Highlights:
We return from solo refreshed and happy to see everyone. Solo
officially ends with quotes from Matt and Jeff. Before digging into
the breakfast that our 'technical advisors' have made for us, we check in
and have our third
medicine
wheel circle: brown (wood) beads for enlightenment and the east. After
breakfast we celebrate Jenn's birthday with yummy cheesecake! We
discuss the plan for the next few days and decide to do the King Rappel
(110 feet) before moving around the Grandstand and possibly crossing Kangaroo
Ridge, setting up for a peak climb the next day. We head up to the
Grandstand but only Matt and Mac complete the rappel before we hear thunder.
Pip herds us down off the Grandstand and we go into lightening drill
among the trees below. When the rain has died down, we eat lunch and
hear Jenn's autobiography. We decide to finish the rappel, which everyone
agrees is hella-cool. As the sun sets, we head over to the base of
Pouch Peak. With Matt and Jeff serving only as technical advisors,
it takes a while to find a good campsite (and then Jeff directs us to a slightly
different spot) so we set up camp in the dark. We check-in over dinner
(pasta with chicken and tofu) and decide on a 5:00 wake-up so we can cross
both ridges and still attempt a peak climb.
