August 11

Jason and I left the youth camp just after midnight and started our night hiking adventure. By 2:00 am, on my 23rd hour, my body started to show signs of fatigue that were serious enough for me to start looking for a suitable campsite. By 3:00 am I was sound asleep in a decent campsite just over 3 miles from where we left. 

We woke up late, still soaking wet with dew from sleeping on a western facing slope and not getting the early sun to dry us up. We were hiking just after 10 am and made our way out to the lava fields. We have spent most of today stumbling over loose lava rock, and thankfully neither of us have any injuries from doing so. I gave Jason the trail name "halfway" after hearing his philosophy of saying the phrase to himself "I'm halfway there" no matter how far he's travelled that day. It's a very interesting approach to any concept, but especially in this case. 

We did get a little trail magic in the form of a soda cache and had a nice afternoon conversation with two nobos who were getting ready to hitch into Bend, OR. After stumbling over more lava rock we are camped between two creeks in a wide meadow with a view of all 3 sisters to our east. I have some wicked condensation starting in my tent and expect it to be fully soaked by morning.