Long Solo Hike

Took an Uber from the McDonalds in Truckee to Donner Pass Rd. He was a little irritated that it’s hard to get return fares. Once I passed a small road crew situated near the trailhead, I saw almost nobody all day.  It was cool and calm almost all the way to Tinker’s Knob. I didn’t bother to hike up to Benson Hut perched below Anderson Peak. I have spent the night there in the past, and just five miles into a long day, I kept moving. The first third of this hike is like being on the moon. It was at the approach to Tinker’s that a trail running couple passed me up. While the views from the top were expansive, the peak itself was unimpressive. Soon, the PCT ducked into a large gully and there was a lot more vegetation, a small stream, and forest. It heated up before I gained the ridge where PCT and Granite Chief trails intersect. I had to decide whether to skirt by Granite Chief and on up to Palisades to take the tram down or hike through the more shaded descent and chose the latter. Longer, but cooler. There was a squatter’s camp about a mile from the fire station, but no one in sight.  Not much further and I was sitting in the Dubliner with a cold IPA and just enough time to catch the four by o clock bus back to Truckee.  It was a long and varied walk through beautiful terrain.