Claire and David Adventures!

We all woke up a little earlier than expected. Maybe it was the excitement of finishing early and getting some real food in Sisters. Or maybe I just got up early and my dang sleeping pad is so loud... In any case, we were up and at em and after breakfast and chai tea, we started up out of the Green Lakes Basin, to gorgeous views of Broken Too and South Sister. Brad and Nick and South Sister Nick and I (photo from Brad) Broken Top We did it!! 50 miles in 2.5 days! Whew!!  Three dudes, Three Sisters, three lakes, three days!! What a great excursion! We got back to the Pole Creek Trailhead just before 1:00pm, and zoomed down the forest road towards Sisters for burgers and beer!!! Table for three, please... After gorging ourselves with all the yum yums, we drive out to Detroit Lake to break the perfect trifecta and jump into a 4th lake of the trip since it was over 90°!! We walked out to Osprey Point and had one last cool down before it was Milkshakes and then home!  Detroit Lake ...

Oh what a beautiful mooooooorrrrniiiiing!!  Oh, what a beautiful day.... I’ve got a beautiful feeling, everything’s going my way. We woke up in our 11/10 campsite and headed out to see what day two had in store! Since we only saw one lake yesterday, one thing was in our mind on this hot, hot day: More alpine lakes to swim in! Luckily, we got to our first right about 10am. Reese Lake Ahhhh, nothing like swimming naked in a beautiful, cool lake! I’m telling you, you gotta try it sometime! On the banks of the lake were thousands of butterflies! I tried to get a good picture of one but they move so quick. Brad had better luck. Photo by Brad View from the lake We dried off and continued on the gorgeous day through loads and loads of wildflowers and pleasant streams. The trail stayed forested and meadow-y for most of the morning, until we climbed out of the greenery and crossed a huge dry plain, leaving the PCT and on the LeConte Crater Trail. Lupine Teepine Myself and Nick and Broken To...

Holy smokes. What a day! Where to begin?! At the beginning of course!  My sleep set up last night, with North Sister hiding out There you are!  Since we slept at the trailhead, we had a picnic table to eat breakfast at and a very clean toilet to get us started off right! When I repacked my sleeping bag into my pack I realized how empty it looked and decided to reorganize my backpack, putting the entire tent inside (which normally hangs out in the left water bottle pocket.) Not too bad for 50 miles and a full tent and food!  I didn’t weigh it but my estimate is “light” :) I was pretty happy with my pack for this trip. The weather is fair and the temps are forecasted high, so I brought my 40° Enlightened Equipment quilt (14oz), instead of my 15° Mountains Hardware mummy bag (2.5 lbs). I also brought an emergency rain poncho instead of a full rain jacket. The one thing I am more stoked on than my gear list are my fellow hikers! Me, Brad, and Nick Brad is my good good friend ...