Day 4

July 6, 2012 (Alexandra) Another cold morning! Our campsite was in a valley and so it took extra long for the sun to reach us. Fred also commented on how freezing it was - so I know its not just me. We knew what lay ahead of us - Donahue Pass - a bitching 2,000 ft climb, ultimately 3,000 ft from our campsite - I was nervous! The climb was intense, but I can tell I am getting my "mountain legs". Fred and the boys were behind us but we didn't see them again after we started for the pass. We had lots of lakes and rivers to cross by hopping from rock to rock. I was very worried about falling in! Jasin has long legs which was much more convenient. Donahue Pass loomed ahead of us like MORDOR in Lord of the Rings. We met lots of thru hikers today. I don't know why people do this to themselves and call it "fun". The Donahue Pass was very cool, lots of snow still. Today we left Yosemite National Park and entered Ansel Adams wilderness, which I like better anyway. The hike down Donahue was killer! 3 miles of intense down and my ankels and knees are swollen. By the time we approached Rush Creek I was not in a good emotional place and Jasin couldn't decide on a campsite. Ugh! I cried! Horrible mosqitoes swarmed us. I dived into the tent& hid from them! Today took alot of mental distractions - so I thought about the VanTramp family hiking the Alps to escape the Nazis & had a conversation with Brianna in my head. Love, Mosquito Bait

(Jasin) Well, today was up, up, up. We went up Donahue Pass at 11,056 feet and then back down to Rush Creek. The uphill part went great, I felt good and Alex was doing good but once we hit the pass we slowed and got super tired. Tired enough that we were arguing with each other about where to camp. We did find a campsite (horrible mosquitoes) and set up camp. We had dinner early and are now in the tent avoiding bugs. The morning started off cold again but once the sun was over the peak and in the canyon things warmed quickly. We moved pretty quickly this morning and stopped for lunch at Upper Lyle Canyon before hitting the pass. I have hiked places where there are high peaks before but this is out of the park. The trail just kept going up and the view just kept getting better. It was amazing to see where we started from just that morning. I think Alex was more amazed at it than I was. I am not sure what tomorrow will bring, we have talked about going all the way to red meadows where there are showers and other goodies. The sun has been brutal.I swear I have a different part of my body burnt everyday. Not bad burning, but just enough to be annoying. We met several other thru hikers today. Two sisters from Alaska were at the top of the pass and were pretty old but in great shape. One of them has the trail name of Ribbon Dancer - she leaves pink ribbons with messages for those who she is hiking with behind her. The father son trio I suppose is camped near by, but they may be taking a rest day tomorrow. So far the trip is going well. No complaining from me.