Kings Canyon!

It seems silly to think of a 9-day trip as preparation, yet that's where our minds are.  We have exactly one week for spring break, and we're going to spend every hour adventuring!  First we will backpack/snowshoe in the wilderness of Kings Canyon National Park, and then we'll bike back home to the San Bernardinos.

The view south from Forester Pass at 13,000something feet in Kings Canyon

I'm somewhat apprehensive about the snow conditions at high altitude in the Eastern Sierras.  After basically no snow during that cold season when it's supposed to snow, it's been a wet spring.  Feet of wet snow might be a problem.  We also don't know if it's going to be icy, though it's a real possibility that we'll face some powder, some slush, and some ice.  We debated bringing full snow gear but decided against it.  I'm not going to hike 80 miles in snow boots with heavy crampons and an ice ax and snow pants and gaiters.  Ain't nobody got time for that.  Light and fast is more our style, and we'll bring snowshoes just in case.  I asked my Magic 8 Ball how it would go, and it said that wet feet are in my immediate future.

Most of this week, when not working, has been spent readying our gear.  Tam installed new front caliper brakes on her bike due to a broken part on her old ones.  I prepped my bike, the good ol' Long Haul Trucker, with a new bike computer (complete with a fancy cadence sensor that I don't really need and might just cut off soon) and a new saddle.  Enter apprehension.  I've never ridden on a hard saddle, but with my old (and somewhat cushy) one my legs would always fall asleep.  Which is a problem when you're, you know, powering yourself with your legs.  So I got this new saddle, and I'm about to ride 240 miles on it without testing it out.  I would ask my Magic 8 Ball about how that's going to go, but I'm thinking ignorance is bliss on this one.