It was warm last night at the lower elevation (7,800'), and we had a good nights sleep. One of the benefits of our navigational faux pas was that we were much closer to a long (the book said "interminable") set of switchbacks leading up the north side of bear ridge - a climb of 2,200 feet over five miles. We liked getting an early start on these things, and were on the trail by 7:45.
Very shortly, we passed the intersection with the trail to Lake Edison, which is crossed from this point on a ferry that comes twice a day. At the other end of the ferry is the well-known Vermilion Valley Resort, which is famous for its pampering of through hikers on the trail. Upon walking into the resort, one is immediately presented with a free beer, and a complimentary tent cabin, and in the evening, a group bonfire is held for those passing through. The resort will also hold resupply packages sent to them by mail. Those we met on the trail who had taken advantage of this fine hospitality were quite grateful for the hospitality, but were also smarting a bit from what they had spent there. We met one group of two which had somehow parted with $300 (the store there sells camping food), though they had just ten days to go on their trip.
As we started up the heavily-wooded slope, we passed a sign saying that this stretch of trail was maintained each year by Outward Bound (nice work, folks). Interminable as the switchbacks may have been, this was a beautiful section of the trail. At the lower elevations, we passed through thickets of Aspen and Cottonwood, and the ground was covered with ferns, wildflowers and long grasses. Being on the north slope with so much tree cover, the ground was also quite moist, and there were a lot of mosquitoes.
We climbed quickly though, on fresh legs, and as we climbed, the forest gave way to a variety of fir and pine trees, along with a stand of lodgepole pine near the crest. These were old, very tall trees, and with the well-maintained trail, made for a nice morning.
Confident that we had finally topped out on the climb, we paused for a breather in a sandy meadow at the top, then headed down the steep, dry south side of the ridge into Bear Creek Canyon. The views on the way down were sensational, as the big peaks of Sequoia/Kings Canyon were now coming into view.
This decline was sheet torture for Julian, as the problem with his little toes was continuing to compound itself. After passing a pompous old fart out for a wilderness experience on a rented horse (accompanied by his entourage of two guides and five pack animals), we stooped for lunch as soon as possible, picking some large, flat rocks on the edge of rollicking Bear Creek. We enjoyed a fine, though repetitive meal, and spent well over an hour soaking in the creek and catching some sun.
By the end of lunch, it was starting to seriously look like rain, so we put on our pack covers before hitting the trail. Sure enough, within ten minutes, it started to sprinkle, and by the time we had gotten a mile up the trail, the sprinkle had given way to a steady downpour of pea-sized hailstones. I was only wearing a t-shirt and nylon shorts, so these actually hurt quite a bit. I found a dry spot in the crook of a fallen tree in which to seek shelter, and the hail stopped about ten minutes later.
Our goal for the day was Upper Bear Meadow, but there weren't any worthwhile campsites there, so we kept going. Julian was limping pretty severely at that point, so we felt it important to find something as soon as possible. After about a mile, we entered the very nice Rosemary Meadow. The first campsite we saw was right on the trail, but the sky was clouding over again, and, rather than be picky, we hurriedly put the tent up.
This was the first time on the trip that I wished I had brought a different tent. The ground was still quite wet from the earlier downpour, and we had no choice put to set up the (floorless) tent on a wet patch of ground. The space blankets and Thermarest pads we slept on helped a little, and we had things set up just when the sky opened up again. I stayed out a little longer to get a pot of tea water brewing and got a good soaking before getting back in the tent.
Mother Nature then treated us to a wonderful show of her might. Within minutes, a barrage of now marble-sized hail was buffeting the tent, and the sky virtually exploded with thunder, lightning and wind. We were pretty dry (though the tent was shipping a lot of water through holes in the roof and under the edges), so we sat back with some tea and enjoyed the show. The noise from the thunder and the wind was so loud, we had to shout to be heard, and we had a good time trying to record the event for posterity on Julian's digital video camera.
After an hour or so, the storm abated, and we were able to get outside for a few hours to make dinner and clean up. I had left my covered pack under a tree during the deluge, but the cover had blown off and the lower half and the contents were very wet. The tent, because of the spattering from the wind, was covered with mud, and everything inside was, at the least, damp. The ground was covered with a layer of glop two inches thick, the residue from the hail and rain that followed. We prayed that the next day would be sunny, as living for several days with all of our possessions being wet, muddy or gloppy was not a prospect we looked forward to.
After dinner, we were in our bags ready to sleep by 7:30, and shortly thereafter the storm returned for a grand finale, again with a lot of thunder, lightning and wind.
At around 3:30 a.m., I got up, as I did several times each night, to deal with the consequences of drinking a gallon or so of water each day. The sky had cleared, and the stars were spectacular! On the ridge to the east, I saw a strange, steady orange light, which was coming from the ridgeline at the end of the canyon. I wasn't wearing my glasses, and it looked to me like a beacon of some kind. I got my glasses, and in doing so woke up Julian, who also came out to look at this phenomenon. Together we concluded that it must be a fire, touched off by the lightning earlier in the night.
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