I'm just realizing how bad I'm feeling and how much energy I lost.
It finally caught up to me. I tried to stand up a few times
and got a big "head rush" or "blacked out" and fell back
on my butt catching myself with my hands and a giggle.
I know now for sure my summit attempt is gone. I get a bit bummed
at this but I figure I can try again next year as long as I can
get down. Then my thoughts turned to getting down in this condition!

That was surely going to be a challenge. As it turns out,
the challenge of the trip. I decided to stay the night
and see if I could improve.


A group of guys showed up and cheered me up a bit.
I forgot their names as I'm bad with those, remember?! hehe
They said it sounded like I should head down too from what
I explained to them.


I scraped up all the energy I could to melt some snow and make
mountain house beef stew and hot chocolate.
I couldn't eat, I gave the beef stew away to one of the guys.
I could barely drink the hot chocolate. I just went back to bed.
I kept feeling like I was gonna barf but never did.




Moonrise


Here's my emergency solar panel.
I was able to use it to charge my iphone.
I was able to send a text to my ride back down south
to come and get me because I was having AMS bouts and had to
hike down the hill.


Trail Camp was kinda chilly in the morning.
I bundled up and waited for the sun to rise before packing up
camp. In the Sierras, the sun is your savior, as I learned
at a very young age.


I had visitors rip a hole in my tent during the night while I
was asleep because they needed to borrow some of my toilet paper.
My bear can was outside. I don't know why else they came in!


Here is how the views from Trail Camp looked while I was bumming
out about having to leave. I could see Trail Crest and the Chute
and was so bummed my chance was blown.










Here was another little guy who cheered me up in the morning
while packing up camp.




(insert coming down video here)

Than I began the long hike back down which was crazy hard
like coming down always is but very fast.


I never had to get out my ice ax but I could see there are places
some would want to because of some pretty dangerous 400' drops
just around Trail Crest and below, let alone above!
I have a feeling a good majority of people aren't using
the gear they should be back there.

Water stop at Trailside Meadow on the way back down.
Finally starting to feel a tiny bit better, but the hike down
is about to take it's toll on me for a second time, little
did I know.


Down, down, down I went. What seemed like longer than going up but wasn't.


I Think I got better views coming down?!


Also got worse pack rash from the continuous foot pounding
downhill chug. I could fel my legs beginning to weaken and
even heard one of my knees pop at one point!


More water on the outlet of Mirror Lake.
Starting to feel OK about now.


Almost down to the meadow.


Deserted Outpost Camp.


Flyin' down to Lone Pine Lake again.


At this point, I could just about see the parking lot and cars and roads. I started hightailing it. If I didn't have the hiking poles I would have fallen 20 times instead of the once I slipped on my butt and brushed it off with no injury.