I only managed a little over eight miles today, but that included 2800′ of elevation gain. The day started early, as I woke about a half-hour before dawn. I needed to pee, but it was so cold outside my nest.

I tried to talk myself out of it. That’s never worked. I decided to get an early start, in hopes I’d be on the trail early, too.

That didn’t work, either. I didn’t leave the area until about eight — it took me more than two hours to eat and break camp.

I entertained the idea of making it to Surprise Lake to camp tonight. That was optimistic, but I figured that since it’s all downhill from Trap Pass, it was “do-able.” Alas, it was not to be.

I stopped several times this afternoon to deal with climactic changes. Down vest off, fleece jacket on, pack rain cover on, et cetera. I took a lot of mini breaks while I was climbing. I’m not in great shape for this, and my pack is so heavy — those hills kill me.

I thought of stopping at Trap Lake for water, but that involved losing about 200 of elevation, and I feared that if I stopped, I’d spend the night there. I didn’t want to face the climb up to Trap Pass first thing in the morning.

I was pretty pleased I made it to Trap Pass tonight. I arrived a little after six and no one else is here. The rain started in earnest around then . I hung the tarp first, and that was the right choice. I ended up cooking dinner under it.

My elation didn’t last long. There are no good bear bag hanging trees here, but I tried. And I made a rookie mistake that cost me a carabiner and some rope. When I tried to start dinner, I discovered my matches were wet. I dug out my fling, and after a half-dozen tries, I got the stove to light. I considered calling it quits and hiking out tomorrow. I talked myself out of that. Chances are good that I’ll find someone with a spare book of matches. I have food that doesn’t need cooking. It’s too soon to give up.

And then I burned dinner. What a night.

I decided to check in with myself tomorrow. If my sleeping bags get wet tonight, I’m probably done. It’s predicted to be 35F at 7 a.m. tomorrow, so I will sleep in as late as I can. I intend to pack up and head straight for Surprise Lake, where I’ll make breakfast.

Here’s hoping for a drier tomorrow.