Author: Julie Blouin

Tofu worked her magic to gather a group of us to leave Kennedy Meadows together and head into the Sierra. It was her, Yote and 2.Toe, Vice and Boathouse, and Bam Bam. Vice and Boathouse set out early and the rest of us packed up and left at 8AM. 
It was incredibly hot already at 8! Plus all of our packs were quite heavy with the new gear we got at KM: bear canisters, ice axes, crampons/microspikes, and warm layers. Our first few miles were still through the desert and were very warm with the sun beating down on us. After that we started climbing and heading up into more mountainous terrain. Unfortunately the area we walked through was burned from a forest fire years ago so it was less lush than it once was, and also very hot. 

After a couple hours we left the burn area and came across a beautiful lush open grassy meadow with views of the snow capped Sierra in the distance. We took a break in the shade of a big tree and soaked up the beautiful views. After our break we sort of split into groups to walk with–we planned to go to a campsite at mile 721 and stay there or see how we felt when we got there. The different couples each walked together and Tofu and Bam Bam did their own things. Wolf Bird and I went ahead and the others took breaks for a little longer. 

We eventually went across a beautiful bridge over a river in the meadow and swallows were swooping around to their nests under the bridge which made an amazing sight. There were many people taking a break by the bridge but we decided to press on a bit more. We have a joke that we are “hiker bullies” because we like to pick on each other all the time. We also joke that we are “about the miles, not the smiles” which is switching around a phrase that people often use to remind themselves to enjoy their hike. As we walked, Wolf Bird and I had fun coming up with different little Dr Seuss rhymes about caring about miles instead of having fun. For example, some highlights were: “if you’re still having fun, you aren’t yet done” and “if your energy isn’t diminished, you aren’t finished”. 

As we walked we eventually came across a Hungarian guy we knew walking south instead of north. I liked him because before on a tough day he told me about the PCT that “it’s no merry Christmas everyday” in a thick accent and I found that a hilarious made up idiom and also really accurate. Anyway, he was walking the opposite direction and told us he had gone to mile 780 and there was a tough summit or two and also that he saw a bear and mountain lion tracks and also that he was done with the trail and walking back to Kennedy meadows and was doing a 35 mile day. He was a big ball of energy, mostly of frustration, and we felt bad he was having such a tough time. All of a sudden a thought came to him and he grabbed a small yellow bell off his pack and held it out to Wolf Bird for him to take it. He said it was to make noise so bears wouldn’t get us. Wolf Bird politely declined (this is a pretty pointless and excessive piece of gear–Bears would definitely hear our voices and be scared, or even if they didn’t get scared away we could easily yell at them if we needed). This guy shouted “nein” at wolf bird and made him take the bell so the rest of the day it sounded like a pack animal or Santa’s sleigh was walking behind me. 
Wolf Bird and I took a break at a stream and two retired guys Mayo and Z Man eventually caught up. We chatted with them for a bit-they’ve both hiked the AT before (separately, as they met on the PCT). Wolf Bird put his feet in the stream and almost cried it was so cold. Seems like a great sign for the many cold river fords we have ahead of us. 
We were kind of waiting for the rest of the group, but we waited an hour and no one showed up. We were getting antsy so we decided to walk another 3.5 miles to the campsite we’d talked about stopping at. The walking was uphill and was surprisingly strenuous–I think the high elevation of 8000 feet or so was making me more exhausted than usual. We got to the campsite and were hot and sweaty and to top it off there were mosquitoes swarming us. There wasn’t much shade either so we sat for a couple minutes swatting mosquitoes and feeling pretty miserable. As we were discussing what to do, Bam Bam caught us and told us the others were behind taking a break. We debated whether to stop or go on. It was only 430 or so and we didn’t feel like setting up our tent in the hot sun (as opposed to shade if there had been any) so we decided to press on another three and a half miles to the next listed campsite. This also meant we’d get the rest of the climbing up this big hill out of the way and not have to do it tomorrow morning. 

