Day 52 : Climbing into the mountains

10th June 2013
Mile 704 to mile 721 : Kennedy Meadows Campground to Olancha Trail Junction
Mileage : 17

The climb into the Sierras began today, and itt was great. As soon as the climb began it began to feel cool, and i haven't felt a cool breeze in days. If the air is cool, and if there is a breeze, i can climb easily. Even with the sun, the monstrous bear canister, 7 days of food and Cinderella weighing me down the first 2000ft climb went by in no time. After the first climb the trail reaches a meadow like plateau through which the kern river meanders. After lunch by the river and a spot of basking in the sun the second climb began, 1500 ft later we called it day at an altitude of about 9500ft. We could all easily have gone farther given that it was the first day out from a rest stop but there was no need. The climb from here goes up to over 10,500ft before descending again 9000ft to a river crossing. The 10 miles between here and the river crossing is the last waterless stretch of Southern California, a whole 10 miles! This means that from now on i will only be carrying 2 litres of water at a time, maximum. That alone is going to make life so much easier. The change in temperature is also going to make life a whole lot easier. During the last week from Tehachapi pretty much every meal was a chore to eat, but now i feel my appetite returning, and a good thing too. The hiking is going to be more difficult with the increased elevation so i am trying to eat more to compensate but of course this though comes with the added challenge of carrying more weight. I'm carrying so much food now that it won't all fit in the bear canister, so I'll be trying to eat my most heavy and bulky food first so that I don't attract too many bears.

From left to right : Dishcloth, Mr Green and Me

The bridge over the river Kern