Today has been the most extreme roller coaster of emotions. Julia woke me up at 1:30AM because her tooth hurt and needed an ibuprofen (mom's, don't freak out). Problem was, she has a hard time taking a pill at the best of times, let alone when we don't have any water! Luckily we were still high enough that there was snow nearby, so I went and got her some snow and she managed.
Later that morning, we walked the 1.2 miles to the Fuller Ridge Trailhead where there was a meadow with a couple little pools of water from which we could filter the 7 or so liters we needed for the next 15, hot, shadeless, downhill miles we needed to cover before the next water source. Because of this, we got a late start and didn't start the bulk of the day's miles until 8:15, and it gets hot quick and early out here. Today was mostly downhill, but it still seemed to take forever. Oh! We saw 3 rattlesnakes today!! Anyways, we took breaks when we could find a few feet of shade, which wasn't often. The late afternoon heat took it's toll on us but we knew we just needed to get down to the water faucet at the bottom of this damn mountain! We could literally see where we would end up, way back from up the mountain, but you have to do what seems like a million long switch backs to get down. FINALLY! We could see it getting closer and closer and I made a sprint to it when we were within about 150 meters. A water fountain, kind of in the middle of nowhere. Cold, refreshing, delicious. I chugged hard. The read the sign that said you should treat this water like you would any other water on the PCT. hmmmm I'll be fine I'm sure. We cooked dinner there (me mashed potatoes and hot sauce, Julia had Spanish Rice. There we met 'gut feeling', a nice girl from Iowa, with whom we walked the final 5 miles to Ziggy and Bear's place. About 3.5 miles into the walk, you cross under a highway, and there were beers and sodas, cold beers and sodas. I had an MGD and Julia had a coke, which we would typically not consume at home, but they were oh so good in the moment. There were a few others there that were going to spend the night, but the three of us decided to press on, in the dark.
We finally made it to Ziggy and Bear's. We expected a back yard with space to cowboy camp (no tent). We were wrong. Oh, so incredibly, amazingly wrong. We were immediately greeted by Ziggy and Bear and they offered us ice cream and tubs with hot water for our feet. They have wifi and computers we can use and so much more. Wow. After such a trying day (oh, I also got a bee sting on my ring finger of my left hand.... Hmmmm ;) ) this place is that much more appreciated. It's people like Ziggy and Bear, and places like these that really help keep you going. We've met so many unbelievably generous people already, and we're not even 10% done! This whole hiking thing will probably be a one and done sort of thing, but I'm so glad we went for it. We've been exposed to so many incredible experiences, and special, kind people already. As I write this, I'm sleeping outside with about 20 or so other hikers, under a sky full of stars with perfect temperatures and a slight breeze. What will tomorrow bring? Can't wait.
Wow.
Canadian couple driven to live and eat naturally. We're travelling the world taking on challenges that test us physically, mentally and emotionally. Visit www.naturallydriven.ca for more!
Sunday, 13 May 2012
So much effort, so little distance
So this morning we woke up at 5:15AM and got ourselves all ready to get back on trail. We were to meet out front of the inn to get our ride to Devil's Slide Trail and so we did. We met Lava Goat there as she was also heading out and the three of us were carted off to begin our most difficult day yet. We knew what to expect with Devil's Slide, as we climbed down it a couple days earlier. It's a little over 2 miles, alllllll uphill. It wasn't all that bad, we had caffeine in the morning!! We made it to the top in about an hour and fifteen minutes, took a quick rest and then continued on, or rather BEGAN our day, because those miles up and down Devil's Slide don't count as PCT miles.
The rest of the day is a bit f a blur really. Lots of climbing, lots of descending, lots of snow and lots of confusion. We were zonked. We also had a full 5.5 or so days of food, so our packs are heavy as a biatch right now.
At least we have a lot of variety for meals I guess. We took lots of breaks, and I fell asleep on the side of the trail at one point, until 'toc' came by. He told
us he started on May 5th!! Way to make the rest of us feel like slackers. Our goal was to make it to 190.5 and the Fuller Ridge Trailhead where there is some water (apparently). Well the 7 of us that started the day together,
have ended the day together, mile189 or so. We're all pooped and ready for sleep. And Julia and I are out of water. At least we could cook dinner and have a little left over. But fingers crossed that we can get some in a mile and a half or so!
