With what looked like totally dry trail ahead, I wanted to see what kind of mileage I could do. I got an extra early start and started hiking. The miles came easy without having to navigate all the time.
I would be crossing a few roads today and that usually ups the chances for trail magic. The first few didn’t have any, but when I got near Carson Pass I saw something.
In the snow it said “Thru Hikers Only” so I grabbed it and walked to the Carson Pass Visitor Center. When I arrived they gave me watermelon, Oreos, and some chocolate. They also had a scale and I’m down 15 pounds… with shoes and clothes on.
There were some other hikers there and we were both happy to find out neither groups had skipped the Sierra. I had done 23 miles that day and they were talking about doing 10 more. I sort of jokingly mentioned getting all the way to the highway near South Lake Tahoe which was 14 more miles. We did have the daylight…
I hiked on from the Carson Pass and saw lots of day hikers. Until then, my feet were dry all day but I came upon a few streams that were just big enough to get me wet. Apparently earlier in the day they were lower because some of the day hikers weren’t very happy about getting their feet wet.
I looked at my mileage and looked at the time. I could make it to the highway before dark if the miles came easy. I was gonna go for it, a 37 mile day.
Then it got hard. There was lots of snow, but also lots of footprints. Routefinding wasn’t bad and I didn’t have to look at my phone much. Soon I came upon a super steep descent where the switchbacks were covered in snow. I went up to the edge of what looked like a cliff to see if I could scramble down. It looked almost possible and then I saw someone at the bottom. It was go time.
It’s hard to tell from this picture, but it was really steep. I made it down and kept going, the trail beginning to traverse a steep canyon. The guy I saw ahead of me continued down to walk the flat bottom of the canyon, I scrambled back up some rocks to the now snow free trail.
Eventually, I made it to the trailhead, exhausted. Nobody was in the parking lot and I made my way out to the highway to find a ride. After 20 minutes someone finally pulled over. When I told him where I was going, he informed me I was hitching on the wrong side of the road!
I crossed back and tried hitching on the other side. It was getting dark and finding a ride seemed impossible. Uber was an option, but rides were $40 and my service was too spotty. The other hiker showed up and I turned on my headlamp. Eventually, someone did pull over and give me a ride. We got into town and went to the Mellow Mountain Hostel. Lots of other hikers were there.
I made my way to California Burger Company for a late dinner and ate lots of bottomless fries. When I got back to the hostel I finally saw myself in the mirror. I looked totally homeless.
After 37 miles of hiking, I’m glad I got my burger and milkshake.