Distance hiked today: 18 miles / 29 km.
Today was Seavey Pass at 9,129 ft. A steady and steep climb up through trees and rocks suddenly opened up to a lake.
Colin realized he'd lost his sunglasses - it was cloudy so they had been on his hat. He hiked back half a mile to try and find them, but no luck, so we carried on and hoped someone behind might pick them up.
Many of the river crossings were big, and we found downed logs to cross on rather than taking our shoes off. A little more risky, but more efficient. Some of them were really sketchy highlines where you couldn't reach the ground with a pole for balance, some were thick trees that are easier to walk on, and others were quite skinny or wobbly. But we're getting pretty good at them - 110% focus and a bit of adrenaline. Just don't fall in.
It rained lightly for a while, but going uphill we would sweat in our rain jackets so there was no point putting them on. The sweet smell of wet wood and pine filled the forest. I'm not sure if it was just the lighting or the rain itself, but the greenery seemed so much greener. Moss falling from the trees was almost a fluorescent lime green - I called them Floofs.
After chatting for a few minutes with a hiker passing by, I realized he had an extra pair of sunglasses on his hat, and they were Colin's! Reunited, Colin was glad not to have to go without them for the next week.
We had to wade across Falls Creek, taking our shoes and pants off. Not even 5 minutes after we crossed the rain started coming down heavily, and then became hail. Glad we weren't in the middle of the crossing, we put on our rain gear. The heavy rain was running down the trail and adding to the already wet meadows, and we knew the campsite we were aiming for might be underwater. So we stopped a mile or two earlier at a decently flat spot where we knew we could stay, not wanting to risk having to walk another 8 miles to the next dry camp.
There was still light rain and bugs, and we hung out in the tent for dinner before unpacking any gear inside it. The empty tent felt like a playpen as we sat opposite each other and crawled around, still wearing rain pants.
Total trail mileage: 988.6 miles / 1590.7 km
