I wake at dawn to perform my daily constitutional. This one is so clean I could reuse the paper, but I won’t. This morning we are slow getting around. I boil water for coffee. Brian drinks multiple cups, hoping to jump start his own constitutional movement. Eventually Brian declares himself ready and wonders off in to the woods. Upon return he announces he has set a new volume record. His only disappointment is that he did not have his camera to prove it.

With plenty of new room in our systems, we rehydrate hash browns, peppers and onions. I make a packet of country gravy, and Brian tears up an 11-slice package of precooked bacon. In a big pot we heat up the mixed hash, which we enjoy smothered with gravy. Brian declares this his new favorite meal .

After packing we join the trail at a lazy 9:00 am. Our first task is humping it up the switch backs out of Baron Lake. We temporarily level out at Upper Baron Lake and then climb up the steep pass. At the saddle we rest admiring the layered lakes below. We push over and down to Alpine Lake for a promising fishing break. Actually, I fish while everyone else breaks. I wet my line all along the shore until eventually giving up. Fishing midday is not productive. We push down a long switchback towards the trail split to Redfish Lake. We soak our hats and shirts at each little stream crossing.

At the trail split we find a ranger sitting on the ground. He is much older and larger than our junior ranger. He seems very official besides his full-sized shovel. Without rising, he inquires of our plans and reminds us of the rules, in particular the fire pan or fire blanket. Brian asks if he has ever seen someone actually use a fire blanket. He smiles and says, “No, most people just don’t have fires or make illegal ground fires.” While chatting with us about regulations, two permit-less girls approach with a dog illegally off leash. The ranger points out that the permit they do not posses explains the leash they also lack. Rangers here seem to know a lot about rules, except how to enforce them. The girls simply smile and say, “Sorry.”  He smiles back and says, “No problem.” We begin to wonder why we are carrying our stupid fire pie pan if all we have to say is, “Oops, sorry.”

We begin our long up towards Cramer Lake. For lunch we have tuna and cheese wraps on the side of the trail. We arrive at camp by 2:30 pm. Brian is ecstatic to find a waterfall between Upper and Middle Cramer Lakes. His excitement reveals his childlike enthusiasm. It also reveals that he ignores the itineraries and pictures I provide before each trip. Kevin, Brian and Tony swim out to the falls for a refreshing shower.

I set up my rod and started fishing. There are plenty of fish, but nothing is biting. Brian and I hike up to Upper Cramer Lake where I have better luck. I catch four cutthroat, but release all but the biggest one. Brian tries fishing from a log, which he thought was held stable by the ground. He quickly realizes it is not, and that he is not a particularly talented log roller. Within just a few rolls, into the lake he goes. For dinner we had spaghetti and meatballs followed with a trout cleaned by Brian and cooked by me over my pocket rocket stove. We boil water and consume hot drinks fighting off dehydration. Tomorrow will again be a tough day in both milage and elevation.