Day 18, September 23, 2017 - Vidette Meadow to Tyndall Creek

Day 18. 30f in the morning. We got a dusting of snow overnight, so I was very glad I was in my tent. We were out of camp at 8:20. I hiked in my fleece and sweatpants all day for the first time. The hike up Vidette Meadow was another beautiful hike. Some of the pictures give you an idea of how chilly the day was.  

Around this point in the trail we came across a small stream that was totally iced over, with the water flowing beneath.  I thought it looked pretty cool . . .  😜

And then we kept on climbing.

Shortly before lunch I was waiting for Mark and saw a man with two horses coming down from Forrester pass. This was the first horse sighting on the trip, but unfortunately not the last.  At the transition from a small snow patch back to rock the rear horse fell and really struggled to get up, thrashing about on the rocks.  

The rider brought the horses right next to me, like 2 feet away, and started asking me if I could see if the horse's leg was gushing blood. 

I told him it was bleeding, so he got off and tended to the wound as shown above.  While he was tending to his horse we chatted a bit. He was doing the PCT on his horses. He had gone over 2400 miles since April with these two horses and was on his way to Onion Valley to get more supplies.  During the trip we met several PCT hikers who came back to this section of the Sierras to complete their hike, as the snow on the passes was too much early in the season.  He and his horses were doing the same.  

We ate lunch by a lake at 12,250', 

and left there at 1:15. 
 








We made the pass at 2:15.



This is what it was all about.  Forrester Pass is the 2nd highest pass on the JMT, about 400' below Trail Crest near Mt. Whitney.  We did not go to Mt. Whitney on this trip, so no Trail Crest for us.  So on this trip we were at the high point.  We loitered and took pictures for some time, enjoying the moment.  

On the way down we met a gut who claimed his son held the JMT speed record at 3 days 11 hours. He told us the guy we saw trying to break the record mentioned earlier in this blog tapped out at Red’s Meadow.  This guy we met and his future son in law were doing a loop that included Forrester Pass and the JMT route before Forrester was created. It sounded hard and pretty sketchy. When writing this blog, I did find information online regarding an unsuccessful for a speed record on the JMT (AURELIEN SANCHEZ), and also found that Darcy Piceu had successfully completed the JMT in 3 days, 7 hours and 57 minutes.  More info here.  We definitely saw this gal running the trail, and did not think she was the one attempting to break the speed record, she just looked like she was out running.  


It may sound trite by this point, but the views walking at 12,000’ through a barren plateau were just incredible, we are so blessed to be able to hike through this beautiful country.  







This is a view looking back at Forrester Pass.  It is hard to see from the other (north) side


And the descent continues

We got to Tyndall Creek at about 5. No fires (elevation around 11,000’), very cold with a breeze, so we were in our tents by 7:15.  Likely could have camped cowboy, but with the breeze we were both looking for maximum warmth and minimum distraction.  Tomorrow we head to Crabtree meadow or possibly beyond.  



Our inreach location for the day is here

Day 19 page is here

Daily Statistics
Miles hiked:  12.6
Elevation gain:  3560'
Elevation lost:  2145'
Precipitation:  slight snow dusting overnight
Morning low temperature:  30F