I laugh a little bit to myself as I write this, for I am doing so from the comfort of my private toilet at home. I'm not using the toilet, rather, I'm just sitting on it, as it's one of the many luxuries we have missed while on the trail. What missing toilets says about the quality of hobby we engage in is not for me to judge. I will leave that to those with pristine butt cheeks that haven't been ravaged by mosquitos. But nevertheless the fact that I'm writing our last day's account from the comfort of my own home still hasn't sunk in. You mean I don't have to spend 5 minutes making myself lightheaded by blowing up my bed? I can eat as many double doubles as I want? You mean I don't have to carry around used toilet paper anymore? At this point, I can only assume I actually fell off Mt. Whitney, died, and went to heaven.
But is it heaven? Is heaven the place where hordes of people litter beaches, where passersby on the sidewalk don't give two shits about talking about the weather with you, or where your heart shrivels with anxiety at the prospect of finding an apartment 5 weeks before school starts? Alas, this is real life, and despite the clutter, distractions, and stressors that muddy all of our lives, I am blessed to return safely to the comforting arms of family and friends that mitigate all of that noise. I cannot express how simultaneously happy and sad I am to be home.
For me there is no distinction between last night and today, as I didn't get a wink of sleep. Between the abnormally warm night, the hefty wind flapping our tent, and the excitement for our summit day, the quest for sleep was lost from the start. Maddie managed to sneak in a couple of hours, but at 2:17, sensing my restlessness, she turned to look at me. We were either going to postpone our 2:30 alarm for 2 hours to try to get some sleep or get up now. We decided to just get up and go. Packing up was quick and efficient, and we were walking by 3, donning pretty much all of our layers to protect us from the chilly night.
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| Lit up and ready to roll |
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| Summit Day Selfie |
Headlamps gleaming, illuminating only the footpath ahead of us, we walked briskly toward the switchbacks to the trail crest junction. It was 2000 feet of clbing and 4.9 miles to the junction, but it was fairly easy walking, and the cold propelled us upward. The stars were beautiful, though it was so dark you could barely make out the silhouettes of the surrounding ridges. Now, I like heights as much as the next guy...if that guy happens to hate roller coasters and tightly shut his eyes upon takeoff and landing I'm airplanes...so the darkness was probably a good way of preventing me from being able to see all the way down the ridge when I turned my headlamp that way. All I could see were the occasional glints of other hikers starting to break down their camps. We got to the junction at 5 and quickly set about consolidating Maddie's warm stuff, water, and snacks into my bag so she wouldn't have to carry anything to the summit.
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| Sunrise |
With 1.9 miles and about 1000 feet to go, we began our final ascent. Through gaps in the pinnacles, we would catch glimpses of the vivid red line glowing incandescent on the eastern horizon. The sunrise was becoming more beautiful by the second, and soon enough, the mountains and lakes surrounding Kern Canyon were glowing gently and we could turn off our headlamps. The trail to the top was not without snow, and we made sure to be very careful along the gravelly trudge to the top. These last 1.9 miles were a grunt, forcing us both to slow down due to nausea. There were at least 5 times I nearly lost my oatmeal breakfast, a decision I'm sure has ruined oatmeal for the discernible future.
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| Wakey wakey! |
It was 6:15 when we summited (our summit attempt was probably the fastest we have walked the entire trip, by the way). Just as we approached the shelter on the summit and we had expected all of our joy would erupt in a river of tears and hugs...the cold set in. There were 5 people already there, shivering and burrowing themselves in their sleeping bags, but we opted to visit the shelter, where I had us do jumping jacks and run in place to keep warm before huddling together in Maddie's sleeping bag. When we achieved a not-so-miserable degree of comfort, we ventured back outside and Maddie parked it on a rock overlooking the Owens Valley, as I handed her my hand warmers. Meanwhile, I set about taking pictures and fetching her phone to call our parents from the top. I let John know we were on schedule and shooting to be down by 3pm, and it was so wonderful hearing their voices! I tried calling my brother, but I think he screened my call...too early for him I guess! Although we could only briefly soak in our accomplishment, it felt indescribable to be done with the JMT. We looked at each other proudly, hugging each other out of love and a need to stay warm. It was so special, like I said, indescribable. Finally, shivering from the bitter cold for too long, we shoved off down the mountain close to 8. We must have been among the first 10 people up there, and we signed the trail register as we left. Even though the John Muir Trail officially ends on top of Whitney, we still had about 11 miles to the portal where John would await our arrival.
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| The summit shelter |
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| Keeping warm |
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| Maddie, the amorphous sleeping bag monster, spotted atop Mt. Whitney |
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| Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose |
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| Guitar Lake looking quite...guitarish |
We passed some of our friends as we descended, and it was nice to bid them goodbye once more. At the junction I quickly reassembled our packs, and we took off down trail crest toward the infamous 99 switchbacks. It was pretty speedy walking, but we were now encountering more people than we had seen since Yosemite. The shocking part of our descent that would characterize most of the day's hiking was not the sheer number of people, but how rude most of them were. On the way down, we noticed several WAG bags (the bags you have to crap in while in the Mt. Whitney zone) left by the trail side, and there were countless hikers barreling past without feigning any attempt of trail etiquette. These were minor annoyances on the scheme of things, however, as we descended through the otherwise beautiful mountain scenery. The most troublesome part of the day was actually the trail itself, as the granite was slick and the trail was incredibly rocky and uneven.