Bam Bam was on board but decided to take a break and said he’d pass on the plan to the others if we saw them. We debated trying to write a note to the others in the sand or something so they would know we went on, but decided they’d figure it out. We continued our climb up and came across some patches of snow. It was crazy to see snow when the air temp must have been at least 80 or 85. I’m sure a few weeks ago much of the trail in this area was covered in snow. We had amazing views of the mountains as we climbed and it made me so happy to see them as well as be surrounded by trees. 
We got to the campsite around 630 or so and found a bunch of other people already set up there. We didn’t know any of them but luckily there was plenty of tent space. It was super buggy so we put on some deet we’d just got at Kennedy meadows (thanks mom and dad!) and that did the trick. We set up our tent and cooked some dinner. A guy at KM had given wolf bird a mountain house meal and he had the most amazing dinner of chicken fajitas–it tasted like something you’d get at a restauarant. Bam Bam arrived not long after us but after an hour or so of no one else arriving we were getting a bit worried the others weren’t going to come. Just when we were going to give up, Yote and 2.Toe showed up! They told us them and Tofu had been confused when we weren’t at the last campsite and even thought we might have somehow gotten behind them. They pressed on to a campsite that was 0.5 miles past the last and still we weren’t there! Tofu was getting water and Yote and 2.Toe were waiting for her but when it was super buggy and she hadn’t shown up after a while, they decided to hike on and just asked a couple camped there to tell Tofu they were hiking on. 
We chatted with them and Bam Bam and as it grew darker we realized Tofu probably wasn’t coming. We all felt bad that we hadn’t waited for her and hoped she wasn’t mad! She loves doing big mile days so we thought she’d be excited we went further. I had somehow thought we’d hiked only 20 miles for the day but actually it was 23, so it was a pretty big day out of KM when we intended to not do a big day. We got into our tents (wolf bird and I watched some Abbot and Costello on his phone) and went to bed hoping Tofu would catch us in the morning and not hate us forever. 

We had an easy day of under five miles today until we reached the big milestone of Kennedy Meadows. Kennedy Meadows marks the end of the 700 mile desert section of the PCT and also is the gateway to the Sierras. After Kennedy Meadows is when we encounter one of the most beautiful yet also potentially most dangerous sections of trail. It is where the “real” mountains begin. It is a big milestone for all PCT hikers and it is tradition for hikers to be greeted by applause and cheering by the hikers already at Kennedy Meadows. We were all excited to reach this milestone today!
The morning hike was easy and quick. We passed the 700 mile mark and took a quick selfie and the five of us walked most of the way together. As we approached the road that goes to the general store (the general store is 0.7 miles down the road from the trail), there was a trail register. We stopped and signed our names (these appear randomly along the trail and are nice to be able to see how far ahead other hikers we’ve met are) and as we did so we noticed a guy in a white pickup truck sitting parked at the road. We dawdled a bit but the guy stayed parked looking at us. When we finally walked out to the road the guy asked if we wanted a ride for the 0.7 miles to the store. We said ok and hopped in the truck, glad to avoid walking any off trail miles. 
We pulled up to the general store and felt a little cheap and guilty to reach the milestone in a car rather than by foot. The driver shouted to the hikers at the store, “what do we do when new hikers arrive?” and everyone clapped and cheered. Not the exact tradition but we will take what we can get. Many of the hikers were actually waiting for the truck because it also shuttles hikers from the general store to Grumpy Bear Restaurant a couple miles down the road. 
There was a bit of chaos as we were arriving and other hikers started jumping in the truck to go to the restaurant. I started getting out but heard Wolf Bird saying he wanted to stay in to go get breakfast. The other three didn’t hear and jumped out only to discover there was now not enough space for them to get back in and go get breakfast. They said they’d catch the next ride and off we went in the truck. 
Grumpy Bears serves all you can eat pancakes, but for almost everyone that amounts to one pancake. The reason for this is that their pancakes are over a foot in diameter! We also got eggs and potatoes and bacon. Tofu and Yote and 2.Toe came along shortly and we had a nice breakfast with them along with an Australian couple we just met, Flash and Sam. 

