Day one

So hot in the valley.

Picked up Michael on the way up—my first hitchhiker!

So hot at the Onion Valley trailhead.

Salty face?

Kearsarge Pass was difficult but I managed it well, with the electrolyte pills and snack breaks.

The view though. Unbelievable. Top 5.

I heard rumor of Dietmar and his bear encounter at the pass.

A couple and their seven month child!

Kind of a grind all the way to Charlotte Lake. Amazing views, but the altitude was getting to me.

Landed a nice camp spot at Charlotte Lake. Cleaned up. Water is warm! A lady said she poached a fish.

I saw friends from the pass roll in after me.

I met the one and only Dietmar.

There’s a bear locker! My bear can wasn’t big enough for my aspirational snacks and trash.

I was really unsure of what to do the following day. Rae lakes seemed too ambitious. The lower valleys seem to lose a lot of elevation which would mean a brutal Sunday. I was between doing a day hike around here, maybe a summit, or heading back to Kearsarge lakes—or just heading back?

Day two

Made coffee and sat with Dietmar while he packed. Learned that he was a crucial engineer at Arlo before retirement. Got his phone number, so I’ll text him when I’m back on the network.

Shane and Kelsey were super nice as well. Good sense of humor.

I decided to head to Kearsarge Lakes for at least lunch, then decide the fate of the day at that time. Climbing to Rae Lakes or descending to one of the meadows would have led to a brutal last day.

I was walking about 8:45 or 9:00am. I was the last one to leave Charlotte Lake this morning.

Climbed stairs until that nice meadow with the Rae Lakes fork signage.

Descended south towards the John Muir/Kearsarge Lakes fork. What a remarkable view of Vidette Meadow (valley?). Absurd.

More stair climbing past lovely Bullfrog Lake and I met a father and son headed to Rae Lakes. Really friendly. Thought about my dad again.

Got to Kearsarge Lakes and I looped around to the south to find a secluded spot. Campsite fulfillment.

Decided to stay the night and get an early departure so I set up camp. It was just after 12pm.

Messaged Roxanne with my updated plan and started rehydrating the mushroom risotto (20 minutes!) while I had my mandatory nudie dip in the lake.

Right as I cleaned up lunch, unpacked my bag, stashed my bear can, and got into the tent, it started raining with nearby thunder. All my non-interior goods were safe in the vestibule.

The rain came and went—though nothing too heavy. Thunder continued every minute or three. I had to pee.

The thunder is in the dominant force up in these valleys.

There was a small peninsula on the south side of the lakes, just east of camp. May target that next time.

Also, the furthest, highest lake to the east.

Chicken dumplings for dinner. May have been the best dehydrated meal on the trip?

A nice older couple went swimming near my spot.

Bear can stashed. Caught a westerly view on a big rock before I retreated to my tent.

A lake without a name on a map is sad.

Was I being watched by that man on the rock while pooping? It was one more excuse to watch the sunset over the valley.

This area was busy, yes.

I read and then pursued sleep. Alarm was set for 5:40am.

Day three

There was such an odd discomfort in my left leg all night. I slept about four hours at best.

It was a very still morning and I was out of the tent at about 5:30. Onward toward Kearsarge Pass by 6:37.

I made coffee on the pass, then began gliding down to the parking lot.

One more poop in the woods on the way down.

Offered to take two girls down to the ice cream shop in Independence.

I had a mediocre late breakfast at the Alabama Hills Cafe, then began the five hours home through California's most scorched landscape.