DAYS 40-48

DAYS 40-48

DAY 40

6-2-2013

-Miles: The Saufley's (mile 454) to Hiker Town (mile 517) via car

MILES WALKED: 517-536.87

-I walked from 454 to 478 on the 23rd of May and then back down to 454 via car

-The Green Valley forest fire has now encompassed 20,000 acres and counting. The PCT is engulfed in flames for about 100 miles or so. There are rides for hikers to shuttle them from Agua Dulce (The Saufley's house) to Hiker Town just north of the fire. Since rides from The Saufley's in Agua Dulce around the fire are scarce, I am riding in a van with a group of hikers to Hiker Town in Lancaster, CA today. If I wait any longer I am afraid I may not have a ride.

-I got to Hiker Town! I bypassed 39 miles of the PCT, not by choice but due to a natural disaster. I might make those miles up later, but I don't feel obligated to hike them later. All hikers are being re-routed. I have decided to spend the day here at Hiker Town. I will hike out of here tonight once it's cooler. 

-I am nearing the Mojave Desert where it is HOT and where there is hardly any water. This is the scary part that all hikers dread. I am excited for it since I've been sitting around for so long!

-My knee is doing much better. Yay!

-I should arrive in Tehachapi, CA on or around June 4th. I'm going to only walk 15-20 miles a day at first just to warm up my knee. After Tehachapi I hope to be doing 20-25+ miles a day. I'll probably be getting in to Kennedy Meadows by the 15th- right on schedule! 

-Hiker Town is like a small ghost town on someone's private property. There are areas to hang out, sleep, watch tv, eat, etc. It's all pretty basic but incredibly appreciated. I'm not sure where else I'd spend the afternoon in the heat of the sun. The room I'm in doesn't have air conditioning, but there is a fan and its much cooler here than outside. 

-A hiker chic has been making a list of funny things hikers say. She said mine is by far the best: "Wait! I've got to let my nails dry!"

-Hiked roughly 20 miles today! Woohoo! Wanted to keep walking a few more miles but my headlamp was WEAK. I was walking by the light of my iPhone! Hahaha. I had to stop for the night because of a lack of light and I thought I shouldn't overdo it. Right now I am camping in a wind farm- HUGE wind turbines are surrounding me. I can see a mountain on fire off in the distance. No moon because it is covered up by smoke from the fires, but there are lots of shooting stars over head. It's strange and really cool. A fantastic day and night. I loved my hike. I'm really loving life right now. Good night!

DAY 41

6-3-2013

Miles: 536.87-551.66

-Woke up at 5:47am. I ate breakfast, packed, got ready, and was on the trail by 6:20am! Yay! That's record time for me getting ready and packed up in the morning!

-I've been meaning to mention this for a while: Lizards! When hiking along the trail, hikers frighten the lizards hiding in the shrubs surrounding the trail. As you walk along and startle the lizards, they spring out of the bushes and up into the air before landing and scurrying off to safety. It's such a silly sight to see... small black lizards popping up out of the bushes like popcorn. I enjoy this detail of nature. :)

-Im trying to take it easy with my knee. It's feeling much better! I also am now wearing KT athletic tape around my knee with a knee brace on top of it. I'm so happy to be getting better. I was thinking about how I've had to get through my back going out, having a sprained knee, throwing up on a mountain, and having to take time off the trail. Other hikers tell me they can't believe I'm still on the trail- that most other people would give up and go home. I didn't realize it was a big deal that I've been pushing onward, but now that others have mentioned it I feel proud of myself. It's a nice feeling. I think my body is still being conditioned to where the aches and pains are temporary until my body adjusts. I'm pretty sure my body will go through more pain, but I think it is making me stronger (as long as I rest when I'm injured).

-541.6... Water!!!!!!!!!! A natural spring. Thank goodness because I was almost dry! My feet are soaking in the cold stream right now- it feels amazing!

-I am going to nap by this stream throughout much of the day to avoid hiking in the heat. I'll likely head out from this resting spot around 4:00pm. The next 2 or 3 miles of the trail are pretty tame and kind. After those few miles, the trail begins a nasty climb upwards. Ugghhhh! Inclines are so hard for me! I'm dreading the next few miles because it will be the first difficult incline I'll experience since I've been off trail. Not hiking for such a long time was great for my knee's recovery, but terrible for the rest of my body because my muscles are now stiff and lazy. Lol. Today will be hard because I'm getting back into the swing of things; after today my body should be reminded of what it needs to do to hike. I can't wait to get back to that place again- where my body begins to accept the hike. 