We hung out for a while until we could get a ride back to the general store. There we spent the rest of the day relaxing and eating and drinking and catching up with other hikers we hadn’t seen in a while. It was cool to have all the hikers in one place, sitting on the porch of the general store for the day. We plan to zero tomorrow as well so we have time to sort out our gear and food from our packages and also so we can get to our next time on a weekday when the post office is open. 
While hanging out we managed to convince Vice and Boathouse, two guys who started the same day as us, to take an extra zero and head out with us on Friday. We had a fun lazy day and drank lots of beer and laughed a lot and played some card games. In the evening we had a fire under a big teepee structure, except it was just the wooden poles of the teepee lacking the actual canvas. It was nice to hang out and hear people tell funny stories etc. We went to bed past hiker midnight at 9 or so. 

We slept in this morning and the rest of the gang went to grab some breakfast while I stayed at our hotel and caught up on our blog and showered and relaxed. We finished up our chores before meeting Far Out at the cafe downtown at noon. He was very patient waiting for us to get our fill of coffee and ice cream before heading back to the trail. We were so grateful that he was willing to drive us back to the trail because it was a 45 minute drive away!
When we arrived at the trailhead we snapped some group photos and gave Far Out hugs goodbye before setting off on our uphill climb to start the afternoon. Luckily it was breezy and cool, making the climb a bit easier. We didn’t have a set destination for the day, but planned to stop and assess at a spring about ten miles ahead. Well actually it was 12 miles but we somehow did our math wrong and thought it was ten miles away until we got there. 
The terrain was already changing into rocky mountains instead of bare sandy desert hills. It was strikingly beautiful and we snapped a lot of photos. We passed Bam Bam on the way to the spring and found out Pebbles is nursing a chronic leg injury and they may be getting off trail, which we were sad to hear. 

We got to the spring around 5pm and debated whether to camp nearby or go another 5 miles to the next water and campsite. We decided to press on and the next five miles went by pretty quickly. We saw a snake too!

We got to the campsite to discover many tents already set up in the woods but luckily found enough space for the five of us. We cooked dinner and chatted. I eventually went to fill up my water at the nearby creek and when I came back I discovered a Smirnoff Ice in my pack!!! I had been betrayed. You see, back in Kernville Tofu had secretly bought a Smirnoff Ice and told me she wanted to “ice” Wolf Bird. If you aren’t familiar, “icing” someone was popular 5-10 years ago and is when you hide a Smirnoff Ice for someone to find and if they find it they have to immediately take a knee and chug the entire drink. I told Tofu that I’d help her get Wolf Bird so I was appalled she would turn the tables and ice me. 
When I discovered the drink, rather than chug it, I made a proposal. I suggested we continue the icing (hiding it in each others’ packs) until town and whoever ended up with the drink in their pack when we get to Kennedy Meadows would be the one who has to chug it. Everyone agreed and so began the distrust within our group! 
After that fiasco we soon went to bed and I already plotted to hide the Smirnoff Ice in Wolf Bird’s pack before setting out in the morning so I could avoid carrying the extra weight. 

It was SOO windy last night all night long. We’ve had some windy evenings but usually the wind had died down overnight. Not the case last night. Our tent was flapping around and swaying all night long. The wind was so strong that the stakes in Yote and 2.Toe’s tent came out overnight! Luckily ours stayed but we definitely had a restless night of sleep. 

Tofu and Yote and 2.Toe all got up early and were hiking by 4:30AM to try to beat the heat (we’d soon find out it was a surprisingly cool day actually). Wolf Bird heard them stirring and asked if I wanted to get up too and I of course said no at this ungodly hour. We slept for a while longer and set out around 6:30AM. It was still soo windy out. I am not great at estimating wind speeds so I really don’t know how hard the wind was blowing, but we were literally getting blown off the trail by the wind. It took a lot of work to walk into the wind and fight the wind to walk in a straight line. To make matters even more challenging, the trail in this area was all loose sand underfoot. It felt like walking on a beach with our calves burning. That, combined with leaning all our body weight forward to make forward progress as we walked into the wind made for slow going. Wind also makes me uneasy and feel rushed so I felt like I couldn’t even stop to catch my breath or take a break. It was tough mentally but also I had to just laugh a couple of times at how insane these conditions were!

We headed to Bird Spring Pass, 6.5 miles from where we camped, where there was a water cache. We didn’t know if the cache would be stocked (trail Angels from the area leave gallons upon gallons of water there every few days), so we’d packed enough water to get us through a 30 mile dry section just in case. The cache ended up being full but we didn’t even need water since we were carrying so much and drinking so little since it was a really chilly day, especially with the wind. 

