May 19, 2016

Bushcamp (Mile 672.9) to bushcamp (mile 693.9)

Miles: 21

We awoke to a blue sky and birds chirping. We watched the sunlight pour in through the trees around us through the mesh of our tent. This is the life!

We have really enjoyed the precipitation free nights. Sleeping in our tent without the fly is like bug free cowboy camping. We see the stars and feel the wind but don’t have to worry about scorpions or snakes crawling over us at night.

We did a better job packing, breaking camp and hitting the trail. It was 7:18am when we started walking.

Immediately the trail continued up. It was a gradual climb which allowed our muscles and core temperature to warm up. We hiked amongst the trees feeling grateful for the shade and hoping that it would continue. Without the breeze the air was warm.

After 1.4 miles we came to a meadow colored with yellow and purple flowers. We took a moment to enjoy the view before starting down into a valley.

The trail was gradual which allowed us to walk faster. Andy was captivated by the jagged peaks and kept stopping to take pictures.

Just before the lowest point we stopped on some rocks to take our shoes off and eat a bag of very heavy and delicious trail mix. Our new strategy is to eat the heaviest foods first, no matter how much we like it (and want to save it for later) or how long it’s been since we last had it.

We ran into a botanist from the Bay Area who is out here doing field work. She mentioned that Chimney Creek Campground is a wonderful place to come without the typical crowds of a drive-in campground. We made note of this for the future and walked on.

From here the trail climbed another 2,367 ft. Two miles into the climb we came to Fox Mill Spring. The water was flowing well here. We filled up 2 liters each, Laurie washed out her socks and underwear and we ate lunch.

Hikers tend to gather at watering holes. The topic of conversation these days is “The Sierras” and what each hiker plans to do.

Laurie came up with a tentative itinerary for the next 6 days – we will learn more tomorrow when we get to Kennedy Meadows. It is reassuring to Laurie to have a plan so we will start with that and adapt as needed.

We chatted a bit with a couple named Jenny and Justin who are also from San Francisco and have a similar plan. We will see if our timelines match up once in Kennedy Meadows.

We left the spring and continued to climb. Laurie played music that we both could hear to help motivate and distract us from the effort. It was hot. We walked out of the forest and into a previously burned area. We could see the trail traversing the mountains around us.

Sometimes it is better not to know where the trail goes. This one went on for a long while it seemed, but looked very gradual.

Andy suggested that the trail should be called the Pacific Traverse Trail rather than Pacific Crest Trail.

Eventually we got to the high point. In the distance we could see white snowy peaks. Andy got goosebumps. We had made it through the desert and soon (hopefully) we will be walking through the Sierra Nevada mountains!

We started to descend, again traversing the hillside. We could see the trail in the distance and every turn we made the trail just kept going.

The wind was strong creating a lot of dust. Laurie, who was walking behind Andy, gave him more space than usual so as not to swallow dust.

“Eeeek” squealed Laurie

“What is it?” Asked Andy who was 20 ft ahead, now walking back to Laurie who was frozen in place.

“A little snake” replied Laurie. She’s never sure which snakes are rattlers and which aren’t so unfortunately all snakes scare her A LOT.

By the time Andy walked back the small garter snake had retreated to the bushes. They move fast when they want to!

About 20 minutes later Andy came to an abrupt halt, holding his poles out on either side. A rattlesnake slithered into the bushes near the trail. It never rattled and didn’t seem the least bit interested in us.

“I knew the desert wasn’t going to let us go that easily” stated Andy with a smile.

Three horny toads and 2 snakes – not bad for our last day in the desert.

Tomorrow we reach Kennedy Meadows – the official end to the desert and the beginning of the Sierras.

We continued our descent into Rockhouse Basin, reaching Manter Creek just after 6pm. We had anticipated to arrive here at 7pm. We were cookin on the gentle trail.

The General – a hiker we met the night before was already set up and greeted us upon arrival. He warned us of biting red ants and where to get good running water.

Many people were already camped here, including Bridget and Alex from Austin, Texas. We met them first near Mt. Baden Powell and hadn’t seen them again til yesterday.

We got two liters of water from the creek and hiked about a quarter of a mile up the trail before finding a nice, flat spot near a large, weathered rock with lots of character.

The entire evening we watched clouds roll in. Eventually Andy put up the fly in case the weather turned.

Tomorrow, we reach the end of the desert!! What a ride it has been.

Tonight we are grateful for the PCT water report and our hats.

May 18, 2016

Bushcamp (mile 653.9) to bushcamp (mile 672.9)

Miles: 19

We awoke to a beautiful morning. The birds were chirping and the sky was pink. Laurie didn’t want to get up so she did everything she could think of to procrastinate – tickle Andy, eat left overs and study the map for water sources.

Two hours after waking up we were finally walking. Luckily it was only 7:30 am.

The air was cool. Initially we climbed gradually and then leveled out – walking amongst trees and watching the pink sky turn to blue. Many hikers passed us as we got ready. We caught up with some on the trail – many new faces but some familiar ones.

The desert valleys around us were beautiful – barren yet striking in contrast to the now blue cloudless sky. We are in a transition zone – the mountains are changing. There are more trees, more jagged rocks and actual mountains compared to hills. We can also feel it in our legs as we walk up and down steeper trails.

The trail started to climb again. At times we walked on soft dirt and other times pokey rocks. The rocks made us smile – recognizing that we are getting close to the Sierras where much of the trail is rocky.

