Day 48: Mile 767 to 782 (15 miles)
Woke up and was off by 7am to get back to the PCT and climb the first of many passes. It wasn’t long before I passed Rain Gear who was on his way to summit Mt. Whitney. About halfway into the day the pain in my right leg came back. It had been feeling great and was surprised it had come back.
Day 45: Mile 731 to 751 (20 miles)
The views today were great and really started to get more of a sense of what I was to expect in the next couple of days as I continue to climb higher and higher. I probably could of made more miles but I kept stopping at all the great views I kept getting and really slowed me down.
Day 42: Mile 698 to 702 (4 miles)
Got to sleep in this morning which is rare. Today was a simple flat four mile hike into Kennedy Meadows where I will hit the big milestone of completing the desert section and get ready to move into the Sierras. As the general store came into view, I noticed a lot of people wandering around the outside deck and all a sudden I was greeted by cheers and clapping by all the hikers. It was a great feeling to know I had completed and survived the desert with no issues. (not counting the phone problem)
Day 38: Mile 616 to 635 (19 miles)
Woke up early expecting a hot day. Steep climb early and not long as the sun had come over the horizon, I was taking off my warmer layers and already sweating in the morning heat. It felt like a long day as I moved slower then normal until I reached lunch where Shuffle spotted a gopher snake.
(Morning camp with Rain Gear and Shuffle)
Day 35: Mile 566 to 573 (7 miles)
Woke up to a rainy morning and sitting in my motel room waiting for the phone to arrive. The owner of the Santa Fe Motel was super nice and allowed me to stay in my room past checkout time and wait for my phone to arrive. It finally showed up at noon and I was eager to get out of town. Other hikers tried to talk me into waiting another day for the bad weather to pass but I needed to leave before I went crazy. I called Kathy who is a trail angel in Tehachapi and she quickly picked me up and took me to the post office to send back my old phone and take me back to the trail head.
Day 31: Mile 518 to 529 (11 miles)
Got my new phone early this morning and sent the old one back. While at post office, a guy who knew I was a hiker offered me a ride. Being I have a long ways to go to get back to where I left off, he was able to at least get me just outside of town where I was able to hitch two more rides that got me back into Hiker Town. My last hitch was from Douglas who I am sure was a little surprised to see a hiker on a road far away from the trail and basically in the middle of no where. I was very thankful for the ride as he also stopped at the store for me so I can grab some water and Gatorade for the trail. Douglas has also been interested in hiking the PCT as well at some point and hopefully he gets the chance to do so.
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