I awoke in the hushed predawn silence and quietly packed up my gear. The trees stood tall and the mountains taller as Bedazzled and I sat silently eating our breakfast. It was 5:40 and we were supposed to leave at 5:30.

We left Mammoth with reluctant hearts and heavy footsteps. Mike and Vanessa had generously taken us in for 4 nights and let us crash their vacation in Mammoth.

I awoke to sunlight on my tent. It was a strange feeling to wake up when the stars aren’t still strung out over the night sky. After a moment, it all came back to me. An agreement around a smokey fire to sleep in and take the time to make oatmeal and coffee in the morning. To take time to feel civilized again.

We woke up at our lovely campsite overlooking a valley full of pine trees and a sequoia. Though lovely, we were missing the snow covered mountains we had been walking through for the last 8 days.

I wanted to address the fear mongering that has plagued the Sierra this year. Since 2017 was a record breaking year for snow fall, with some areas receiving 200% above average accumulation, the Sierra have quite naturally been the talk of the trail.

Close your eyes and imagine a dark stone hut built in 1930. It’s fire place has been stoned walled and there is only one window, which can’t be opened. Now imagine 12 hikers who have just eaten two week old salami, ramen, and peanut butter. Delicious and caloric? Yes. But more importantly, a master recipe for cutting the cheese, letting one slide or as some more civilized people would say, passing gas.

The Middle Fork of the Kings was still raging beneath our tents, and I slept through my alarm waking up 30 minutes late, but I still was ready before Vipr :-p.

The Sierra is a magical place this time of year. Winter above 10,000 feet and summer below. Today, I was lucky enough to walk from winter into summer.

I put warm feet into wet socks, then into wet shoes, and stepped on wet ground. A lovely way to start the morning. At least I was in the middle of the snowy Sierra, whose beauty is a salve to almost any aliment.

My crampons bit into firm snow as I left the campsite and started the trek up to Kearsarge in morning twilight. Vipr, Bedazzled, and Fun Dip followed behind. There has been a lot of attrition in the Sierra with most hikers skipping up to Northern California or quiting the trail all together.

A little too much socializing last night led to the decision to sleep in and wake up at 6:30. In the morning, our first steps on the surrounding snow led to an oh shit moment where we all realized our mistake. Unlike the previous nights, the snow didn’t freeze over. If it was already a little slushy this early, we could only imagine how it would be in the afternoon.