We climbed up 1,100 ft only to descend another 2,100 ft.

In the valley we passed more Joshua trees and yucca – the last of the desert section. Lizards scampered out of our way while Andy hoped they would stop on exposed rocks and do push-ups.

We passed a muddy stream and climbed up a spur trail at the 2nd crossing of the same stream to get water. We used a scooper to collect the water due to the low water flow.

Our scooper is nothing more than the bottom quarter of a Smart Water bottle Andy cut from an old bottle. It works great and fits snugly on other Smart Water bottles making it easy to transport.

We collected 7 liters in total for the next 13 miles including 1 liter to use to cook dinner that night. It was hot and we had more climbing to do.

The water tasted good but had lots of sediment floating around. We look forward to the lakes and running streams of the sierras – hopefully they won’t all be frozen!

We climbed another 1,600 ft into the afternoon and evening light. There was rarely a breeze so it felt hot! Funny how we thought we were done with the desert heat.

Eventually, we came to a saddle. It was a false summit but there were 2 campsites and a few more off a spur trail. We found a nice little spot surrounded by trees and protected from the wind.

We dropped our poles indicating this was home for the night. Unfortunately there were mosquitos so we hurriedly put up the tent and crawled in.

We cleaned and inspected our feet and sorted through our packs trying to figure out why Laurie’s pack was so heavy.

It must be the all that candy 🙂

The setting sun lit up the sky once more in pink and purple hues. We are both cozy in our sleeping bags ready for a good nights rest.

Tonight we are thankful for spring water and our cozy home (our tent).

May 17, 2016

Bushcamp (mile 643.7) to bushcamp (mile 653.8)

Miles: 9.4 (plus 0.7 mile hitch)

We woke up excited to get to Walker Pass Campground. Today was Andy’s dad’s birthday and they were coming to meet us.

We were walking by 6:30am and welcomed the refreshing morning air. The trail was mellow, weaving amongst pine trees and meadows with low brush. Rabbits ran across the trail in front of us and lucky for us it was too early for rattlesnakes!

Dark clouds covered mountains in the distance. A few drops fell on our heads but nothing major.

We descended 1700 ft down to the campground where we ran into a bunch of other campers. Brian was there with the best PCT support vehicle we have seen yet. His wife, Alta is hiking the trail and he finds dirt roads and campgrounds to meet her every few days. His set up and level of support was inspiring!

About 10 minutes after arriving at the campground it started to rain and then hail. We hurriedly put a tarp (courtesy of Brian of course) over a picnic table canopy and huddled together under the shelter. Fifteen minutes later is was sunny.

The weather continued like this all day. Threatening clouds, rain, wind and sun.

Andy’s parents pulled up in the familiar Super Shuttle and we ran to meet them with a happy birthday sign we had drawn on our Tyvek groundsheet.

Although Andy’s parents had come prepared with everything from 10 gallons of water, 5 courses of food,  a clothes line and clothes pins, we decided to drive down to Lake Isabela to get service to upload our last 4 days worth of blog posts.

We anticipate minimal to no service for the next 10 days and wanted to keep our readers informed. We hope you didn’t worry too much!

We drove 3 other hikers the 35 miles into town and found a campground near the lake to set up a picnic.

By that time it was noon and we were all hungry. We enjoyed all the delicious fresh food too quickly. It all satisfied our food fantasies. Andy’s mom and aunt had prepared stuffed grape leaves (with rice), stuffed bell peppers (with quinoa, tofu, spinach and feta cheese), shredded chicken with grilled onions, potato salad, green salad and a cake. There were also mango, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries.

After gorging ourselves we did laundry in a bucket and Laurie took a shower using the campground faucet. So classy!

It must have been a sight for cars driving by – a naked woman squatting in a bucket with a woman pouring water over her. Andy’s mom was having a lot of fun too!

We spent over an hour trying to upload our posts with pictures but it wouldn’t work. We finally got them uploaded but with minimal pictures. We’re hoping this doesn’t become a theme.

We then sorted through our food and switched out gear. In 3 days we enter the Sierras and from what we hear there is still a LOT of snow. We have microspikes and ice axes but are still nervous.

Our plan is to go one day at a time, listen to our guts and never put ourselves in danger. We have plenty of food and can always turn around if need be.

Once our bags were packed with bear cans, 4 liters of water, thicker long underwear and ice axe/whippet they  were heavy! It is nice knowing that they will only get lighter.

From Walker Pass we have our last 20 mile water carry for a while and we are looking forward to loosing that water weight.

After a second meal and cake we got a ride back to Walker Pass. From here it was only 1.7 miles to our planned campsite. It was a long 1.7 miles with heavy packs and 900 ft of elevation gain.

We walked slowly as the sun faded. The alpine glow illuminated the desolate desert mountains around us. The clouds reflected a strong pinkish- orange glow. It felt magical.

Poor Andy was not feeling so hot. He had hiccups as he climbed which made it hard to breathe. He also had heartburn which made matters worse. Laurie giggled at the grunts Andy made as we slowly walked uphill. Andy didn’t mind though. He still loves her.

We liked hiking in the twilight hours. We especially enjoyed seeing our shadows courtesy of the moon.

At 8:30pm we found a flat spot on top of the ridge. We quickly set up the tent ans crawled in. The air was still and the moon was bright.

We are cozy in our sleeping bags, fortunate to be here and ready for another good night’s sleep.

Tonight we are grateful for cell phone reception and a loving family.