Seven easy miles from our camp at Oasis Cache, and we hit a highway, where a wonderful woman picked us up and drove us to the Andersons' house, Casa de Luna.
The Andersons have something of a reputation amongst PCT hikers. They're known for wild parties, and we weren't sure what to expect. Fortunately or unfortunately, we arrived on sort of an off day. No one seemed to be able to work up enough enthusiasm for chocolate syrup twister, and we arrived a few days late for oil wrestling, although we did see the slide show.
After a brief nap in a hammock and a delicious taco salad dinner, we sat in the front yard around a fire and let the day turn into night. I got to play the guitar and sing, and of course drink beer and cactus coolers. Altogether, it was a great night, just my type of party.
Tomorrow, there will be pancakes, and we're going to try to leave, although Terri Anderson will try to convince us to stay another night. It might be an easy job for her. G'Night.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Tuesday, May 25--Day 34
We finally did leave, after some unfortunate delays. I was sort of dreading today's hike, because my trekking poles had become accidentally mixed in with loads of things that other hikers had-
The Andersons, another set of Trail Angels, live twenty five miles up the trail from the Saufleys. The day before yesterday, someone with a truck offered to take a big load ahead to Casa de Luna, where the Andersons live. Many of the hikers put all of the gear they wouldn't need for a single day's hike in garbage bags, with the idea that they could hike the twenty five miles quickly and easily with light packs. Then they put the garbage bags over by the front gate, which is exactly where I'd left my poles. So, my poles are at Casa de Luna, and I am not.
The trail today took us up some fairly steep, long inclines, made tougher by my lack of poles, but it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it'd be, and I think I spent more of the day walking easy downhill slopes than trudging upwards.
We set up camp at the Oasis water cache, which we found decorated with plastic skeletons, an inflatable flamingo and monkey, and a stuffed parrot. Sitting amidst the water jugs is a large cooler full of pop and beer, and the elusive cactus cooler, the best pop I've ever tasted. This is a good campsite. 'Night!
The Andersons, another set of Trail Angels, live twenty five miles up the trail from the Saufleys. The day before yesterday, someone with a truck offered to take a big load ahead to Casa de Luna, where the Andersons live. Many of the hikers put all of the gear they wouldn't need for a single day's hike in garbage bags, with the idea that they could hike the twenty five miles quickly and easily with light packs. Then they put the garbage bags over by the front gate, which is exactly where I'd left my poles. So, my poles are at Casa de Luna, and I am not.
The trail today took us up some fairly steep, long inclines, made tougher by my lack of poles, but it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it'd be, and I think I spent more of the day walking easy downhill slopes than trudging upwards.
We set up camp at the Oasis water cache, which we found decorated with plastic skeletons, an inflatable flamingo and monkey, and a stuffed parrot. Sitting amidst the water jugs is a large cooler full of pop and beer, and the elusive cactus cooler, the best pop I've ever tasted. This is a good campsite. 'Night!
Monday, May 25th--Day 33
We did not hike out today, partly because of Tom and Jerry's shins, or shin splints, and partly because taking an extra day here was not an unattractive proposition.
This place reminds me of the dorms in college. Hikers are everywhere, sitting and eating, drinking, watching videos in the trailer, talking in lawn chairs in the shade playing the guitar and singing for each other. There's a relaxed sort of energy here that intrigues me. I spent much of the day today finishing To Kill A Mockingbird in a hammock. I'm gonna be honest, I was teary-eyed at a few points in that story. It is a very, very good book.
The horses here, I found out, are Percheron Draft Horses, an ancient breed used by the Romans as war horses. I don't know if I spelled Percheron right. The male, Rick, is huge and black, and used to work at Disneyland, before he was retired for being scared of balloons. The female, Emma is white and also huge, and has something of an attitude. She means well, but if she shoves me with her head again, we're going to fight. I will battle a horse. I told her that.
I think we're actually leaving tomorrow. Night!
This place reminds me of the dorms in college. Hikers are everywhere, sitting and eating, drinking, watching videos in the trailer, talking in lawn chairs in the shade playing the guitar and singing for each other. There's a relaxed sort of energy here that intrigues me. I spent much of the day today finishing To Kill A Mockingbird in a hammock. I'm gonna be honest, I was teary-eyed at a few points in that story. It is a very, very good book.
The horses here, I found out, are Percheron Draft Horses, an ancient breed used by the Romans as war horses. I don't know if I spelled Percheron right. The male, Rick, is huge and black, and used to work at Disneyland, before he was retired for being scared of balloons. The female, Emma is white and also huge, and has something of an attitude. She means well, but if she shoves me with her head again, we're going to fight. I will battle a horse. I told her that.
I think we're actually leaving tomorrow. Night!
Sunday, May 24th--Day 32
Today we took a zero in Agua Dulce. I woke up slowly and, with nowhere to be today, spent some time reading. A few feet from my tent, the horses clopped around and the air was full of bird songs and the human voices of hikers in the distance.
