Prologue

Prior to this trip, I could count on one hand the number of times I'd been above 10,000 feet: Lassen Peak, Cathedral Peak, and possibly Round Top, where my group failed to summit. I had some notion that higher elevations make it harder to breathe - after being teased about my "huffing and puffing" on easy trad climbs in Tuolumne - but didn't have much experience doing strenuous hiking above 10,000' and just planned on an immediate turn-around if I developed worrisome symptoms of AMS.

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