The rest of the day is a bit f a blur really. Lots of climbing, lots of descending, lots of snow and lots of confusion. We were zonked. We also had a full 5.5 or so days of food, so our packs are heavy as a biatch right now.
At least we have a lot of variety for meals I guess. We took lots of breaks, and I fell asleep on the side of the trail at one point, until 'toc' came by. He told
us he started on May 5th!! Way to make the rest of us feel like slackers. Our goal was to make it to 190.5 and the Fuller Ridge Trailhead where there is some water (apparently). Well the 7 of us that started the day together,
have ended the day together, mile189 or so. We're all pooped and ready for sleep. And Julia and I are out of water. At least we could cook dinner and have a little left over. But fingers crossed that we can get some in a mile and a half or so!
Wednesday, 9 May 2012
Fabulous Firsts
We left Warner at around 2PM Saturday, after more than 24 hours at that little hiker haven they had set up for us all. It was much needed R&R, but we felt the need to get back on trail and start moving towards Idyllwild, just under 70 miles away, but with plenty of climbing (net elevation gain of about 5000 feet). Saturday's dinner was eaten at Agua Caliente creek, about 5.5 miles down the trail from Warner. After dinner we decided to move along, as there was some climbing up ahead that we wanted to get done in the cool temperature of the evening. After almost 2 hours, and only another few miles up the trail, we found THE perfect spot to set up camp. Secluded, but it would be our first night alone, and Julia was a little nervous for this. No big deal though, as we were both so exhausted that we watched an episode of Big Bang Theory and then passed out.
Sunday was probably the most amazing day yet. Our total walking distance was 22 miles and we had some great variability in terms of terrain, scenery and weather. The morning was pretty typical actually, we stopped to have a snack on this huge boulder that had an incredible view. There, we met Landon. A guy (23) from the US, but that lived in Kanata for a coupleswWWaww of years and attended Sacred Heart High School in Stittsville!! After our break, we made our way to Mike Herrera'sww place (mile 127) to fill up on water. He's got this massive water tank on his property that he welcomes hikers to use, but it needs to be treated, no big deal, Thanks Mike!!
A little further up the trail, at ~ mile 128, we decided to stop for a nice long lunch. Our spot wasn't exactly shaded, but there was a constant breeze, so it was perfect. A nice chance to take off socks and shoes and I even took a nap on my Z Rest, with a chrome done providing shade. Every now and again, a cloud would come over us, something we hadn't experienced yet! So nice.
After lunch we saddled up and continued down the trail. For mid afternoon, the weather was perfect, a little overcast and a breeze. We got in some serious miles in the middle of the day, when it's typically boiling hot and we're reduced to a snail's pace. Well, out of nowhere it started to rain. For a while it was just light drops, but then it was pretty full-on and we're talking like wet snow type rain. Not hard, but heavy. We put our pack covers on and pulled out our rain jackets and chrome domes and just kept moving. There was also some thunder and lightning, we cooked dinner in the rain. No big deal because, as the Michigan Wolverine told Julia, we're 'PCT haaakers now'. After dinner, the rain seemed to cease and we trudged on to our goal finishing spot for the day, Nance Canyon, mile 140. We got here around 7:40PM, set up quickly, washed our feet, brushed our teeth, drank some water, sent a SPOT message and PASSED out. This morning we'll take it easy here, clean up some stuff (I smell horrendous) and then make some miles.
Sunday was probably the most amazing day yet. Our total walking distance was 22 miles and we had some great variability in terms of terrain, scenery and weather. The morning was pretty typical actually, we stopped to have a snack on this huge boulder that had an incredible view. There, we met Landon. A guy (23) from the US, but that lived in Kanata for a coupleswWWaww of years and attended Sacred Heart High School in Stittsville!! After our break, we made our way to Mike Herrera'sww place (mile 127) to fill up on water. He's got this massive water tank on his property that he welcomes hikers to use, but it needs to be treated, no big deal, Thanks Mike!!
