We woke up to wonderful reflections off Evolution Lake. The smoke from the previous night was gone, leaving the high alpine (11,000+ foot high) mountains in stark relief to the morning sky. We've settled on a 5:30am wakeup call combined with a leisurely breakfast and a 7-730am pushoff, as our smoke defense. Get miles early! We need to do 12-14 miles per day to make Mount Whitney, the famous trail finale, in seven days. These mornings are so wonderful: we wake up in complete darkness, have hot coffee and a yummy breakfast at sunrise, then hike as the rising sun creates each new day. We passed beautiful lake after beautiful lake on our way to Muir Pass. When we reached Sapphire Lake, I felt compelled to jump for joy off a large boulder. What a joy this life can be. We reached the famous Muir Hut, an emergency shelter at 12,000 feet built by the Sierra Club in the thirties. The remoteness of this pass and the danger of the terrai...