Day 107: We left mid-morning from Etna. Chris dropped us off at the trail as we said our goodbyes and headed back to our home. This area of the trail is so beautiful. I really enjoy it. Just about 1.5 miles into the day there was a trial registry so I stopped to scope it out and read where everyone was. I saw entries from Hefty and Stats. Still a ways ahead. At mile 1611 I stopped at Fisher Lake for a swim and lunch. It was a nice peaceful spot. I met quite a few other hikers there, and just chilled until Freckles and Tim got there. The day was mainly staying around 6,000 ft elevation for awhile. Tons of creek crossings today. Some with bridges lots without. But they’re generally all super small and easy to just hop over without getting my feet wet. Towards the end of day I met a guy named Rick. Right when we met the thunder and lightning started. Storm time! He was a super cool old man from Eugene, OR. I pushed ahead of him during the uphill and kept wandering towards the campsite. There have been some fires in the area and after lunch I passed a large group of boy scouts who were out and about. Their initial campsite was too close to the fires so they had to redirect and are camping about 400m for our campsite. I passed some other hikers and we talked about how cool the marble rocks looked. And how they actually played tricks on you. From afar it looked like patches of snow. Which I wasn’t stoked to see. I get to camp, at a run down Ranger station. The water was nearby so I walked back and forth getting water, washing my feet off, and setting up camp as other hikers passed on. Rick later came and set up camp near me, then Freckles and Tim, then the greatest surprise ever. LAKE! Legit never thought I’d see him again. I haven’t seen him since he left in Idyllwild. I didn’t even recognize him at first. With all of our tents behind a little cabin we went to sleep. Looking at the stars thanks to the large meadow we were in. I love not sleeping in the forest. Today I also felt a bit home sick. Really missing my Aunt and our weekly catchup dinners. These moments come rarely, but when they do they hit pretty hard.