After finally hauling myself out into the world, I met up with Tom and Jerry, and we borrowed bikes and rode to the market downtown for breakfast. Breakfast today was the same as lunch yesterday: ice cream. The market sells it at a shockingly low price (for California) and I've made the best of the deal.
The Saufleys' neighbors had a pool party at noon, and we rose in the back of a pickup truck (now my favorite method of travel) to their house, where we ate burgers and hot dogs and sat in a jacuzzi joking about how hard it is out there.
Shifting between extremes has been a constant theme of this thing. The air is cold, but the sun is hot, so too much time spent in the shade causes chills, and too much time out of it is equally uncomfortable. We find ourselves nearly crawling up relentless mountainsides in the morning, and in the afternoon we might be relaxing next to a pool, beer in hand.
We're hitting the trail again tomorrow. I'd better get some sleep. Goodnight.
After finally hauling myself out into the world, I met up with Tom and Jerry, and we borrowed bikes and rode to the market downtown for breakfast. Breakfast today was the same as lunch yesterday: ice cream. The market sells it at a shockingly low price (for California) and I've made the best of the deal.
The Saufleys' neighbors had a pool party at noon, and we rose in the back of a pickup truck (now my favorite method of travel) to their house, where we ate burgers and hot dogs and sat in a jacuzzi joking about how hard it is out there.
Shifting between extremes has been a constant theme of this thing. The air is cold, but the sun is hot, so too much time spent in the shade causes chills, and too much time out of it is equally uncomfortable. We find ourselves nearly crawling up relentless mountainsides in the morning, and in the afternoon we might be relaxing next to a pool, beer in hand.
We're hitting the trail again tomorrow. I'd better get some sleep. Goodnight.
Saturday, May 23rd--Day 31
One last 18 mile push got us safely to Agua Dulce today. It was a tough 18 miles, winding around shadeless dusty hills in the California sun. Despite growing frustration, which culminated more than once in a sullen, pouty pack-off breaks in the middle of the trail on my part, we made it into town by 2 pm and found ourselves hiking down a highway flanked by open fields and ranch homes. Our first stop was the market, where I put away like half a gallon of ice cream. Then we got a ride to the Saufleys' house from their neighbor.
The Saufleys are trail angels, one of two families famous enough to be featured on the PCT mail drop list, and the Bandana, which lists all the stops between Mexico and Canada. (The other family is the Andersons, twenty something miles up the trail, and I'm sure I'll be writing about them soon enough.)
The Saufleys run a compound called "Hiker Heaven." It's on their property, in their backyard. There are fifty hikers around at any one time, and those hikers may stay a maximum of two nights and three days. Any hikers who arrive after capacity is filled are sadly turned away. Tom, Jerry, Dutch (a guy we've been hiking with for the last few days) and I were numbers 47-50.
There are showers here, and free laundry. And loaner clothes, which you can wear while your normal disgusting hiker clothes are being washed.
We set up our tents down near the horse pen, where there are indeed horses. Huge horses. Draft horses, someone said. There is a white one (a mare) and a black one (whatever a male horse is called (a stallion.-Megan)) I petted the white one through the bars of the fence, and she swung her giant head at me with such force I was startled. Her jaw muscle is as big as my head. I'm not exaggerating.
Dressed up in shorts, a hoodie, and flip flops, I hopped in the back of a pickup truck and cruised with the crew downtown, feeling not like a hiker for once in a long time. We had dinner at a mexican place and came back to Hiker Heaven for beers and hanging out in the cool evening air. I played guitar and sang.
It got late, and most people went to bed. I came down to our campsite, and the black horse shuffled over to the fence and started making horse noises loudly. I walked over to pet him, and he wiped his giant nose all over my leg. There is horse snot on my nice, clean pants. Night.
The Saufleys are trail angels, one of two families famous enough to be featured on the PCT mail drop list, and the Bandana, which lists all the stops between Mexico and Canada. (The other family is the Andersons, twenty something miles up the trail, and I'm sure I'll be writing about them soon enough.)
The Saufleys run a compound called "Hiker Heaven." It's on their property, in their backyard. There are fifty hikers around at any one time, and those hikers may stay a maximum of two nights and three days. Any hikers who arrive after capacity is filled are sadly turned away. Tom, Jerry, Dutch (a guy we've been hiking with for the last few days) and I were numbers 47-50.
There are showers here, and free laundry. And loaner clothes, which you can wear while your normal disgusting hiker clothes are being washed.
We set up our tents down near the horse pen, where there are indeed horses. Huge horses. Draft horses, someone said. There is a white one (a mare) and a black one (whatever a male horse is called (a stallion.-Megan)) I petted the white one through the bars of the fence, and she swung her giant head at me with such force I was startled. Her jaw muscle is as big as my head. I'm not exaggerating.
Dressed up in shorts, a hoodie, and flip flops, I hopped in the back of a pickup truck and cruised with the crew downtown, feeling not like a hiker for once in a long time. We had dinner at a mexican place and came back to Hiker Heaven for beers and hanging out in the cool evening air. I played guitar and sang.
It got late, and most people went to bed. I came down to our campsite, and the black horse shuffled over to the fence and started making horse noises loudly. I walked over to pet him, and he wiped his giant nose all over my leg. There is horse snot on my nice, clean pants. Night.
