Two passes in one day and we are exhausted. We went over Pinchot and Mather today since they’re only 10 miles apart. This will let us spend tomorrow setting up for Muir 20 miles up the trail. Muir usually has the most snow of any pass and crossing it later in the day can be a recipe for frustration. Stopping short tomorrow will let us hit it early the following day.

Mather was tough because we were already tired. We reached the top right around 7 and both took tumbles as we slipped over the soft snow on the descent. We’re camped around 11,000 feet a mile or so below the pass, on the first flat open spot we could find off the trail. The moon is so bright tonight that it’s lighting up the granite rockfields around us and casting huge black shadows off the ridges.

I managed to lose my glasses today. Luckily my sunglasses are prescription so I’m not blind but navigation will be tough after dark. I think they might be somewhere back on Pinchot pass. I realized they were gone around lunch so we spent the afternoon asking southbound hikers to keep an eye out for them. I’m not holding out a lot of hope. Maybe I can get a new pair in Mammoth in another few days.

– Posted from the PCT

Location:Pct mile 818