Garden Wall Hike

Today we got to do the trail that we had planned since we started working on this trip. It would have been terrific had the weather cooperated. Just as we started on the trail we were greeted with a horrible wind. This hit us just as the trail went vertical up and down. It was a little unsettling but I wondered how Jan was doing. She did great, it was I that was first to grab the cable. There were lots of places that were a little tentative. We hit the trail early, as usual. Soon we were passed by lots of folks. I think they were surprised that two senior citizens even trying this. In our prime we would never have let these folks get close to us. That sounds like we might have made a race of it. I can't imagine that at all. One fellow on the trail had a carbon leg and was doing great. In fact, he went by us going downhill and did a fine job of it. The tops of the mountains were in and out of the clouds and when we reached the Granite Park Chalet (a lot like Mt. Leconte) to have lunch we were welcomed by a hard little rain. The rain lasted about 2 1/2 of the 4 miles we had to finish the hike. As we descended we came upon a large area the had had a forest fire a couple of years ago. These trees can't take a fire like our trees in the Appalachian area. Several of the areas we hiked through had been devastated by avalanches. That is one force that I am glad we don't to contend with. Since our trail was a one way trail we finished at an area of the Road to the Sun called the "Loop". Here the park has shuttle buses that will take us back to Logans Pass. Man, it was good to be seated again and not only that we did not have to drive on the road(very narrow and heavily traveled).