A little further up the trail, at ~ mile 128, we decided to stop for a nice long lunch. Our spot wasn't exactly shaded, but there was a constant breeze, so it was perfect. A nice chance to take off socks and shoes and I even took a nap on my Z Rest, with a chrome done providing shade. Every now and again, a cloud would come over us, something we hadn't experienced yet! So nice.
After lunch we saddled up and continued down the trail. For mid afternoon, the weather was perfect, a little overcast and a breeze. We got in some serious miles in the middle of the day, when it's typically boiling hot and we're reduced to a snail's pace. Well, out of nowhere it started to rain. For a while it was just light drops, but then it was pretty full-on and we're talking like wet snow type rain. Not hard, but heavy. We put our pack covers on and pulled out our rain jackets and chrome domes and just kept moving. There was also some thunder and lightning, we cooked dinner in the rain. No big deal because, as the Michigan Wolverine told Julia, we're 'PCT haaakers now'. After dinner, the rain seemed to cease and we trudged on to our goal finishing spot for the day, Nance Canyon, mile 140. We got here around 7:40PM, set up quickly, washed our feet, brushed our teeth, drank some water, sent a SPOT message and PASSED out. This morning we'll take it easy here, clean up some stuff (I smell horrendous) and then make some miles.
We got high!
Today we woke up before the crack of dawn (5:15am) and packed up our things, then said our goodbyes to George - the curious mouse who scurried over our gear. We hit the trail by 6:30 and the climbing began straight away. We were fortunate that we were hiking on the side of the mountain that was still hidden from the sun, so it provided us a great opportunity to get lots of cool, breezy miles in before the heat of sun got to us. We hiked through some gorgeous areas with massive boulders scattered everywhere. We took a short break about 2 hours in and the views were already amazing. The panoramas would only get better from that point. We hiked about 7 miles (mostly uphill) before getting more water. Bizzy ran down to Eagle spring, a quarter mile off trail. It wasn't the prettiest stuff, but we filtered it and it was ok. From there we descended all the way down to ~6000 feet at Fobes Saddle and had lunch and a rest before the big climb back up at around 7200 feet where we are now. At Apache Spring, Bizzy again ran down the half mile, 500 foot decent to get 5L of water and haul it back up. It took him 20 minutes and 43 seconds, obviously he timed it. After that, we hiked the last 2.7 beautifully amazing miles to our final camp spot at 172.2 miles and 7186 feet. Tomorrow morning we'll hammer out another 1000 or so feet uphill over 3 miles, the cruise the last 9 miles or so to Idyllwild via Devil's Slide Trail. We have a room booked at Idyllwild Inn for tomorrow night and a date with a shower and a laundry facility.
As much as we're looking forward to getting to a town (been about a week), we absolutely love sleeping outside, in a new spot every night. Tonight's spot is probably our favorite yet. We found a tiny spot, barely fits our tent, just off trail. Nice and secluded, and there was room for cooking beside us and everything!!
As much as we're looking forward to getting to a town (been about a week), we absolutely love sleeping outside, in a new spot every night. Tonight's spot is probably our favorite yet. We found a tiny spot, barely fits our tent, just off trail. Nice and secluded, and there was room for cooking beside us and everything!!
Fabo Avos
Today's hike started at Nance Canyon, where we arrived very late last evening. We woke up late, washed up in the creek (ourselves and some clothes) and finally made it out at around 8:30AM.
