There’s a term in the backpacking world that says ‘hike your own hike,’ meaning don’t worry how other people are hiking, do what works for you; go your own pace, see what you wanna see, camp where you wanna camp, be social or solo, etc et. It can be tempting to look around at what others are doing and think that is the way it should be done. No. Do the kind of hiking that works for you. And honestly this maxim could apply to just about anything. During this period I was getting more and more into backpacking. This would be my first time on the west side of the Sierras, wanting to check out the popular hiking in the Mineral King area. For just a couple days, I headed up Timber Gap, then up Cliff Creek, around Little and Big Five Lakes, up Lost Canyon and over Sawtooth Pass and down some gnarly scree past Monarch Lakes continuing back down to Mineral King finishing off the loop. It was quite strenuous for two days. Should have been minimum of three. At this time I was figuring out what my personal hiking style is. When I hike alone, I like to bag miles, or see how far I can get in a day. I’m not really a ‘stop and smell the roses’ hiker. I like the mental and physical challenge of pushing myself, seeing what I am capable of. It also makes me exhausted and allows me to fall asleep easier at the end of the day. When I’m hiking with others I use that as an opportunity to slow down and go at a slower pace. But for this hike, I wrapped up in a couple days. It was a really beautiful section of the Sierras.