Friday, May 22nd--Day 30
Today was a mix of good and bad. It was hot out, but the trail didn't climb much. Of course it climbed some, but we didn't find ourselves switching back and forth up a mountain as we have so often in the past.
There were a ton of flies. Black horseflies that bite. Every time we stopped moving, ten or fifteen of them would swarm around me, landing on my arms, my neck, the back of my head. For this reason I was inclined to keep my breaks short. At lunch they got so bad that I set up my tent and crawled inside, finally eating my food in peace while they tried to get in. We finally escaped them later in the day, and set up camp in a picnic area outside a ranger station. 17 miles between water sources today. I carried four liters and didn't run out, although I was thirsty much of the time.
Been out here for 30 days not. In that time, I've taken three hot showers and one cold one. I've slept in two beds, one night each. I've probably looked at my own reflection in a mirror five or six times. My beard is growing strong and mighty, and I stink from sweating all day, every day. It's been a good month. 'Night.
There were a ton of flies. Black horseflies that bite. Every time we stopped moving, ten or fifteen of them would swarm around me, landing on my arms, my neck, the back of my head. For this reason I was inclined to keep my breaks short. At lunch they got so bad that I set up my tent and crawled inside, finally eating my food in peace while they tried to get in. We finally escaped them later in the day, and set up camp in a picnic area outside a ranger station. 17 miles between water sources today. I carried four liters and didn't run out, although I was thirsty much of the time.
Been out here for 30 days not. In that time, I've taken three hot showers and one cold one. I've slept in two beds, one night each. I've probably looked at my own reflection in a mirror five or six times. My beard is growing strong and mighty, and I stink from sweating all day, every day. It's been a good month. 'Night.
Thursday, May 21st--Day 29
Easy hiking today, in sharp contrast to yesterday's uphill torment. The trail actually did wind around the mountains instead of climbing over them. The worst part of the day was when we walked down the highway for a mile and a half looking for Newcombe Ranch Restaurant. Didn't find it, and walked a mile and a half back up the highway to the trail. This was immediately followed by the best part of the day, when a guy named Ryan picked us up in his SUV and drove us back down the highway to the restaurant, which was maybe fifty feet past the point where we'd given up before. I had a Big Pines Ortega Burger (pepperjack cheese, bacon, and ortega pepper?), seasoned fries, and a big piece of chocolate cake with ice cream. Plus a Mr. Pibb, 2 root beers, and an Arnold Palmer. We take every opportunity to eat well out here, because we're actually fighting against weight loss. It was a huge lunch, but walking ten more miles afterward burned a lot of it off.
I have to be honest, we spend a lot of time every day talking about all the different kinds of food and drink that we want, and all of the things we're going to do when we get back home. Top of my list is a root beer float. I might kill for one of those. You hear me? Kill. A Person.
Man, they had root beer and ice cream at that restaurant. What was I thinking? 'Night.
I have to be honest, we spend a lot of time every day talking about all the different kinds of food and drink that we want, and all of the things we're going to do when we get back home. Top of my list is a root beer float. I might kill for one of those. You hear me? Kill. A Person.
Man, they had root beer and ice cream at that restaurant. What was I thinking? 'Night.
Wednesday, May 20th--Day 28
My hands are filthy. I was digging rocks out of the spot where I was going to put my tent, and the dirt coated my hands, turning them brownish gray.
I woke up last night, under the impression that I'd been hiking and had suddenly passed out. I sat up and hit the ceiling of my tent, and became confused. This is the second walking dream I've had out here. The first was that mountain lions were running down the trail after me, and I started yelling out in my sleep. A tent is a strange place to wake up suddenly, because there is no room to stand and jump out of bed. I think with the mountain lion dream I actually pulled my tent free of its pegs.
I'm not scared of mountain lions. Just, if you saw two of them running up at you from behind, you might freak out too.
Oh today. It was all up and down. Climb a mountain, climb down the other side to cross a highway, climb up another mountain. I did get very frustrated halfway up the second mountain, and sat for a while on the side of the trail, the wind making me cold. Then I lost my sunglasses, which made everything better. Also, I broke my camera somehow. The screen is cracked, so while I can still take pictures, I can't tell how they turn out. This is frustrating, because I saw two coyotes today, one when I emerged from my tent this morning, and one where we set up camp tonight.
Coyotes are awesome. They look at you for a while while you look back at them, and then they trot silently away.
Right. Well. Despite all the climbing today (we reached 9,300 feet at one point), we managed to squeeze out 22 miles before dark. Two of those were along a highway on a detour because a portion of the trail is closed, so as not to disturb the endangered yellow legged mountain frog.
Ok whatever.
Gotta get some sleep. Another day of unnecessary climbing tomorrow. Couldn't just wind the trail around the mountains, no. Had to build it over every single one of them. G'night.
