Backpacking--The Sweet Spot

Our first order of business upon waking was getting water and getting some breakfast! We had all fallen asleep without dinner and woke up starving. We had to hike down to Island Lake, which was a breeze without a backpack on!


Warren set himself up a little kitchen area and started boiling water for chai, green tea, grits, and oatmeal.


To keep the monkeys from passing out, I served cheese wrapped in tortillas for us to munch on.


Next up was fishing and swimming. I loved Satchel's ensemble.


The water, which was mostly snowmelt, was FREEZING! Satchel jumped in for about two seconds, Jiro pushed Warren in, and then Warren threw Jiro in. I went in to my waist and then had Warren pour a little over my greasy, nasty hair. Again, FREEZING!


Jiro and I went back to camp to warm up and take a nap while Warren and Satchel continued to fish. Then it was time to eat again. Satchel insisted on bringing an artichoke on the trip, and he and Jiro wolfed it down in addition to some nature burger and pasta. Everything Warren made was declared delicious and we decided that everything tastes better in the mountains.


After lunch we hiked down to Second Dinkey Lake which was quite a trek. After watching Satchel and Warren fish for awhile, I asked Warren why he didn't let Jiro fish. "He's not interested," Warren replied. I turned to Jiro and asked, "Do you want to try?" He sprung up and said, "YES!"


So then Warren taught Jiro how to fish, which was super cute, except when he hooked Satchel.


We were pretty exhausted by the time we were done fishing, and the trek back up the mountain was harrowing, even without backpacks. Again, we had to rest every few minutes.


Jiro ran out of steam near the top, and again Warren was punished for being the strongest. (He had a monkey on his back, haha.)


Once we got back to camp we built a fire immediately. (There was a dead tree conveniently located next to our camp that provided firewood.) The fire helped rid the camp of mosquitoes, thank G-d. I can't tell you how vicious those mountain mosquitoes are! We were dousing ourselves with 100% every hour on the hour and they were still getting us.


Best. Sunset. Ever.


Look, I really was there!


Warren went back to the kitchen to make dinner--bean, rice, cheese, and onion (optional) burritos. We ate them in about two seconds flat, then Warren even washed the dishes for us.


I sat back and watched as Satchel and Jiro entertained each other.


We sat around the fire as long as we could keep our eyes open, then it was off to sleep again.