Day:243
Direction: Southbound
Trail location: 1801
Cumulative miles hiked 2019/2021: 2458
Cumulative miles hiked 2021: 414
Miles hiked today: 15.77
Elevation: 8594
High/low temp/humidity: 80/35/35
Spinning on the turntable:

It’s was cold this morning, so I broke out both my pants and jacket. It’s the first time I’ve worn the pants this year. I’m glad I brought them. I was halfway expecting to see ice in my water bottles, but “no ice”. My fingers are certainly numb, and finger gloves would be nice.

This morning I summited Selden Pass. I sent a message out to my group and said “I’m here at the summit”. I have a group of friends/family that I send daily updates to while I’m hiking. Generally I send a message in the morning and a message at night. Adding messages in the day time is kind of new.

On the way down from Selden Pass I stopped to chat with four folks that were hiking up the Pass. I couldn’t help but notice that one guy had a BBQ strapped to his back! After a few questions I learned that he and his friends/siblings were headed to the top of the mountain to provide trail magic for the day! Free hot dogs for hikers! Holy Shit! Hiking up a freaking mountain for trail magic. He kindly offered me a hotdog if I wanted to climb back up the mountain, but with real regret, I declined. I learned later that the real story was that these folks were a thru-hikers kids, (or some of them were anyway) and they were hiking up to surprise their DAD when he got to the summit during his thru-hike. HOW FREAKING AWESOME IS THAT? I’ve seen a few interesting trail magic locations, but this takes the cake. I’m in awe of both the location and the gift they’re giving to their dad.

• 

• 

I stopped for lunch and took off my shoes and socks. The Altra’s are great for providing a lot of air flow to the feet, which is good for blister reduce. The Altra’s also allow in a LOT of fine dirt. I generally wash my feet every night at camp, unless I’m dry camping. Speaking of Altra’s, I had hopes that my shoes would last through the last little bit of this hike, but that’s not gonna be the case. They’re falling apart. I’m trying to shore them up with Leuko tape. My legs are really getting tight, so I’ve started the process of stopping hiking and stretching out every hour or so. Normally I do a light stretch in the morning and a light stretch after lunch, and that’s it.

I did a little hunting this afternoon and located the John Muir Rock. I was lucky enough that a Guthook user had left specific instructions on it’s location, so I was able to find it fairly easily. John Muir would sit on this rock and give nature talks. (I think…)

• 

• 

• 

• 

I’m now beginning a new climb as I head towards John Muir Pass. I’m expecting that it will take me about two days to reach the summit. It’s a long haul uphill, perhaps around 20 miles total.