This was the most difficult hike I have done so far. Almost 8 hours of hiking, 7 mosquito bites, sunburned calves (not the animals, in this case) and my legs are killing me. But... the views, the feeling of being so high up (11,500 ft) and a fun ending to the hike were worth it.
The trail starts out pretty flat, fooling you that it's no big deal. In your mind, however, the thought lingers that somewhere and somehow we have to gain those 4K ft elevation. The fist 5 miles are not bad, gradual elevation and shade.
The last 2 miles are the killer. The trail is completely exposed to the sun, and while the temperatures are not so bad (mid 60s), the incline is significant. Interestingly, mosquitoes do not cease to bite you even at the high elevation. With a splitting headache, it took me 4.5 hours to get to the top. Altitude sickness is not a joke.
At the top, the views really open up, and you literally feel like you are on top of the world.
The way down was much easier, but the sun was really strong and with my sunburn (even after applying sunscreen) I just had to wear a jacket.
As I was approaching the end of the trail, all of a sudden a huge bear (yes, BEAR!) ran in front of the couple walking right before me. We yelled (and I sang...) and the bear was nowhere to be seen, I only got a blurry picture of him. But seriously, what a great ending!!! I have seen bears in the past from the car, but never while hiking.
The rest is in the video below:
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