Tag: thru-hiking

October 18th, 2018Deep Creek bridge mm 310 to mm 278.5Distance: 31.5 miles0630 – 1830 Today was all about going uphill…but gradually. I gained more than 7000′ over 29 miles, going from about 3000′ in elevation up to just shy of 8000′. Consequently, I didn’t do as many miles as hoped for but that’s ok. I think this was the longest continuous stretch going uphill so far. I continued up the canyon and shortly came to some hot springs. I found Kuba packing up there. I tried some of the pools but they were way too tepid for my taste. I need my hot springs to be “mother of dragons” hot. Perhaps in the middle of the day they were fine[…]

October 17th, 2018Cajon Pass Interstate 15 mm 342 to Deep Creek bridge mm 310Distance: 32 miles0800 – 1830 Overnight, I bought a one-way ticket from Phoenix to Miami for the 31st… now I had a deadline. If I averaged 30 miles a day, I would make it to the border by the 28th…just 12 more days, including this one. It probably wasn’t realistic to do this, since I also had to factor in town stops. I was feeling very optimistic, I guess. The hotel had a good continental breakfast, so I was able to stuff myself before resuming the trail. I was glad to get away from all the hub-bub of that busy interstate. The noise quickly disappeared as the[…]

October 16th, 2018Grassy Hollow Visitor Center mm 370 to Cajon Pass Interstate 15 mm 342Distance: 28 miles plus a couple miles walking around town0620 – 1600 I stayed warm overnight but it was very cold outside. I even took a benadryl so that I would sleep through the night. The wind continued to rage. I left on all my layers starting out in the morning, including my tights. I was contemplating going into the town of Wrightwood, since I needed groceries and batteries for my Spot device. One mile from camp was a highway where I could hitch. But I got there at 7 am and there was no traffic. I couldn’t bear to stand around in the wind and[…]

October 15th, 2018Three Points trailhead mm 403 to Grassy Hollow Visitor Center mm 370Distance: 33 miles plus 1 extra mile on mandatory alternate0610 – 1855 The wind rose up fierce overnight and I had a hard time sleeping. My tent was pretty protected but I still had to get up to search for rocks to cover the stakes. Even then, the fabric was vibrating violently and bashing me in the head. I was awake at 3 am and couldn’t get back to sleep. So I started my routine at 4 am. During that time, my front stake pulled out twice and the tent swallowed me. Then I thought my tent stuff bag blew away and I spent some time looking[…]

October 14th, 2018North Fork Station mm 436 to Three Points trailhead mm 403Distance: 33 miles0640 – 1800 Everything was soaked in the morning and I packed a very wet tent. But the sky was clear and I was treated to a unique scene. There were clouds in the valleys, making it look like the ocean had come in to swallow everything but the mountain peaks. I was now atop a series of islands. It was a stunning sight to behold. I climbed and descended a lot today…8100′ up and 6500′ down. It was tiring but at least it stayed relatively cool all day. For lunch, I came to a trailhead with a water spigot…the first water since camp 17 miles[…]

October 13th, 2018Agua Dulce mm 454.5 to North Fork Station mm 436Distance: 18.51145 – 1830 This 100th day was a great one! The title will make more sense later. But first, there were a couple details I left out from yesterday. I didn’t describe my encounter with Cornelius. Readers will recall from previous blogs, I have a thing for catching chickens (and ducks, geese, peacocks, and… lots of birds). But especially roosters. Well, the Saufleys had a flock and so I asked Donna if I could catch one. Her reply was ‘good luck, you’ll have to get past Cornelius first.’ Ah, I thought, even better that they have a sassy rooster. To preface, she did warn me profusely about how[…]

October 12th, 2018Lake Hughes rd mm 485.5 to Agua Dulce mm 554.5, then Hiker HeavenDistance: 31 miles plus 2 miles walking back and forth to Hiker Heaven0545 – 1600 I was awake around 4 am, so I just started my morning routine a bit earlier. It was nice to get such an early start on the trail. It was a cool morning and also partly cloudy most of the day. The desert conditions continued to be easy. About 10 miles in, there was a fire station with a water spigot. It had a warning about Ecoli, so I filtered the water. This appeared to be the last water source for the next 20 miles but I only grabbed 1.5 liters.[…]

October 11th, 2018HWY 138 mm 517.5 to Lake Hughes rd mm 485.5Distance: 32 miles0715 – 1800 I was up even earlier than usually because I wanted to make sure I got a breakfast burrito as soon as the store opened at 5 am. I got one with chorizo and it was huge and delicious. The owner was ready to drive us at 6:30 am and we were back on the trail by 7 am. I was hoping to get at least 30 miles hiked this day, so I hiked fast. I was also feeling energized by all the food I’d eaten. I left the desert for the hills, which were surprisingly forested at the top. The trail went up through[…]

October 10th, 2018Gamble Spring Canyon Mm 545 to HWY 138 mm 517.5, then ride to Weeville Market and GrillDistance: 27.5 miles0605 – 1500 I packed faster than usual and was on the trail by 6 am. With 8 of us at camp and a few more just ahead and behind, I worried there might not be enough water at the next cache. I laughed to myself that going southbound was suddenly starting to become competitive…but not really. It was nice to enjoy the sunrise over the desert. I had to walk across a portion of the Mojave today. It’s notoriously hot and windy, so many walk it at night. There was no need for such measures, as the temps never[…]

October 9th, 2018Mm 566.5 to Gamble Spring Canyon mm 545Distance: 21.5 miles1015 – 1830 We had a leisurely morning at the house. I used the time to order some new shoes for my next stop, Agua Dulce. We also played a lot with the 2 dogs, Piper the doodle and Dallas the boxer. It’s great to spend time with pets. Kuba and Piper playing ball Cory drove us to the PO and we picked up Lator Gator, who was walking along the road. As we were leaving the PO, we saw Cheesy Poof and Legit walking in (they are the 2 women I shared a ride to Etna with, along with the dead deer). They later got dropped off just[…]