Tuesday October 1, 16.1mi/25.9km

Badwater Basin (0.0/-282ft) to Ridge above Hanaupah Spring (16.1/5046ft) (CA)

I was awake at 6:45am, everyone else in the hostel was still sleeping, so I packed up quietly and slipped out for breakfast. I had a big greasy meal, and returned to the hostel to find my ride waiting for me. Chuck does shuttles from Lone Pine to all the local trailheads, and he agreed to drive me the two hours to Badwater Basin. We left at 8:15am, and arrived at 10.30am. It was a busy and crowded parking lot.

I wandered around the area for a bit, reading all the signs. It’s the lowest place in the western hemisphere!

And usually very hot too, though today was only 88F/31C.

I started walking toward the path across the salt flats, and there were already less people.

The area was named for this little spring, which has salty, or “bad” water. I thought I saw some brine shrimp living in it.

I asked some tourists to get me photo, and then I was off hiking!

The salt flats were very loud and crunchy to walk on.

I had 5mi/8km to get across the playa.

Some spots in the flats had more sand mixed in with the salt, making them look brown.

After two hours, I was across the salt flats. I stopped for a break at what appeared to be someone’s failed garden.

I started up an eroded dirt road towards Hanaupah canyon, and saw a sign warning about compromised water quality. Umm….

(The water turned out to be fine). I spent the rest of the afternoon on a gentle uphill grade, winding my way into a canyon.

Up and up, three thousand feet, and the temperature started to cool a little.

Eventually the old road disappeared, and I was walking in a wash. It felt about the same.

I stopped to refill my water, which was indeed flowing and clean. This was the first of only three natural water sources for the next hundred miles.

Then, I went steeply uphill, leaving the canyon for a ridgeline. It was steep, gaining 1500ft in a mile.

As usual, I had several small slips, and I always caught myself. One of the times I caught myself on a cactus though… ouch.

I stopped taking photos after this, to avoid getting blood all over my phone. After another hour, I was on top of the ridge, and I setup camp in the fading daylight.

Sunday September 29 & Monday September 30, 0mi/0km

After lunch, Cougar and I went to the airport, and I picked up a rental car and drove towards Lone Pine CA. I stopped and bought groceries for the hike, and water. Lots of water!

I had a quick dinner at In-N-Out burger, then continued south into the Eastern Sierra.

I stopped at trailhead a little ways off the highway to camp, and the next morning I drove the rest of the way to Lone Pine.

I stopped for a quick breakfast to go, and continued down into Death Valley National Park, to cache my water.

I placed water in three locations, since there are so few natural water sources on the hiking route. The third location was a little more difficult to access, as it was 12 miles down an eroded dirt road.

After the final water cache, I drove back to Lone Pine, and dropped some stuff off at the hostel I’m staying at. Then, I had to drive an hour north, back up to Bishop, to return the rental car. Along the way, I saw a PCT hiker trying to get a ride, and I picked him up and brought him to bishop. “PH-B” was his trail name, since he has a doctorate degree in bees. He was fun to talk to and didn’t even smell that bad!

I dropped off the rental car, and then hitched back to Lone Pine. My ride was two other hikers “going to death valley”. As I loaded my backpack into the trunk, I saw their gear, and realized they are former thru-hikers as well. Turns out, they are doing the L2H route as well, starting a day after me! What an incredible coincidence – only like ten people per year do this route. We arrived to Lone Pine, and I had dinner and then got organized in the hostel bunkroom. Tomorrow, I start the hike!

Friday September 27 – Sunday September 29, 0mi/0km

Kim dropped me off in Truckee near where she works, and I spent the morning doing some shopping for a dinner outfit for the Aldha-West (American Long Distance Hiking Association) event this weekend. This year’s theme was “black and white”.

I met up with two other hikers, Cougar and BamBam, and the three of us carpooled to hour to Nevada City.

We arrived! It was beautiful weather, and I hung out catching up with others for a couple of hours. After Friday’s dinner was a nice musical set by a group of four hikers.

And a presentation by “OG”, who hiked the PCT in the 1970s and again in 2016.

On Saturday, there were more fun presentations and events. This was the first event of the “Hiker Olympics”, in which we had 30 seconds to fit the most possible amount of gummies into a ziploc bag, ha!

A duo of ladies gave a cool presentation about their trip on the Camino de Santiago by wheelchair. It was impressive to hear all the additional challenges of that trip!

The keynote speaker was Heather “Amish” Anderson, who was also receiving two triple crown awards that night. She is an incredible athlete, and a writer too – “2600 Miles to Home” was an exceptionally relatable book.

Then, dinner and cake!

