August 4

8/4

29 miles (1572 to 1601, Payne lake in the Russian Wilderness)

The further we get along in each section, the less food we are carrying. It makes such a big difference in how our packs feel on our backs. We can go further faster and take less breaks. Although I do love breaks. 

We entered the Russian wilderness today. The mountains are big and steep and granitic. The sky was clearer this morning than it had been in days and the weather was perfect for hiking. This afternoon however the smoke blew in. We hiked into an area that burned last year. It felt like we were walking into a fire. 

The wind started gusting and I heard thunder in the direction we were going in so I went into my reserved storm gear to make sure we got our tent set up before the rain. It still hasn't rained but it's super gusty and cool out, feels like a change in the weather.