a tale in photos:
it started out as a hot day. being typically absent minded i forgot the sunscreen (altho i did remember the bug spray! that phone cord thing around my right arm is also bug repellant). my status at 1:11 PM - i left the trailhead at noon:
another hour and a half's exertion brought me above the treeline. the trail is marked with rock cairns from this point on up:
a view from the trail. the white spot about an inch below the horizon 3/4 of the way to the right is where i started from
finally at the tors, 3:30 into the hike!
now it's 4:18 PM. i've lost the trail once already, and am still a good 7 miles away from the car...
... so i manage to get lost again to make things more interesting. bushwhacked for probably 45 minutes -- the trail gets kinda hazy in regions that have been burnt to a crisp
. this was snapped at arms length shortly before finding the trail again. note lack of trail in this photo, and somewhat annoyed expression. 5:50 into the hike at this point:
i then proceeded to run out of water (my fault), find a fast moving stream (so hopefully no giardia for me! i drank it unfiltered), and make it back to the car safely.
stats:
- 15 miles/24 km + whatever extra off the trail
- 7h 40m
- 2700 vertical feet
- 3 bloody toenails (are my boots too big or small? hmm), despite using superfeet insoles and good smartwool hiking socks
- quite a sunburn developing, i fear, visible in that last "lost" shot
- tracks listened to: entire "narlus" playlist; ravel string quartet in F; debussy nocturnes; radiohead's the bends, kid a, and ok computer; bach's goldberg variations with glenn gould at the keys.
guess that's about it
:trophy_br
it started out as a hot day. being typically absent minded i forgot the sunscreen (altho i did remember the bug spray! that phone cord thing around my right arm is also bug repellant). my status at 1:11 PM - i left the trailhead at noon:
another hour and a half's exertion brought me above the treeline. the trail is marked with rock cairns from this point on up:
a view from the trail. the white spot about an inch below the horizon 3/4 of the way to the right is where i started from
finally at the tors, 3:30 into the hike!
now it's 4:18 PM. i've lost the trail once already, and am still a good 7 miles away from the car...
... so i manage to get lost again to make things more interesting. bushwhacked for probably 45 minutes -- the trail gets kinda hazy in regions that have been burnt to a crisp
. this was snapped at arms length shortly before finding the trail again. note lack of trail in this photo, and somewhat annoyed expression. 5:50 into the hike at this point:
i then proceeded to run out of water (my fault), find a fast moving stream (so hopefully no giardia for me! i drank it unfiltered), and make it back to the car safely.
stats:
- 15 miles/24 km + whatever extra off the trail
- 7h 40m
- 2700 vertical feet
- 3 bloody toenails (are my boots too big or small? hmm), despite using superfeet insoles and good smartwool hiking socks
- quite a sunburn developing, i fear, visible in that last "lost" shot
- tracks listened to: entire "narlus" playlist; ravel string quartet in F; debussy nocturnes; radiohead's the bends, kid a, and ok computer; bach's goldberg variations with glenn gould at the keys.
guess that's about it
:trophy_br
. but if i got giardia not only could i be a little bit more like you but also like john tomac! of course, giardia kinda marked the end of his racing career so i guess it's not that great of a thing. i did make sure to avoid the stagnant water, and grabbed my share from a miniature waterfall of sorts.
