July 31, 2010

JMT Day 10


Looking North from Forester Pass

Date: Friday, July 23
Miles: ~19.5
Cumulative Miles: 206.5
Camp: 500' Above Guitar Lake

At 8:00am, we were standing on top of 13,200 foot Forester Pass, with Mt Whitney ahead of us, and most of the John Muir Trail behind us. Perfect weather, incredible views; I think at one point I asked Andrea if we should start singing "America the Beautiful." That's exactly how it felt.

After a surprisingly easy climb up to the top, we took an hour break on top of Forester Pass and cooked up some mashed potatoes... yummy! While this was the last major climb before Whitney, it wasn't by any means all downhill from Forester. The trail from the pass to the Whitney area was lots of rolling terrain at high elevation... it ended up being quite a tiring rest of the day. We made it to Guitar Lake around 5pm, and all of a sudden the clouds started to build and we heard a few rumbles of thunder.... uh oh. We hadn't even seen a cloud in the past 5 days! It was decision time again; camp at Guitar Lake, or climb another 500 (exposed) feet to the flat camping area at 12,000 feet. We decided to roll the dice and keep going... luckily, a storm never materialized, we were at our campsite by 530pm, and the weather for the rest of the evening was cool and perfect. We had a big dinner and got all of our gear organized for the push the Mt Whitney's summit.

Our plan for the next day was to wake up at 330am, break camp quickly, and hopefully be hiking by 400am. With an early start, we could make our way up to the ridge in time to see the sun break over the horizon. We were excited to say the least! It would be tough to get any sleep, being at 12,000 feet and with anticipation building for the next day, but we still went to sleep early in an attempt to get a little rest.

The last thing I wrote in my journal that night was: "Looking forward to tomorrow! Mt Whitney!!! Shorter day! Diet Dew! Ice Cream! This has been the greatest thing I have ever done w/ the greatest person I have ever known. I'll never, ever, ever forget any of this."


Andrea ready to roll


Time to climb up Forester Pass


Sun just starting to light up the pass


Forester Pass area


Andrea in some bigtime terrain


I loved this area


The last stretch across the snow to the pass


The highest pass on the trail


Forester Pass looking South


Looking South


Mashed potatoes at the top


Looking back the way we came


Dropping off the pass


Heading down


I love the color of the Sierras


Transition back to some green


The trail went across some high plateaus


The views on the stretch were incredible


We stopped for lunch on Bighorn Plateau


Bighorn Plateau


Then we crossed some meadows...


Getting closer!


Dirty legs!!!


We crossed some sandy forests...


...and then got up to the Whitney zone


Guitar Lake


Hiking past Guitar Lake


Organizing gear for the last day


Clear skies


Our campsite above Guitar Lake. Amazing spot!


Last night on the trail


Ready for Whitney!!!

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