After waking up from a very solid 8 hrs sleep at Lake of the Clouds and eating an incredibly delicious breakfast (including gluten-free pancakes for me – they’re REALLY great about food allergies!) we were ready to take on the southern Presidentials. 

The first order of the day was our last 5000 fter, Monroe. It was brisk way to start our morning.  Here, a clear view of our route home!

We paused for a photo break on top of Eisenhower – happy 4th of July!

The road from whence we came, leading to Monroe and then Washington in the middle.

Next, it was a quick jaunt up Pierce, as the terrain changed from rocky to green and forested.

These mountains were a little smaller, but the views were still absolutely gorgeous.

From the top of our final mountain, Jackson!  I’ve summited Jackson 3 times before but never seen the view from its north side, which is simply stunning.  We took the second day at a nice relaxed pace, with lots of breaks for photos, eating, and treating of blisters and bruises.  It gave us a lot more time to take in the views.

And here we are, at the proper summit of Jackson, only 2.6 miles from the car! It was all downhill from there.

All in all, the Prezi traverse was the best 4th of July adventure I could’ve asked for – we even saw our first moose when driving back! (no pictures because I was driving).  I can’t wait to get back out there!