I woke up last night, under the impression that I'd been hiking and had suddenly passed out. I sat up and hit the ceiling of my tent, and became confused. This is the second walking dream I've had out here. The first was that mountain lions were running down the trail after me, and I started yelling out in my sleep. A tent is a strange place to wake up suddenly, because there is no room to stand and jump out of bed. I think with the mountain lion dream I actually pulled my tent free of its pegs.
I'm not scared of mountain lions. Just, if you saw two of them running up at you from behind, you might freak out too.
Oh today. It was all up and down. Climb a mountain, climb down the other side to cross a highway, climb up another mountain. I did get very frustrated halfway up the second mountain, and sat for a while on the side of the trail, the wind making me cold. Then I lost my sunglasses, which made everything better. Also, I broke my camera somehow. The screen is cracked, so while I can still take pictures, I can't tell how they turn out. This is frustrating, because I saw two coyotes today, one when I emerged from my tent this morning, and one where we set up camp tonight.
Coyotes are awesome. They look at you for a while while you look back at them, and then they trot silently away.
Right. Well. Despite all the climbing today (we reached 9,300 feet at one point), we managed to squeeze out 22 miles before dark. Two of those were along a highway on a detour because a portion of the trail is closed, so as not to disturb the endangered yellow legged mountain frog.
Ok whatever.
Gotta get some sleep. Another day of unnecessary climbing tomorrow. Couldn't just wind the trail around the mountains, no. Had to build it over every single one of them. G'night.
Tuesday, May 19th--Day 27
Couldn't seem to drag myself out of bed this morning. Tom, Jerry, two other hikers and I shared a room at Molly Ann's house. A huge room with one large bed, two alcoves with smaller beds, and a mattress on the floor. Tom and I took the alcoves, Jerry took the mattress, a hiker named "Just Chris" got the bed and a guy named Lewis ended up on the floor. Having become used to the semi-privacy of my tent, (it's like my own tiny, tiny house!) I slept uneasily and dreamt of murders, which is weird.
We finally dragged ourselves out of bed when Jessica (I'm just gonna make a separate list of all the hikers we encounter) called out breakfast.
The food! Yesterday, we had hamburgers and fajitas, and breakfast today was eggs, sausages, toast, fruit, yogurt and cheerios with milk! Lunch was nachos and hot dogs (!) with all the toppings. In between meals, we snacked on Red Vines, chocolate covered raisins, and the rare and wonderful yogurt covered raisins which I so dearly love. Washed down with every flavor of Crush, Brisk, Mountain Dew, or Dr. Pepper. Molly Ann is...there aren't words for the kind of generosity that she and others out here have shown us.
After the constant stream of food, we worked out how to get back up to the trail. We ended up sending our packs ahead to Highway 2 (the second way into and out of town from the PCT) and hiking pack-free back up the steep, winding Acorn Trail (the first way into town, and the way we had taken). From the top of Acorn Trail, we would have an easy six miles to the highway where our packs waited.
Acorn Trail has nothing to do with acorns, aside from the fact that it intersects with Acorn Drive, which also has nothing to do with acorns. Devil's Slide trail, which led into Idyllwild and was not as steep as this one, had a much better name. I'm just sayin'.
The hike back up Acorn Trail was pretty difficult, even without forty-five pounds on my back telling me to go back down. Jerry pushed ahead of me, steadily climbing up, up, up. When we got to the top, my breath returned, and I took off down the PCT at a run. Tom, who had actually run up the Acorn Trail, was long gone, but it felt so great to run with no weight on my back that I sprinted up hills and down into valleys, stopping when I ran out of breath.
I saw a coyote! It was crossing a dirt road, and looked back at me before disappearing into the brush. Awesome.
Met up with Tom at the highway, and when Jerry showed up soon after, we picked up our packs and hiked another mile or so in the fading light until we hit a campground. There may be a bear or bears around. The optimal outcome of this evening will be me riding one. 'Night.
We finally dragged ourselves out of bed when Jessica (I'm just gonna make a separate list of all the hikers we encounter) called out breakfast.
The food! Yesterday, we had hamburgers and fajitas, and breakfast today was eggs, sausages, toast, fruit, yogurt and cheerios with milk! Lunch was nachos and hot dogs (!) with all the toppings. In between meals, we snacked on Red Vines, chocolate covered raisins, and the rare and wonderful yogurt covered raisins which I so dearly love. Washed down with every flavor of Crush, Brisk, Mountain Dew, or Dr. Pepper. Molly Ann is...there aren't words for the kind of generosity that she and others out here have shown us.
After the constant stream of food, we worked out how to get back up to the trail. We ended up sending our packs ahead to Highway 2 (the second way into and out of town from the PCT) and hiking pack-free back up the steep, winding Acorn Trail (the first way into town, and the way we had taken). From the top of Acorn Trail, we would have an easy six miles to the highway where our packs waited.
Acorn Trail has nothing to do with acorns, aside from the fact that it intersects with Acorn Drive, which also has nothing to do with acorns. Devil's Slide trail, which led into Idyllwild and was not as steep as this one, had a much better name. I'm just sayin'.
