Day 9 - Weather.

Sunday, July 25, 2010
Stats for the day: started at Dusy Basin (11,200') at 7:30 - ended at Muir Pass (11,969') at 7:50. Total ascent 3395'. Total Descent 2791'. Total Distance 12.2 miles. 5hrs 16 mins walking. 7.5 hrs not moving.

We woke this morning to an unusual site, clouds in the sky. There are never clouds in the sky in the morning in the Sierra. The only time there are, it means rain in the day. Andy asked me what the clouds meant and I said it would be thunderstorms by 12:30 or 1:00 reasoning that the sun would have a head start at forming thunderstorms if the moisture was already in the air. Normally, the skies are cloudless until about 11, then the clouds quickly form and by 3-4 the thunder, lightening and rain begin.

We were on the trail by 7:30, descending from Dusy Basin to Le Conte guard station 2600' below us and 4.5 miles away. We spent a little under two hours reaching the bottom of the valley at 8600', checked in with the ranger, then began the long climb to Muir Pass at 12,000'.

The weather was getting uglier as we climbed the trail, but we kept moving, trying to get as far as possible before the rain hit.

We had just passed the part of the trail that had to be blasted from a cliff when it was made because there was no other way up the valley when we saw rain coming up the valley below us as it darkened in. The rain started to spit on us. We topped a rise and found a flat place 100' off the trail and quickly pitched the rain fly I had sewn up for this very purpose. The rain was thundering down by now, but other than a little wet from pitching the tarp, we were dry. I changes out of my sweaty shirt into a t-shirt, fleece and down jacket and Andy and Gary dressed similarly. We were sitting on dry heather with the tarp pitched to short alpine firs. The wind was whipping it around a bit as lightening lit the sky, thunder boomed and rain came down in torrents, but we were warm and dry.

The timing was perfect for lunch, so we broke open the bear barrels and ate. Andy fired up his stove and made us all hot Vanilla Chai Tea.

By 2:30 the rain had come and gone numerous times and the sedentary afternoon had the three is us fast asleep with an afternoon nap, lying under the tarp on the meadow. By three thirty we were wondering if the rain would stop. I said the atmosphere would lose energy as the sun began to set and by 5 the rain would be done. We decided to eat dinner now so at 5 when the rain quit we could go and not have to fuss with dinner later. The rain hammered down until 4;30, then quit. So we quickly packed, took down the tarp and started back up the hill. We made it about half an hour when it began to sprinkle. Looking down the valley it appeared another drenching rain was coming so we ducked off the trail and quickly pitched the tarp. It rained only about five minutes, so we took the tarp down again and started up the hill. We kept moving for the next two and one half hours, climbing over a lot of snow, rock hopping across rain and snow melt swollen rivers and finally crested Muir Pass about 7:45.

Part of the reason for coming up here for the night was the chance that the dissipating thunderstorms would create some tremendous sunset photos. We were not disappointed!! We pitched the tent, grabbed a snack and ooh'd and awed at he sunset while taking a ridiculous number of photos. We were in bed by 9.