I said goodbye to my fellow JMT hikers and left Reds Meadow to continue my journey. Right away I saw a huge number of burnt trees from a 1992 fire.

The eagerly anticipated arrival to Reds Meadow was happening this day. I had never gone this long without showering, and was looking forward to a hot shower more than the hot food.

Rain was still falling at 6:30am. The winds were strong all night, waking me up a few times as the tent’s rain fly flapped against the inner wall. I should have used the tent guy lines. The rain wasn’t hard but it was steady.

I heard some animal walk by my tent when I woke up around 7:30am. Through the tent mesh I saw a big fat marmot standing 3 feet away from me. Definitely not something you see everyday back home.

After packing quickly, I went to see if Buzz and G-Man were still around. They were getting ready and invited me to hike with them.