After the cache we had a climb that looked intimidating on the elevation profile, going up to about 7000 feet. Thankfully, it turned out to be easier than expected and the hill we were climbing blocked a big portion of the wind making the walking easier. Once we got to the top of the mountain and started descending the other side, the wind was much less intense much to my delight. There were some beautiful views from the top as well. 

We descended down the other side and eventually came upon Yote and 2.Toe napping on the side of the trail. I found it hilarious where they chose to take a break because it was one of the windier spots and they were also laying on a super big slope. It was good to catch them and we stopped and chatted and snacked with them and another guy, Glass Half Full. We hadn’t stopped for a break except for at the water cache because it was so windy and cold, so we’d made good progress. We only had 4.5 miles or so until where we planned to camp… And it was only noon! We obviously could have pushed on further and gone into town tonight (another 7 miles past) but I was in no rush. 

We had a leisurely last 5 miles to the cabin we planned to stay at. Part of it was on a dirt forest service road and some dune buggies drove by us which was crazy. Right as we were nearing the cabin, five 4×4 jeeps passed us, also heading toward the cabin. 

The cabin was a quarter mile off trail and also had a nice spring at it. The cabin itself was dirty and gross with trash and graffiti everywhere. The area around it was nice though, with some shade and also a fire ring and even some chairs (quite the luxury!). Tofu had gotten to the cabin around 1 and was restless since it was around 230 now. I felt bad because we were holding her back… Hopefully she doesn’t hate us too much for being lazy. 

There was about 6 or so guys from the 4x4s milling about and we sort of felt like we had to compete with them for flat tentsites. But luckily four of the six cars decided to leave since it was still early in the day and we didn’t have to worry about it. We set up our tents and had a long and leisurely afternoon. I cooked a mid afternoon meal and Wolf Bird went and chatted up some guys who came in on dirt bikes and scored a couple beers from them, one of which he generously shared. Two of the guys from the 4x4s planned to stay overnight and started building a fire, which was a welcome sight since it was still pretty chilly. We went and hung out by the fire and chatted with the two guys. They were so nice and interested in our hike and also let us wash our hands in their hand washing station and also shared moonshine with us. We met two other thru hikers, Tinkle Master and Totem, and eventually some other thru hikers we already knew also showed up. It was our first campfire of the trail and it was a nice change having time to sit around and relax and chat in the afternoon and evening. We went to bed excited for an easy day to town tomorrow. 

We had 10 miles to go this morning to our first water source. The morning was a bit cooler than usual which made for nice walking. We passed the last of the wind turbines and I was so focused on taking a video of them that I almost didn’t notice two deer standing within ten feet of me! It is pretty unbelievable to me that deer live in the desert, since I associate them so much with woods and trees. 

We got to the spring probably around 9 or 930 and hung out for a bit waiting for Tofu, Yote, and 2.Toe. We were debating how much water to carry. The next water source was 18.8 miles away, so usually we’d carry maybe 3 liters for that far. However, if we planned to camp before the next water source we’d need to carry more water so we have enough to cook dinner and drink overnight when usually we get thirsty. Wolf Bird floated around the idea of walking the entire 18.8 miles today–which isn’t too far, but we’d already done ten miles for the day so that would make almost 30 miles for the day! That would be our longest day yet and I was not feeling it, especially since we are trying to slow down a bit to allow the snow further up the trail more time to melt. Wolf Bird asked Tofu when she arrived if she’d be up for walking to the next water source and she said yes, although Yote and 2.Toe were more in my camp when he asked them. For some reason I have to start the day knowing I’m going to have a big mile day. I really struggle with changing my plan to include higher miles when it’s midday. We didn’t really have a set plan when we got back to hiking after getting our water, but I sort of knew that now I felt obligated to do the big miles because it’d been discussed. I was really not happy about it and felt pressured into it and pouted about it for a while. 