The hike back up Acorn Trail was pretty difficult, even without forty-five pounds on my back telling me to go back down. Jerry pushed ahead of me, steadily climbing up, up, up. When we got to the top, my breath returned, and I took off down the PCT at a run. Tom, who had actually run up the Acorn Trail, was long gone, but it felt so great to run with no weight on my back that I sprinted up hills and down into valleys, stopping when I ran out of breath.
I saw a coyote! It was crossing a dirt road, and looked back at me before disappearing into the brush. Awesome.
Met up with Tom at the highway, and when Jerry showed up soon after, we picked up our packs and hiked another mile or so in the fading light until we hit a campground. There may be a bear or bears around. The optimal outcome of this evening will be me riding one. 'Night.
Monday, May 18th--Day 26
There is an ice cream store here, although I have not visited it yet. Yet.
Woke up this morning a hundred times better, happier than last night. It surprises me how quickly and completely we recover from a grueling, awful day. Every single morning, I've woken up ready to hike, ready to cover whatever miles and hardships lie before us. I'm very thankful for that.
Hit the trail (Acorn Trail) and made a fast descent down to Acorn Drive, a street lined with large wooden houses, more beautiful and luxurious than rustic. Followed Acorn Drive down into downtown Wrightwood, which was just waking up. Stopped for water at a cafe (food was too expensive) then to the post office for our food box.
Wrightwood is a really nice town. It's a little like Idyllwild in that it's well planned out for the pedestrian, with all the necessary stops (post office, market, hardware store) very close to each other. And, as in Idyllwild, the residents love thru-hikers. We quickly found ourselves at the home of a very kind woman, named Molly Ann, who offered to put us up for the night. We have showered, eaten, washed our clothes, and played Guitar Hero. Speaking of guitars, there is a real guitar here that I'm in love with. It transforms all of my clumsy fingerings into beautiful wooden sound. I played it until my fingers hurt too much to continue.
I can't really describe how generous complete strangers have been to us out here. I didn't like people before, but I'm starting to like them now. In general, I mean.
After a huge dinner and lots of phone calls, we headed out to the bar for karaoke, at which I am like a God-King. Unfortunately, there was none, so we drank beer and shot pool until closing time.
I'm not really that awesome at karaoke. I regret that God-King remark. It's way, way past bedtime. Goodnight.
Woke up this morning a hundred times better, happier than last night. It surprises me how quickly and completely we recover from a grueling, awful day. Every single morning, I've woken up ready to hike, ready to cover whatever miles and hardships lie before us. I'm very thankful for that.
Hit the trail (Acorn Trail) and made a fast descent down to Acorn Drive, a street lined with large wooden houses, more beautiful and luxurious than rustic. Followed Acorn Drive down into downtown Wrightwood, which was just waking up. Stopped for water at a cafe (food was too expensive) then to the post office for our food box.
Wrightwood is a really nice town. It's a little like Idyllwild in that it's well planned out for the pedestrian, with all the necessary stops (post office, market, hardware store) very close to each other. And, as in Idyllwild, the residents love thru-hikers. We quickly found ourselves at the home of a very kind woman, named Molly Ann, who offered to put us up for the night. We have showered, eaten, washed our clothes, and played Guitar Hero. Speaking of guitars, there is a real guitar here that I'm in love with. It transforms all of my clumsy fingerings into beautiful wooden sound. I played it until my fingers hurt too much to continue.
I can't really describe how generous complete strangers have been to us out here. I didn't like people before, but I'm starting to like them now. In general, I mean.
After a huge dinner and lots of phone calls, we headed out to the bar for karaoke, at which I am like a God-King. Unfortunately, there was none, so we drank beer and shot pool until closing time.
I'm not really that awesome at karaoke. I regret that God-King remark. It's way, way past bedtime. Goodnight.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Sunday, May 17th--Day 25
Today sucked.
Every day that has sucked so far had something good about it. The only good thing about today is that it's over.
We got a late start, hitting the trail at around seven. Once again, the sun was blazing by eight. After stopping at a water cache and filling to capacity, we began a long, steady climb into the mountains. No shade, no breezes, and whenever we stopped walking, we were accosted by black flies and bees. It was slow going, and we had lunch at one pm under a bush that provided a tiny amount of shade, swatting at flies the whole time.
After lunch, we pressed on up the mountain in the heat, stopping every few minutes to lean on our poles and breathe as flies tried to get into our ears. The worst part of the day came soon after. We found ourselves swarmed by gnats. They hovered and swirled as we walked, floating just in front of our eyes, noses, and mouths. I walked with my face down, unable to see ahead, because everytime I looked up I got a faceful of gnats. Clouds of gnats. I'm still going to be blowing them out of my nose tomorrow. Gross.
We did make it out of Gnat Town eventually, but the trail kept going, and I was exhausted. We were pushing on to the Acorn Trail, which will take us down to Wrightwood. We climbed farther and farther and I felt worse and worse. At one point, I hit a wall, and dropped my pack and sat motionless in the middle of the trail for a long time. I don't think I've ever been so exhausted. Finally I picked myself up, caught up with Tom and hiked on. We made it to a campsite (a perfect, beautiful campsite) 0.2 miles from Acorn Trail just as the sun was going down. Tonight's dinner: buttery homestyle mashed potatoes with Spam and mango chipotle salmon (not as good as it sounds) on a tortilla.
