Day 65 - Thursday, July 1

Tenting at a site overlooking Lake Tahoe (mile 1087.4).  Walked 20.5 miles today.

We got up and Frank, who was apparently ready to go today, beat me out of camp this morning.  We started up the trail and passed the other campsite we had considered staying at yesterday only to find AB there!  She was one of the people camped there but with the approaching storm, she was in her tent so we didn't know it was her, otherwise we probably would have invaded the site to hang out with her.  The three of us hiked along the side of a mountain before dropping down a bit.

Here, AB fell back and Frank and I began the climb up to Carson Pass (named for Kit Carson) and ran into Rugrat and Goodnut.  They went ahead as we ascended the pass.

The climb near the top of the pass was steep, but we made it up without too much swearing.

We started down the other side did the pass, hiking with Rugrat and Goodnut.  We wished Rugrat (who is from Saskatchewan) a Happy Canada Day as all four of us walked down the path side-by-side.  The trail is so wide here because it's a popular day use area and the large number of day hikers (who were out in force today) widen the trail over time.

We reached the road at Carson Pass to find trail magic.  Two days in a row!  We signed the register and ate some strawberries, tangerines, Oreos, and even drank a soda. AB rolled in to join all of us as well as another hiker named Bambi.  I haven't met too many hikers on the trail that I haven't liked, but she almost instantly became one of them.  She turned up with a bouquet of wildflowers she had picked (completely violating the principle of "Leave no Trace" which we should all be trying to abide by out here) and seemed completely ignorant about why there were so many deaths due to the heatwave scorching the pacific northwest ("Why can't everyone just get some ice to cool down with").  I had to walk away from that discussion while Frank explained what that area is like and why people can't just magically deal with the heat.

Rugrat and Goodnut left and started up the trail which climbed up about 30 feet and paralleled the road, mooning us as they passed.  A few minutes later, they we saw them hiking back down and called out to them, asking what was going on.  "Wrong trail" they shouted back.  The trail had forked and they chose the wrong way.  A little while later, Frank, AB, and I left the comfort of the trail magic and walked back into the woods (on the correct trail - learning from the mistake of Rugrat and Goodnut).

The trail became exposed but with beautiful wildflowers and views.

It was here that we got cell service again and spent some time under a tree, catching up on the world.  We hiked on through a large meadow, AB in the lead, me trailing farther behind.

After about 5 miles we reached Showers Lake where, hot from the climb, we all jumped in along with Rugrat, Goodnut, and a few others who were hanging out.

We hung out in the cool water for a bit and then Rugrat gave everyone a synchronized swimming lesson.  We climbed out and went to sit down for lunch.  On the way, Frank (who was having a rough day with multiple pieces of gear breaking) stubbed her pinky toe and was concerned that it might be broken.  After lunch, AB, Frank and I hiked the final five miles to camp where we had a view of Lake Tahoe in the distance.

Another hiker, Hungarian Paco turned up.  Today is his last day on the trail as his 90-day visa is expiring.  He's a pretty cool guy and has hiked the 500-mile Camino de Santiago in Spain a total of eight times.  He wants to do it two more times to make it an even 10.  After dinner, we retreated to our tents to avoid the mosquitoes which have gotten bad again.

We have cell service here, so we texted each other rather than shout between our tents.  A message Frank sent really shows how much fun we're all having out here right now: "Broke my stuff sack, broke my water pocket, stubbed my toe, sun burned my back, eaten alive by mosquitoes, and still a pretty dang good day." Hopefully we can count on that optimism as things get harder along the way.