob.
They we’re taking their friends out on their first hiking / backpacking experience covering 15 miles. What an epic place for theory first outing.
They kindly offered us some of their lunch. And we both ate chicken and turkey wraps with a pesto dip, whilst we told them tales of our adventures.
They were all great company and gave us some good advice for this next section of the trail as they all lived relatively close to the trail and / or had hiked it.
My favourite quote from Goat blister was “When am I going to pop the Q” Meaning “The Question” and how lovely he thought Sarah was.
I joked saying that I thought she had planned this meet up in advance. As the group ganged up on me, but it was all in good taste.

It’s a beautiful bright sunny day and we are now both in shorts and T-shirts again. Although in the more shady places the ground is frozen and you can see patches of ice.

As we reach Schneider Camp trail junction the views open up and we can see for miles.
Lush meadows of green vegetation, pine trees and huge slaps the rock are in front of us and either side of us huge mountains.
The rocks form srange looking chimney stack rock formations to our right and snow still sits about 20 feet from the top of the ridge line in a uniform line.

As we approached Shower Lake we could see it was a popular destination for day hikers, with a group of about 20 people sitting close to the lake.

We managed to find a more secluded spot and as Sarah made lunch I tested out my new fishing kit throwing a few lures out into the lake.

We also took the opportunity to reorganise the contents of our bear cans which we did it in a bit of rush this morning.
We have found that the chocolate bars had melted in my can due to the fact that it’s positioned on top of my pack.
Nobody likes melted snickers bars so we split up our rations by making Sarah the chief custodian of all the chocolate and anything that is likely to get damaged by the sun.
She has also become a black belt in efficiently packing the bear can optimising every inch of space.
Putting meals and things like oatmeal and hot chocolate etc in ziplock bags all takes up less space. And also means less trash as these ziplock bags can be reused for other things.  Ninja skills indeed.

The trail twists and turns through lush meadows and grasslands dotted with pine trees and swaths of elder.
We watch airplanes leaving white plumes of vapour as as they cross the bluebird sky above the mountains in front of us.

We pass a number of small lakes and creeks and watch brook trout swimming underneath the water surface.
It’s still warm when the sun hits your face although there’s an icy cold breathe to the wind.
Sarah seems to feel the cold more than I do and she’s opted to put on more base layers and gloves.
Once the sun goes down I think the temperatures will plummet pretty quickly.

We reached Frog lake next but the wind was strong and icey cold. Camping here would not have been a good idea as it was so windy + we needed somewhere more sheltered.
As we cross Carson pass it was clear that we would be in shade for the the final decent of the day and the sun was also starting to drop.
We layered up and continued down the mountain until we reached a marked tentsite. It was situated in amongst some tress and was sheltered from the wind.
From Echo Lake to Sonora pass its approx 75 miles. Its sunday today and we figured we could possibly get there on Wednesday morning.
So 19 miles will do nicely today.

We set up our new MSR freelite tent, which on first impressions seems nice and snug. If maybe a little too snug, but at least we will be warm tonight

We also had a nice evening chatting with a nobo trailname “Tarzan”
He had bumped into our pal “DogTreat” in North Kennedy Meadows and filled us in on his progress.
We ate our dinner in the comfort of our new tent all snuggled up under our sleeping bags.
I even made the hot chocolates, heating the water on the stove whilst leaning out of the tent.
Once we finished we positioned our bear cannisters 30 yards from there tent. Making sure that they were not next to a cliff face or anywhere where they could get knocked off by a marauding bear.

We have also made sure our water filter were stored in ziplocks at the bottom of our sleeping bags. It’s meant to get down to below zero tonight so we are not taking any chances. Water filters can freeze and if this happens they loose there ability to remove harmful nasties.
That’s all folkes. Nighty night.

Day 93 Mon Sept 25th
Tentsite 2 after Carson pass – Raymond Lake
1580.8 – 1596.4
Approx. 3002  ft ascent + 2654 ft descent
15.6 Miles before side trail to Raymond lake (Approx 1.5 miles). Total Miles 17.1

It was a later start than normal due to us getting used to the new tent and bear can setup.
Last night we were both lovely and warm in our new tent despite the strong wind outside. Sarah even commented that she got too hot!

It was also nice getting out of our sleeping bags and not having to worry about touching the sides of the tent. Where previously with the single skinned Durston condensation would build up.
The new tent has a mesh liner and a separate fly sheet so any condensation on the fly shouldn’t come into contact the inner.