-Fire: it was crazy walking alongside a burning mountain yesterday. The trail was parallel to the mountain range, and it was probably 20 miles north of the base of the mountain. At first, I could only see masses of smoke billowing over the mountain. I couldn't see any flames. As I hiked throughout the day and evening, I watched the flames jump over the ridge of the mountain and completely engulf the mountain in red hot flames. Smoke and red hot flames were everywhere. What a strange sight to see. I've never been near a forest fire before. I feel so sad for all the folks who lost their homes.

-Chilled by the stream with Baby Steps and her beau, Cookie Monster, High Low, Rocks Steady, Simba, and Ugliest Cbeerleader

-My mottos that I am apparently known for since I always write them in registers: 1) Canada or Hospital, and 2) Last one to Canada wins!

-Have you ever walked through a desert? I'm doing it right now. I ended up not staying at the creek all day. I walked about 4 hot and sandy miles to the base of a BIG climb. It's hot as Hades out here and there's no way I can do this climb in this heat. There is also no shade... I am walking through the Mojave Desert right now. I found a shrub on the side of the trail. A few hours ago it was providing some shade, not much shade, but enough to feel relieved to be sitting in at least a minuscule amount of shade. It seems the moment I got comfy, the sun changed in the sky and now there is virtually no shade! I took my tent footprint (a piece of durable fabric that goes underneath my tent) and I rigged it up to a tree and some rocks. I have about 1 square foot of shade and it feels nice. I will stay here until it gets cooler; it will make the climb much easier. My next water source is a water cache about 5 miles away. All I have to do is climb 4 miles and I'll get water and shade! Now that is motivation! Ha! I hope water is still there. The cache is maintained by two trail angels, so there's no telling when they last re-stocked the cache. In desert-hiking situations, it is best to trust only extremely reliable water sources such as rivers and lakes that don't ever dry up, faucets and horse troughs along the way, and towns you will be going through. Although people do often bring water out to hikers in the desert, the water could have already been drank by other hikers, and this means you're shit out of luck if you rely on these volunteer water caches. Can you imagine having no water left, getting to a cache, and it being dried up?!? What a nightmare! Sooo, I am carrying a lot of extra water on me. Water is really heavy- about 2 pounds per liter. I need to drink 1 liter of water every 4 miles I hike; more than that if its really hot and/or uphill. Right now I have about 3.5 liters to last me from here until I hitch a ride into Tehachapi... that's a whopping 7 POUNDS of just water I'll be carrying uphill! If I could rely on the water cache, I'd only carry 1 liter of water; this would be 5 pounds lighter. I am tempted to pour out some of my water to make my climb easier... but I have too much fear about the cache being empty. Two miles after the supposed water cache is a campsite. I may or may not camp there. After the campsite the trail goes down in elevation for about 8 miles where the trail intersects with a road and Highway 58. Not sure if I'll make it there tonight or tomorrow. All I know is that I am excited to get to Tehachapi to get some mail, get a hotel room all to myself (for 1 or 2 nights), take a bath, and eat some steak! Staying with trail angels has been incredible, but I've also been constantly surrounded by people and have had zero privacy. I'm really looking forward to some alone time! That's another factor motivating me to hike up this dreaded incline. 

-Popped about a million blisters during my siesta. I didn't realize I had blisters until I started wiping dirt off my feet. 

-Chafing is no fun! I need spandex shorts to go underneath my new hiking dress. 

-Just discovered that hiking boots are good to rest your head on

-Incline was difficult and painful, but enjoyable and rewarding at the same time. 

-Water cache was amazing... bottled water, fresh green apples, shade, trash cans, and lawn chairs. I'm so thankful for those trail angels! 

-Camping by the trail on a saddle overlooking more windmill farms. 

-Im exhausted today! Whew!

DAY 42

6-4-2013

Miles: 551.66-558.5

-Hitched a ride from the trail into Tehachapi, CA from a really nice man. Ugliest Cheerleader hitched with me. 

