My sleep was disrupted several times last night by the sound of deer visiting my campsite. Last time I backpacked in the Trinity Alps area I had hung my hiking shorts to dry on a low branch. The deer found the salt of my sweat to be quite tasty and proceeded to eat my shorts. Last night, before bed, I had washed my shirt and hung it to dry. I was pretty sure it would be full of salty goodness even after the wash, though, so I woke several times in the night, ready to scare the deer away.
I spent the morning on a long and gentle climb that took me into the Marble Mountain Wilderness. 9 miles brought me to the Etna-Somes Bar road, at which point I began to feel a little dizzy. I realized I probably hadn't eaten enough for breakfast, so I stopped for an early lunch. After gorging myself and drinking plenty of water I set off. The combination of exposed ridgetops, steep climbs, and hot weather forced me to make several more stops to refill my water bottle throughout the day though.
On a ridge above Cliff and Campbell lakes (Cliff Lake pictured) I got enough reception to make a couple of phone calls. My mom asked if hiking here brought back memories. See this is the wilderness where my Aunt Susie and Uncle George got our family hooked on backpacking. We made a number of trips up here over the years, though none along the trail I've been hiking so far. Of course, back then at age 11 a 6 mile day was a struggle. Fast forward 17 years and I'm back, and 26 miles is a short day! I had told my mom that this wasn't quite the same terrain we were used to, but now I take it back. Picture the ridge up to English Lake, Mom, and you'll know what I've been hiking on all day.
I passed Marble Mountain which, shockingly enough, is a large mountain of marble. It is actually quite impressive, with a large whitish wall and a hillside of marble below that looks like the whole thing is a giant white candle melting down the slope. Below I passed the Marble Valley guard station, which is currently being used as a home base for a CCC trail maintenance crew. As I walked past a group of about 6 got up from their camp fire and ran after me. They looked wild and I thought "great, cannibals." I could see something glinting in each of their hands - steak knives no doubt. After 33 miles, though, I had no will to resist. Surprisingly, when they reached me, they didn't attempt to eat me. Turns out they have been out fixing trails for almost 3 months now and, to make life more fun they are having a scavenger hunt. They needed to meet a solo through hiker, and here I was. The glinting objects in their hands were cameras, and I modeled for each in turn (I'm sure it will turn up in the August issue of Playgirl).
Moving on I passed Big Rock Camp, but decided to make just a few more miles. You would never guess by the name, but the camp has a rock, I mean a big-ass rock. Beyond the camp is a slight hill leading to a ridge with a beautiful view (pictured). The morning sun should be perfect here, and a gentle breeze keeps the mosquitoes away. That means I get to sleep out without my tent, which is a treat. Besides all that, my feet were really starting to complain. So, after 36.5 miles, I finally called it a day. Just in time for the sunset too!
