Packing the bear canister full of food for just one leg of the hiking trip. It was a huge effort, and we’re only halfway done. (The picture only shows a couple days’ worth.) Fortunately I spent so much time on my part that I get a pass packing for this part.

The John Muir Trail has plenty of black bears around it (brown bears are extinct in the Sierras). Also they are so smart they’ve already figured out how to foil hanging bags of food off tree branches. So bearproof canisters are required, we just have to keep them at night 400 ft or whatever away from our packs and tents. And we have to fit all our food into them.

Every three days for the first 9 days (or a little more, since we’re out of shape) the three of us pick up a new reserve of food that we mail ahead to the only places along the trail that resemble civilization: a post office in Tuolumne Meadows at the end of Yosemite, a lodge at Devil’s Postpile National Monument, a resort off the trail at Edison Lake. Then when D and T exit, I get one more food drop at Muir Trail Ranch and continue on about 11 days till I finish my journey to the top of Mt. Whitney. Hopefully it will be less than that as I get stronger since I can’t really cram so much food in the bucket!!