We are high up into the basin by now - the weather is still perfect and the detached sole seems to be adequately attached to the upper by the red bandana (writing this sentence 5 days after the event makes it seem ridiculously stupid, which, of course, it was...it is one thing to walk this way in the mall but completely different hiking above the treeline on very rocky terrain that is about to become more intense and with each step, moving farther away from civilization and all of the aid that might be offered there).
There is a transition point on the hike up the Jennings Creek Basin - from a grassy, brushy terrain to a terrain that is exclusively rock and increasing steepness. When you get into this "bowl" you have to pick your poison - what line are you going to take up to the ridge, all of them steep and rocky? We picked our line up through a gully and pressed on.
A couple of things of note at this point, around 10:00am:
- There were storm clouds gathering out to our west and the makings of another storm to our east; above and around us it was still clear.
- There are no more pictures or videos from this part of the hike because of the intensity of the line we chose.
It is difficult to gauge the pitch (or angle) of ascent and distance but my guess is our gully was about a 45 degree pitch and 1000 feet to the top of the ridge. Most of the climbing we did in this gully involved both feet and both hands, this is my favorite time on the trail...Class 3 climbing, here's a definition:
Nic scrambled ahead of us and reached the ridge about 10:30am; Caleb and I worked our way up to approximately 2/3 of the way up. Two notable things happened on this particular ascent:
- The red bandana became wet and thus failed to keep the sole of my shoe anywhere near the upper of my shoe and more importantly, the bottom of my foot.
- The rock field that made up this gully was NOT stable, every rock moved - the gravel, the pebbles, the stones, the boulders - everything. This makes ascending very difficult and a little dangerous.
Did I mention that I am now hiking with a shoe on my left foot and the lining of destroyed hiking boot on my right? It was then that I had an epiphany - what if one of the unstable rocks tumbled from its perch, disturbed by my hands, and found its way to the top of my right foot? I am fond of my fully intact meta-tarsals and not fond of the idea of being stuck on the side of this mountain 15 to 20 miles and hours from help.I scrambled up to about 3/4 of the way up the ridge, around a ledge and made eye contact with Nic up on top of the ridge.
"My boot is completely blown out...no traction and no protection...we have to turned around."
Nic yelled back:
"You won't make it up here with no traction. I'll go on to the summit and meet you guys at the car."
At 11:00am, Caleb and I turned around...
