DAY 74: MILE 1,000

Carson-Iceberg Wilderness - one of my favorite sections so far.

miles: 22

Today we reached the 1,000 mile mark! It is July 3rd. We are ahead of schedule (ever so slightly) and are thrilled we've made it this far!

Last night we camped in Stubblefield Canyon with King Street, Smiles and Dr. Slosh. A fire was made, meals were cooked, stories were told, mosquitos kept their distance... it was a fabulous reunion.

Sleeping next to a rushing river is one of my favorite things. It helps me sleep! And wow, were we next to a rushing stream.

Uncharacteristically, Rocky and I took advantage of a slow morning and cooked breakfast, hung around until the sun was up and took an extended morning lounge session. Usually we are some of the first ones up and out of camp, for we love morning hiking and feel we are most productive when we rise before 6:00am. Our typical wake up time is 5:00, and that is pretty early for most hikers we hike with. This morning, we got out of camp after 8:00am!

First thing? Literally. A huge stream crossing, wet feet for sure. Starting the day off with trench foot.

I don't do a good job with log crossings, so when the only option is a slippery log to cross a river, I opt out of it and charge straight through, shoes on and all. Others either dance around looking for stepping stones or take 10 minutes to take their shoes off, hang them around their necks and carefully cross the slippery (and often sharp) river beds. No thank you.

I prefer to charge across boldly, not caring if I have wet feet, because at least I will get across without falling off of a log, or cutting up my feet.

We follow these emblems.

Meadow.

Mosquito hell and another thunderstorm brought us to a hault when we found this rad "Snow Depth Forest Station" off to the left of the trail. How lucky are we!? It had just started to rain and the thunder was booming, so we took shelter under it's giant eave and cooked lunch, setting up shop, prepared to stay for a few hours if we needed to. Although the mosquitos were horrendous, we had a blast.

King Street, me, Smiles and Dr. Slosh waiting out a thunderstorm under the shelter of a hut.

A long, flat walk was ahead of us through a stunning valley and meadow region along a river. (I promise when I get home I will edit all of my posts and update them with proper names of rivers/valleys/mountains/passes/lakes. It's driving me crazy to not be able to tell you every detail, but I don't usually have time to jot these tidbits down...)

Keeping a close eye on my surroundings, I was positive I'd see a bear in this section.

Three hours of hiking by my lonesome (I love hiking solo) I was convinced this was where I would encounter a bear. I studied the trees around me, squinted down at the meadows and lakeshores, eager to catch one! But... no success.

Dorothy Lake.

The evening was drawing near and fatigue started to set in. Good thing the landscape was changing dramatically and keeping me on my toes! Rocks, granite, sparse trees - I was in awe! We were leaving Yosemite after Dorothy Pass and entering the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness and it was ABSOLUTELY. STUNNING.

Dusk hiking is my favorite time to hike (along with early early dawn hiking). The long shadows, warm colors... floating through the landscape high on the natural beauty, we somehow missed the 1,000 mile marker. Never saw one! Bummed out, we promised to make our own and take a picture of it later...

Camped down on a river with our mosquito posse, King Street, Smiles, Dr. Slosh, Toots, and Tears. Large campfire, Slosh running around with a fishing pole, and storytime commenced. Great great great great day of hiking.