Last night after I made some calls on a payphone I went over to the saloon and got smashed on whiskey with the bartender and the cook. After the bar closed, I walked over to the stables and hung out with the horses for a bit. One of them starred straight into my soul. It was probably just the effects of 10 whiskey shots. But nonetheless an interesting moment of existential clarity. This morning, I felt the pain of said activities. I went down to the kitchen and the cook hooked me up with chicken fried steak, 2 eggs, 2 pancakes, hash browns, and toast.
I packed up my stuff and met the crew out on the back porch of the pack station. It was pretty hard to get a hitch out. Cowboy, Big Daddy, and I found a fisherman and his wife who gave us a ride back to Sonora Pass.
The hike up presented two scenarios that were even more sketchy than what I’ve had to navigate in days prior. Snow banks blocked the trial and required side step traversing that nothing short of cheek-puckering. This sheet of snow and ice had a foot path cut up and over the top of it. With the heat melting the stability of the foot pack, when I got on the top of it I was again wondering why the hell I had decided to take this path. But this was the only way across at this point. Shakedown took a lower route and fell and into a rocky crevasse. She was shaken up but OK. We finally got down below the snowlike and took a snack and smoke break.
the widow maker
just more annoying snow :)
Im done with you.
We found a nice camp down in the valley. On the way to it, everyone hiked single file and chatted the whole way. We rarely all talk while hiking except for heads ups and random explitives yelled because of sketchy trail situations. Topics on this conversation ranged from next hike destinations to TV shows. At camp I made a fire and the dudes grabbed wood. We have 4 days until we get to South Lake Tahoe. My parents, bro, and Jessie are flying up and we’re going to stay my cousins house on the lake. He owns a large and locally popular carneceria in King’s Beach so Im excited for real Mexican food and meats!
