You might be wondering, “what exactly did you pack?” Well, here's the list. This makes the hike considerably more strenuous, but it makes the endpoint that much more rewarding. As you can tell, shortly after Mosquito Lake #1, the trail ends, and hikers will need to continue off-trail in accordance with LNT principles. The CalTopo map to the left details all 6 miles and 3000ft of elevation gain on our route. I also feel a little eager since, because of the line, we didn't set off on our hike until around 11am. I can’t help but sympathize with how exhausted the rangers must be of giving their same LNT spiel, over and over again. Despite having 6 permits reserved, the ranger office was inundated by others hoping to snag walk-up permits. We arrive at the ranger station and see a line out the door, spilling into the parking lot. Standing in the thick, stuffy air makes the thought of a mountain lake a welcome relief from the heatwave that has punished Southern California for the past week. The La Tuna wildfire raging in the Verdugo hills is an eerie view in the 3am night. It's hot outside and the air smells of ash. We rendezvous with the rest of the crew and begin our journey out of LA, loaded up in Ali's 4Runner, we stop for gas in Burbank. He woke up to the sound of my footsteps, and groans as if we were working on a mere 3.5 hours of sleep. I walked out to the living room, Ali was crashed on my couch. Instead of leaving the night before, we decided on an alpine start. The switch wasn't welcome, it's funny how even a delightful sounding melody can sting in the early morning. I awoke at 2:34am on Saturday morning to my alarm playing a calm piano sonnet instead of my typical "Africa" by Toto. The plan was for this to be a relaxing weekend of lounging, fly fishing, and storytelling. Our goal was Mosquito Lake #5 near the Mineral King Ranger Station. Over the Labor Day holiday, a group of friends got together for a restful trip into the Sequoia NP backcountry.
0 kommentar(er)
