What? More Rain?

The Group

Okay, we needed rain and snow but this has got to stop! Enough is Enough. The forecast is for more snow in the Sierras. I just check the weather in Yosemite and sure enough, snow. It is almost June, for crying out loud! Well, I have snowshoes and I am not afraid to use them. I guess we will have plenty of water on the Trek this summer.

Speaking of trekking, we had another incredible practice hike in Pt Reyes! The weather was nice and cool for the hike and we did get some wonderful views of the ocean just a short trek from our campsite. Peter was our Pt Reyes guide. He spends quite a bit of time at Pt Reyes and was able to lend some great insight to the variety of ways to get to Glen Camp, where we were permitted. Glen Camp is a bit higher than the other more coveted ocean side camp site. I actually enjoyed the flora of Glen Camp and the bird life was magnificent- I think I saw three different types of warblers in one tree! It was also a Birthday weekend and we were able to celebrate Lisa's and Nina's Birthdays with some cement-like chocolate cheesecake that had to be rehydrated.

We hiked about 11 or 12 miles total and that is getting closer to what we will be doing on the JMT- about 8-9 miles a day. Though there is a HUGE difference between hiking at sea level and hiking at altitude but it was great to get a few more miles in a day. I am getting more and more excited about spending consecutive days out on the trail. I think the longest backpacking trip I have been on has been 6 days. I continue to try to imagine what it would have been like 110 years ago, when John Muir was in those mountain and it really was desolate of people. No rangers checking permits or hungry bears trying to break into food caches.

And now for the fundraising portion of the blog... I spent last Thursday at a Symposium for MPD patients put on by the MPD Foundation. I met the top Docs doing clinical and research stuff for MPDs and it was so exciting and positive to hear about what they are doing in research and drug trials. The Foundation funded some very specific research (over 1 million dollars to one Dr!!) which really gave me more juice to try to raise more money! We are coming into the home stretch, so this will be the last push to have family and friends to sponsor your hike. Don't forget about The Festival!!! If you need more tickets just ask Ronit or drop me a line, too.
Can't wait to see everybody on the 5th of June!

Keep it Green and Muddy!
Annette