Day 52 - The High Point....Just!!

Mile 780.7 to Mile 786.1. 5.4 miles

At 5.4 miles it seems like an easy day at the office. If only!!! Overnight the weather worsened. At 9.00 pm the thunder & lightening intensified followed by a pelting of groppel. Then the wind kicked in and finally the snow. At 12500 feet & listening to the war going on outside I didn't exactly sleep but rather played over in my mind our situation. The snow was piling up around the tent & I had to clear up to two feet to get to the pegs in the morning

The weather looked better at about 6.00 am but I was still iffy about committing to the switchback when so much snow had come down while black clouds were building to the South West. Banjo felt that avalanche risk would be reduced if we moved immediately. So with full crampons and ice axe Banjo led a group of 6 (without me) up the zig zag on this precipitous face

At a crucial point near the summit Banjo had to carve out a path in the snow that had cascaded through the gap and covered the trail. It is very steep. Banjo is the dot on the snow carving away the track

You can see the trail in the cliff face. They got through safely...thank goodness. I decided to commit to the climb and was on my way at 10.50 am with  spikes fixed around my shoes. In another "wish I had a Go Pro moment" I became conscious of a black mass of weather minutes away while I was halfway up the slope. Approaching the snow path near the top I glanced up at the overhanging cornice & didn't dally - my haste almost my undoing as a big slip 1/3 way across had my heart in my mouth. I topped out looking tired & badly in need of a shave

This was the view looking over the cornice

The north side was not as steep but there was a lot of fresh dnow that gave my spikes a work out. The view looking back up to the Pass

The view forward was Kings Canyon that I descended in to

The descent was difficult post-holing up to my waist and losing my composure often as I slipped and sprawled my way down the mountain. All the time the blizzard became worse with snow covering the tracks I was trying to follow. The Canyon is a massive glacial valley with towering peaks either side. The snow became groppel then rain as the descent continued & with soaked feet I was increasingly getting colder. At 3.30 pm I decided to pull stumps & found a decent campsite to set up. I was soon in my sleeping bag & warming up nicely. I'm the background was the roaring cascades of a snow melt water course that one would think matches the grandly named Kings Canyon - somehow Bubs Creek just doesn't cut the mustard.
When there was a break in the weather I was greeted with this majestic view across the valley

I also chatted with my near neighbour Mud Guts who is Russian and going like a freight train.
The plan tomorrow is to do the 3 mile to the junction with Onion Valley Trail. This will take me 7.5 miles off the PCT & over Keersage Pass at 11771 feet to get to the road that will eventually get me to Bishop for a zero and some planning...Weta