We go into Wrightwood tomorrow morning. I'm told they don't have an ice cream store, which is criminal. If I don't get ice cream tomorrow, I'm burning that mother down. Night!
Every day that has sucked so far had something good about it. The only good thing about today is that it's over.
We got a late start, hitting the trail at around seven. Once again, the sun was blazing by eight. After stopping at a water cache and filling to capacity, we began a long, steady climb into the mountains. No shade, no breezes, and whenever we stopped walking, we were accosted by black flies and bees. It was slow going, and we had lunch at one pm under a bush that provided a tiny amount of shade, swatting at flies the whole time.
After lunch, we pressed on up the mountain in the heat, stopping every few minutes to lean on our poles and breathe as flies tried to get into our ears. The worst part of the day came soon after. We found ourselves swarmed by gnats. They hovered and swirled as we walked, floating just in front of our eyes, noses, and mouths. I walked with my face down, unable to see ahead, because everytime I looked up I got a faceful of gnats. Clouds of gnats. I'm still going to be blowing them out of my nose tomorrow. Gross.
We did make it out of Gnat Town eventually, but the trail kept going, and I was exhausted. We were pushing on to the Acorn Trail, which will take us down to Wrightwood. We climbed farther and farther and I felt worse and worse. At one point, I hit a wall, and dropped my pack and sat motionless in the middle of the trail for a long time. I don't think I've ever been so exhausted. Finally I picked myself up, caught up with Tom and hiked on. We made it to a campsite (a perfect, beautiful campsite) 0.2 miles from Acorn Trail just as the sun was going down. Tonight's dinner: buttery homestyle mashed potatoes with Spam and mango chipotle salmon (not as good as it sounds) on a tortilla.
We go into Wrightwood tomorrow morning. I'm told they don't have an ice cream store, which is criminal. If I don't get ice cream tomorrow, I'm burning that mother down. Night!
Saturday, May 16th--Day 24
27 miles today. Our second biggest day, and we made it before dark. Woke up at five to the alarm on Jerry's new calculator watch, and we were on the trail by six. The first few hours went well, but by eight the sun was already bearing down. We followed the trail down out of the hills, past a dam, then along a highway. We found an empty cooler when the trail veered off again, the remains of trail magic. Then it was back up a steep hill. It was very hot, and I struggled to the top of the hill and over to see, suddenly, a lake! It was beautiful, spread out far below us. Speedboats and jet skis glided around on the surface and the shores were dotted with people fishing. We skirted the edges on the lake for a mile before finding a trail that split off and made our way to the pavilions and shade for an early lunch.
After lunch, we went back up to the trail and around the edges of the lake some more. Eventually, the trail cut away from the lake and descended to a road below. Tom and I caught up with Jerry, who had passed us during lunch. He hadn't eaten yet, so we followed a bike path to another picnic area, this one with a water spout! I filled my Nalgene, chugged the liter, then filled it again and drank some more. Then, I waddled over to a grassy area where Tom and Jerry were relaxing. I laid on my back in the grass, shaded by a tree, and I thought of home. I don't think I've ever been as homesick.
We rested for about an hour, then reluctantly threw our packs over our shoulders and headed back to the trail. The sun was now very hot, and we climbed into the hills, dripping sweat. Lots more climbing and a long descent, and we found ourselves in Crowder Canyon, where we made dinner a a creek and set up camp under buzzing power lines. I can hear traffic on a road in the distance.
22 miles to Wrightwood. Should be there Monday morning. Night.
After lunch, we went back up to the trail and around the edges of the lake some more. Eventually, the trail cut away from the lake and descended to a road below. Tom and I caught up with Jerry, who had passed us during lunch. He hadn't eaten yet, so we followed a bike path to another picnic area, this one with a water spout! I filled my Nalgene, chugged the liter, then filled it again and drank some more. Then, I waddled over to a grassy area where Tom and Jerry were relaxing. I laid on my back in the grass, shaded by a tree, and I thought of home. I don't think I've ever been as homesick.
We rested for about an hour, then reluctantly threw our packs over our shoulders and headed back to the trail. The sun was now very hot, and we climbed into the hills, dripping sweat. Lots more climbing and a long descent, and we found ourselves in Crowder Canyon, where we made dinner a a creek and set up camp under buzzing power lines. I can hear traffic on a road in the distance.
22 miles to Wrightwood. Should be there Monday morning. Night.
Friday, May 15th--Day 23
There was a hot spring!
We woke, packed, and hiked seven or eight miles before hitting it. I had run almost completely out of water, and I held my Nalgene bottle under the water where it came out of the mountain, then took long gulps. It was hot, but I was too thirsty to care. Before today, I've never drank untreated or unfiltered water right from a spring. It tasted pretty good.
We took a long, long break at the hot spring. In some areas, it was deep enough to swim, walled off from the creek surrounding it. I soaked for awhile in the hot water, then jumped into the comparatively freezing water of the creek, and was refreshed. Then my leg touched some seaweed, and I was grossed out. I am indeed a man's man.