-I got a room at the Mariott in town. It's expensive ($86), but I needed it. I've been constantly surrounded by people and I needed a hotel room, shower, and toilet all to myself. I took a shower, blow dried my hair, organized my gear, did some laundry, found a delicious BBQ place, went to the store for a few items, got an Icee, went back to the hotel, and I am now in the hot tub. Yay! I love hot tubs so much! I love alone time too. 

-More suggested trail names: Fruit stand (suggested again by a different hiker), Google, Mountaintop Kisses, Long Trail

-Dinner at Jake's Steak House with Ugliest Cheerleader, High Low, and Rock Steady. I splurged on a piña colada, coconut shrimp, filet mignonette, a baked potato, and green beans and squash... no room for dessert in my body even though my head really wanted it! Dinner was FANTASTIC... I'd say the best meal I've had since I left Texas!

-Im back in the jacuzzi after dinner. It feels great! 

-HUGE, GIGANTIC blister on the ball of my right foot. :( Ouch! I thought it was part of my callouss but the area has been incredibly painful the last few days. I was checking out my feet in closer detail and realized it was probably a blister. I put a safety pin to it in order to open it up so it could heal. Some fluid came out, but not nearly enough to amount to the size of the blister. I'm hoping the hot tub will help because this blister sucks!

-Not sure if I should rest one more day and stay in town tomorrow night, or if I should head out of town and back on the trail tomorrow. I'd like to stay another night, but I'm worried about spending too much money. Hmmmm... we'll see how I feel in the morning. 

DAY 43

6-5-2013

Miles: Zero in Tehachapi

-A sweet lady (Sherry Burns) picked me up when I was walking back from the post office near a busy street in town. She took me to the grocery store, McDonalds, and back to my hotel room. She reminds me of my Aunt Marti... nice car, well dressed, pretty, smells good, married to her husband for a very long time, married to a veteran, from the south and born in Fort Worth, TX, has two children, was a house wife for nearly 20 years... just a nice person over all. She even invited me over for dinner!!!!! I already have dinner plans so I had to decline her offer. I got her phone number just in case I need her help in any way. What a sweet lady!

-Slept in until 10:00am!!!!! I decided to stay here another night. 

-Walked to the post office. Why on earth is it so far away from town?!?!?!?!? Aaaggghhhh! I had to cross over an interstate to get there! Ridiculous! Geez!

-Took a nice nap in my big, comfy, king-sized bed

-Sushi with Ugliest Cheerleader

-The trail makes life more intense, more colorful

-I was asked what I've learned from all my life experiences, and why I have a pattern of running away from things in life... Interesting observations, questions and food for thought

-Rock Steady says every day on the trail he focuses his thoughts on one person in his life. He thinks about that person, their relationship, what he is thankful for about that person, etc. He repeats this every day. I think I will adopt this practice- less time thinking about how hot or difficult it is and more time thinking about and appreciating the wonderful people I am lucky enough to have in my life. 

DAY 44

6-6-2013

Miles 566-577.57

-Slept in, packed, showered, did hair, and had Mexican food with Ugliest Cheerleader 

-Took a bus out of Tehachapi to Hwy 58 where I got back on the trail at 4:00pm. It was late in the day and still very hot

-Uphill, uphill, uphill- not too bad but I was moving very slowly, especially since I've been off the trail for about 2.5 days. 

-Hiked into the night. Played Of Monsters and Men from my iPhone very loudly because I like the music and I hoped it would scare away any big animals. I love hiking at night because the temperature drops a ton. BUT, I guess I'm still afraid of the dark because I can only night-hike alone for so long before I start feeling paranoid about animals coming out to eat me. Lol

-Paranoia set in so I stopped and set up my tent in a nice sandy spot. It will be fun to wake up in the morning and see where I "landed."

-Happy to be on the trail and a few steps closer to Canada!

-Kennedy Meadows is in about 125 miles. That will mark the start of me entering the Sierra Nevada! I can't believe I'm almost there, that I'm so close, and that I've made it this far!!!!!!! I really wasn't sure if I could do this. Now, every step I take- even the painful ones, I know that I can do this. I'm excited about this journey. I think more folks should try this kind of stuff. 

-I love my little tent so much. I'm laying down looking at the stars... they are beautiful! Good night!

DAY 45

6-7-2013

Miles 577.57-602.2

-Woke up with my food bag gone! It had been dragged about 50 feet away by an animal. Whatever it was that wanted my food couldn't get into the food bag. It must have been a smaller animal. 