The wind is raging as we break camp.
As we were traversing our way around the mountains at times it was almost difficult to stand and our treeking poles flap in the wind like matchsticks.

It shows on Far Out that later today there is an exposed difficult traverse.
Sarah is understandably concerned that this could be a bit sketchy, so we will have to keep our wits about us.

I’m not sure it’s because of the wind or the elevation but it’s also proving difficult to catch our breath which makes you panic.

I’m trying slightly different way of walking today opting for the heel toe approach, to see if that stretches out the ligaments / tendons in my foot. At least a pain  underneath the ball of my big toe is gone but it’s now moved around to my ankle.

Sarah’s wearing thermal leggings and a thermal top to help deflect the wind.
I’m sill wearing shorts but my new long compression socks are acting like leg warmers.

As we zigzag our way up another pass we meet a hunter sitting amongst the rocks. He is using binoculars and is looking out
over the valley below for mule deer.
Eric tells us he has a cabin close by that is up here with his friend hunting, although the deer he has spotted are too far away from his Jeep parked across the mountains, making it hard to easily pack them out.

Yesterday when we crossed Carson’s pass there was a lot of smoke in the air.
Eric confirmed this was from a forest fire in Sakoya National Park, but due to the high winds today a lot of this smoke and haze had been blown away.

We watched a peregrine falcon struggling in the wind as it was being buffeted around the mountain.

At this higher elevation the wind became so strong it almost pushed us off our feet.

Then as the trail winds round to a more sheltered spot the wind temporarily drops,  almost like a switch has been flicked off.
The name of the peak that we’ve just gone over where we experienced all of the wind is called the Nipple.

As we drop down we pull in for an early lunch.
We have hot chocolate and coffee, lukewarm oatmeal and also a serving of Ramen noodles with a handful of cashew nuts thrown in for good measure.

Even in the sheltered spot it was so windy Sarah had to build a little rock defence for the stove to stop the flame getting blown out.

A combination in a drop in elevation and also a hot meal seemed to give us lots of energy.

We have aldo been carrying less water which aldo means less weight. Because water seems to be in the abundance here. Although the next few sources do look a bit more questionable.

We stop and Sarah takes off a sock to to show that she’s got a blister developing on the outside of her foot.
These kind of things need to be treated early before they develop into something more nasty
Patiently I wait although we’ve done an 8.3 miles and it’s 12:30. We seem to be moving in slow motion today.

We then aproach the steep traverse highlighted in Far Out as Raymond Peak in the Mokelumne wilderness. The views are simply breathtaking!

As we approach a couple of hikers warn us of the strong winds and to take care as the wind wants to push you towards to edge.

One of the hikers was brandishing a fly rod, so I enquired where he had been fishing. He said to look out for Raymond lake and to fish from a large boulder on the other side of the lake. He said the fish grow to around 16-17 inches which sounded interesting.
It’s the 2nd time Raymond lake had been mentioned so this pricked my attention.

We wind our way around the canyon on a steep traverse with a shear drop to our left.

This would be pretty sketchy in more wintery conditions. We carefully negotiate our way around despite being buffeted by the wind that tries its best to pull us off the mountain.

There’s a lovely smell as we walk throgh a number of small creeks with lots of alpine flowers and lush vegetation.

The creeks seem jam-packed full of fallen trees and I wonder if an avalanche has come through this area at some point.

As we approached the Raymond’s lake junction we were torn. We had only done 15 miles and had aimed for 25, with the plan to get to Sorona pass on Wednesday
Liz had said she could also do Thursday which would mean that we could take it slightly easier..
As my ankle isn’t great and coupled with the opportunity to properly test out my new little spinning rod made us think twice.
After all its about smelling them roses as well as hiking…
The trail to the lake was longer than hoped – Approx 1-2 miles off the PCT, which isn’t ideal.
We went for it and arrived at a very blustery little lake surrounded by huge mountains with patches of snow.

We had the entire place all to ourselves as it was way too far off trail for a PCT hiker to venture.

We walked around the lake and found a awesome little spot surrounded by trees to help cut out the wind.
We even had an ensuite kitchen with another sheltered little spot right next to where we pitched the tent.

After setting up our home for the night I went and found the large rock and fished my heart out. It was too windy to fly fish so I opted to use my new spinning rod.
Within a couple of casts of my lure I had a bite and lost a large trout.
Sarah came to join me and within minutes I was into another fish. This time I reeled it in quickly and dragged it up onto the sandy beach next to the rock.
It was my biggest trout to date.
This was hotly followed by another fish within minutes and I lost count of how many bites I had in the hour we spent fishing. It was great fun and I am glad I picked up this little spinning set up for these larger windier waters.

