Day 4- Vidette Meadow to Woods Creek
Distance: 15 miles
Elevation Gain: 2,609 ft
Starting Elevation: 8,200 ft
Ending Elevation: 9,000 ft
Leaving Vidette Meadow and looking back on the valley.
We woke up early, refreshed by roughly ten hours of laying down in our tent. The routine of hiking was beginning to set in. You wake up, pack up your tent, eat breakfast, hike all day, set up your tent, eat dinner, go to bed. Repeat. For the first week, this routine included climbing and descending from a pass almost every day. We were about to climb about 4 miles and more than 2,000' to get to the top of Glen Pass (Elev: 11,970'). We ascended out of Vidette Meadow, looking back on beautiful views as we escaped the tree line. With every passing minute the sun illuminated a new piece of the Sierras, shaded and hidden just moments before. Each step around a switchback provided a new view to savor. Not long after we left the treeline however, the path became noticeably rockier and more desolate. The wind picked up and the climb steeper and more challenging. We were grateful to finally reach the top of the pass but the cold, howling wind at the top made for a short visit. We stopped for a quick picture and began our descent. To say it was slow going would be an understatement. Sharp rocks, steep switchbacks, and unsteady footing continued for about a mile down, and then we continued to follow a gradual downhill trail to the stunning Rae Lakes.
Our hour-long stop at Rae Lakes was amazing and we were grateful for a respite. We had already walked around 9 miles that day and Pat's feet were beginning to blister and my knee was starting to swell. We dipped our feet into the clear alpine lake and filled our water bottles. Nearby, hikers were fishing along the lakeside and the sun warmed us.
Our final six mile descent into the meadow and to the Woods Creek junction was rough and extremely slow going. We spent most of the day hiking with two women we had met on our first day, Carol and Kim, and we spent our afternoon passing or being passed by them along the way. Carol and Kim were in their sixties, ultramarathon runners, hiking the trail for the first time, and totally kicking our butts along the trail. They were an incredible inspiration to us and unquestionably generous along the way when we needed help. Seeing that we had forgotten our chapstick, they gave us an extra stick which came in handy throughout our hike. Once we made it to the junction, Carol, a nurse, took a look at my knee and assured me I had no joint damage gave me the thumbs up (and some Aleve) to stay on the trail and tough out the pain.
We warmed up eating our couscous dinner at Woods Creek, a site more crowded that we expected, and went to bed early. In the night, when swe woke up to leave the tent, stars filled the sky above our heads and the moon illuminated the mountaintops around us. Day 4 was complete.
At Glen Pass. Objects from the top always appear deceivingly closer than reality.