Nathan's Lucubrations

One idea I had come up with recently was to take full advantage of full moon nights and also the Summer solstice (which was June 21 this year). I also had someone recommend to me to hike Kern peak from Horseshoe meadows. I decided to try making it there and back in a day, putting the 14+ hours of sunlight on the Summer solstice to good use. Even then, it would be difficult because it's 15 miles one way to the peak. As part of training I hiked Kearsarge pass on May 10. I didn't get out again until June 08 to explore Horseshoe meadows, Trail pass, and Mulkey Pass. And I went one last time to place a water cache the weekend before on June 15.

The big day approached and I drove up the night before to car camp at Horeseshoe meadows so I could acclimate and get an early start. I made the peak!

Photos of Kern peak hiked from Horseshoe meadows

It was a long day, and I ended up hiking back in the dark at the end, but I managed to cover all 35.2 miles in one day. It was pretty straightforward as there was trail all the way, although it's not maintained (there were some downed trees) and not very well defined in places. The remnants of a fire lookout are still on top, although they've been taken over by the birds.