May 8-10, day 39-41, kilometer 618
Despite the urge to stay another day, we left Wrightwood the day before yesterday, heading for Agua Dulce. A zero day goes by all too quickly; there's so much to do, there's hardly time to really rest. But we don't want to lose our (hard-earned) hiking rhythm.
We didn't leave till late afternoon - as usual, quickly finding someone to drive us back to the trail. Just in time to enjoy a great sunset at "Inspiration Point" (see pic).
8 kilometers later, at the foot of Mount Mount Baden-Powell, we camped next to a blocked road for the night. A lot of hikers continued on via the highway to avoid the snow on Baden-Powell.
Next day, we decided not to bypass the snow, choosing instead to continue on through the mountains. However, the ascent was rough: going from 2000 to 2800 meters over a distance of 6 kilometers. Half of that was through snow. At some point the trail was entirely covered with snow – straight on and straight up! That was extremely strenuous; we were glad to have microspikes. The fantastic view from the summit at 2860 meters, however, was entirely worth the effort! We remained up there for a few sunny hours, taking time to journal, to write a poem for our dear friend Karl Bauer on the occasion of his 80th birthday, and to shoot a video clip, sending both to Germany, and then cooked dinner. We decamped in the afternoon, making for Little Jimmy Camping Ground 10 kilometers away. The hike was beautiful, if difficult and exhausting: either we had to traipse through snow or bypass it via an alternative trail. That took time: to pass safely, we constantly had to put on and take off our microspikes. At some point we were joined by Brian, a Chinese living in Canada. The last two hours' hiking were in the dark. Brian started hiking in Campo on April 22; he averages 20 miles a day! He works as a machine maintenance technician for the Toronto Star, a merger of roughly 100 regional newspapers. Around 9:30 pm, we reached the campground, fistbumping with Brian with a "we did it!," and pitched our tent. Dinner consisted of beef stroganoff and Cabernet Sauvignon – our intention being to party well into the night to celebrate the next day's anniversary. Except that we fell soundly asleep before midnight.
Next day the predicted rain set in. It was freezing, so we decided to hole up in our tent. On our 23rd wedding anniversary, of all things! Unfortunately, we discovered our tent leaks – even though it was only a light rain. Immediately sent off a complaint to Z-Packs. Sabine had schlepped a very special anniversary surprise up the mountain for Olli: coconut pancakes, sour cream, apple and banana, a bottle of champagne, and a candle in the shape of the number 23. It was delicious! Tomorrow it's supposed to thunderstorm and continue raining. We'll wait and see what to do ... Clear skies are expected from Sunday on.
Pictures