Between the heat, the constant whine of mosquitos and a sloped campsite, neither of us slept well last night. The bugs were still around in force in the morning but as we took our time eating breakfast and packing they dissipated a little. We still brought out our bottle of bug spray for the first time on the trip. It’ll be a constant companion until Tahoe at least. It’s strange to think back to our last night of cowboy camping, before Muir Pass. Things changed so quickly!
Back on the trail we continued up the JMT alternate past lake after alpine lake – Gladys, Rosalie, Shadow, Garnet, Ruby, and the crown jewel (as it were) Thousand Island Lake. This last one marked the re-merging of the PCT and JMT. Each lake was set in its own little bowl and was a scenic reward to see after climbing the ridge separating it from the previous one. Thousand Island Lake was the largest and most scenic, named for the many tiny granite islands dotting its surface. It was not named, as I joked, for the fact that every single restaurant out here – starting in Southern California and persisting through Mammoth – puts thousand island dressing on their burgers. This is one regional twist that Keith doesn’t approve of.
We ate lunch at the trail junction and soaked our feet in the big lake. In true Lang tradition I managed to get a mild sunburn on my legs during the half hour I had my socks off. After lunch we started up the PCT towards Donohue Pass, the last “intimidating” pass we cross. For some reason it’s not usually lumped in with the big seven we’ve already done – that’s Forester, Glen, Pinchot, Mather, Muir, Selden and Silver, if you’re still keeping track. Maybe it’s an easier approach. We’ll find out tomorrow. Along the way we crossed over Island Pass, which was really more of a glorified saddle. We started through a stretch of rocky trail, sparse pine, and trickling streams.
As we gained altitude we started passing short stretches of meadow until we hit an open, green expanse 2 miles short of the pass that was impossible to resist. We’ve got a backdrop of peaks behind us and a long view to the east in front of us so we should catch the sun early tomorrow. It’s much cooler up here tonight than it was last night, although the bugs are still around.
Once we get over the pass tomorrow we have easy trail all the way to Tuolumne Meadows. We hope to grab lunch there and then follow the JMT as it splits from the PCT again and heads to its northern end in Yosemite Valley. That’s the plan, at least, assuming permitting isn’t a problem. If we’re really lucky we might score a permit to hike up the massive granite Half Dome. We’ll have to see…
– Posted from the PCT
Location:Pct mile 927