There was the annual Triple Crown Awards ceremony after dinner, in which 40 people recieved the award. I didn’t get any photos, since my chosen outfit didn’t have any pockets for a phone. D’oh!

The next morning was spent voting for ALDHA-West board members, secretary, etc. Everyone looked kinda tired but happy after such a nice weekend.

Cougar and I left at 10am, and drove back to Reno.

We were early for Herr flight, so we went across the street, and had sushi for lunch. Excellent!

I spent the rest of the day getting ready for my next short hike, which I will detail in the next blog post…

Thursday September 26, 20.4mi/32.8km

Mt Rose campground NV (150.8/8894ft) to Brockway Trailhead /Hwy 267 CA (171.2/7005ft)

I had an nice relaxing morning in the deserted campground, and hiked out at 7:30am. I crossed the Mt Rose highway, after waiting awhile for traffic.

This was a ridiculous sign at the trailhead.

Then, I hiked uphill for five miles, mostly thru meadows.

I passed Galena Falls and refilled both my water bottles, as this is a dry section of trail.

The final climb up to the summit of Relay Peak was steep.

In the far distance, about 100 miles northwest, I could see Mt Lassen.

The ridge walk to the summit was windy and exposed, but at least it was warm weather.

The summit of Relay Peak had a bunch of cellular equipment on it.

Immediately after the summit, the trail entered the Mt Rose wilderness. I saw no one else all morning!

On the descent from the summit, there were constant views of Lake Tahoe.

And also views to the north, in the Truckee River Valley.

The views just kept coming, and I was so distracted, that by the time I stopped for lunch I had covered 12 miles.

The ridgeline was a little rocky, and I kept hearing marmots, but I couldn’t see them.

The fields are covered in “Mules Ear”, which has amazing flowers in the summertime.

I crossed back into California, but I didn’t see a sign, or have anyone ask me if I was bringing any fruits/vegetables into the state. 🙂

Soon after, I met up with my friend Kim, and along with four-legged Lola, we hiked the final couple hours to the trailhead.

It was great to have someone to talk to during hiking, and two days in a row now!

We finished just after 4pm, and drove down the hill to civilization.

What a great trail! It had one of the best effort/reward ratios of any hike I’ve done. Highly recommended!

-Recon

Wednesday September 25, 21.6mi/34.8km

Vista over Spooner Summit (129.2/7579ft) to Mt Rose Campground (150.8/8894ft) (NV)

It was another warm morning, I was even able to start the day wearing shorts.

After a brief climb up to a ridgeline, I had views of Lake Tahoe all morning.

And a mile later…

And again a half mile later…

The terrain was very dry here, and there was sage and scrubby desert plants everywhere.

I started a small descent, and I made an effort to look behind me today, for a different perspective on the scenery.

And then, I saw another lake! This one was Marlette Lake.

Part of the descent was thru an alpine meadow.

And of course, the view back up the hillside.

Marlette Lake kept showing itself every half mile or so.

I took my usual mid-morning break, and while I was spooning Nutella out of the jar, a hiker walks by. From the looks of his backpack, he was a thru-hiker. I catch up to him a mile later, and meet Johannes, aka “Perimeter Check”. He is a PCT hiker, who decided to hike the TRT as well.

We both haven’t seen other backpackers in awhile, and spend the rest of the day talking about almost everything – hiking, other cultures, aviation, favorite audiobooks, food, and even behavioral science. We took an afternoon break at a spot that had a view of two lakes at once. Lake Tahoe:

Washoe Lake, near Carson City:

At 6pm, Perimeter Check stopped to camp in a nice forest away from the Mt Rose highway. I continued another two miles to stay at the Mt Rose campground… I love a good picnic table! On the way, I passed thru Tahoe Meadows.

I enjoyed my last night camping on this trail, and I even had the whole campground to myself. I think because it late in the season?

Tomorrow will be a twenty mile day, to return to the spot I had started from a week ago!

Tuesday September 24, 23.1mi/37.2km

Heavenly’s Galaxy Ski Lift (108.5/8087ft) to Vista over Spooner Summit (129.2/7579ft) (NV) +1.4 food +1.0 water

The morning wasn’t cold, surprisingly.

I had a later start, since I slept so well in that campsite. I packed up and said goodbye to the ski lift. The trail markers were in some surprising places today, mostly embedded in huge rocks.

After an hour, I split off from the trail to go get some more food. A 0.7 mile detour led me to a convenience store, where I restocked my food bag for the final three days of this hike.

And then I hit the BBQ restaurant next door, Fox and Hounds, for a huge breakfast burrito.

I was back on trail by 10:30am, and it was nice and warm. Some of the trail junctions are definitely good reminders that I’m in Nevada now – lucky 7’s!