I think it’s fair to say that the off trail detour to Raymond lake was totally worth it!

We went back to the tent well pleased and sat in the shelter of the trees making dinner.
As day turns into night you can still make out the mountain silhouettes that surround us.
With snow patches behind us it’s going to be a cold one again.
As I type this sitting on ground covered in pine needles you can hear the wind howling through ghe mountains.
We are just about to have a hot chocolate we are wearing every bit of clothing, including rain pants and jacket over the top of thermals and puffys. Brrr.

Day 94 Tues Sept 26th
Raymond Lake – Tent site 5 just past Paradise Valley Junction
1596.4 – 1619.8
Approx. 4367 ft ascent + 4875 ft descent
23.4 Miles before side trail to Raymond lake (Approx 1.5 miles). Total Miles 24.9

Early morning the wind really picked up and the sides of the tents flapped violently.
We are so glad we had switched to our new MSR tent and remained snug and warm.

Waking up listening to the wind howling at 05:00 made us question whether we wanted to get out of our warm sleeping bags.

With the wind blowing the call of nature routine was even more tricky this morning.
Leave no trace means as hikers we have to pack out any toilet paper. We use dog poop bage for this, but the wind made the whole process much more challenging than normal.

We packed up carefully so the tent wouldn’t blow away and broke camp at around 07:00.
Looking back over the mountains that we passed yesterday the scenery was incredible. The sun was just moving above the mountains bathing them in warm sunlight, contrasting against dark clouds in the distance.
It was spectacular and we both appreciated the warmth of the sun on our faces after what was another cold night.

Removing the lid of the bear cans is proving problematic, especially with cold hands.
Sarah’s devised a method of using an old credit card to push against the plastic lugs that allows us to remove the lid.

We are experimenting with different layering systems today.  The wind is cold yet the sun warm + this makes it hard to regulate your temperature.

We see horseshoe prints on the trail and we’re both surprised. The trail is sandy and slippy and very exposed with steep sides.
It must feel pretty scary way up on a horse.

We walk past huge boulders that almost look like they are made out of pebbledash, with lots of smaller rocks included within the main shape. I assume these of volcanic, but will need to brush up on my geography.

We wind our way around steep mountain paths with the mountains all around us looking like cathedrals. Rugged and jagged in front of us, almost like fingers of rock reaching up to the sky.

The trail winds itself around the mountains like a serpent between rocks boulders and large trees.

We start to see more cedar trees their bark more rough and ragged and chestnut red in colour.

It was nice last night finishing early and spending a little time relaxing at the lake.

We still need to get through the Sierras by mid October, but there is an element of fear mongering amongst hikers.
This seems to make hikers want to rush and miss some of the things were really out here for in the first place.
I also think it’s too easy to replace one stress with another. Sarah and I wanted to come out here for a break from the stresses and strains of our modern-day life as well as having a well deserved break and adventure.

Today’s date is the 26th of September and by our reckonings the Sierras will take 2 weeks to complete. Therefore we should be through the high country before mid-October, which is what everyone seems to think is the deadline.
Although let’s face it with today’s weather systems nobody really knows what the weather will really do. It could snow tomorrow, or it could be snowing in a month’s time.
Lets just keep our fingers crossed and hopefully we can keep smelling those sweets smelling roses and still get through safely.

Sarah comments on how the rocks and made up of different coloured layers ranging from sandy yellows, pinks and reds.
These ancient layers have been here for millions of years and have lasted the test of time. I wonder how many people have also looked up at them in wonder.

Either side of the trail there are beautiful alpine flowers still bright with colour.

Around 11 o’clock we stop for a snack.
Sarah’s insatiable appetite seems to be going to another level.
At this rate we needs to be careful with our supplies so we get us to Kennedy Meadows without running out.

During our break we have stunning views of upper Kinney Lake. The light reflects off the surface like a mirror. It’s very tempting to pop down and check it out, but we’ve got miles to bust.

Sarah dissappears off into the woods for a call of nature visit and I lay down in the dirt to do some stretches to try and sort out my hamstrings that have been giving me some jip for the last few days.

