The hike downhill to Devils Postpile national monument took us by two horses grazing by a small pond. While they seemed wild they were part of a group tour-- the bells around their necks gave them away. We trotted downhill quickly, chatting about life and careers, but were stopped in our tracks by a natural castle on the far horizon line. We made it to Devils Postpile by midday and were pretty tired. We entered the Postpile with Steve, an older gentleman with a delightfully positive life outlook who was doing the whole 200+ miles in 21 days. His bouyant enthusiasm was delightful. The Postpile is formed by magma intrusion from the earth's mantle and is famous for its vertical pipes and their hexagonal top structure. Concerned about the fire, we hiked another half mile to the ranger station and received poor news-- the fire had grown, was still nearly uncontained, and most people were exiting the trail. This point was our easiest exit point-- we could take a ...