We, Lynne and I, flew into Las Vegas on July 25, got a rental car, and drove to Lone Pine, CA via Death Valley. On the flight there, I was sooo excited! I had a window seat and was mesmerized by the scenery below. I couldn't focus on reading or sudoku or crossword puzzles so I turned on my MP3 player and added a soundtrack to the passing sights. Sheryl Crow's Light In Your Eyes, several times I must admit. Excerpts from Israel in Egypt by Handel - especially the big triumphant part that I love more than I love the Hallelujah Chorus. The Lord will reign forever and ever for he hath triumphed gloriously! It seemed so appropriate as I observed the wonders spread out below me.
There were 2 men seated next to me and 3 more across the aisle. They were all headed to Vegas for some recreation without the wife and kids and were discussing strategies for being alert enough to enjoy the night life. It sounded like the worst thing in the world. I was so happy that all we were doing was getting a car and getting out of town!
Death Valley was hot and dry. Kind of what you might expect. And so empty. And so quiet. Beautiful with a sense of desolation that seems to be impossible to catch in a photo. We didn't linger long but it was kind of cool to pass through the lowest spot in the nation before ascending to the highest, Mt. Denali excepted.
One of the more scenic views of Death Valley
As we approached Lone Pine, I noticed some smoke in the air. We would become very familiar with that over the next few days. The Lion Wildfire started in the Golden Trout Wilderness area and has since spread into Sequoia National Park and Sequoia National Forest. We weren't near enough to be concerned about flames or having to evacuate but the smoke was always there, sometime thicker than others.
Mt. Whitney is the point in the middle
Monday evening involved getting our permits, renting bear cans, meeting up with our climbing companions, dinner, light shopping, dividing up the equipment, and trying to cram it all into our packs. Some explanations: bear cans are not cans to put bears in but bear proof containers for food and toiletries, thus making us uninteresting to the bears. In our experience they were more useful in thwarting the rodents than the bears although they added weight to the packs. My climbing companions consisted of my friend Lynne, her two brothers Scott and Steve, and my friend Jill and her son Brendan.
Then it was a matter of trying to sleep. Despite my excitement previously, night was the time for all my fears to surface. I'd trained well but what if it wasn't enough? What if I didn't feel good? Could I make myself eat enough to keep my energy levels up? Would I have enough snacks? Could I stay hydrated? Did I have enough water bottles? Would I be warm enough? Would I be too hot? And on and on and on.
What it came back to was "trust your training". Words texted to me by my trainer. When I first saw them, I didn't know what she meant by that but it's come to have meaning to me. I did everything I could. I had trained well, I was prepared physically and mentally, there wasn't anything more I could do. All I could do was trust that my best was enough. Trust that hard work I'd done and relax and enjoy the ride. Easy to say, sometimes hard to do but that was my mantra throughout the night. That and "Stay hydrated, stay fueled, stay happy". Made that one up myself. :)
So Tuesday morning, I was maybe not as rested as I would have liked but I was up and excited and ready to go down some carbs before we started off! A big waffle. Mmmm. With peanut butter and syrup. Hadn't indulged in that for a long time!
We packed the car and headed off. The trailhead was 13 miles from Lone Pine. Every foot of elevation gained in the car was a foot of elevation I didn't have to walk up so I was loving the steep drive to the trailhead! Once there, adjusted the packs, last minute potty breaks - use the facilities while they exist! - snapped a few photos, and we started up the trail, still a little cool with the morning.
Only 6 miles to camp!
Switchbacks, right from the start but a great trail with stream crossings and plenteous wild flowers. My favorite feature of my hiking pants? The nice thigh pocket that is perfect for my camera. Once underway, most of my fears evaporated quickly and I just soaked in the beauty of the place which was immense and amazing!
After a couple of hours of climbing, we reached Lone Pine Lake. This would be a great destination for a day hike. So pretty. But we were just passing through. Enjoyed it for a few minutes and onward and upward!
You can just see the lake through the trees
Bristlecone Pines - seriously cool trees
So if I read this whole thing and came away thinking about waffles with peanut butter and syrup, have I completely missed the point?
ReplyDelete