I put in my headphones for most of the rest of the day which helped the miles go by more quickly. I listened to almost all of the podcast S-Town, which I had started before trail but never finished. It was a nice change listening to a podcast so it took my mind off my frustrations. Wolf Bird and I walked together the rest of the day with Tofu and Yote and 2.Toe not far behind. We only took two breaks the remainder of the day–we both prefer getting the walking over with so we can have maximum relaxation time. 

It did get hot later in the day and we had some uphill sections, one of which was steeper than most and really exhausted me! At one point we rounded a bend and saw “600” written in sticks on the ground. My immediate reaction was wondering why someone would write that as a joke-it seemed cruel! I really didn’t think we were already at mile 600! It seemed like we were just at mile 500. We snapped a quick picture and I was happy to know (after Yote and 2.Toe pointed out) that finally I had fewer miles than the entire Appalachian Trail remaining. 
We kept pushing to the next water source and finally arrived around 5:30. There were a few people there packing up to hike a few more miles after apparently taking their afternoon siestas. It was nice to arrive at camp earlier than usual and we took advantage by cooking double dinners. Soon Tofu and Yote and 2.Toe showed up and we hung out in our tent (it was cold) and chatted with them as they cooked their dinners. It was a big mile day today but felt doable, although we probably should have taken more breaks so it would’ve felt more leisurely. We went to bed exciting for a more relaxing 20 mile day tomorrow. 

This was our first zero since taking time off in Idyllwild, so it was a welcome day of rest and relaxation. We slept in a bit later than usual and didn’t do anything too exciting all day. Mostly we just ate (shocking!) and hung out chatting with other hikers. We also went to the post office and a nice local woman drove us there and even waited for us so she could drive us back. Later, we got Thai Food at “Thai Hachapi” (I got a real quick out of the name) and saw Wonder Woman at the local theatre. We went to bed much later than usual at a wild 10PM! 

After what definitely seemed like a very quick sleep, we awoke to our alarms going off at 3AM. The moon had set around 2AM so it was even darker than when we went to bed and hard to get up (also we’d only slept for four hours so that also made it tough). We packed up quickly and were off by about 330. I haven’t done a ton of night hiking because I don’t really like it (usually I feel like I’d be missing views) so this was different for me. But definitely worth it if it meant avoiding the heat of the day. We had about 9 miles until the water source that marked the end of the aqueduct and then another 6.6 miles after that until a creek where we planned to rest for most of the day. 

It was fun walking in the dark on the pretty flat road and aqueduct. Without moonlight it was occasionally difficult to see the best part of the road to walk on (areas where cars have driven are best as the sand is more packed down) but it was quite pleasant and peaceful. It was also funny to pass other hikers in the dark-kind of crazy that we are all out hiking at such an odd hour. 

There was one section where a dirt road intersected the road we were walking on. We weren’t sure which way the PCT went so we got out our phones. There were a couple hikers sleeping on the ground at the intersection and our debating which way to go must have woken them up because one of them said “it’s over the bridge” from his sleeping bag. We said thanks and started out in that direction but immediately noticed that it looked incorrect according to our GPS. We went the exact opposite way which turned out to be correct and chuckled to ourselves imagining how many people that guy must’ve gave incorrect directions to. 

As the sun rose, we approached a big wind farm that we’d be walking through for a portion of the day. It was amazing to see the huge wind turbines all around and mesmerizing to watch them. We finally reached the water source, which was a faucet drawing from the aqueduct we’d been been walking on top of all night/morning, around 6 or 7. We briefly stopped and also saw Yote and Two Point Toe’s tent set up (they opted to night hike the entire thing, from 9pm-4am or so). 

We then set off for another 6.6 miles to the next water and our siesta destination. I was feeling good to start out, but this next section was all uphill which ended up being fairly taxing. We continued walking amongst wind turbines and even saw what we think was a wild horse standing in the shade of one of the giant turbines! My sense of time was off, as I’d gotten probably three hours of sleep and had walked 27+ miles since my last full nights rest. I listened to music to power me up the hill and despite really struggling up the last uphill part, I finally made it around 9am. Wolf Bird kindly waited for me and he was glad to arrive as well, as his shins were starting to hurt him. 

