Trail Stats
Name: JMT Day 13: Deer Meadow – South Fork Kings River via Mather Pass
Where: Sierra Nevada, California
When: August 12, 2014
Distance: 12 miles. 3300ft elevation gain/2000ft elevation loss
Journal entry:
Today the trail was beautiful and spectacular but seemed endless! Mather is the first of 3 giant passes and it seemed massive compared to what we’ve done already.
Tim started feeling crappy about mid-day. By the time we got into camp he was shaking and feverish. He went straight to bed. I’m worried – I can’t be the strong one for long! He thinks he’ll be better in the morning so we’ll see if we push on or take a rest day. Tomorrow is Pinchot Pass which is less epic. Then we have Glen and Forester which are monsters.
I hope Tbone gets better tonight.
Lower Palisade lake at the top of the Golden Staircase
This is a beautiful day on the JMT.
The first order of business is climbing up the Golden Staircase. People make a big deal out of this portion of the trail but we both actually enjoyed it. I appreciate good trail building and I like conquering big climbs — I feel like I actually get faster on switch backs.
At the top of the switchbacks, you are greeted by a beautiful valley and Lower Palisade lake. This lake (pictured above) is super cold and super clear – there were lots of fish nibbling at my toes! This is a great opportunity to stop for a break before pushing on – at this point you’re done half the climb of the day.
From the top of Mather, you get a great view of the valley beyond: half of which you will walk through for the remainder of the day. The terrain to the south is different, now. It’s drier and more barren.
We don’t know why Tim started feeling so terrible. It seems likely that he had a bit of sun stroke. By the end of the day it was all he could do to maintain a snail’s pace. The campsite at King’s River is not the most inspiring but it’s possible that my perception of it was skewed by the fact that we were dealing with Tim’s illness. He sat by a tree while I set up camp and then almost literally rolled him into his sleeping bag, where he would remain for the next 15 hours.
It’s scary to think that illness can strike someone while out in the backcountry. I suppose you just hope that you can sleep it off with a couple of rest days and then either continue on or head to the nearest escape route. I’m not sure what would happen if an illness or injury was more serious than that. I guess at some point we may discover the answer.
We are bad backpackers because we don’t bring any but the most basic first aid supplies (moleskin, bandaids, advil, sleeping pills). I wonder if a Dr. would prescribe antibiotics to bring along in case of some sort of infection.?
Heading up the Golden Staircase – looking back to where we came from
Golden Staircase
Tim wasn’t feeling so hot by this point.
Mather Pass – looking north to the Palisade Lakes
Mather Pass – looking south
The Hiker Hunger 