Another very cold morning with condensation frozen to the inside of our tent, and another 2 steep hill climbs in the morning.

After lunch in the sun while we thawed out our tent, we continued along the valley on a gentle uphill gradient until we reached the ascent to Dorothy Lake and then Dorothy Lake Pass.

We passed a couple of hikers that we knew heading south to complete their PCT thru hikes. One was Paul who OG knew well and who we had spent time with when hiking in Oregon. Another was Vijay who was at Scout and Frodo’s with us before we started at Campo.

We were glad to reach the campsite at 5 pm and organise dinner and the tent early because now at 6:30 we are in our tents with thermals, down jackets, warm hats and down sleeping bags and we still feel very cold. It will be much colder when the sun goes down.

We have completed 21 miles today and tomorrow plan to hitch out from Sonora Pass at the end of the day to resupply at Kennedy Meadows North and then have a rest day from hiking.

Another cold night and again our water bottle froze. Also, the condensation on the inside of the roof of our tent had frozen. Needless to say it was hard to get out of our sleeping bags. With the days getting shorter we are now starting to hike at 6:30.The day included more great scenery and beautiful weather. We climbed a number of steep hills as well as Benson Pass (10,108′) and Seavey Pass (9131′).Another highlight was crossing paths with ‘Simless’ who we had hiked with a bit in Oregon. He is heading south and has about 200 miles to finish.Now we are snug in our tent after a good dinner. It has clouded over so maybe it won’t be so cold tonight. We now have less than 400 miles to go.

Well, the plan was to get up at the usual time but not eat breakfast until we arrived at Tuolumne Meadows Cafe. We woke to a bitterly cold day. The water in the bottle that was in the tent annex froze so we had to assume that our water filter system had also frozen and could no longer be trusted because the microscopic holes in the filter would be enlarged. Not a good start!Then we set off to town at a good pace with hands numb despite gloves and noses red and running. There was frost by the trail and water in the muddy puddles was frozen. The sun didn’t reach us until we were almost there and we hurried into the grill to buy hot drinks and cooked breakfast.The store was open so after we had eaten we enquired about our package which we had posted here. Although it was Sunday the rumour was that a post office employee would come at noon and give out resupply packages to hikers so we had to wait around until then.Meanwhile we had more to eat and chatted to some other hikers. One of them had completed their hike and offered to give their filter to us to replace our frozen one – we gratefully accepted! There was no inside seating so we tried to find warm spots in the sun where we could thaw out. Even at midday there was a cold nip in the air.The employee we were waiting for finally arrived around 12:30 and at 12:45 we were back to the trail moving as fast as possible to make up for lost time. Soon after leaving we met two rangers who checked our permits.The trail continued to follow a river down a rocky valley, with many waterfalls.Then a gradual climb up through some natural meadows. At one point we saw a coyote slowly stalking through the grass.Another descent and we got to Return Creek by about 7pm, where we camped. All in all we did 20.1 miles, which was good considering the 4 hours spent at Tuolumne Meadows.

We were up early as planned and started up and over and around the foothills leading to the first of 2 passes we had to climb this morning. There were a number of small creeks crossing the path and due to pack horses passing along the way much of the trail was replaced by muddy bog. Once the PCT rejoined the John Muir Trail the standard of maintenance was visibly improved.

As we approached Island Pass (10220′) we skirted around Thousand Island Lake and the mountains around with snow still frosting the sides made a beautiful picture. A descent then another ascent to Donohue Pass (11073′).

We are still passing plenty of other hikers and now even seeing some PCT thru hikers doing their last section. We have met several who we met in Oregon and Washington and even from the first 700 miles in California.

The weather has remained fine but the descent from the high pass was very windy and cold. The last 4 miles was beside a meadow with a stream running close by. Easy miles to finish a 20.1 mile day.

The rain stopped overnight but we packed up a wet tent and damp sleeping bags and set off optimistic that the weather had changed for the better.

The trail moved over a series of hills with pretty lakes in the valleys between. There are still plenty of hikers on the trails, mostly heading in a southerly direction and most of them doing the John Muir Trail.

[above] A grouse

At one turn this morning we were surprised to see a pair of alpacas grazing by the trail. They had harnesses on so were with some hikers – maybe being used to carry supplies?

We passed the turn-off to Red’s Meadow Resort which has a small cafe and is 0.5 mile off the trail but resisted the temptation to go there for lunch and instead feasted on tuna and mayonnaise wraps, pro-bars and Ritz crackers.