We lounged in the shade, and I finished Of Mice and Men. It is a very sad, very good story. Next up is To Kill a Mockingbird.
Eventually, we had to leave, so it was back up into the dusty heat of the hills far above. The sun was very hot and we took a break in some shade where I put a packet of apple cider mix into my water, since it was hot anyway. It was delicious. Gonna have to get more of that stuff.
We scraped out about eight more miles and made camp in a nice, open, sandy area. The mosquitoes were just starting to bother me as I made dinner. It's good to be in my tent, away from them. I like nature, but I wish I could exhale Raid and wipe out all the little bugs that swirl around my face as I hike, and try to propel themselves. Earlier, one tried to fly into my eye. He missed by about half an inch, but as I was trying to wipe him away, he dodged my finger and crawled the rest of the distance into my eye. What tenacity!
I hate bugs. Going to sleep now. Night.
We woke, packed, and hiked seven or eight miles before hitting it. I had run almost completely out of water, and I held my Nalgene bottle under the water where it came out of the mountain, then took long gulps. It was hot, but I was too thirsty to care. Before today, I've never drank untreated or unfiltered water right from a spring. It tasted pretty good.
We took a long, long break at the hot spring. In some areas, it was deep enough to swim, walled off from the creek surrounding it. I soaked for awhile in the hot water, then jumped into the comparatively freezing water of the creek, and was refreshed. Then my leg touched some seaweed, and I was grossed out. I am indeed a man's man.
We lounged in the shade, and I finished Of Mice and Men. It is a very sad, very good story. Next up is To Kill a Mockingbird.
Eventually, we had to leave, so it was back up into the dusty heat of the hills far above. The sun was very hot and we took a break in some shade where I put a packet of apple cider mix into my water, since it was hot anyway. It was delicious. Gonna have to get more of that stuff.
We scraped out about eight more miles and made camp in a nice, open, sandy area. The mosquitoes were just starting to bother me as I made dinner. It's good to be in my tent, away from them. I like nature, but I wish I could exhale Raid and wipe out all the little bugs that swirl around my face as I hike, and try to propel themselves. Earlier, one tried to fly into my eye. He missed by about half an inch, but as I was trying to wipe him away, he dodged my finger and crawled the rest of the distance into my eye. What tenacity!
I hate bugs. Going to sleep now. Night.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Thursday, May 14th--Day 22
Woke up to bitter cold. The moisture in the air inside my tent had condensed, coating my rainfly in droplets and leaving frost on my poles. After we started hiking, our bodies warmed fast, and I had to put away the long-sleeved shirt, gloves, and wool hat that I'd put on just half an hour before. We found ourselves walking along hills scarred by wildfire, black husks of wood sticking out of the ground like burned hair. Then, suddenly, we were in a valley shaded by trees and cooled by a gorgeous, pounding stream. We had lunch and enjoyed the spot as best we could.
After lunch, up a boulder-lined path and back into the burned hills. We pushed through the day and, after crossing a well-made wooden bridge above a ravine, we started looking for a place to camp. After two or three miles, the trail reached a small field overlooking the river below. The ground was kind of flat, so we set up camp and started making dinner.
The mosquitoes are terrible. They clouded around me as I boiled the water for dinner. I ate in my tent tonight, watching the mosquitoes bump against the mesh door and walls, perplexed. Supposedly, there will be a hot spring tomorrow. Night!
After lunch, up a boulder-lined path and back into the burned hills. We pushed through the day and, after crossing a well-made wooden bridge above a ravine, we started looking for a place to camp. After two or three miles, the trail reached a small field overlooking the river below. The ground was kind of flat, so we set up camp and started making dinner.
The mosquitoes are terrible. They clouded around me as I boiled the water for dinner. I ate in my tent tonight, watching the mosquitoes bump against the mesh door and walls, perplexed. Supposedly, there will be a hot spring tomorrow. Night!
Wednesday, May 13th—Day 21
-Big Bear, Day Two.
Slept on the floor of our room at Motel Six last night. Steve and I both lost on the coin tosses, so Tom and Jerry took the beds. Steve set up by the entrance, and I slid in next to the bathroom door. It wasn’t uncomfortable but I seem to sleep better in my tent (which I have named “The Green Shark” due to its sleek, dorsal fin-like appearance, and due to the fact that, like sharks, once you’re inside getting out can get a bit tricky. The “Green” part is because it’s green.)
After scrambling around sorting our thing and checking, double checking, tiple checking to make sure we didn’t forget anything, we checked out, and Steve found a ride back up to the trail head. We still had more to do in town, and, with no transportation, we dropped our packs in the lobby and walked to the post office.
Big Bear is an interesting town. It’s close to Los Angeles, which makes it the ideal vacation spot for people trying to get away from big city life in this area. Some amount of celebrities have called it home, or second home, in the past, and some still do. Looking at the large houses on the other side of the lake from us, it wasn’t hard to imagine that they might. Our walk to the post office, however, led us through a more rundown part of town. It wasn’t an awful neighborhood, but I couldn’t lose the sense that it had been forgotten in favor of bigger wallets and higher-profile residents across town.
