PCT SECTION HIKE | DAY 28 Mt Whitney Sunrise Summit to Guitar Lake to Lower Crabtree
Miles Hiked: 12.1 miles
Elevation: 3232 ft ascent | 4048 ft descent
Today is the day!
Officially “finishing” my second JMT/Nüümü Poyo thru hike and second Mt Whitney/Tumanguya.
Last year’s summit was filled with smoke, raining ash, and a thunder storm (clouds hidden by the smoke) that forced us to rush down the ninety nine switchbacks towards Whitney Portal.
This year was…different. It was peaceful. Filled with so much more emotion.
From the sun rising over the mountains.
To the exhaustion from hiking nearly 300 miles.
To the overwhelming sense of accomplishment.
…I was able to do it again!
To finding myself and where I belong.
And all to be made even more powerful by summiting with a few people I had met along the way. Thank you Autumn @numu_wanderer / @indigenouswomenhike for making the summit even more special—you have a beautiful voice and presence that will follow me though future hikes. Keep on making your voice heard, you have a powerful voice + message.
I started my hiking from Guitar Lake around 12:30AM. Prepared for freezing cold temperatures, I put on every layer I had. I soon regretted that and was stripping layers after less than a half mile. It was warm, at least for this elevation. Mid 40s, maybe warmer. By two miles in I was down to my shorts and sun hoody.
I was joined by Autumn about half way up the switchbacks. A welcome company, as I have decided I am really not a fan of night hiking…at all. I like to see what is around me. Every so often we would stop, turn off our headlamps, and take in the nights sky—crystal clear—the Milky Way, stars for as far as the eye can see, and the beginnings of the Perseids (the peak was not for a few more days).
Once at the junction, it started to get colder. I started adding layers as we got closer to the summit. We were soon joined by Travis and Natasha. Colors started to slowly work their way through the dark sky as we made the final turn to the top. Soon, the shelter came into view, along with silhouettes of a few other hikers.
We did it.
Pictures were taken. Many many pictures. Autumn sung two songs, honoring the land around us and the people that walked the land before us.
And then, it was time to go. I could spend hours up there, but eventually, it has to end. I started down the rocky switchbacks, encouraging and congratulating passers by. At Guitar Lake, I met an older gentleman, Kurious Traveler, a PCT hiker who was finishing up the remaining miles of his thru hike from a previous year. I packed up my gear and hiked down to Crabtree Meadows in order to escape the hot sun. Less than 30 miles until this journey is over. If you have hiked a long trail before, you know the feeling of wanting to be done but at the same time wanting it to never end. You soak in every moment, every view.
…all while thinking about getting a burger as soon as you get to town. Haha. Two more days.