I walked most of the afternoon on a winding ridge top trail, with frequent views of the lake.

This section of trail is extremely dry, so I was carrying two liters of water, which I almost never do. But I could see billions (trillions?) of gallons of water below me!

Of course, there were more random boulders today too.

I had a nice break at the top of the ridge, at a spot where someone donated a bench.

After eating an entire bag of M&Ms, I strolled downhill for 5mi/8km to Hwy50 and Spooner Summit.

There was no water on the trail, so I took a half mile detour to Spooner Lake to refill. I decided that I wasnt carrying extra water for dinner up the hill, so I made my pasta by the lake.

I ate quickly, as it was already 6pm, and I wanted to go two more miles to a camp spot. I made it just after sunset!

Monday September 23, 23.2mi/37.3km

Luther Pass Campground CA (87.3/7290ft) to Heavenly’s Galaxy Ski Lift NV (108.5/8087ft)

It was a warm night in the campground, and I had a relaxing breakfast, taking advantage of the amenities of picnic tables and privies.

It was another nice sunny day, though today was a bit more windy. I strolled along all morning thru alpine forests and meadows, and let my mind wander. I came to a junction, and while I really wanted to find out what “Mr Toads” is, I continued on the TRT.

Someone had fun with stickers at this junction too.

I crossed Freel Meadows, and then the wind really increased.

As I walked the ridge lines, it was fun to watch the clouds interact with the mountains.

A view of Lake Tahoe to the north:

And then, right when I was thinking about lunch, I found juniper trees! I love juniper trees.

They were like sentinels guarding the trail.

I ate lunch, saw my first hikers of the day, and then continued up to the junction with Freel Peak.

It’s only a mile side trip, and it’s the highest peak in the Carson Range, at 10,885ft/3318m. So why not?

Up, up, up, it was a tough climb. After 1100ft in a mile, I was on the summit.

There was a summit register and sign on top too.

The register was actually many small notebooks, all full. Darn. And I noticed the sticker for In-N-Out, and I dreamed about burgers and shakes.

It was cold on the summit, and there was heaps of wind, so I pushed on back down to mountain. I was pretty tired, but still had 9mi to go. Onward to Star Lake!

After a nice break at the lake, I enjoyed a warm afternoon of mostly flat walking. It was noticeably drier on this side of the mountains.

After awhile, I was walking on a ridge overlooking the Carson Valley, thousands of feet below.

A mile later, I came upon a huuuuge tree. I named it the Fuccillo tree, ha!

And soon after that, I crossed into Nevada. Goodbye California, I’ll be back in a couple of days.

I found a nice flat spot under a ski lift, and I setup there. Hanging a bear bag was easy!

Sunday September 22, 21.9mi/35.2km

Tamarack Lake (65.4/7874ft) to Luther Pass Campground (87.3/7290ft) (CA)

I was awake before sunrise, which has been occurring quite late recently. I left camp at 7am, and the other campers were just starting to emerge from their tents. I had a great view of echo lake for an hour.

I arrived to the end of the lake, and stopped for a quick break. I was expecting to see people along this popular stretch of trail, but I think it’s too early in the morning.

I had a snack and charged my phone at the tiny general store. It’s closed for the season, but the electricity still works! A mile later, I was surprised to find a huge stream crossing without a bridge. Almost every stream on this trail has had a bridge, even the tiny trickles. This stream was raging.

I took a quarter mile detour down to a FS road, and continued on my way. At the road, someone had left a note for northbound hikers. I’m glad I didn’t camp at Aloha Lake!

In the forest, there were all these piles of logs waiting to be burned. It reminded me of an exhibit at the Salem Witch museum, and it felt creepy. Moving on…

The started to climb, and broke out into a rocky section, and there were marmots everywhere!

As I got higher, I could see the lake again too.

I climbed up to 9000ft, where there was still small scraps of snow left from Wednesday’s flurries.

But, it was warm and sunny too, so I think the snow will be gone very soon.

I stopped for lunch in a sunny meadow, and it was perfectly quiet.

Then, the trail went around a corner, and it was an alpine paradise.

The snow cornices are still there from last season! It must’ve been a helluva winter. After an hour of hiking bliss, I had a break at Showers Lake.

Last time I was here, I had nearly been drained dry by the thousands of mosquitoes. But not a single mosquito today! The trail continued thru Meiss Meadow, and there was a cabin in the distance.

I explored around the cabin again, and it looked the same as when I was here in 2015.

At this spot, the TRT splits from the PCT, which continues south to Mexico for another 1079 miles. Now hiking east on the TRT, I started to see different kinds of rocks. Conglomerates!

I’m kind of a rock nerd.

