The Spirit Forest

I was very anxious when I woke up. It stormed all night. Thunder, lightning, and howling winds kept me awake most of the night. I opted not to cook breakfast this morning and just snacked while I packed up. 

Hesitant to leave the comfort of the cabin, I pondered if I should wait out the wind and rain and let my shuttle know I would need to be picked up later as I was heading home for a couple of zeros before tackling my last stretch of trail. I knew it was supposed to clear up later in the morning, but it was still howling wind and rain. 

I decided to just go for it. I’d be fine, just take my time and put one foot in front of the other. I was getting low on water again and knew of one spot on the side of mount Weeks that was fairly reliable. To pass the time, I’d look at the elevation, and give myself a set amount of time to get up to each of the Weeks peaks. 20 minutes? You did it with 5 minutes to spare, good job. The next one, 40 minutes. You did it in 30, nice. Before I knew it, I’d made it to my water and boosted my confidence. 

Well hydrated and loaded up with what I’d need for the remainder of the Kilkenny ridge, I headed over to Starr King and Waumbek for lunch. I took a few videos and pictures of the overgrown views. The sun was out finally and I was starting to dry out. After around 20 minutes, I put my pack back on and slogged down the rest of the trail.

My shuttle was still an hourish out, so instead of waiting at the trailhead, I updated them on my plan to get some of the road walk in, so I’d have less to do in a few days. I ended up about halfway to the Pondicherry Refuge before being picked up to head home for a much needed shower.