PCT Day 20 – Bear Lakes

Last night the bears did not come. Our camp was quiet; our bear canisters untouched. I awoke at 5:20, arranged my stuff for the day, washed down a protein bar and departed camp with Bob and TW.

My German friend

You don’t know TW. He arrived in camp just as Bob and I had finished dinner last night. He was looking for a place to set up his tent. I offered him the spot between Bob and me. Then I went down by the lake to write.

TW has been here twice before. In separate years he has hiked the PCT northern section (between Truckee and Canada) and the desert section. This year he hopes to complete the section between Truckee and the desert. In other words, he is going our way.

TW is short for Trojan Warhorse. The name is too long and he got tired of explaining it, so he just goes by TW. This extreme shortening makes sense, because Warhorse sounds silly and Trojan is, well, problematic.

Breaking camp

A few minutes before Bob and I are ready to hit the trail, TW announces that he is going down to the lake to “freshen up.” I am tempted to follow him to observe. What could you possibly do, short of immersing yourself in anti-bacterial lotion, to freshen up?

Dick’s Peak is still there, looking a little sleepy, the sun shining against its back.

We are heading to Dick’s Pass, which is to the east of the peak. From up there we can survey the lakes of Desolation Valley – a popular destination for local hikers and campers. On our way up to the pass we get one last look at Lake Tahoe.

Have you noticed that people these days, when asked for a photo, will strike a signature pose. For TW it seem to be the encouraging “thumbs up.” For Bob it seems to be the big toothy smile. I make the mistake of announcing the photo, and they snap into form.

The Pass is on top of the ridge and just to the right of the dead tree.

The way ahead

The pass is exceptional. The views in both directions are stunning. I am particularly taken by the view north. Of course, below are Dick’s Lake and Fontanillus Lake from yesterday. But way in the distance is my friend Sierra Buttes. I am thrilled to see it one last time.

Bob joins TW and myself on the pass. Bob is raving about his poop spot. It seems that thru hikers are normally so focused on the trail directly in front of them, that looking around every now and then is unusual. Pooping forces you away from the trail and changes your perspective. You might be looking the mossy side of a tree, but you might also be looking at the view of your dreams. Today, Bob got the second one.

This is not my poop view today, but it is very close to it and I think it is pretty good, too.

In Belden Town a German girl informed me that Germans from the north are taller and hairier. TW is tall and hairy. I ask him if he is from the north. He says he is not. Who should I believe?

At the pass we have cell reception! We all call the Apex Hotel for reservations. I call Patti. I check for any troubling messages or emails and then down the trail I go. There are two women coming up the trail. The older woman wants to talk about bears. She has a Desolation Wilderness Volunteer patch on her shoulder so I pay her special attention.

Turbulence on the glide path

It seems that the bear problem is worse than we knew. Yesterday, two bears walked up to people having lunch at Aloha Lake and simply snatched and ate all their food. Of course, I am shocked. But since I am breezing through this area on my way to town today, I am not overly concerned.

I am more concerned with these astonishing views.

Speed lunch

Bob and I are getting hungry. But lunch time will coincide with the time we hike through “bad bear central” – Aloha Lake. So I stop before we get there. “Let’s have lunch here, Bob!” He sees the wisdom in that.

But Bob has been jealous of my lunches all week. I have had these delicious tuna wraps with Cheetos, while he has had these god-awful energy bars with peanut butter and energy gels. He knows where that we are near the danger bears, so he decides this is the perfect time to start sharing all his bear stories. He pauses in the middle of them to point out that the odor from my Buffalo chicken tuna wrap is probably drawing bears over here right now.

I have already thought of that, and I am choking these wraps down as fast as any dehydrated, saliva-deficient human being can. I toss my bag of Cheetos at him to distract him from more stories. The bears do not appear. I get all the leftovers back in my bear can and we move on.

Lake of dreams

On the way down, the lakes are nice, but they all sort of look like Dick’s Lake. However, when we arrive at Aloha Lake, I see why people come up here. The lake is from another planet. I wish I had taken more photos because this one doesn’t really do the lake justice. So let me put it another way. If mountain gnomes do exist, this would be their capital city. There are scores of island with tiny trees on them. Bright blue skies sport a dappling of small clouds. A light breeze dimples the water, scattering light everywhere.

I am so mesmerized by this lake that I fail to follow the PCT when it heads away from the lake. Instead I follow some enchanted side trail. By the time I realize it, I am almost half a mile away from the PCT. Luckily this side trail connects back to the PCT.

Echo Lake

The trail leads to Echo Lake where Bob and I will try to hitch into town from the parking lot. The lake is dotted with homes along the edge. Nothing unusual there, right? Except that there are no roads to these homes. All homes can only be accessed by boat.

Some of the homes are old cottages that appear to have been here for a long time. But some are new and very expensive.

As we approach the parking lot, a young couple comes toward us on the trail from the other direction. I strike up a conversation (surprise) and mention our predicament. The couple offers to take us to our motel six miles away!

I am surprised to learn that the couple is actually a mother and her son. (She looks so young!) Their names are Pouya and Miriam. Pouya is a doctoral student at Texas A&M University in Austin. They are so kind to take us dirty hikers into South Lake Tahoe. However, their leather seats may never be the same.

South Lake Tahoe

Bob and I have a lot to do here to prepare for the hike through the Sierras. But first there must be showers and then pizza. The beers are from local brewers: an amber from Sidellis Brewing and an IPA from Revision Brewing. Both different and good.

Last year, the Caldor fire near hear caused the evacuation of the entire city, including me. I fled 70 miles south of here to continue the hike, but then the state closed all the national forests, diverting me to Colorado and ultimately home. Today I am back, and I am happy to be here.

• August 16
• Starting marker: 1107.2
• Ending marker: 1092.3
• Miles hiked today: 15
• Total PCT miles hiked: 262
• Random fact: Southern Germans may be as tall and hairy as Northern ones