As we walk past huge granite boulders there are still signs of the snow from last year,  but at this time at the same level as the trail

We traverse down into Noble Canyon. Leading up from the ravine on our left is a huge series of mountains.
Looking on Far Out these are identified as Highland Peak and Rockshire Peak.
They are true monsters + it’s like being in Switzerland where the mountains reach up into the sky and you have to crank you head back to take in the beauty.

After filling up on “Frosted Blue” flavoured Gatorade, Snickers bars and Skittles we flew up the mountain covering nearly 3 miles in less than an hour.
The elevation was a 10000 feet in just under 3 miles, so thats pretty good going.

Whilst I’m recording this I’m sitting on a tree branch at the top of the pass as the wind whistles passed me.
There’s a barbed wire fence in front of me thats swaying in the wind as it blasts through the pass of the mountain.
The elevation is 9,250 feet and quite the contrast from the bottom of the canyon where it is warm and the air was still.

Sarah in hot pursuit + it won’t be long before she reaches me and then we’ll have a world deserved snack before we continue.
I always make sure she is not far behind.

We have covered 14.5 miles and it’s now 14:45.
Obviously we had an additional 1.5 miles which took us down to the lake so we are looking more like 16 miles.
This isn’t bad but our plan for today is to try and cover 25 miles. So no rest for the wicked.

The trail down from the pass that looks over Noble lake was nice and graded and the pain in my ankle seems to be subsiding which is a huge relief.
As we reach the bottom there’s evidence that cows have once grazed here and I find a large skull in the grass.

And 17:20 we start our last stint for the day. It looks similar to before with 10000 feet elevation over 3 miles.
The sun’s is going down and as I hold my tracking poles the aluminium handles are cold to the touch.

We walk through a number of valleys that once were full of water, but now dry and above us is an impressive castle shaped mountain, where you can imagine turrets and spires.

The ground seems hard and in places its almost like it has just defrosted.
The winter snow only started melting in July and many of these shaded pockets may have had melting snow on them up until only recently.

There are two options for where we pitch our tent tonight.
One site is towards the top of the climb in approx 5 miles around 9000 ft, which could potentially be exposed and windy.
Or we push on around 7 miles to where there is a drop in elevation.
Sarah has been having a few headaches so this might be a better bet.
We will just have to see where our legs are able to take us this evening.

Going to the 2nd tensite will also put us in a much better position for a hike into North Kennedy Meadows tomorrow.
Where a shuttle runs at various times throughout the day and we’re hoping to get there for 3pm.

The climb seems to be split into 3 short sharp bursts.
The mountains to our left are bathed in sunlight yet some are still in shadow. Due to the smoke in the air it also creates a ghostly erry effect.

We pass other hikers that were all warped up and in their tents around 19:00.
So as the light was starting to fade around 19:30 we pulled into the first tensite just past the Paradise Valley Junction.
The elevation is 9500 ft + our legs had done all they could today.
The tentsite  had a good water supply with a creek running close by and a reasonable level of shelter.

We rustled up some dehydrated GotoGo meals. The Indian Korma that tasted like perfume, but the mushroom risotto wasn’t bad. TBH our DIY meals are generally better vs this premium brand and not a patch on Peak meals that we have ordered for the Sierras.
Also this brand generally lives up to its name and makes you need to use the
bathroom pretty sharpish the following day.

Kennedy Meadows North is 17.3 miles away and we have a big day tomorrow to get there for early afternoon. So without further a do it’s a good night god bless y’all.

Day 95 Wed Sept 27th
Tent site 5 just past Paradise Valley Junction  – Sorona pass trailhead – Kennedy Meadows (North)
1619.8 – 1637.1
Approx.  3927 ft & ascent + 3435 ft descent
17.2 Miles

Good morning Vietnam

It’s been hard to regulate our temperature this morning.
We start out with full layers but as the sun çomes up and fills the mountains with light we soon strip back down to shorts and T-shirts again.
But you are then plunged back into the coldness of the valleys. With only the south facing slopes benefiting from the warmth of the sun.
The only way around it is to hike as fast as you can and hope for a bit of uphill to get the blood pumping.

We have a big push today to get to Sorona pass or face a long walk to Kennedy Meadows resort and camp ground.

Theres a shuttle at 15:00 with our name written all over it.
This is a campsite / resort is where we can do laundry, get resupply and shower and it’s important we make the shuttle as we are starting to smell pretty bad once again.

We have 7 miles downhill before we reach the foot of Sorona pass which looks like a formidable mountain.
Spread over around 6 miles the elevation goes from 8,000 ft to 10500 ft.

