Day 22 - Sunrise

Saturday, August 7, 2010 - Day 22
Stats for the day: started at Tarn Below Forester Peak (10,900') at 7:15 - ended at Bernice Lake (10,220') at 3:15. Total ascent 2882'. Total descent 3694'. Total Distance 13.0 miles. 5 hrs 40 mins walking.

We purposely stayed way above tree line last night for multiple reasons, including, stay away from the mosquitoes, stay away from people, stay out of the trees to see the stars, see the sunset on the horizon (we have not had a high west facing camp the entire trip), and enjoy a spectacular view into the Merced River drainage and the Clark Range 5 miles distant. We were rewarded with all goals met.

We slept out on the granite slabs without the tent, a light cold breeze blowing off and on during the night. Tucked in our sleeping bags we were warm and toasty as the sun sped toward the horizon.

The sunset was magnificent as we watched the glowing orb slowly dip below the distant hills. The stars and planets were brilliant with Venus, Saturn, Jupiter and Mars, the Summer Triangle, Arcturas, and the Milky Way. But, the sunrise was the most spectacular.

I woke about 5:40am. It was cloudless. The sun was still below the horizon and the peaks of the Clark Range to the west had yet to be touched. The sky was putting on a show, demonstrating a perfect gradient fill. Directly over my head the sky was purple. Descending toward the western horizon the sky slowly changed colors, progressing through the colors of the rainbow until some distance above the top of the peaks of the Clark Range red was reached. Below the red the sky was grey all the way down to the peaks and into the passes between them. As I sat in my bag anticipating the first rays of the sun rising behind me to touch the range I noticed the color bands moving downward slowly, approaching the tops of the peaks, and the grey area beneath it getting narrower. I realized the sun was illuminating the atmosphere, and as the earth rotated toward it the bands of color were descending onto the mountains just as the sun light would descend down the mountains once it struck them.

The whole rainbow of colors descended the sky and when the red at the bottom touched the top of the peaks they began to glow with the direct rays of the sun. Slowly, this illumination then began it's descent down the mountain faces as the whole Clark Range began to glow with the morning sun.

Of course, we were not yet blessed with these warming rays, camped as we were in the shadow of Forester Peak. So, as the Clark Range enjoyed the sun's early warmth we shivered in the shadows through breakfast and packing, anticipating the moment when the sun would be high enough to clear the ridges behind us and shed it's warming rays on us. This happened in the minutes before our departure from our lofty camp and the combination of our physical exertion in walking and the sun's light began to warm us as we descended.

2.55 miles of glorious meadow traversing on a WNW heading brought us to the trail. Enroute we spooked a cinnamon colored bear that bounded across the meadow before us. We tromped on trail the rest of the day, covering a total of thirteen miles as we traversed the high trail above Washburn and Merced Lakes, then turned up Lewis Creek and arrived at Bernice Lake about 3:15, as thunderheads built above us. We quickly put up the tarp and tent, then before the rains hit Gary and I took a much needed bath with lake water and washed some clothes. No sooner did we complete our washings than the rain started to fall, so we gathered under the tarp to cook dinner. The rain never amounted to much, but the constant rumblings coming from the sky made us think a deluge was due any moment. By 7:30 most of the rumbling and all of the rain had ceased. I caught a couple fish for breakfast and was in the sack a little after 8.