The day started with a bunch of climbing out of the canyon. It was already pretty warm by then, and when you're climbing like that, it can zap your energy. Jubes had a bit of a grinder of a morning to get to the water cache at Table Mountain Rd, where we got a few liters of water, signed the register and chatted with a few fellow hikers (neon, on the move and vege (a vegan)). Shortly after that, we stopped for lunch at a beauty of a spot amongst some huge boulders. We sent a spot message, called our mothers and made a reservation for Wednesday night in Idyllwild. After lunch we were rejuvenated. We each listened to our iPods, Jubes listened to music and I listened to an IMTalk podcast and we made some serious miles. Felt great, especially for the middle of the day. We took one short break and then continued on for another 40 minutes or so until Jubes felt like she needed another break soon, but I knew we were getting really close to the next cache at HWY 74. Right at the perfect moment, we could see it in the distance and she knew she could get to it no problem. It was still about 5 minutes away, but you can see yourself making progress so it's easy to stay motivated at that point. Then I could see that there were water jugs there (because they can sometimes be dry, but we've been incredibly lucky so far). About 150 yards from the cache, there was a bucket on the side of the trail. Julia approached, looked in and almost wet herself. AVOCADOS!! She had goosebumps, and I think she hasn't been THAT excited since we've started this thing. She had a couple right there at the cache. Avos are one of her absolute favorites, so to get some when you least expect it and when your energy levels are low is such an amazing experience. We stayed at the cache (mile 151.9) for a little while and rested up in the mid afternoon. We decided to push on to a campsite at mile 156 and got here in no time. We're sharing a little area with another (older) couple from Canada and Andrew, a doctor from Melbourne. Andrew came over and introduced himself and chatted us up for a while and dropped a fart, without flinching, much to our delight!! Hahaha, perfect way to end a great day.
Tomorrow we hope to make some good miles so that Wednesday is a short trot to Idyllwild. Showers, here we come.
The day started with a bunch of climbing out of the canyon. It was already pretty warm by then, and when you're climbing like that, it can zap your energy. Jubes had a bit of a grinder of a morning to get to the water cache at Table Mountain Rd, where we got a few liters of water, signed the register and chatted with a few fellow hikers (neon, on the move and vege (a vegan)). Shortly after that, we stopped for lunch at a beauty of a spot amongst some huge boulders. We sent a spot message, called our mothers and made a reservation for Wednesday night in Idyllwild. After lunch we were rejuvenated. We each listened to our iPods, Jubes listened to music and I listened to an IMTalk podcast and we made some serious miles. Felt great, especially for the middle of the day. We took one short break and then continued on for another 40 minutes or so until Jubes felt like she needed another break soon, but I knew we were getting really close to the next cache at HWY 74. Right at the perfect moment, we could see it in the distance and she knew she could get to it no problem. It was still about 5 minutes away, but you can see yourself making progress so it's easy to stay motivated at that point. Then I could see that there were water jugs there (because they can sometimes be dry, but we've been incredibly lucky so far). About 150 yards from the cache, there was a bucket on the side of the trail. Julia approached, looked in and almost wet herself. AVOCADOS!! She had goosebumps, and I think she hasn't been THAT excited since we've started this thing. She had a couple right there at the cache. Avos are one of her absolute favorites, so to get some when you least expect it and when your energy levels are low is such an amazing experience. We stayed at the cache (mile 151.9) for a little while and rested up in the mid afternoon. We decided to push on to a campsite at mile 156 and got here in no time. We're sharing a little area with another (older) couple from Canada and Andrew, a doctor from Melbourne. Andrew came over and introduced himself and chatted us up for a while and dropped a fart, without flinching, much to our delight!! Hahaha, perfect way to end a great day.
Tomorrow we hope to make some good miles so that Wednesday is a short trot to Idyllwild. Showers, here we come.
Tiny Tuna = Hiking / Dancing Machine
This morning we woke up in Julian, in a nice little lodge, in a bed, with a TV, toilet and shower. The short nine mile day we did yesterday was nice and we enjoyed our time in Julian, but it was a big day we had planned. We had to hitch back to Scissors Crossing and then hike the 24 miles to Barrel Springs. We each took a 200mg caffeine tab upon waking, more to induce a bowel movement than anything, but the energy would be great as well for this epic (so far) day. We left the lodge just after 6AM to go out to the main road and look for a hitch. Julia did some fantastic dancing (I have videos) and we got a hitch in about 15 minutes. By the time we got down to the trail head and began our day, it was 7AM. We signed the register at the water cache there and then headed off.
