PCT Day 17 – Granite Chief

F Trail ahead with purple flowers on left

It was more quiet in the hostel bunk room than it ever was in my tent. I had this thing under my head that felt more like a pot holder than a pillow. Going to the bathroom in the middle of the night involved a search for light switches. (Who puts a light switch BEHIND the door.) Oh well. It’s an adventure, right?

Ingrate

In the morning I munch down leftover chicken tenders and some prunes. I notice this sign on the empty fridge: “PCT Hiker Fridge – Do not take food from other fridge.” Gulp. I ate French fries and frozen fruit from the forbidden fridge yesterday. Now what should I do? Leave a note and some money? Ugh. I don’t do anything and slink away from the hostel in disgrace. I am now one of those thoughtless hikers everyone likes to criticize.

The Early Trail

Bob and I walk up the road to the trail head. It’s Saturday and the locals are already up there with their Subarus and their trail dogs. And there are trail runners. I mean, impossibly toned men and women bouncing up the trail ahead of us, their calves and hamstrings rippling in the morning light. The trail has stairs. I am told that the John Muir Trail has thousands of these stairs as well. These are not normal-people stairs either. Normal people make small grunting noises when they go up or down these stairs. Bob and I commence to grunting.

There will be more rocky trail from now on. The smooth trail of the last two weeks will become a pleasant memory. The Sierras come with a cost.

The Lake Tahoe area is famous for its ski resorts. Every mountain near a road seems to have its own ski resort.

I don’t normally take pictures of these historical education signs, but this one by Roller Pass is fascinating. A pass is a low spot in a mountain range where people can more easily pass through. Roller Pass was one of the more frightening passes. Oxen would pull the wagons up the pass with chains and logs used as rollers.

Peaks

Today is all about the peaks, starting with Anderson Peak. I first see the peak from Roller Pass. The trail winds its way up Anderson in a spectacular ridge walk.

To the right of Anderson Peak, you can see several peaks that will be important later in the day. The one with the white granite skirt is Granite Chief. The one with the black top is Needle Peak. We are eventually going to skirt the left (east) side of Granite Chief and drop into the valley on the other side to camp tonight.

As we round Anderson Peak, the ridge walking continues up to Tinker’s Knob. This is going to be the high point of the hike today, and it is spectacular. From up here I can see dozens of peaks to the South. I use the peak finder app on my phone and realize that I can see Sonora Peak. It will take me a week to hike there!

There is also this very strange plant. It looks like the Pom-Pom flower mother ship!

And for the first time I see Lake Tahoe! This Lake will be a feature of my hike for the next four days.

Repercussions

Not everything about town days is great. You see, you have to go back to the trail before all that food has worked it’s way through your system. This morning I poop three times. Ever watch baseball players make the perfect infield out on a ground ball? The infielder scoops up the ball and in one fluid motion makes the perfect throw to the first baseman who doesn’t even have to move his glove. Well, my poops were not like that. One was wide left. One was in the dirt. And one flew into the dugout! And that is probably more than you ever wanted to know about trail potty moments. And, thankfully, no photos!

Back to earth

Below Tinker Knob, the trail is more normal, although still beautiful. The trees return and I get some shade.

Winding Down

The afternoon is hard. I drop down from the ridge into broken granite as I approach a peak called Granite Chief. I am hot and running out of energy. For the first time this hike I revise my daily goal down. Instead of going 18 miles, Bob and I decide to settle for 16. I need some sleep.

We pass to the east of Granite Chief and drop into the valley behind it. It is quiet and we find some nice campsites. We politely discuss politics, Bob tells me a Joe Biden story he heard from someone who knew him years ago and we “turn out the lights.”

Right now, as I write, there is some large animal behind my tent making low moaning noises and tearing up the brush. I don’t care. I am putting my earplugs in and going to sleep. I’ll tell you if anything weird happens tomorrow.

• August 13
• Starting marker: 1153.4
• Ending marker: 1137.9
• Total miles today: 16
• Total PCT miles: 214