On day five we started the hike out and moved camp from Deer Creek back up to the Esplanade.

20:00 - Esplanade camp #2

We barely made it to camp before nightfall today and the Sun set on us when were still about 20-30 minutes away. After the Sun did set I took off and just told Robin I would pick a good place to camp and just drop my pack and then go ahead and retrieve our water and food cache. There are about 8-10 people camped along the section that I was hoping to camp and the place I had intended to use was already occupied. I went back to a spot I noticed a little before that and dropped my pack. The cache was still about a quarter of a mile away and by the time I got back to camp Robin and Maggi already had the tent set up.

Daylight faded quickly and it was already getting dark by the time I started dinner. It was very dark by the time I finished cooking and Robin had to hold one of the flashlights so I could see what I was doing. We could not see what we were eating at all which is too bad because it was very good. We had canned turkey, mashed potatoes, corn and Stove Top stuffing---a real Thanksgiving dinner. It was supposed to be a celebration but I don't think anyone was in the mood for celebrating.

The early part of the day was not so bad and we made it from Deer Creek up to Surprise Valley with not too much trouble. Maggi is still having problems with the backpack and is constantly trying to readjust it to get it to sit properly. Robin and Maggi took a little rest break just below Surprise Valley while I went to take some photos at Deer Spring and when we got up into lower Surprise Valley we took another little rest break. There was another rattlesnake there waiting for us, also taking a break apparently.

The climb from Surprise Valley up to the Esplanade took a while and Maggi actually offered me $200 to take her backpack up the cliff for her. I wasn't about to take money for carrying her backpack and I could not take it all the way to the top as that would have taken too long and we were already running well behind schedule. I did carry it to the top of the Redwall section though. I went up first and dropped my pack and then came back for hers. After that I came back again for Robin's. Fair is fair.