We stayed in the tent a bit longer than usual this morning…we had hoped to wait till the sun hit the tent and warmed things up, but we finally gave up around 7am and got the stove going for morning coffee. After yesterday’s big day, we were finally going to have an easy day…just needed to drop a bit, climb over the Bighorn Plateau, and then amble up to Guitar Lake at the base of Mt.Whitney.
We both hiked with down jackets on until the sun was up to full strength. Even with the sun, the constant wind and being above 11,000ft much of the day kept temps a little on the cool side…usually that would be a blessing, but after the frigid night, all I was thinking about was just how cold it was going to be camping at 11,500 ft on Whitney at Guitar Lake.
The Bighorn Plateau was another favorite spot for both Becky and me…just a another huge barren area with views that went out in all directions. Becky even got to get up close to a friendly marmot and take a bunch of photos.
By early afternoon we’d climbed up to Guitar Lake and had nothing else to do but relax….we napped, read, and now that we were finally so close to the end, I stopped rationing my food, and tore into the 8oz of salami I’d been carrying for the past 200 miles. We gorged ourselves on pasta with extra olive oil and chunks of salami for dinner…I was hoping if I got an extra thousand calories in my stomach, I might have a hotter internal furnace while sleeping in my one-pound sleeping bag and might be a bit more comfy.
While hanging out at camp, we met one of our tent neighbors, Beverly, she’d been out for 24 days, hiking the JMT solo. She had met some of the same folks as us, including Larry who we hoped to see on the summit of Whitney the next day.
We sacked out early and set the alarm for 4:30…we originally wanted to be on the summit of Whitney for sunrise, but with temps being as cold as they were, we figured with our limited clothing waiting to hit the top after the sun was up might be more comfortable.
Finally the sun is up, but its still freezing!
Becky’s little marmot buddy
BIghorn Plateau
Final camp at Guitar Lake
Where are we?!? The Sierras are amazing….
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