My hope of getting used to the elevation quickly was in vain. The day started out good, my achew from yesterday were almost gone and I was cruising the first 10 miles. After those however, I got suddenly really tired. It became a struggle to keep my eyes open and not take a nap right there. The altitude hit hard. Especially as we got closer to 11 thousand feet. Most of the afternoon my head was foggy and unfocused. The amazing views kept me going. The start granite mountains, dotted with all sorts of deep and light brown colored trees, with verdant meadows just below, were a sight to behold. I thought the people who had been hyping up the Sierra’s for so long were exaggerating, but they were not, not in the least. I find myself stopping very regularly to take it all in.
In the early evening we made camp at Chicken Springs Lake. After the lack of large bodies of water in the desert, this was a beautiful contrast. We took a dip and washed our legs. The hunger was striking even harder today. Especially the last 2 miles all I could think about was food. According to Stinger, it will get even worse. Sad times. Tomorrow, we’ll sleep in and leave only at 7, since it’s only a short day.
