The night was the warmest we have experienced for some time and it wasn’t long in the morning before we were shedding layers in the heat as we hiked. The trail took us down to a fork of the Feather River and as we crossed over the bridge we could see some people with rafts camped on the edge.

Except when a light breeze was blowing, we were besieged by tiny flies or gnats that swarmed in front of our faces and repeatedly flew into my eyes. Putting glasses on at least stopped them getting right in and it was good to eventually say goodbye to them when we reached a higher altitude at the end of a 7 mile climb.

The path was soft and often cushioned with pine needles or yellow and brown leaves. At one such spot I was stopped short when a small snake crossed the trail right at my feet. It was a harmless garter snake but I was glad to have my glasses on and looked more carefully as I hiked on.

Rob’s leg continued to give him trouble today despite panadol and ibuprofen but hopefully another restful night will help. Tomorrow will be a long climb down to the highway and to the town of Belden and downhill seems to make the leg pain worse.