Between Scissors and Barrel Springs there's one water cache 14 miles into the day, and it can always be dry, so you need to start with enough water to get you to BS, just to be sure. Our morning was incredible. We both felt great, the air was cool and we we're climbing up and up and up! Great, easy walking. Don't get me wrong, we are hiking, like these trails ain't THAT easy and it's rarely more than a foot wide but it was great walking. We always joke that Jubers has 'Morning Legs' because she always does great in
the morning and at night but the heat of the day really gets to her. Well by 10AM we had gone 8+ miles and felt great, but then it slowed significantly, and it was my fault, not hers. She was hammering allllllll day. I had a couple blisters on my left foot that got more painful as the day got hotter. After what seemed to take forever, we stumbled across the glorious water cache at third gate, and before we could see the water jugs, our good pal Batman asked for ID. Haha. We got a gallon jug of water, took a couple of liters from it, signed the register, thanked the amazing trail angels that fill and haul all these gallon jugs in, and sat in the shade. I addressed my blisters and sent a spot message. We stayed there for about an hour and a half, ate (our delicious fresh avocado that we carried from town) and chilled and planned the last ten miles of the day. 5 miles to a small cave and then 5 miles to Barrel Springs. Julia was in front, as usual, but I couldn't even keep up, she was still hiking like her shorts were in fire. Oh, that reminds me, her legs are WHITE. Anyways, less than 2 hours later we were at the cave and decided to stay for dinner there. That ended up being another hour and a half and our friend Merideth stopped for a half hour and had a snack with us. Hike, eat, sleep, repeat. After dinner, the last five miles were all downhill. Not TOO bad and we PASSED 100 miles!! Whoop! 2550 more to go.
As we approached Barrel Springs there were signs on the trees saying there was free beer and food ahead. These incredibly nice folks are camped out in their campervans nearby and cooked up a ton of food (veggie burgers too) and had cold drinks in coolers and a big fire. Man, people out here are so generous. So of course we saw good ole Batman there and chatted with him and some others (one who grew up in Scarborough and now lives in Victoria). Now we're in bed, having undone all te cleaning and resting we did in Julian, but we're 24 more miles up the trail. Sweet!
Warner Springs tomorrow!
Between Scissors and Barrel Springs there's one water cache 14 miles into the day, and it can always be dry, so you need to start with enough water to get you to BS, just to be sure. Our morning was incredible. We both felt great, the air was cool and we we're climbing up and up and up! Great, easy walking. Don't get me wrong, we are hiking, like these trails ain't THAT easy and it's rarely more than a foot wide but it was great walking. We always joke that Jubers has 'Morning Legs' because she always does great in
the morning and at night but the heat of the day really gets to her. Well by 10AM we had gone 8+ miles and felt great, but then it slowed significantly, and it was my fault, not hers. She was hammering allllllll day. I had a couple blisters on my left foot that got more painful as the day got hotter. After what seemed to take forever, we stumbled across the glorious water cache at third gate, and before we could see the water jugs, our good pal Batman asked for ID. Haha. We got a gallon jug of water, took a couple of liters from it, signed the register, thanked the amazing trail angels that fill and haul all these gallon jugs in, and sat in the shade. I addressed my blisters and sent a spot message. We stayed there for about an hour and a half, ate (our delicious fresh avocado that we carried from town) and chilled and planned the last ten miles of the day. 5 miles to a small cave and then 5 miles to Barrel Springs. Julia was in front, as usual, but I couldn't even keep up, she was still hiking like her shorts were in fire. Oh, that reminds me, her legs are WHITE. Anyways, less than 2 hours later we were at the cave and decided to stay for dinner there. That ended up being another hour and a half and our friend Merideth stopped for a half hour and had a snack with us. Hike, eat, sleep, repeat. After dinner, the last five miles were all downhill. Not TOO bad and we PASSED 100 miles!! Whoop! 2550 more to go.
