Backpacking

So I went backpacking for the first time. I guess that is a technicality, because it is by far not the first time I have been camping or hiking with a backpack on, but it probably is the first time that I have schlep't all my camping stuff with me 5 miles to camp somewhere...

A group of us were supposed to go backpacking this weekend in Yosemite National Park. One bailed, we found a replacement, the weather was looking to snow and be cold, it was my first time, and we didn't think that was the best idea so we switched locals. That caused the replacement to bail. So it was just the three of us. That's coo.

We decided to go about an hour and a half north of here, just outside of Chico. One of us had been there before.



It was cloudy the whole way up there, and it was raining when we got there. After much deliberation we started hiking in... in the rain. After a while it began to pour. Lucy started to hesitate. We nearly turned around. I was fine either way but eventually said, "Haven't we committed ourselves to a cold, wet, miserable night already?"

We continued on.



It was about 5 miles in. It was raining about half the time and the trail was saturated so the mud stuck to the bottoms of our feet led weights... and the trail was slippery and steep and difficult.

We finally got nearer and nearer to the sound of the river we had descending to this entire time.







We pitched camp and started to gather wood for the fire. I must admit the I feel pretty bad about the amount of fuel we used for our fire. It was excessive. I did not particularly choose it be so but I was not going to argue. There was no one there the entire time we were there, except two day hikers that came in the next day on a 1.5 mile trail (where was that?!). If people camp there often like we did, that place would quickly become stripped. I feel pretty bad about that. With a serious, combined effort we were able to get a fire started on the second or third try, having forgotten all paper in the car (we used part of a cardboard cookie container and some receipts, and lots of pine needles), that wasn't bad, but we were getting a little desperate.



We had a great time, the weather cleared up after we setup camp and we were able to hang a clothes line and rotate our clothes dry. It kept us busy.



It clear in the morning and we hung out by the river for a few before packing out. It quickly clouded over lightly, which was a wonderful thing, because it was uphill all the way back to the car and in direct sun that would have killed me. But it was cloudy so the temperature was nice and tolerable the entire hike out.

We had a great time, and went for beers afterward.