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Alone

Posted by on June 5, 2015

Something is wrong with this app and every time I write and save this post, it gets erased. This is the third time I’m writing this so it will be brief.

I left Merkel and Horizon and set off to find some hot springs that are just off the trail. First, I had to ford Evolution Creek which can be difficult but was only knee deep. But it was cold!! By the time I got to the other side, I felt like I had blocks of wood attached to my legs instead of feet. It took hours to feel my toes again.

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Dropping into lower elevations means less snow but more water. Sometimes the trail and a river are indistinguishable.

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I tried to find the hot springs by crossing a river on some logs then following a trail and cairns.

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After searching for awhile I gave up and returned to the trail where I climbed a huge ridge and camped in the snow.

I went over several 11,000′ passes by myself which were easy by comparison to the other ones.

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I got a lot of practice crossing rivers on narrow logs.

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One day I stopped into Vermilion valley resort on Lake Edison, just to dry out my stuff and have a hot meal. The lake is extremely low.

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I wished I was done with the snow but it wasn’t done with me. I still had several passes and lots of creek crossings.

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A few days after VVR, I stopped into Red’s meadow just to see if they were open.

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I had lunch at the restaurant where I chatted with a lovely couple about the trail. At the end of the meal, they bought me lunch, which was very sweet. I have met some of the most generous people on this journey.

The alpine lakes here are amazing and words can’t describe their beauty.

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I saw a lot of JMT hikers in just a few days and it made me wish for more solitude.

I went over Donahue pass and entered Yosemite national park then walked down hill for 14 miles to Tuolumne Meadows.

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