Even though the majority of the morning was downhill there was some nasty spikes of uphill which were steeper than what we’d seen in a while.
Steep enough to almost make you panic as taking a breath when being physically exerted is difficult at this altitude.
It’s bitter sweet as the climbs warm your bones.

Sarah “That’s the hardest climb I’ve done in a while” as she walks up behind me panting and out of breath throwing down her pack in almost a tantrum.

Sarah learnt a valuable lesson this morning
about using her phone whilst hiking uphill and looking down.
If it wasn’t for her baseball cap that contacted the tree first, she would have had a branch smack her square in the face.

Similar to yesterday we appear to be walking adjacent to a ravine. The river that runs below is called the East Fork Carson River and the mountains to our left form white cliff peaks.
There are massive slabs of granite with pine trees desperately clinging onto the sides of the mountain somehow finding a way for there roots to take hold.

Around 10:30 we started to climb. Realising so we had under 9 miles to go before we reached Sironna pass, which was better than what we had expected.

As we climbed we walked through yet more huge granite boulders and pine trees. 
The Carson River formed stunning cascades, waterfalls and deep pools as it passes its way through the valley and it fills the air with the sound of water everywhere.

The impressive rock formations create a corridor to this canyon. It’s almost hard to describe how beautiful it is. It looks otherworldly with a texture similar to that of a walnut.

We temporarily loose the trail as it crosses a number of small creeks where the banks have been washed out. Luckily we can use the map on Far Out to help get us back on track.

Similar to yesterday my ankle seems to be improving as a day goes on.
I’m not sure if this is related the uphills or whether it’s just because I’ve warmed up.
I am definitely going to reach out to Blaze the PCT physio when we reach town to try and work out what’s going on. She does a online consultation and hopefully she can diagnose the issues and maybe give me some exercises.

Towards the top I see patches of ice and ice sculptures in shady places where the sun rays havn’t reached.

On our way up we pass a number of friendly Australian nobos that give us the low dow about North Kennedy Meadows and the next section through the Sierras.

By all accounts snow is predicted this weekend + when we get off trail we need to investigate this in more detail.

Sarah seems to be struggling with the elevation which is understandable as we’re now over 10,000 feet.

She arrives at the top five minutes after me with tears in her eyes. She’s finding it tough but is doing a great job and soon pulls herself together.
The Sierras are the hardest part of the trail and she is more than capable of doing this.

After a little while a smile slowly returns to her face as she reaches for the ibuprofen.
This is probably been the most impressive mountain pass and certainly the largest we’ve seen so far. The views all around us breathtaking.

Its interesting to see a pine trees running down the mountain side in line formations at the top of drainage channles.
They must only grow here due to the fact that these channles must be full of snow / water during the winter and spring?

The tme now is 13:30 pm and we have 3 mile remaining before we cross the pass. It seems to go on forever winding its way around the mountain before we drop down towards the trailhead.

Both a little short breath and we are certainly looking forward to the downhill as it’s been quite a tough day.
We cross the pass and drop into a steep canyon with eroded reddish fingers of rock reaching up to the sky.

Down a steep traverse and around the mountain zigzagging all the way down to the trailhead we arrived at 14:30.
Both relieved to be off the mountain and in plenty of time for the shuttle.

Sarah questioning whether she’s capable of doing the Sierra’s. This is hopegmfulky just a temporary wobble and I told her she’ll be fine she just needs to have confidence in herself. It sounds simple but you just needto keep putting 1 foot on front of the other and as my gramp would have said “bite the bullet and grasp that nettle boy”

We manage to get a hitch from the pass to North Kennedy Meadows from a lovely couple -Marry and Philip. They were on vacation staying in a B&B close by in Pinecrest.

Kennedy Meadows was a pleasant looking official campground with wooden cabins, a store and a restaurant.
It looked a popular place for a vacation with fishing and horse riding being available.
Behind store was an area designated for
hikers and sowers and laundry.

In no time we settled in and dripped our packs. Ordering a couple of burgers which are side of chicken strips.
They store was also well stocked with resupply and to our surprise they had a full range of our favourite dehydrated Peak meals.
The mark up on price was a little steep but it’s to be expected in these remote mountain locations.

We sorted a room upstairs in what I would describe as a Swiss style dormitory.
Although luckily we had the entire room to ourselves.
It was perfect and we both spent a good chunk of uninterrupted time going through our gear and getting shipshape. It was a much needed bit of TLC and we both grabbed it with both hands.