Kennedy Meadows North
I took absolutely no pictures today. I told myself I was going to get as close to Sonora Pass that I could so that tomorrow I would be able to hitch into Kennedy Meadows to get my resupply and get back on trail the same day. Well... As the day progressed I became more and more determined to attempt to hitch in tonight.
The morning was pretty windy and I could see some clouds rolling in. The first 10 miles or so had me hiking through valleys that were home to cows and so I was not interested in grabbing water from there... I might have gone a bit too long without getting water because I could tell I was getting dehydrated. When I found a creek that looked clean (I know just because its clear doesn't mean its safe but at that point I did not care) I got some water but didn't stop. All day I was just eating on the go, not wanting to cool down.
Halfway through the day it started to drizzle and I put my rain coat on. I didn't think my rain pants would help much so I left them off. At that point I should have put my tent in my pack to keep it dry but I waited a little too long and then it was too late. I passed a couple of true south bounders who said they were going to be camping about a mile from the road. A mile later I passed a north bounder I had met back at Casa de Luna, Wookie (trail name envy). He ended up keeping up with me and we talked all the way to the road. Once we got there we realized that it was going to be a tough hitch considering it was pitch back, pouring rain and we looked like a couple of wet blobs on the side of the road. I was tempted to just hole up in the outhouse that was near the trailhead but a family pulled over and actually let us into their car. Wookie crammed into the trunk and I sat shivering (I still didn't have pants on) in the front seat.
They dropped us off at the pack station and we made it into the store just before they closed for the night. We got ourselves bunks in the bunk rooms and I exploded my pack making sure everything was dry. My pack did not disappoint. everything that was inside the main compartment was bone dry even though my tent was sopping wet.