Day 40 – Monday, July 3

PCT Mile 702.2 Kennedy Meadows

Zero Day

We got up in time to catch the 7:45 a.m. ride to Grumpy Bear Restaurant, three miles down the road, for their famous hiker breakfast.

For $9.95, you get a big plate of eggs, potatoes, and bacon plus all-you-can eat pancakes. The catch is that the pancakes are HUGE. 

Nobody can eat more than one.

Nobody at our table even finished their single pancake.

Well played, Grumpy Bear. 

From the restaurant, we walked over to the home of a new outfitter in town, a famous PCT hiker named Yogi, who sells anything you could need for the Sierras out of her home. She writes a PCT handbook, updated every year, that we among thousands of others use to plan our hike. It was exciting to meet her!

Unfortunately they were sold out of the things we were looking for, so we were told to return in the afternoon after a FedEx delivery. 

Back at the general store, we sat on the porch in our rain gear while we did laundry and tried to come up with a plan for the next few hundred miles. This was challenging because there was no cell service or wifi. And because lots of hikers had conflicting information about the upcoming trail. I don't know who to believe. 

After lunch we hitched back to the outfitters and enjoyed talking to Yogi and Matt about the upcoming miles as well as getting advice about resupplying and gear. They were incredibly positive and helpful.

To feel safe in the incredibly snowy Sierras, we each bought an ice axe and Stephen bought crampons as well. (I'd had my crampons sent in the mail.) Between these and the bear canister, we are adding a lot of weight to our packs. Fortunately, water will be less of a concern and I hope we won't have to carry more than two liters again for a long time. 

We enjoyed the evening hanging out on the general store porch with lots of other hikers, including 3G, Plan A, Winter, and Papa Bear. It was a great time, swapping stories about the trail, laughing and playing games.

Into the mountains tomorrow!