Small Crater to Mezad Tamar

We left camp right as the sun was peaking out from behind the mounds of dirt around us. We topped off our water and then went to the edge of the Small Crater. In true INT fashion the trail went straight down. As we made our way down the trail we spotted a large number of vultures flying circles above our heads. As if they knew this was going to end badly (It actually didn't. We all made it down safely.)

Once we got to the bottom of the crater we had a long and flattish walk to the other side. It was pretty nice. Not too hot, not too sunny (yet). We took a break next to a large rock that provided a little shade and waited for N to catch up. 

The cool thing about this crater compared to the Ramon or Large Crater is that it is small enough to actually feel like you are in a crater. You can see all the walls encircling you from the inside. Plus, this one has coloured sand so your eyes get a rest from the beige colour they have gotten so used to. 

We took a break at what we thought was the beginning of our climb out of the crater because there was a bit of shade and we needed a snack. Once we started up the ascent we learned we were quite mistaken. The rim where we wanted to go was much much farther than we originally expected. P and A kept going as N started to struggle and I stayed behind with him. It was pretty mentally taxing 1 kilometer. Hot, steep, and exhausting. After my best attempt at motivational speaking N made it up to where P and A were taking a break in a sliver of shade. I kept going without stopping until I got to the top mostly because I needed some time away from them.

Once the rest of them got to the top we made our way to the NC. Though it wasn't much farther from where we rested it felt like it took us forever to get there. When we got there, however, we were greeted by R and S and some fruit (I wont say fresh but it was still fruit). We found them in an abandoned structure next to an ancient ruin and a road with a decent amount of traffic. I was kind of worried that N would take it upon himself to hitch to the nearest town and try getting home because I wouldn't call him a taxi. I found that at the end of the day he actually enjoys himself its just getting him there that is a struggle at times.

We decided to cowboy camp next to the little structure we had been in earlier today because the actual NC was apparently pretty gross. Apparently in the middle of the night a car stopped in front of us for a while. N said it was pretty unsettling.