After the post office, we caught a bus to the library, where we used their computers, and then walked back to the motel. We’d intended to stop by Taco Bell again, but had passed it accidentally, not noticing until we were too far to go back. Instead, we ate at La Paws, a tiny Mexican place a block from the motel. I had a carnitas burrito. It was delicious. Best part of town.
I mean that. I don’t have anything really good to say about Big Bear, but I don’t think I like it too much. Idyllwild was way better. Small, and laid out perfectly so that we could walk anywhere we needed to go in minutes. And we were like heroes there. People love thru-hikers, jumping out of the woodwork to offer us rides.
Right. So, after we ate, we had to figure out a ride back to the trailhead, which was many miles from the hotel, and a long unnecessary walk in the dark. The owner of the hiker-friendly Nature’s Inn gave us a number to call, and a guy named Ryan picked us up from the motel shortly later. It turns out that he had no idea why the Nature’s Inn owner would even have his number, let alone give it out to people who need rides, but he drove us anyway, because he’s a hero who fights fires out here.
Ryan dropped us off and we set up camp just before the road, under a gorgeous starry sky. I love being back on the trail after a night in town, and I hope tomorrow will be as good as I feel like it will be. Night.
Slept on the floor of our room at Motel Six last night. Steve and I both lost on the coin tosses, so Tom and Jerry took the beds. Steve set up by the entrance, and I slid in next to the bathroom door. It wasn’t uncomfortable but I seem to sleep better in my tent (which I have named “The Green Shark” due to its sleek, dorsal fin-like appearance, and due to the fact that, like sharks, once you’re inside getting out can get a bit tricky. The “Green” part is because it’s green.)
After scrambling around sorting our thing and checking, double checking, tiple checking to make sure we didn’t forget anything, we checked out, and Steve found a ride back up to the trail head. We still had more to do in town, and, with no transportation, we dropped our packs in the lobby and walked to the post office.
Big Bear is an interesting town. It’s close to Los Angeles, which makes it the ideal vacation spot for people trying to get away from big city life in this area. Some amount of celebrities have called it home, or second home, in the past, and some still do. Looking at the large houses on the other side of the lake from us, it wasn’t hard to imagine that they might. Our walk to the post office, however, led us through a more rundown part of town. It wasn’t an awful neighborhood, but I couldn’t lose the sense that it had been forgotten in favor of bigger wallets and higher-profile residents across town.
After the post office, we caught a bus to the library, where we used their computers, and then walked back to the motel. We’d intended to stop by Taco Bell again, but had passed it accidentally, not noticing until we were too far to go back. Instead, we ate at La Paws, a tiny Mexican place a block from the motel. I had a carnitas burrito. It was delicious. Best part of town.
I mean that. I don’t have anything really good to say about Big Bear, but I don’t think I like it too much. Idyllwild was way better. Small, and laid out perfectly so that we could walk anywhere we needed to go in minutes. And we were like heroes there. People love thru-hikers, jumping out of the woodwork to offer us rides.
Right. So, after we ate, we had to figure out a ride back to the trailhead, which was many miles from the hotel, and a long unnecessary walk in the dark. The owner of the hiker-friendly Nature’s Inn gave us a number to call, and a guy named Ryan picked us up from the motel shortly later. It turns out that he had no idea why the Nature’s Inn owner would even have his number, let alone give it out to people who need rides, but he drove us anyway, because he’s a hero who fights fires out here.
Ryan dropped us off and we set up camp just before the road, under a gorgeous starry sky. I love being back on the trail after a night in town, and I hope tomorrow will be as good as I feel like it will be. Night.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Tuesday, May 12th -- Day 20
- Big Bear city!
Short entry tonight.
- Ate lots of Taco Bell. Thought I might explode.
- Ate lots of pizza. Still did not explode, somehow.
- Drank some beer.
- Hitched back to motel with a crazy guy.
- New pants!
My Mesa convertibles are done for. One rip in each leg, tar stains on the back side, various food stains on the lap, and, finally, a long rip, right up the seat. Tried to duct-tape them, but it didn't really work out.
Semper Fi, hiking pants. You brought me through almost three weeks of hard wear.
Should be back on the trail by tomorrow night. Still things to do in town. Library, post office, hardware store, trying my best to avoid crazy guy who gave us a ride tonight. Scary.
'Night.
Short entry tonight.
- Ate lots of Taco Bell. Thought I might explode.
- Ate lots of pizza. Still did not explode, somehow.
- Drank some beer.
- Hitched back to motel with a crazy guy.
- New pants!
My Mesa convertibles are done for. One rip in each leg, tar stains on the back side, various food stains on the lap, and, finally, a long rip, right up the seat. Tried to duct-tape them, but it didn't really work out.
Semper Fi, hiking pants. You brought me through almost three weeks of hard wear.
Should be back on the trail by tomorrow night. Still things to do in town. Library, post office, hardware store, trying my best to avoid crazy guy who gave us a ride tonight. Scary.
'Night.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
