I'll save you the trip report since I'm sure most of you have done this trip in your sleep, but the weekend was spectacular and everything went as planned. I brought exactly what I needed and nothing more. I could have brought some heavier pants for the night but the days were T-Shirt weather. I can say that it was the most fun, I'm sure I looked like I had a coat hanger in my mouth for the huge grin I had the whole time. I'm already thinking about more trips.
Let me backtrack for this story, I took a weekend trip to the valley in July and drove up the Tioga for the first time to scout things out. I parked at the May Lake trail head and put my cooler in the bearbox for a hike up to the lake. Of course I forgot the cooler filled with ice, bread, lunchmeat, beer, milk and cereal. I blamed the altitude but I never went back for it because they were repaving the road and the traffic was a mess.
Fast forward two weeks ago. May Lake was my entry trailhead for my trip, the first night I sat bolt upright in my sleeping bag and said "COOLER!". As I caught a ride back to the lake to regain my car, I thought I'd look around for the cooler and to my amazement, it was still there right where I left it!!! It was a new cooler and I had been bummed out that I lost it.
So, as I ever so slowly opened the lid to reveal the contents, I was nearly floored by the horrific smell. As if the very portal to hell had been opened on a hot day. It was mortifying only equalled by the sight of a greenish/blackish slurry of something you would only see on one of those crime scene shows. At this point I was not sure I really wanted the thing back! In true Leave No Trace spirit I sealed the thing back up and carefully put it in my trunk for the long ride back to San Diego. Through the 100 degree central valley and the traffic in LA, sloshing around in the trunk.
There's a scene in Goodfellas" where Henry is cleaning out the trunk after having a dead body in it...I reencated that scene complete with the garden hose and rag over my face but I got the cooler back!
Yeah, I'm ready to do it again!
Frank.
Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 09/27/2015 12:02PM by Franklyn.