5/18/20, mile: 609, elevation: 6,250 ft.
I rolled through 600 miles today! And for the first half of the day, that was about the highlight of it.
I awoke early as usual and exited the tent to dig my cat hole and offload some weight. Once back in my tent and packing up, the rain started. Crap. I was hoping I could get my stuff packed before it got wet, but no joy. And within minutes of hitting the trail my shoes, socks and pant legs were soaked by the wet grass and bushes. There was no avoiding it. It was a light rain (though wind driven) and so I wasn’t wearing rain gear since I was burning enough calories to keep my shirt mostly dry. At least for a while. After several miles, I decided I needed to use the rest of my water to cook some hot food to warm up. I tresspassed on some private property (nobody home at this remote place) and used a non-functioning commercial refrigerator as a shelter to cook and eat. Total hiker trash move and image. I left it as I found it and walked on in heavier rain. I was starting to consider giving up for the day and just hiding in my tent, but figured I wasn’t going to get much wetter.
I got to the next water source and considered my options. I finally pulled out my rain gear; jacket for me, the rain pants for my backpack since I don’t have a pack cover. And I marched on. This last couple of miles has been on a dirt road, so it just wasn’t fun or pretty. But at least there wasn’t grass and bushes to get me wet below the knees. As I walked along, it finally dawned on me I was near the 600 mile mark. I couldn’t find an “official” one, so I made my own and quickly moved on. No celebration, no rebel yell, no tears. Just cold, wet and still alone.
I’m baffled that I haven’t seen any other hikers. Two left before me on the same day, so I should have found at least one of them. And I was kinda trying to catch Gunner and The Tropper, just ’cause. I tried to read footprints the last couple of days, but the rain is now washing that away.
And then an amazing thing happened. The PCT finally leaves the road, crosses over a ridge top in the trees, and all of a sudden the rain stops and the clouds start to lift. The forest is cool and wet, with the sound of water drops falling from tree tops onto the leaves of the underbrush below. The smell of the moisture is now refreshing, inviting. I finally start to dry my clothes as I walk and even start to get warm. It’s a shorter walk to the next water source which is a flowing stream! What a change from the desert.
At the stream, I take the time to rinse some of my clothes of the dust and salt, as well as rinse my socks of the mud that has formed from the dust collected over the last two days. I’m in a much better mood now, and the trail joins me by being easy flowing with a soft tread and wide enough to avoid wet vegetation. Water is now plentiful, so I’m only carrying a liter and downing it as fast as I get to the next stream. I’m planning on camping at an OHV staging area that has a spring, and is also the begining of another long stretch of water-less terrain. But that’s for tomorrow….
Holy shitballs, there’s Safety’s tent! It’s like 3-O’clock and he’s been here hiding from the rain since noon or so (same time I was considering the same). We catch up on our time on trail the last two days and he tells me how rodents stole some of the guy lines for his tent the night before….not chewed, stole. Kinda funny since it didn’t happen to me. I’m still pumped up about the last couple of miles, so I head on out to finish my day.
My campsite is kinda open but still in big trees. The wind is worse than I hoped, but certainly not the worst I’ve experienced. Most importantly, the sun was out so I could get my stuff dry as I set up camp and collected water at the spring. The couple of days are another venture back into the true desert. Oh, and more rain predicted for tonight/tomorrow morning.
Savior out.