We descended toward the creek and found a bunch of hikers hanging out, many crouched in the shade of small plants and bushes. Wolf Bird went on a reconnaissance mission to find us some shade and came back to show me the spot. He was being weirdly quiet and sketchy about it I guess so other hikers wouldn’t come and steal the shade. He led me to a big tree by the creek where about 4-5 tents were already set up in the shade. Everyone must have been napping so we whispered as we set up our tent in an area that Wolf Bird predicted would get more and more shaded as the day went on. We set up our tent and blew up our pads and I was so excited to get some sleep after all the walking and weird waking hours. Wolf Bird went and waited for Tofu back at the trail so he could show her our shaded area. She eventually came over and set up her tent as well. 

I finally laid down and put in my earplugs. Not five minutes later more hikers came over to the shade talking loudly despite it being quite clear everyone was in their tents trying to sleep. The two guys threw down their packs and walked around right next to our tent loudly discussing where they should set up. I was surprised they were being so loud because our tent fly was off so they could clearly see me laying down in the tent trying to sleep. In my grumpy state I did the classic loud sigh and when that didn’t work did some evil glares at them through the tent but they still continued to speak loudly at what seemed to me louder than conversational tone. I could still hear them loud and clear through my earplugs. Then four more hikers came along and also were talking (thankfully a little less loudly) but that was it, I knew I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep with all that commotion around me even with how tired I was. 

I took out my earplugs and decided to cook some food. Wolf Bird and I then watched Moonlight on his phone for a while. I was excited to finally see it as we never saw it when it was in theatres. About 15 minutes into the movie more hikers showed up and sat practically on top of our tent. They were sitting less than six inches from us and then proceeded to talk pretty much nonstop for the next hour. It was hard to concentrate on the movie with their voices in the background so close, made even worse by them being like “dude!!” and talking about smoking weed and superficial topics while the movie was really emotional and serious. If you can’t tell I had my grumpy pants on and I guess am just an old grandma now so I was unreasonably annoyed at everyone. 

Finally everyone’s conversations seemed to die down and all the loud talkers decided they wanted to nap so at long last it was quiet! We paused the movie and tried to nap. I drifted in and out of sleep and Wolf Bird passed out. Eventually I woke up to the sounds of repetitive laughter. But not just any repetitive laughter. This girl was talking to other hikers in the creek right by our tent and through my earplugs I would hear her go, “blah blah blah [muffled conversation]” followed by a sing-songy laugh that pierced through by earplugs and was the most fake-sounding series of “ha’s” I’ve ever heard. It was ridiculous because I couldn’t hear anyone else’s muffled voices but hers and she also seemed to be the only one laughing. She must’ve done this series of talking for 10 seconds/forced laugh for 5 seconds at least 20 times in a row! Wolf Bird was also woken up by it and we just gave each other a knowing look as it was happening but also had to stifle our laughter because it was so ridiculous. Of course because we are immature and can’t let things go, we’ve repeated and mocked the fake laugh every hour since. 

So ended our nap. We finished watching the movie–I really liked it but found it really heart wrenching and sad. Wolf Bird liked it too but was disappointed at the abrupt ending and “felt the whole story was easily anticipated”. What an elitist. Haha, kidding about the elitist part (at least slightly), but I made him give me a hug after because I was feeling emotions. 

At this point it was probably 3pm and we’d be resting since 9am. There must’ve been at least 30 hikers under the tree with us. We knew maybe about a third of them. I am still adjusting to the big hordes of people so I was battling my inner judgements and frustrations a lot of the time. This is what I will call a character building experience. 

Finally around 6pm we decided the day had probably cooled off enough to make hiking bearable. We planned to walk about four more miles to a Tentsite where we’d spend the night. We were really pretty spent so we didn’t want to go very far. The four miles passed quickly and we descended way down into the canyon where the tentsites were. Even though it was 745 or so and almost sunset, no one was camped there yet. We all felt good and I think also felt like everyone else must’ve pushed on so we decided to keep going as well. The next Tentsite was another four miles ahead and all uphill. It looked like it would be a steep climb but we all were telling ourselves how glad we would be tomorrow morning to have it out of the way already. 

