Having worked late the night before, I drove (nearly) straight to the trailhead, save for a sleep attempt that was foiled by too much caffeine. After arriving at the trailhead just before 3:30 a.m., I set my alarm for 6:30 a.m. and promptly failed to sleep, so I listened to an audiobook until around 5:20, when I finally managed to drift off for a bit. After we had all grouped up in the parking lot and I had met everyone, we finished gathering our gear and set off for Minaret Lake. I hiked alone for a bit while moving at what I thought was a relatively brisk pace, but within a mile or so Henry waltzed up and easily overtook me, which was a situation that was to recur frequently over the coming days.