As we approached Barrel Springs there were signs on the trees saying there was free beer and food ahead. These incredibly nice folks are camped out in their campervans nearby and cooked up a ton of food (veggie burgers too) and had cold drinks in coolers and a big fire. Man, people out here are so generous. So of course we saw good ole Batman there and chatted with him and some others (one who grew up in Scarborough and now lives in Victoria). Now we're in bed, having undone all te cleaning and resting we did in Julian, but we're 24 more miles up the trail. Sweet!
Warner Springs tomorrow!
Wednesday, 2 May 2012
3 days, 3 different days!
As I write this, we are camped out at the top of this mountain, amongst boulders and other hikers. We've had an incredible 3 days of hiking, plus one zero day at kickoff, on Saturday.
We started the first day on trail at 7:40AM after some photos at the monument. It was a beautiful, sunny, hot day and we walked a total of 20 miles. It was relatively easy walking with only one long ascent out of Hauser creek. Water sources were fine and we only started getting tired towards the end, but we knew that Lake Morena and the ADZPCTKO was near.
On Sunday, we started out early, at 6:20AM, to get a bit of a head start on some of the others, as many of us were leaving from Lake Morena that morning. The day brought a huge amount of variability in terms of landscapes and terrain. Over the 22 miles that we covered, we crossed some streams, walked through a meadow, a forest and along countless miles of cliffs. We were exhausted by the time we got to Burnt Rancheria, where we spent the night. It was quiet and we had a bathroom nearby! What luxury!
This morning we started out slow as we had to pick up some resupply boxes at Mount Laguna and we had to wait until 9AM to do so. The day was hot and with the late start, we only managed 13k. We stopped at Pioneer Mail picnic area to have dinner and hang out for a bit. We ate dinner with June and Brian aka the Michigan Wolverine, aka Batman, aka Jared. He's in his late fourties and absolutely hilarious. We met him at Scout and Frodo's in San Diego. So after dinner we all wanted to continue on to this 'boulder field' where it sounded like it was great camping and it was only another few miles down the trail. When we arrived we were so stoked. It was a perfect evening and we were at the top of a mountain with an amazing view. I'll try to post some photos. There were at least another 8-10 folks there as well. We got set up and climbed up on a huge boulder and enjoyed the night sky. At about 11PM, as you may imagine, at the top of a mountain, the winds picked up. A lot. The tent would not stay up and do it served more as a cocoon as we just wrapped ourselves up and tried to sleep. Maybe 4 or 5 hours total. But it was worth it.
We started the first day on trail at 7:40AM after some photos at the monument. It was a beautiful, sunny, hot day and we walked a total of 20 miles. It was relatively easy walking with only one long ascent out of Hauser creek. Water sources were fine and we only started getting tired towards the end, but we knew that Lake Morena and the ADZPCTKO was near.
On Sunday, we started out early, at 6:20AM, to get a bit of a head start on some of the others, as many of us were leaving from Lake Morena that morning. The day brought a huge amount of variability in terms of landscapes and terrain. Over the 22 miles that we covered, we crossed some streams, walked through a meadow, a forest and along countless miles of cliffs. We were exhausted by the time we got to Burnt Rancheria, where we spent the night. It was quiet and we had a bathroom nearby! What luxury!
This morning we started out slow as we had to pick up some resupply boxes at Mount Laguna and we had to wait until 9AM to do so. The day was hot and with the late start, we only managed 13k. We stopped at Pioneer Mail picnic area to have dinner and hang out for a bit. We ate dinner with June and Brian aka the Michigan Wolverine, aka Batman, aka Jared. He's in his late fourties and absolutely hilarious. We met him at Scout and Frodo's in San Diego. So after dinner we all wanted to continue on to this 'boulder field' where it sounded like it was great camping and it was only another few miles down the trail. When we arrived we were so stoked. It was a perfect evening and we were at the top of a mountain with an amazing view. I'll try to post some photos. There were at least another 8-10 folks there as well. We got set up and climbed up on a huge boulder and enjoyed the night sky. At about 11PM, as you may imagine, at the top of a mountain, the winds picked up. A lot. The tent would not stay up and do it served more as a cocoon as we just wrapped ourselves up and tried to sleep. Maybe 4 or 5 hours total. But it was worth it.
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