We awoke at 7:30am this morning to sun but a strong chill. This coldness did not prevent bug activity unfortunately so there was quite a bit of futile limb shaking and mutual slapping to prevent bites. After a breakfast of Clif bars and oatmeal and a visit to another nicely enclosed toilet (with free hand sanitizer!), we left camp at 9:05am and were told to look out for a deer that never appeared. The trail to White River campground was rather switch back filled and continuously steep, and we made great time, actually passing a mother-daughter team that looked fresh to the trail. The forest had quite a few fallen trees and new growth. The most interesting aspect of the 2 mile trip down was the message written in the dirt “Be the hill”. Katie was inspired and put a huge check mark next to it.
When we reached White River, Katie sought out a flushing toilet and I searched for the ranger cabin to retrieve the food cache. We ended up unloading quite a bit (like cocoa and soup mix) and adding a few dinners to last the rest of the trip. It’s surprising how much food we over packed, but it was smart to be over-prepared. A ranger here was kind enough to take our bins back to the station where we made our reservations for the trail, shortening our drive to pick them up after the trail is over.
I had full reception here with AT&T at White River Campground, so more calls home happened. We set out for Summer Land after an hour and after we had filled water bottles (using water fountains by the bathrooms!); the trail was very flat and broad for some three miles. We were told by a passing hiker that she’d seen a mother and two black bear cubs passing over the trail ahead of us, and that one of the cubs had hissed at her nearness while she was photographing it. Just what we want, grumpy, agitated bears! If you’re hissed at, please back off slowly from the animals. Anyway, the mother bear is apparently used to human visitors and didn’t give anyone a second glance. We didn’t end up seeing them, though, just a skittish elk and chipmunks as we ascended 800 feet. A couple from California who are newly married shared cherries with us along the trail, giving us a great rest break. When we finally arrived at Summer Land, the flowers, we found, are not in full bloom as they are while approaching the camp grounds. There were, however, marmots sprinkling the fields while munching various plants.
It’s quite cool up here, so we made our way to a site to get out of the wind. We cooked dinner (black bean chili for both of us; lasagna for me, garlic mashed potatoes for Katie) before hanging up food bags and hitting the sack for the night. I chose the close, uber tall bear pole to challenge the rodents (who are infamously capable – bear poles are reputed to have only a mild deterring effect here). Katie used a shorter one further away, not wanting to deal with the extra unruly height. We’ll see what develops overnight! In bed by 9pm. (We ended up having no trouble with rodents in our food sacks).
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