LOL! I read about your cow adventure....I could see how one's mind could play tricks on itself after a long hike. Every time I have come down the MMWT in the dark between LPL and the portal I have seen things in the shadows and heard things that were clearly nothing extraordinary at all.
Not a bad idea to do trail peak. I did Cottonwood Pass in september as a warmup for MW and it was very mellow. I guess Chicken Springs Lake is an option too.