-Hike was hard and hot. Uggghhh! I had to stop every few steps on all the inclines. I'm excited for the Mojave to be done with. 

-Camped with Larry, Kelso, Chris, and Shark Rider. Fun group, all younger guys from all over the place. Shark Rider plays a stringed instrument. Kelso carries a bong- yes, a large, glass, heavy bong. Lol. 

-Slept on top of a trough of some sort. 

-Found a "piped spring" (where they take a pipe and rig it up to a stream in order to pipe water in to a certain location) with good drinking water- clear, fresh, and cold! Larry let me use his filter so I didn't have to use my bleach. The water tasted so amazing since there was no bleach in it. Yum!

-Kept feeling nauseas- in the evening while still hiking and at night right before bed. I think it's the heat coupled with exhaustion. 

DAY 46

6-8-2013

Miles 602.2-621.9

-A skunk had been through our campsite! Larry woke up to one right next to his head going through our camp. 

-Woke up late at 6:30am

-Didn't hit the trail until 8:00am... it's already so hot outside!

-Found a water source in the desert-mountains. It was an old horse trough with a piped spring running into it. The trough would overflow, and that water would overflow into a meadow surrounding us. Behind the meadow were tall pine trees swaying in the gentle breeze. It was hot outside, but a beautiful place for a long break. I was with Shark Rider, Chris, Larry, Kelso, High Low, Coconut, and her man. We laid underneath the trees and cat napped while we took turns getting water, washing clothes and dishes, and taking baths. Yep- I took a bath in a horse trough! Haha. It felt so good because it was THAT hot outside. I stayed here until about 4pm or 5pm before heading back out on the trail. It was way too hot to hike during the day. 

-Descending from the mountain with desert and trees into mountain foothills with desert and small shrubs. 

-Water is scarce... I mean 30 mile stretches with not one water source! I feel intimidated and a bit scared.

-Hiked at night, from about 4pm-12am. It was fun to do this in a big group of people. All the guys have glow sticks. I liked these because I could see where everyone was on the trail. It provided a lot of peace of mind in a pitch black environment. I love night hiking- it's so much cooler outside!

-Cowboy/girl camped

-Stars were beautiful 

-I really like this group of guys I'm hiking with. I think I might be going into Lake Isabella with them as their "ride bride."

DAY 47

6-9-2013

Miles 621.9-638.37

-Moving slow

-Hot

-Scared for the first time that I might not make it... alone and facing a challenging stretch

-Desolation

-How on earth did I wind up here?!?!?

-I made it! I'm okay! I found people!

-I feel relieved, happy, accomplished, and tired

DAY 48

6-10-2013

Miles 638.37-651

-Woke up at 7:30am; ticks everywhere... I'm feeling paranoid about ticks but I checked myself and I think I'm good

-Faced a 5 mile climb to start off my day. It went well. It was hot, but there was a great breeze which helped tremendously. 

-My morning goal was to hike to Walker Pass at mile 651.2 where the trail intersects with a road that heads west into Lake Isabella. The hike was nice and it was mostly down hill. I remembered my friend High Low mentioning something about trail angels and/or trail magic at Walker Pass. I didn't want to get my hopes up, but all morning I was thinking non-stop about soda, meat, and other food. (I am on a mostly liquid-shake diet on the trail because I lack the energy to cook. If I can't cook in real life, how the hell can I cook here on trail?!? Lol.) Anyway, as I got into Walker Pass, a far away crowd began clapping and cheering me on as I neared the trail angel set up. I almost cried because I was so happy and thankful for that kind of comradery and support from the backpacking community and fellow hikers. The trail angels had big tarps set up with picnic tables, lawn chairs, coolers, and food everywhere. I walked into the camp and I was handed a huge bowl of fresh cut watermelon, followed by a soda and 4 hot dogs. After experiencing the kind of isolation, thirst, hunger, and exhaustion I've been through in the last few days during the Mojave, this overwhelming display of trail magic means the world to me. I really was not expecting to see any trail angels out here in the middle of nowhere. I am so thankful they're here!

-A trail angel gave me and 3 other hikers a ride to Onyx, CA where we then waited for a bus to Lake Isabella, CA. We decided to split a room at Isabella Motel. I ate dinner with High Low at McDonalds- yum! I jumped in the pool for a bit, showered, talked to family, and am now updating this blog. I miss all of you at home!