We woke up this morning to sprinkles of rain and moved quickly to pack up our sleeping bags so they wouldn’t get wet. The haze from yesterday was fully overcast and the air was damp. Rain is a bummer when you carry all your supplies in a bag on your back, but at least it got us moving more quickly than normal. We felt lucky that the rain had held off until morning instead of starting when it was still dark.
The bugs weren’t deterred at first and we fought them off while filtering our water and eating our breakfast. We hurried to get on the trail and moving, when they don’t seem as bad. The rain picked up a little as we started our first climb of the day and we were happy for our rain gear. Before long we were heading down switchbacks into the Vermillion Valley, named for the distant reddish cliffs that kept slipping into the fog and low hanging clouds. It was tough mentally to lose so much elevation when we knew we would be climbing another pass in a few hours. The foliage around us was lush and bright green, contrasting sharply with the white bark of aspens as we headed towards Mono Creek. We stopped to cook lunch and managed to get out of the drizzle under a tall pine tree. We’d need the energy for the upcoming climb up Silver Pass.
As we headed back up the trail the rain picked up, setting the tone for our hike back up to 11,000 feet. We knew it would be a tough, steep few miles. As we gained altitude everything got wetter. Between wet undergrowth and swollen streams, our feet (which had been some degree of damp all day) were soon soaked. Soon we were above the low cloud ceiling and everything was socked in with fog. It was eerie and beautiful. It got colder too, and the wind at the top of the pass was cutting and full of small frozen drops of rain. Our views were obscured by mist and rain and we kept expecting to see the top of the pass, but ridge after ridge appeared in front of us. The air was heavy with moisture. Under our rain gear we were sweating with the exertion of the climb. We wanted to stop for a break but didn’t dare. Our ponchos and our exertion were the only things keeping us warm. It was getting late, too, and we wanted to get as far down off the pass as we could to avoid a damp camp.
Finally we cleared the top, slipped down some snow on the other side, and started splashing down the trail on the other side. We went quickly after our slow climb and before long we started to see groups of tents from other hikers that had come over before us. We kept going until the light faded under the cloud cover, then we pulled over at a flat spot just off the trail and put up the tent. All the clothes we were wearing were wet to some degree and we expected to have a very damp night. Thankfully, though, our sleep clothes and bags were dry and once we had curled up we were actually very cozy. It’ll be unpleasant to put wet clothes and shoes on tomorrow, but the incentive to reach Reds Meadow and our next town stop is a strong motivator. It would be nice to be able to dry everything out in a hotel room. We are hoping for sunny weather tomorrow.
– Posted from the PCT
Location:Pct mile 888