6am to 5pm. 12.5 miles. Lake Italy to just below Bighorn Pass.

This morning we didn’t have far to walk to get to Gabbot Pass.

We found iced snow right away. Microspikes made all the difference.

The north side of pass was snow all the way to Lower Mills Lake. This is one of the finest Lakes in the Sierra. We took a long break there but since it was 10am we kept walking.

And that walking was downhill on a use trail. It was so different to walk among tall trees, meadows and wildflowers.

At the bottom was Mono Creek which is a raging river and we had to cross it. The guidebook says to try to find a downed tree. We found a huge one. Rockin waltzed across it. Wired and I scooted across on our butts. Safety over valor. Rockin took photos which should be on Wired’s blog.

It was a very steep climb up to Laurel Lake. From there we hiked up halfway to the next pass and found the best campsite yet. We have huge mountains in every direction. I just hope I can stay awake until the evening light show.