The first part of the day was much like yesterday - after climbing out of the valley where we camped, we were back on the spine for a while.  Hard work, yes, but it’s wonderful up there with Mountain View’s everywhere you look.

The best part of the morning, besides the views, was hiking out of the valley.  It had been very cold down there, but as I climbed up the mountain and as the sun inched its way higher and higher, the warm air currents surrounded me and warmed me up instantly - it was a great feeling.

I took some ibuprofen with breakfast because the terrain looked gnarly and I knew my ankle annoyance would need it (which, after 2000+ miles of abuse, has definitely progressed past being a mere annoyance); this afternoon, since we were mostly hiking in valleys, I decided not to take a second dose because I don’t want to be taking ibuprofen ALL the time.  

Big mistake.  Big.  Huge. 

For the most part, the afternoon was fine.  There were plenty of water sources (finally) so Nick and I met for lunch, a break around 3, and then again at 5:30 to get our meals rehydrating before we stopped for dinner at 6:30.  

By 3pm I was uncomfortable.  By 5:30pm I considered taking another dose of ibuprofen but reasoned that the day was almost over and that I could get by without it.  By the time we stopped to eat dinner, I was really hoping that we’d find a campsite near the next water source less than a mile away because I wasn’t sure how much further I could go.

Sadly, there wasn’t a flat spot to be found.  We ended up hiking way past sunset and I was just about to pull out my headlamp when we found a spot.  It’s in a burn area, so not exactly the safest place to camp, but it’s not windy so we should be ok.  My ankle is not happy with me whatsoever and I think I will be relying on a regular regimen of ibuprofen for the rest of this hike.  It’s fine - I will survive.  Besides, tomorrow is another town day - only 13 miles to go until we get there.  

Along the trail:

Camp (again, pic taken the next morning because we can’t seem to get in before dark these days):