This section was 1/2 expansive views and pristine alpine lakes (and some snow) and the other 1/2 muggy and mosquito-infested. Endless water sources though, so can’t complain that much.
Coasted the last few miles downhill into Tahoe City and into lots of beer.
Tahoe Rim Trail: done!
Such an easy stretch by comparison to some of the other sections. Easy terrain, great views of the lake, and no snow. Although I would have happily taken more than 2 water sources in 35 miles..
What a brutal section.
Day 1 consisted of 18 miles in between water sources, mostly exposed trail, and just getting baked by the sun. Ended up off the TRT to camp at Gray Lake just to find water.
Day 2 consisted of 9 miles that took me nearly 9 hours to complete. SO MUCH SNOW. Post-holed for hours on end in waist high snow. At times I was attempting to follow someone else’s footprints that had tried to do the same thing before me, but those disappeared and re-appeared as they obviously had as much trouble keep tracking of the trail as I did. All in all, I barely managed a mile and hour and lost and found the trail again probably 50+ times. My phone died so I don’t have pics that accurately convey the level of snow, you’ll just have to take my word on it…
I had planned to start the day at Barker Pass, but that didn’t quite work out. It turns out they had closed Barker Pass Rd (for reasons unknown) about 5mi from the TRT intersection. 5mi of road walking? Pass.
So we decided to head up to Tahoe City and just start from there. This stretch will just be minus 1 day and the last leg will be plus one. No big deal.