The climb was incredibly windy. There must’ve been 50mph gusts! It was hard walking straight into the wind at timea, especially because the sand beneath our feet was pretty soft and felt like we were walking on a soft beach. It was really beautiful though, with the sky turning a light pink and purple illuminating the desert floor below. We hiked up up up and it grew darker but the moon, which was just over halfway to full, provided enough light that we didn’t need our headlamps. I was growing really tired and felt like the hill was neverending. Wind makes me feel uneasy and leads me to walk very quickly as a result so I pushed through my fatigue and continued to fight my way uphill against the wind. 

Our app said there was only space for two tents at this area so we were a little nervous there may not be space for all the hikers aiming for this area. The app is often wrong in its edit images so we we weren’t sure. The two loud guys from earlier in the day were screaming at the top of their lungs about 0.3 miles before the campsite. When we caught up to them they were screaming about how they kept mistaking sticks for rattlesnakes. I think they may have been on something. Lucky for us, their freak out delayed their progress and like the opportunistic evil person I am, I sped past them to attempt to steal whatever tentsites remained up ahead. 

It turned out we didn’t need to worry about space-there were plenty of flat areas for tents left. It was dark at this point and a pretty late hike for us, around 9pm. Wolf Bird and I set up our tent in the wind and Tofu opted to cowboy camp next to us. We cooked dinner and chatted and were in bed around 10pm excited for town tomorrow and glad to have gotten the big climb out of the way tonight. 

We woke up just before 6 and packed up our stuff before breakfast. The Andersons made pancakes and coffee for the 80 or more hikers and they were some of the thickest pancakes I’ve ever had! After filling up on those plus coffee, Wolf Bird, Tofu, Yote, Two Point Two and I hung out and were ready to get back on trail before it got too hot. Terrie (the trail angel) offered to give us a ride back to the trail and we of course jumped at the opportunity. Unfortunately when it was time to hop in the car Yote and Two Point Toe were doing something so a couple other hikers jumped in the car in their place. Not a huge deal as Terrie would make more trips but sad we didn’t start out the day together. Before we left Terrie had us take a group photo and as the person taking it was counting down, Terrie mooned us!! I’m sure our faces were hilarious and full of shock. I guess now we know why it’s called Casa De Luna (House of the Moon in Spanish).

We were on trail by about 8AM and it was already hot! We planned to hike to a campground with water to take a siesta, which was about 15 miles away. We had a big climb up out of town and I immediately was sweating profusely. It was sporadically breezy and the times without a breeze were incredibly hot with no protection or relief from the sun. I usually try to keep going and not stop too much before our siestas, as I want to be done and resting as soon as possible. That was perhaps not the best strategy on as warm a day as today–after four or so hours of continuous hiking in the heat I was really worn out and tired. I was glad to come upon Wolf Burd who’d been hiking in front of me. We stopped and rested in the shade until Tofu caught up. Then we headed to the campground to take our siesta. 

The campground was annoyingly located a half mile off trail, and very downhill. We already dreaded the walk back up as we descended. We went to get water once we arrived at the deserted campground and that was of course even more downhill! The campground was pretty buggy so we set up our tents to rest for a few hours. Wolf Bird and I watched  Almost Famous on his phone (he’d downloaded it from Amazon) while Tofu read. Yote and Toe Point Tor arrived after a while and also rested for a while. 

Finally around 5 when it was a bit cooler we packed up and set out to walk the last five miles to Sawmill Campground, our destination for the day. The hike back up the the PCT was hot and uphill but not as bad as we imagined. The next five miles were pretty easy but made much more difficult and frustrating by swarms of flies/gnats. They weren’t biting us but were flying all around us, especially our heads, which really tested our patience (mainly mine). Sawmill Campground was also off trail a half mile, except uphill. We arrived there relatively quickly around 7 or so and found a big open campground overlooking the valley below with plenty of spaces to camp. Many other hikers were here but it didn’t feel crowded at all since it was such a big space.

The water source at this campground was a half mile away (a full mile from the PCT!) which was pretty far, as many sources are right on trail or at least at the campground. I absolutely hate walking off trail miles (miles that aren’t on the actual PCT that don’t “count”) because I am lazy, so I was delighted when Wolf Bird proposed a deal. He would walk the one mile round trip to get water if I set up our tent and inflated our sleeping pads. I of course agreed and felt like I was getting the much better end of the deal (even more so when it ended up taking him maybe 45 minutes to come back!). We cooked dinner with Tofu and Yote and Two Point Two as well as Vice and Boathouse, who we’ve been hiking around since the beginning. 

