Into the Grocks

Day 29 7/11
Mileage 12.5

Today, we won. It began with a doozy of a climb, followed by some tricky snowy traverses. Our packs weighed about a bazillion pounds, as each of us was carrying enough food for a normal person to survive for maybe over a month. They will hopefully last us 10 days. We decided that while the going was arduous, it was not perilous. We descended to Shoe Lake for lunch, did some off-trail wandering and rejoined the PCT on a long descent. We were beginning the largest climb of the trip so far, up to the actual Goat Rocks, when we ran into Kent and his dog, Tucker. Kent is maybe the most acutely stoked person I've ever met. He had just descended from the Goat Rocks and was so incredibly excited about everything. He gave us a hug just because we were the first people he'd seen since the Knife's Edge, which was some sort of profoundly life-altering experience for him. He told us the Knife's Edge is clear of snow, which was music to our ears. When we continued climbing, we soon saw why Kent's stokedness was so extreme. The Goat Rocks are fantastically beautiful. They're a series of dramatic, sheer peaks with graceful snowfields and amazing views of the Cascades. Our campsite is one of the best I've ever seen. We have an incredible view of Mt. Rainier. We just saw a pair of elk walk along the ridge far above us, skipping across a slope I wouldn't dream of attempting to traverse, and disappearing down the far side. The sun is currently setting just to the right of Rainier, in one of the most dramatic displays of color I've ever experienced. I mean, it would be maybe a top-ten sunset even if it weren't directly above one of the most spectacular mountains in the country. Nature is killing it right now. Also, NO MOSQUITOES! Hooray! The moonrise was also spectacular. It's full, and it illuminated the entire snowy bowl around our campsite with enough light to see easily without a headlamp. I am content to be taking a zero here tomorrow.

Note Mt. Rainer on left, note beauty everywhere