up river without a paddle

Day 17

After such a magical day yesterday and getting to camp at a ranger station we headed back out onto the rocky river basin. It was a nice temperature to start- this beautiful weather would last all day.

We moved at a decent pace (the whole day was a slow ascent). Playing leap frog with other thru hikers we reached the halfway point and ate our bars on some shaded rocks next to the river.

As the second part of the day moved on and the ascent became more steady, the heat picked up and our bodies started to wear out. We realized last night that "the hunger" was finally setting in and although our food bags are nice and light we need more calories. In total we are only consuming about 1300/day, but burning about 6-8,000! That being said I weighed myself at the wind farm yesterday and have dropped over ten pounds. We need to get more calories for the next stretch- even if that means a bit more weight on our backs.

That being said we are in a crowded camp with a couple from Wisconsin, a couple from buffalo and a group from the northwest. It's nice sharing conversation (mostly about food!) and relaxing in this valley. Tomorrow we have an up and down fifteen to a ten mile hitch for big bear city. Can't wait to get some real food and take a zero Saturday! Look for a great food blog Saturday night before we head out for the next stretch!

- andY