I walked out of Kennedy Meadows and was on the trail by 8am. I had previously been hiking with others, most notably an awesome girl I met out here. It was actually a bit of a decision whether or not to amend my plans. But in the end, despite the fun times, hiking into the high Sierra seemed like the correct decision and continuing the push for the Great Western Loop. It was a pleasant trail to Monache Meadow and the bridge over the Kern River. I passed guided trips and people out backpacking with giant, freighter size packs. It almost made me feel bad. Past Monache Meadow the trail shot up to 10,500’ of elevation with a few tiny snow patches. It then dropped only to climb again even higher. Views were everywhere as were Giant Sequoias. I finished the day with 36 miles and met a hiker, Caveman who had hiked the trail in 2016 as well. While hiking I pondered how I want to treat this section and despite already having done Mt Whitney, I am thinking about doing the 16 bonus miles to do it again.
Miles today 36
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