- Date: 13th May
- Pct day: 8
- Start: Mile 101
- End: Mile 113
- Distance: 12 Miles
- Start name: barrel springs
- End name: just past Warner springs
- Wake up: 06:30
- Start hiking: 07:15
- At camp: 19:50
- In bed: 20:45
Key moments
- Felt super sore after a long day and night hiking the day before
- Crawled out of my tent to have a bunch of people say “woh Nick, when did your get here!?” At 930 last night!
- I got into my hiking gear and had a nice hike with three new hikers, Caleb, Lauren, and Max.
- It was gorgeous light in the morning through easy prairie walking, as well as nice streams to soak our feet in. We were all sore
- it started to heat up as we made it to Eagle Rock, a local rock formation that really does look like an eagle, and is a sacred site for the First Nations people here
- we shlepped it to Warner Springs gas station and post office, where I realised that indeed did not send anything to myself at a Warner Springs! Ugh. Thankfully I had taken a photo of all my parcels, so I could confirm for real that I hadn’t sent anything there.
- A lesson learnt, to check that info before I rush out on a postal mission. But honesty it was good to get in early and beat the heat.
- All the hikers had been talking about these sausages at the gas station and I was like “yeah how good can they be”. Well they were so good it like didn’t make sense. Like, hands down the best sausages I’ve ever had. Wow. It didn’t make sense how a sausage could taste so good - apparently it is from a local pig farmer next door.
- Did a resupply at the Gas station
- Got a ride into the community Center from a local trail angle - “Off Track”, who was super cool.
- We all just hung out at the community centre, washing our clothes in the large sinks they had put out back, and having bucket showers in these stalls they had made. It didn’t sound great at first but I tell you, those were good bucket showers.
- Lounged around in the shade talking to other hikers about what’s coming up and other random topics. It was a really cool vibe.
- Everyone traded stories about a zany hiker they had met on the PCT before everyone realised it was the same person
- Everyone was also talking about how they started a bit too fast to try and stay with their friends they just met, and there was a sense of rushing. It was nice to hear as I feel like I’m also feeling a sense of trying to rush and stay with people I’ve met. But there are just as many cool people behind me as there are ahead
- slowly everyone got up and left to get out in the cool of the afternoon, and I hiked on with a new friend just a few miles to a small stream
Plan from here
- hike about 16 miles tomorrow, doing a split day, hiking until 10am, then taking a big break during the day.
Animals sighted
- Californian Condor (or maybe turkey vulture?)
- rabbits
- Cows
- Ants, which incidentally got into my pants
Gear thoughts
- I would prefer if my bag had an internal frame, I think
- Cold soaked food isn’t as good as hot food, but it will do
- I’m keen to try out a closed cell foam mat
Physical condition
- blisters on the outside ankle of both left and right foot
- Blister on the ball of my right foot
Thoughts and Observations
- this afternoon I felt totally zonked and quite mentally exhausted
- While it is beautiful to be here, and there’s a mental challenge that I expected, it seemed like a few of us hikers were realising we needed to slow down a bit and take it easier
- Blisters really take the zing out of the day
- Sometimes you end up ona campsite where every way you lie down seems to be slanting downwards
