This morning we ran into a bunch of people we know! In our first five miles we saw Nacho (Shuffle’s friend deom the AT) as well as a guy whose name I don’t know but who we call Blondie because he looks just like our friend Blondie from the AT. We also saw Colton and then a couple whose names I can’t remember. In chatting with the couple we discovered that the cafe in Sierra City (our destination for the day) closed at 2pm! Uh oh. We didn’t know that. It was precisely 9:13 when we found this out and the cafe was 15.1 miles away still. We walk at about a 3mph pace, so those fifteen miles should take about five hours–without breaks. That would put us at the road to town (not even town itself, which was 1.5 miles down the road) at 2:13. Noooo!
Like any rational person, I decided I would make it to the cafe for real food no matter what, and committed to speedwalking/running to town. I politely forced Wolf Bird to walk ahead of me as he is a bit faster. That way I had insurance that if I didn’t make it to town in time hopefully he would and could secure me a burger. We are so insane about food that we actually discussed calling the cafe to see if we could place an order over the phone and have them leave it outside the restaurant for us to retrieve.
We immediately started walking at a very brisk pace. Wolf Bird quickly pulled ahead and disappeared from sight. I was walking as fast as I could without it turning into a jog. Unsurprisingly I was getting tired quickly and also was feeling some weird pains in my knee and leg. Pain would not get in the way of my burger though, and I pushed through. There was a brief downhill section and I started jogging down the switchbacks, something I never do. I passed a group of older day hikers who said they just saw Wolf Bird also jogging. They were very nice and started asking me questions about the trail. I tried to be polite but was so antsy to keep moving that I kept our conversation quite brief. I continued on and after an hour checked my app and notes that I was walking at about 3.6 mph over the last hour.
I kept pressing on and soon got to a short road walk section. It was also uphill. It was too exhausting to jog uphill so I just walked as fast as I could. I was getting hungry and was getting low on water but didn’t feel like I had time to stop. I stuffed a messy broken bar into my mouth and Mustve looked like a monster spewing crumbs everywhere as I wolfed it down walking as fast as I could. I soon passed a van where a guy asked if I wanted any water. I of course said yes and felt like I had my own personal aid station as he got it our very wuxikly for me and didn’t even make me stop and chit chat. He then offered me a clif bar that I refused for some reason and then kicked myself for spit so the rest of the day as my stomach growled.
The trail soon resumed and it went straight uphill for a section. I was so tired I could barely keep my brisk pace. There were also a bunch of day hikers out so I had to keep dodging and passing them. I felt bad because some seemed like they wanted to talk but I had a mission here and kept our interactions as brief as possible. Food awaits.
Finally the uphill ceased and I was headed downhill for pretty much the rest of the trail into town. Unfortunately the trail now became very exposed in the sun and it was blithering hot. This was made been worse by the trail beneath my feet changing from diet to piles of rocks. This made walking much more difficult as I was stepping on loose stone nearly every step and found it difficult to go fast in fear of twisting my ankle. I did my best to jog the brief sections that were less rocky. I kept checking my app to check on my pace and about 9 miles out of town felt fairly confident I would make it to the road before 2. I could only hope is be able to get a quick hitch to then get to the restauarant in time.
The terrible rocky terrain continued and I was sweating profusely in the hot sun. I soon ran into some familiar faces. It was Payless and Crimson and Chill Step who had made it through the Sierra. They reported Wolf bird was not far ahead and also that the general store sold hot food too so I didn’t really need to make it by 2 as the store was open later. This did not deter me in my mission whatsoever. I chatted with them for a while. It was great to see them and to hear about their adventures. I wish I hadn’t felt rushed as I kept checking my watch and set off after a few minutes. They reported Tofu was just behind them!!! And soon enough I ran into her! It was funny because we’d both had a feeling we would see each other today. I was again frustrated I was in such a rush because I would have loved to sit and talk with her for longer. We did take a nice break together and it was wonderful being reunited with a member of our trail family!! And I’m not just saying that because she reads our blog. She’s been killing it lately and it was bittersweet knowing we may not see each other agin on this trail. We hugged and said our goodbyes and I once again took off. I had maybe 3 or 4 miles left to town. And it was 1230. Fortunately for me the terrible hot and rocky trail soon changed to shaded smooth switchbacks. I was now able to consistently jog downhill. I must’ve made great time in this section as I was down at the road by 114. I stuck out my thumb to hitch and the second car stopped for me. It was a somewhat broken down white pickup. I hopped in the back which was full of loose dirt and a rake but I didn’t care. They dropped me off at the cafe and it wasn’t even 130! Wow, I was so proud and felt so accomplished. Also I was a little ashamed of the ridiculous lengths I will go to for food.
I was reunited with Wolf Bird who had arrived about 30 minutes before me. We both got fried chicken sandwiches and I got a Coke and drank about six refills. The people were so nice at the restaurant and let us stay pat 2. When they heard we’d rando get here in time they even gave us free ice cream at the end of our meal! I almost cried!!! It was one of the best ice creams I’ve ever had and it was vanilla which I don’t even really like. Wolf Bird and I had a lot of laughs recounting our days.
The rest of the day was spent doing town chores and relaxing. There was a public restroom with a shower that sprayed out ice cold water. We took advantage of it and though it was very cold it was also quite refreshing as we hadn’t showered in quite a while.
We resupplied at the expensive general store and I I used their wifi to FaceTime with my parents and with Brenna. We saw Murphy’s Law and DG who both just got through the Sierra. It’s great to see old friends again and hear about their hikes. wolf Bird set up our tent and even blew up myself sleeping pad for me while I ordered and ate a burger.from the general store.
We watched the rest of Benjamin Button before bed and went to sleep very satisfied with ourselves and our devotion to food.
I love the two of you. These blogs are the best.
stay safe
love u big