The afternoon hike was a gradual ascent, dry and rocky/sandy path but plenty of available water from creeks and rivers. Our campsite has a beautiful view across to some snow capped mountains behind which the sun is setting.

We completed 24.2 miles today with no high mountain pass to contend with and we hope the weather holds good to allow us to complete the upcoming high mountain sections.

The morning started with a hot breakfast. After paying our tab we assembled ready to get the 9am ferry from VVR back to the other end of the lake. A flash of lightning, a clap of thunder and a heavy downpour meant the trip on the lake in a metal boat was postponed!

Eventually we ventured out and got to the side trail (1.5 miles) back to the PCT. Then we started our ascent to Silver Pass.

The weather for most of the day was unsettled with light rain and occasional clear spells. So it was on again, off again with our rain gear.

We were happy to make 13 miles to camp beside Virginia Lake. Hopefully tomorrow will be better weather.

With only 1.5 miles from our campsite to the lake we had a sleep in and still managed to be at the ferry dock an hour early.

In the ride over to the Vermilion Valley Resort (VVR) campground at the other end of the lake we saw an osprey swoop down to the water, catch a fish and then feed its young in the nest at the top of a pine tree down at the lake’s edge.

Unfortunately there was no accommodation available in the motel section of the resort so we camped in the allocated through hiker space close to the restaurant. We did enjoy cooked meals, laundry and showers. In the afternoon we walked about a mile down the dirt road to get phone reception and were able to get some news from home.

After dinner we sat around a campfire and exchanged stories with some of the other hikers.

No PCT miles to count today and quite a good break despite having to sleep in the tent.

Well, the sky cleared and there was no rain overnight. We crossed a bridge over a river which divided Kings Canyon National Park from the John Muir Wilderness and immediately noticed a difference in the vegetation as we moved from more sparse alpine vegetation to a hill covered with pine forest and more dense undergrowth. The trail took us up this hill, then another beside a lake, then another and on up and around until we reached the top of Selden Pass. On the other side we looked down on a large lake made of smaller lakes all linked.

In the afternoon clouds collected and the sky darkened. It proceeded to rain and thunder through the afternoon as we crested another hill and descended to our campground beside a river.

We have passed the 500 miles to go mark today and hiked 22.9 miles.

This morning we started off with an ascent that was both rocky and steep. As the trail wound around some trees we saw on the slope above a buck that didn’t seem at all concerned that we were close and just kept on grazing.

Further along I saw someone sitting on an inflated sleeping mat just beside the path. A man was standing beside her and, as I approached I could see that the lady was using her satellite location device. I asked if she was OK and apparently she had slept there and was just slow to get going in the morning! Her son said she was 80 years old.

Our ascent became steep and rocky and at the higher altitude I again was bothered with breathlessness and fatigue. Our route crossed a few snow patches but we moved safely across them. Finally a brick chimney came into view and then I could see the whole hut – Muir hut was built in 1931 by the Sierra club and US forest service in honour of John Muir.

We descended from the pass and the rest of the day we were hiking mostly downhill. We passed some really beautiful lakes and followed some rivers down gorges.

We heard the approach of a helicopter and a hiker we passed confirmed that it was a rescue helicopter come to assist someone who had injured their ankle.

Today we had cooler weather and some patchy cloud cover but only a few drops of rain. Currently we are hiking with another couple – Clay (a meteorologist who is retired from the US Navy) and his wife ‘Tough Cookie’. Clay reassured us that the clouds did not appear ominous. We wonder what the weather will bring tonight and tomorrow.

We have now passed the 80% mark in distance.

The mountain pass we climbed today is called Mather Pass.

A hiker we passed on Kearsage Pass had been hiking with others on Mather a few days earlier and someone just ahead of him had slipped on icy snow and hit his head on rocks and died.

By the time we were approaching it everyone we met had heard about the accident and we were able to identify the patch of snow where it happened but the snow had receded and we could walk past on the path. Nevertheless it was a sobering reminder of how quickly accidents can happen.

Down in the valley beyond the pass we went by a large group of hikers wearing day packs. Behind them came about 20 mules packed with provisions including steak, chicken and ribs, etc. Apparently you can hike the Sierras in style if you have enough money.

We are camped next to a river which we were hiking beside this afternoon and the waters are really roaring. It is a bit like being beside the beach.