S. Fork Kings River - Grouse Meadow 6/30/10 16 miles

The river was flowing hard last night, which made for a very good night's sleep. We were unable to cross the river to get to the trail this morning, we we followed along until the trail reconnected. We moved good and had a breather and a snack before we got deep into the snow prior to Mather Pass. We were able to locate the trail on the way to the pass, for the most part. We finally arrived at the bottom and of course, the pass was snow covered. We observed as two people slowly mad their way up in the footholes of snow left from others. The only way was to go straight up, similar to Forrester. I began to get very nervous as I watched. We put on our crampons and got out our ice axes. The first steps to the bottom of the mountains we postholed. This didn't benefit my building anxiety. We began our climb. Very slowly, I carefully followed behind Chris, trying not to slip. The snow was beginning to become slushy as the sun shined brighter. Nervousness exceeding. WE made it about a third of the way up and rested on a ledge to the side. My crampons were coming off and Chris adjusted them. I complained about the fears of the climb and pessimistically whined of the worse case scenarios. Got my breath and began again. I slipped a few times, got scared and shuffled my feet to a sturdy spot. We rested on another ledge, close to the top. Chris and I got into a disagreement. I broke down with my fears and cried. I said it. No shame. I was scared and had to vent. I was so nervous about the climb so far and was insecure in my abilities to reach the top. Chris and I rested, talked and I calmed down. We found parts of the trail out of the snow and scrambled among the rubble to the snow covered top. Shew! Relief!! I as so glad to have made it. I though Forrester was the most challenging, but for me, this pass was. Next, we made if off the back side and walked in miles of snow to reach the bottom of the valley. I began to transform into a starving, grumpy ol bear, so lunch was a must. We ate and continued on. We came across the Palisade Lakes, which were absolutely amazing and perfect. The gorgeous, clear water surrounded tall cliffs and waterfalls. A nice reward for a stressful morning. Next, we walked on switchbacks for what seemed liked forever on the "Golden Staircase." At our next break, we came across a cool fella by the name of Balls. We compared Mather and Pinchot stories and walked together for the remainder of the evening. Walked along the river and spotted several deep and even a six-pointer. Found an awesome camp spot next to a lake and own own little rock canopy above our tent. Had a nice fire and a tasty dinner. KB