July 26
Rae Lakes – Woods Creek Waterslide
Twice this morning I’ve heard human howls in the distance. The moon is close to full. It’s a super witchy blood full moon with a lunar eclipse. The PCT werewolf will arise: extra hairy, extra smelly, will eat any damn thing.
Man…. I went the wrong way for an hour. And I really poured it on hiking up that hill. Cuz there was an old guy behind me, the chatty kind. Serves me right for showing off. I had to turn around and pass him again when I realized I was on the path to Sixty Lakes. At least I got that nice view of Rae Lakes. I’ve never seen mountain lakes like this before. I wonder if you could bring an inflateable kayak up here? The water is so transparent and blue. Cold, too, I bet.
It thundered all afternoon, and started raining a few times. Which meant I was on and off with the rain gear, so annoying. That pack cover, it really isn’t big enough with my gear situation. I could get a new one, but once I get rid of the bear container, it’ll fit fine. There was one big cloudburst, right when I was navigating some tricky stream crossings. Those rocks in the stream may look stable, but it’s probably a trick. They just wait till you’ve got your full weight on them before turning your ankle and dumping you in the water.
It’s fun to see how many kids are out here doing backcountry hikes.
I walked over a suspension bridge that looked super cool. But so swingy! Usually I like a swingy bridge but this one was scarily bouncy. Next time I come to one of those, I’ll put my poles on my pack so I can hold on to both sides. 
I camped next to the waterslide of doom. If you slid down that thing, it’d be really fun for a few seconds. And then you’d get bashed to death against the rocks. This must be where someone got the idea for waterparks.
My next door neighbors are a mom and son. The mom is noticeably more excited about camping than her surly teenage son. He might rather be doing just about anything else.
I am just so glad that I skipped the childbearing thing.
Spinstera 