The first bit we hit was the steepest we had to walk across, and we should’ve had our ice axes out. It’s really tough to walk across snow perpendicular to the slope of the incline. The first part was really steep, and it was only about a 20’ fall into the creek. That was exhausting, and as far as we could see down canyon for the first half mile-mile or so, the steep snow traverse was all we could see. We took a break, and everyone was stressed and beat. It had been a long day to that point, and the last thing we needed or expected was a snowy canyon walk with high slide-into-raging-canyon creek factor. The next couple of miles were just as tough, but the canyon allowed us to back off the creek a little bit. Much less stressful. Most of the footholds you have are just wide enough for your foot, sometimes less. You end up following the steps made by the person ahead of you and hope the same ledge of snow holds up for you like it did for them.

We knew there was a crossing of this creek coming up and we were looking for log bridges the whole way down. It was so powerful though, and I was doubting anything could stay lying across it. We made it all the way down to where the PCT crosses without seeing a good spot.

Very late in the day at this point, the snow thins and we encounter Sniper, Wiz, Fly By, and Wrangler, the hikers from Liam’s group who decided not to skip this section. They had been camped there since 2:00 p.m. scanning up and down the banks for a viable log or open shallow area, which lowers our hopes for finding a successful ford.

Rancheria Creek sits roughly halfway through the section and is the last major crossing, so this is the moment to turn back and head for Yosemite. Our food supplies are only enough for the five days we planned, and we’re off that pace by a day already. We opt to wait until morning to decide our next move. The river level is lower in the morning on account of the snowmelt which builds throughout the day as the sun beats harder and then slows overnight as the temperatures drop again. Sniper & Co. show us a log which is fully submerged that they had been eyeing all afternoon.

Day 65

7/3/11 — Rancheria Creek in Kerrick Canyon, PCT Mile 981

We awake early and rush down to the log, to find it about one-quarter of the way submerged, but still spanning a raging Rancheria Creek. We work with the other group to toss large logs upstream in hopes of damming the flow, which only makes us tired and more frustrated. Sam then drops his pack and cautiously crawls across the log on all fours, using the technique he discovered on a log below Minaret Falls, while carrying the rope we picked up in Yosemite Valley. We all nervously watch from the bank. He makes it and rigs up a line overhead to stabilize our balance.