It was a nice evening made even nicer by a breeze that kept the bugs away from our campsite. 

It was very nice sleeping in a bed last night in our own private room. It does feel like we get some unfair privileges as a couple. Everyone else was just tenting in the yard in the dirt next to horses or Portapotties and we got a nice bed and room to ourselves! There was definitely a level of guilt for us. 

After getting up, Wolf Bird and I went to get breakfast in town. I wasn’t really feeling any of the breakfast food on the menu but was delighted when the waiter said  it was an open menu and I could order my chicken fingers and fries even though it was 9AM! We enjoyed our meal and spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon packing up our stuff and obviously eating more food. 

Wolf Bird also found a monocular in the hiker box that allowed him to spy on people and get a super up close look at them from far away. He had a lot of fun playing around with it before we left town. 

We headed out at the same time as a lot of other hikers and had a big uphill climb to start us off. It went by pretty quickly and it was nice to walk and chat with some new hikers for a bit. We didn’t have a set destination for the evening and ending up settling for some semi flat spots on a ridge. Wolf Bird and I went against trail etiquette and camped right in the trail as it was the only really flat spot we could find. Yote and two point toe made sure to take a photo to document our wrongdoing. 

Our morning was relatively uneventful and the first 7 or so miles passed quickly. We took a break at a ranger station where we could fill up on water. We chatted with the other hikers there and also enjoyed a couple of sodas each as they had a cooler of them for $1 each. We are developing a soda addiction on this trail! Also the coozies from Tom are coming in quite handy. 

Our break lasted much longer than usual and we set out around 1030 or so into the now very hot morning. There was a group of four guys and a girl ahead of us. We had 8 miles downhill until the Acton KOA where we planned to take a long break. Wolf Bird and I had made up a song about the KOA and all the amenities we heard it offered. We had a great time singing it while walking and making up new verses. It goes “Whatchu know about the KOA?!” And the other person replies with an amenity they have, like “I heard they got free wifi” or “water spigots!”  We were making ourselves laugh so hard singing it. Our only regret is not recording a music video for it. 

After a while, Wolf Bird went ahead on this downhill section and sped past everyone. I put on some music which really got me in the zone and found myself also passing everyone. It was super hot and without a breeze at times so I was glad most of the section was downhill. 

Eventually we caught a glimpse of where we were heading down in the valley. There were some cool rock formations around and trains kept passing by down in the valley below. We also spotted a van that looked like Coppertone’s van, who is the previous PCT thru hiker who gave us Trail magic. Once we descended we discovered it was indeed Coppertone. 

We took a break in the shade by his van and enjoyed fruit and doughnuts and a root beer float as we chatted with the other hikers that came in (Dirt, Gumby, Borat, etc). Then we decided to walk over to the infamous KOA just down the road to check out all the amenities we’d been singing about. 

There were a lot of people grilling and tons of kids running around as it was Memorial Day. We found out that earlier in the weekend this big field had been so filled with tents you could barely walk through it! It was much emptier but still busy when we went thru. We weren’t planning on camping here since we would be in town tomorrow with laundry and showers (the KOA offered these amenities of course) but we did eat many snacks of course. We watched a dad and son play catch with a boomerang which unsurprisingly turned out to be extremely dangerous and almost result in some decapitations. Other highlights included meeting some new hikers Pac Man and Kate who gave us beer and chatted with us, me accidentally drinking water that tasted like it came from a toilet, and of course eating even more. 

We set out around 530 to hike a few more miles to get us closer to the town for tomorrow morning. I was glad to leave the KOA, as it was a really strange place (even with all those amenities). It was just pretty dirty and crowded overall. We enjoyed our evening walk as the sun sank lower and lower in the sky (and we’re glad for slowly cooling temps) and treated ourselves by listening to music while we walked. We were feeling good and walked about 7 miles to just before a tunnel that goes under the highway. We could hear the buzz of cars driving by but it was nice white noise to lull us to sleep.