This morning I awoke to the buzzing sound of hungry mosquitoes wanting to get in the tarptent for breakfast. Nothing doing! I ate my own breakfast, packed up everything that was inside and slipped it all outside through the zippered screen, donned my rainpants, sun hat and buzz off bandana, put a little Deet on my hands and face, then made a quick exit. I danced around a little while packing the backpack at lightning speed, got it on my back, and was walking before 7:00 a.m.
On the 3.2 mile descent to the first water cache (which we were unsure of the status – full or empty?) the trees became noticeably more scant. Finally, as I rounded a curve, there was one last tree; beyond and below there was nothing but desert scrub and some dwarf sized Joshua trees. Stopping for a quick break, both Doodlebug and I relieved ourselves at the local outhouse (basically, any place you chose) and Nitro caught up. Next stop was the cache near Kelso Valley road, the first paved (single lane) road in 35 miles. My mood, already happy, became more so when I saw that several of the 2 liter soda bottles were full of precious water. The cache was a mess, with empty bottles strewn on top of full ones, so I took the time to reorganize the cache, putting all empties a few feet away off the trail. After the three of us had filled up with 6-7 liters each and had chugged a little as well, there were still 12-13 gallons left for other thru-hikers behind us.
The day was already hot, and the consistency of the tread of the trail was soft sand, like the sand back east on the beach up near the dunes. This made taking steps very difficult. So did the numerous tight undulations caused by the jerks who continuously ride their dirt bikes and ATV’s on the PCT despite the fact that there are miles and miles of trails marked and provided for them. Those trail conditions were consistent throughout the day’s hike. So hiking was slow through now totally desert terrain, with a lunch break at the multi-road-and-path junction to Willow Spring. There was virtually no shade except for a couple square feet directly under the occasional sparse Joshua tree. Nitro and I managed to squeeze under one; Doodlebug arrived as I was finishing my lunch, and I relinquished my spot to her. She was having a particularly rough go of it in the heat and didn’t feel well, and the miles were ticking away very slowly for her.
Nitro and I pushed on to a ridge crest saddle where we again took a break from the heat under another Joshua tree, just a few yards from an old abandoned gold mining operation. We rested and studied the data book and guidebook while sucking back water and waiting for Doodlebug to catch up. Before she did, Mountain Goat and Bill (Intruder) showed up and pulled up a chair (ha) in the sun beside us for a brief visit. Doodlebug arrived in a very unpleasant mood as she continued her struggle with the heat. We waited a few minutes (now 3:00 p.m., 12 miles hiked), then Nitro and I began to crank some miles toward the next possible water cache. I was okay until we had to climb 700 feet on moderately steep ascent. Then the heat and dehydration combined to give me a sick, nauseous feeling, and my legs felt wobbly on the ascent.
Once we gained elevation and the grade lessened, I felt much better and we continued to a road crossing for another short break. We soon resumed hiking, and around 6:00 p.m. we pulled into a dirt road crossing at Bird Spring Pass. There was another cache of water there. Thank you for that. My 7 liters were nearly gone from the early morning cache. Nitro and I gobbled down dinner, and then chewed the fat for a few minutes with Mountain Goat, who arrived as we were finishing dinner. We then began refilling our water containers for the 13 remaining waterless trail miles of the 35 mile waterless stretch (this section would be extremely difficult without the water caches provided by trail angels).
Just as we were filling up, Doodlelbug arrived and she was obviously done for the day. Eighteen miles in desert heat is a tough go. And yet, both Nitro and I have concerns about running out of food before we reach Kennedy Meadows. So Nitro and I did the evening hike, setting out just after 7:00 p.m. on a 2.5-mile, 1000-foot climb. Rejuvenated by calories from dinner and a liter of Gatorade, I felt great in the cooler evening temperatures with a stiff wind blowing. I made it up in 55 minutes with Nitro only 10 minutes behind. I found a flat spot, very windy, but with a small man-made rock wall intended as a wind break. I got a couple of shots of a great sunset, and then did some construction of my own to enlarge the rock wall. Nitro arrived and we settled on cowboy camping arrangements since it was windy and desert…meaning no mosquitoes. While setting out my ground cloth, I found the first scorpion of the hike. Got a couple of pictures, then carried the little chap a few feet away to acquaint him with a new piece of real estate in a new neighborhood, away from my sleeping bag. It’s a dark, windy, and cool night and time for this journal to end. Doodlebug will catch up tomorrow morning. Just a few more dozen miles of desert, and then…snow.
Today’s weather: sunny, high cirrus clouds; low 55, high 100. Today’s mileage: 21.1; cumulative miles 633.8.
