PCT Day 69 – Vermilion Valley Resort (VVR) to PCT mile 883.6 via Mono Creek Trail
June 12, 2026
Total PCT miles: 2.3
Non PCT miles: 6.9
Total: 9.2 miles / 14.8 km
Total elevation gain: 3114 ft
Total elevation loss: 1106 ft
Steps: 27136
It was nice to “sleep in” this morning, getting up around 0700 hrs with the sun warming my tent and the sound of VVRs generator starting up. It was also nice to have a real breakfast with eggs, bacon, ham and French toast even if it was almost 40 dollars Canadian. I did mention VVR was really expensive yesterday right?
Since High Stakes and I are planning on taking it slow to Mammoth we had a lazy morning. We planned to leave at 0900 ish but that eventually turned into 1030 as we both were really good at procrastinating. The rest of our group left at 0500 and will get to Mammoth a day earlier than us.
Afraid we were going to end up just spending the entire day and vortexing in VVR we finally said enough is enough and got on our way. We took the Mono Creek Trail that goes along the west side of Lake Edison back to PCT as a result I technically skipped approximately 4.9 miles of the trail. But I had to hike almost 14 to do it so I’m more than okay with it.
We thought the Mono Creek Trail would be a leisurely walk along the lake. We were wrong. It was well over 1000 ft of accent and decent to go over some pointless ups and downs.

We joined up with the PCT and started climbing up towards Silver Pass. Our plan was to get close enough so we can cross it early tomorrow. It’s unseasonably hot for June in the Sierra. Today was 23 degrees, no wind, no clouds just hot sun blazing down which made the climb up slow and sweaty. It didn’t help that a good portion of the trail was steep stairs made of rock. We had two creek crossings that required taking off our shoes… both times i stood in the cold water for several minutes.
That’s about it for today. I’m sure if you’ve read the last few days you’ve probably gathered that I’m not having the most fun out here and you would be correct in that assumption. I think the combination of elevation, heat, miles, backpack weight, not eating enough and not sleeping the best is catching up to me. That’s okay, I didn’t expect this to be easy and honestly I’m still embracing the suck for the most part anyways. But I’ve decided that I will take two zeros in Mammoth to hopefully get some actual rest. In Mammoth I’m getting my new pack and I can start mailing home a few things like my Ice Axe. Also after Mammoth the elevation does really start to go down and the food carries are not as long. hopefully by the end of next week more normal temperatures will return!
Fingers crossed anyways!
A lot of nice pics, I’m enjoying this adventure through your eyes Bud! Happy Trails, Luv ya ((hugs))