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| Trail Crest |
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| Down we go |
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| Snack break |
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| Looking up toward Whitney on our break |
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| Some jerk's used WAG bag...yeah, pack it out people |
Yet not even the unpleasant footpath could dampen our enthusiasm for finishing out strong. We cruised down, only taking one sizeable 15 minute bathroom/snack break to appreciate our last afternoon as smelly semi-homeless people. From there, we felt like a pair of hungry hamsters chasing a carrot. No matter how fast we walked, the valley below didn't seem to be getting any closer. We kept up the pace, though, and finally entered our last mile of trail. At that point we were nearly giddy, almost to the point of drooling at the though of lemonade and fresh fruit, our only requests from John. Just as enticing was the prospect of not having to drink water like a gerbil anymore, as sucking on the sawyer mini squeeze filter, while practical, small, and lightweight, is infuriating when you really just want to guzzle a bunch of water. See my post on our day getting into Reds Meadow for a picture of what suckling on that trickle of water looks like. Absolutely maddening.
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| Almost done! |
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| One of our final crossings |
As we rounded the last switchback down to the parking lot, I saw him. Sitting there in his comfy chair, holding a sign that said in big bold letter: HARRIS. It was unbelievable. We both just started laughing and uttering expressions of unbridled joy at seeing John. A seasoned backpacker and outdoorsmen, John knew exactly what this moment feels like, and ever the brave soul, he embraced our wretchedly stinky bodies in a hug. He then led us to the car, and with the suspensefully slow rise of he trunk, revealed what I think of now as the cooler of dreams. Apricots, plums, bananas, broccoli, baby carrots, naked juice and lemonade. THINGS THAT GO CRUNCH WHEN YOU BITE INTO THEM!
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| Goodbye wilderness! |
After changing into CLEAN CLOTHES, we immediately broke into sporadic conversation about our trip as we got in the car and headed down the road. Being in a car felt like going warp speed, it was so weird watching the scenery whiz by so quickly. Even more disorienting was our stop for gas, where upon entering the convenience store to pay, I was shocked by the buzz of activity and and cornucopia of food and beverage offerings. What is this place? Honestly, it was one of the weirdest experiences of my life.
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| Our savior |
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| Maddie meets civilization |
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| Finally in clean clothes...that instantly became dirty upon gracing our bodies |
With the gas tank full, we set out to make our stomachs equally so, aiming for the In-n-Out in Lancaster. For weeks Maddie had declared her order in advance: two burgers, two fries, a coke, and a shake. I am proud to say that she followed through on her promise, although she just replaced the shake with a second coke. Meanwhile, I ordered two hamburgers and fries and devoured all of it. Just before leaving, though, I found myself not quite as full as I'd hoped, so for good measure, I returned to the counter and ordered a double double with grilled onions and extra everything. Now that is a meal befitting of two people who just hiked the JMT.
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| This isn't even all of the food... |
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| Letting someone else do the cooking tonight #PlacesMyPotGoes |
From there, we made our merry way home, enjoying lively conversation and talking about our trip. John was so incredibly nice in coming to get us, and we had a blast riding home with him. Thanks again, John!
We made it home around 9pm and dropped Maddie off, before he took me home to see my parents. Oh my, was it great to see them and hug them. My dad has been following our progress along our planned itinerary very closely and has arguably been our number one fan. Meanwhile, I could see the worry and anxiety fade from my mom's face, making us both very happy. I told them some things abou the trip, agreeing to talk more in the coming days when I have pictures uploaded and it's not so late at night.
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| Nothing says home like family and a bowl of cereal |
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| One of oh so many empty bags of this most addicting and delicious of trail snacks. |
And coming full circle, here I sit in my bathroom of all places, reflecting on what has probably been the most amazing 3 and a half weeks of my life. I showered until the water was no longer brown. My skin, though several shades lighter, still harbors a light brown hue in the creass of my hands. I extracted enough ear wax to construct a buff of myself for the Madame Tussaud's wax museum. I brushed my teeth with an electric tooth brush. I slipped on clean cotton pajamas. I discovered I lost ten pounds, coming in at a meager 126. I pounded several bowls of cereal and some of the Krave Jerky I could not get enough of. I brushed my teeth again. I drank two liters of water. I looked at myself in the mirror.
And now, except for the hairy face that I am preserving for my brother's amusement when he comes home tomorrow, I am "normal" again. I'm sure the feelings will trickle in, my disgust with traffic, my disillusionment when someone flips me off in the car for the first time, my ecstasy when I have my first taste of Mexican and Thai food. But also the melting pot of emotions, those triumphant and nostalgic, that are bound to define our journey. For the millionth time, I cannot thank our friends and family enough. Thank you to those intrepid hikers who have inspired me each and every step of the way to forge new memories and embark on new adventures (Margaux, Twinkle, Carrot, the list goes on—click on those links if you would like to read about some truly epic thru-hiking adventures Margaux conquered the Appalachian Trail, and Twinkle and Carrot have shared their Pacific Crest Trail experiences in great detail). And thank you to the amazingly friendly people at Krave Jerky for sending me a sample of their unbelievably delicious Turkey Jerky, undoubtedly my most prized foodstuff on the trail. But most importantly, I cannot thank Maddie enough for being such an amazing hiking partner, blog editor, and girlfriend. The highs were high (like seriously, 14,500 feet high) and the lows were low (it got realllyyyyy smelly in that tent sometimes you guys), but we saw it through together. I could not have asked for anyone better to enjoy the adventure of a lifetime with.
Hopefully my blog doesn't go back to being another idle, boring waste of internet space. I'll continue to post my music when I feel creative or recipes when I feel simultaneously creative and hungry. I've toyed with the idea of blogging about stuff through dental school, but I'm not sure that life commands a very large audience. I fear at that point reading my blog would feel just as much like pulling teeth as it would be about pulling teeth. So until the next big adventure, from my toilet to yours (let's be honest, everyone putzes around on their phones on the ivory throne), I thank you for reading, and I hope you have enjoyed following our journey!
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