May 27 Mile 750.8 to 774.1 (Chicken Lake to Tyndall Creek/Lake)

PCT miles: 23.5

Gorgeous morning with an almost full moon greeting us as the sun rose. We’ve been getting up about 4:15 to 4:30 and hike by 5:30 AM. Seems like just a few days ago we had to use headlamps for the first half hour or so. Not any more. Guess we’ll have to get up earlier? Not sure about that. We said goodbye to lovely Chicken Lake and started toward Rock Pass. Saw Buttshot as we were nearing the cutoff to Whitney. She and others in her tramily (trail family) are heading up tomorrow.

At about 3:30 PM it started snowing for about 30 minutes. Some thunder, but no close lightning strikes! We are very low on food, so happy that we decided to shave a day off and move fast through this section. Rick needs more food during the day. Hopefully, it will work out with Williamson Inn, but if not, will try another motel. We are coming into town to resupply on a weekend when hotels are booked, so fingers crossed.

Spectacular trees and scenery slowed us down as we stopped to soak it all in and marvel at the beauty of these trees (bark!)

Met Mulligan (from Boston) having lunch after the hike up Rock Pass (few thousand feet in a mile). A second hiker we hadn’t yet met (Clydesdale- feet size 16) stopped to chat and let us know he just saw two bears at the last tent site.

Several hikers we knew were exiting the PCT to hike Whitney (off trail). As we have climbed Whitney twice in the past and had the predicted May 30th ‘snow’ on our minds, we opted to push toward Forester.

We arrived at our campsite and saw a small lake through the trees. Lovely campsite adjacent to the lake with great views! Great day. Chris still ok, although coughing and using inhaler... Not her best.