Today was a day of just slugging it out. It wasn't the toughest day I've had, but it was hard for sure. The guidebook I've been using on the trip indicates that this is the second most difficult section on the entire trail, behind only the High Sierra. I'm sure I haven't seen its worst yet, but the lower elevation and smaller climbs make it much easier than the High Sierra, in my opinion. One thing I will say, however, is that this section has some very steep parts. Some of the steepest prolonged sections I've seen on the entire trail, and that's saying something!
But I learned a long time ago that this wasn't going to be an easy accomplishment. So I just keep slugging away at it, making as big a dent as I can each day. Today's mileage mark started at 188 remaining and tonight I'm at 160. I'm pretty pleased that I was able to get 28 miles done today. In a perfect world, I'll do it tomorrow, too, so that I can focus on getting about 20 the following day, Sunday. That's when I'll be navigating the worst trail conditions I've seen as well as tackling some pretty mean steep sections. It could shape up to be a long day. But first, I gotta get up and going at a decent hour tomorrow so I'm signing off for today.
Oh wait...nearly forgot! Two cool wildlife sightings to report. The first was this morning at about 9 in a forested area. I was approaching a corner when a snow white mountain goat saunters around the corner. He looked at me with an "What the...? Holy crap!" look on his face before he bolted the way he came. When I got to the corner, there was no trace of him except the hoofprints he left behind. The second cool thing I saw was in the afternoon. I heard a terrible crashing in the woods below and about 100 yards in front of me. Aside from the patch of trees, it was a wide open blueberry patch. A big, black bear had been grabbing an afternoon snack when I startled him. It was the best view of a bear I've had yet! Unfortunately, I couldn't get a photo of either occurence. Bummer.
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