I also came across two other humans, they were on bikes. Such a quiet day compared to yesterday! The last hour was a nice easy stroll thru some meadows.

I chose to camp at a front country campground, since it had bear boxes, pit toilets, and tables. Bear boxes are so much easier than hanging food in a tree!

Which to eat for dinner? My rice/tuna pairings are sometimes strange.

At this spot, I’m now about halfway done, these short trails go so fast!

Saturday September 21, 22.0mi/35.4km

Campsite near Richardson Lake (43.4/7546ft) to Tamarack Lake (65.4/7874ft) (CA)

It was another cold morning, so I stayed in my warm sleeping bag until 7am, and was hiking by 7:30am. A few minutes later, I was in Desolation Wilderness.

It was a peaceful morning of hiking, with lots of cool granite boulders to look at.

Granite was covering the surrounding mountaintops too.

The trail was very well built in this section, and soon after I started seeing hordes of people.

I passed by so many lakes today too. Middle Velma Lake, Upper Velma lake, and this was Fontanillis lake:

I hiked a couple more miles uphill, to the top of Dick’s Pass. The pass is at an elevation of 9400ft/2865m, so it was a decent climb. A nice view of the choss pile that is Dick’s Peak:

A few minutes later, there was a better view of Dicks Peak, and I stopped to eat lunch.

And looking north to Dicks Lake, back from the direction from which I’d come:

As I sat eating my wrap, I counted 52 people on the pass, either stopped for a break or hiking by. It must be a weekend! I started down the pass, and crossed a tiny patch of snow that remained from last season.

The view down this side of the pass was pretty lake-y, too.

And the trail was being held to the side of the mountain by some boards, which made for easy walking.

At the bottom of the pass, I hiked by many more lakes. Halfmoon Lake, Gilmore Lake, and this was Susie Lake, with its neat island:

And Heather Lake:

And finally, I arrived to the junction that would take me to Aloha Lake. I don’t know why anyone would ever choose the other direction, mosquito pass. Sounds itchy.

Aloha Lake was just as big as I remember it.

The trail followed the lakeshore for 1.5mi/2.4km, and I stopped for a swim.

The air temperature was warm, but the water was quite cold. There were some other day hikers here, and we all waded in a short distance.

Then, I entered snake-mode, and sunned myself on a nice warm rock for an hour.

By 4:30, I figured it was too windy to camp here, so I hiked two more miles to Tamarack Lake. My campsite had a wonderful view of the Echo Lakes in the valley below.

I chatted with some other weekend hikers at camp, made dinner, and then hung my bear bag for the first time in a month. This area is known for un-shy bears!

Friday September 20, 21.6mi/34.8km

Granlibbakken Hill (21.8/6549ft) to Campsite near Richardson Lake (43.4/7546ft) (CA)

It was a very cold morning, around 34F/1C, so I got a later start.

At least it was a nice sunny day, so the temperature rose quickly. The trail was also slightly uphill, so that helped me warm up as well. An hour later, I was in Page Meadows.

The concrete patio pavers were a nice feature, since usually meadow trails get very muddy and eroded. At the far end of the meadow, I saw a sign for “oven”. Perfect! I had a couple slices of leftover pizza from last night that I could reheat. But it wasn’t that kind of oven…

I took a break there for second breakfast, and moved on. I refilled my water at Ward creek, which had a surprisingly overbuilt bridge.

There was so much water on the trail today, even some waterfalls! This is McCloud falls.

There were also many large meadows, which I suspect used to contain wildflowers. I think the recent hard freezes had killed off most of them.

Looking back across the meadow, toward Twin Peaks:

The trail reentered the forest, and I was amazed by the perfect pattern of moss on the trees. I think I know the snowpack depth here in the springtime, haha!

At the top of this climb, I attempted a side trail up to the summit of Twin Peaks. It was a rock scramble up some choss. Actually, a ton of choss. After sending down too many rocks, I gave up and returned to the trail.

Back on the trail, I had a nice preview of tomorrow’s hike.

But right now, time to enter the Granite Chief Wilderness!

The trail stayed up on a high ridgeline for a few miles, and I stopped for lunch at a nice view spot.

All afternoon, the sights just kept coming.

I had a long break at Barker Pass, and was offered a nice cold Lagunitas by some day hikers in the parking lot. They live locally, and they were very entertained to learn about a trail encircling the lake! I continued on the last few miles to camp.

I arrived to Richardson Lake, but it was windy, and rather cold and damp since it sat in a low depression in the land.

I filled my water, and continued another half mile to a nice high and dry spot in a pine forest.

It’s 8pm as I write this, and another hiker has just passed by on the trail in the dark. They must be a PCT southbound hiker, trying to make some miles!