The John Muir Trail: Day 8 (Devil's Postpile to Outlet of Duck Lake)

Mountains beyond mountains

Highlights of Day 8

Frolicked at Devil’s Postpile
Met a hiker who has thru-hiked the Pacific Crest Trail 5.5 times
Passed a tree graveyard caused by the Rainbow Fire and subsequent windstorm
Set up camp at a gorgeous point along the trail. Didn’t look like much on the map, but it ended up being one of our favorite camping spots

Trail Journal

9:31 pm

Camped out at Duck Creek (or rather, the outlet of Duck Lake–it’s technically not named on the map, but I’ll take some liberties to give it a slightly more dignified name).

It’s gorgeous here. We’re surrounded on three sides by granite walls with evergreens growing tall, and the creek is a mere stone’s throw away. We’re tucked into a small grove of trees surrounded by sandy pumice, granite, grass, and some wildflowers. Beyond our little valley is an amazing view of mountains.

On our hike today I kept thinking of the phrase “mountains beyond mountains.” There are so, so many gorgeous peaks, it’s impossible to even keep count.

Today was a good day. I think we’re finally getting into the groove. The days are no longer as completely exhausting, and I’m enjoying myself more.

Gadget in front of Devil’s Postpile

Today is our first day on the trail without our two friends & hiking buddies–they exited at Devil’s Postpile and we all stayed last night in Mammoth. (Them to rest up & clean up before going home, and us to look for a replacement for our solar charger which failed. I wouldn’t care except that I need to be able to charge my phone to take photos! We left our trusty camera at home to save weight, which I now am somewhat regretting.)

The “rest day” yesterday (in quotes because we were so busy taking care of odds & ends that it didn’t feel very restful!) was also good because I somehow acquired a large blister on the bottom of my foot descending into Devil’s Postpile. It held up pretty well today until towards the end of the day–now it’s quite painful again. I just hope it heals quickly & doesn’t become infected.

All-in-all, today was a good day. We have a fair bit of ground we’re hoping to cover tomorrow, so time for me to snuggle down in my sleeping bag & curl up around my love.