Day 5: 79.4 (15.7)

It was surprisingly warm last night. I thought the canyon would be cold, but I guess the massive drop in elevation compared to the previous couple nights was enough to keep the temperature reasonable.      Only had a liter and a half of water, so I pushed the 5 miles to the next source before it got too warm out. At the water source, I met up with Ninja Mike and Brandon. They had camped there the night before. I had met Ninja Mike a couple days ago just in passing on the trail. Told him my trail name and he said, "Sunshine is much easier to remember than Kevin." We took turns filling up our water filters and they headed off while I was finishing up. I decided I needed to take some time and stretch out the legs. 

One thing I am working on is making sure I take enough breaks and to make them long enough to let my legs get a good rest. It's just something I didn't practice this last winter in Colorado.  Mainly because I always had a home to go too, I could take a couple days off and it's too cold in the winter to stop for any length of time.  Depart the water source around 10:30. The next few miles are some of the most beautiful so far. It's the desert so the depth/scope doesn't really come through in the pictures, but it was breathtaking. 

     

       At around 10 miles for the day I stopped for lunch (1:00pm). Hang out and rest the legs till about 3:15 pm. It's nice to wait out some of the heat. 

   The next 4 miles weren't that interesting. It became very clear I was in the desert now. Dry, dusty and hot with a lot of cacti.   

Reach Scissors Crossing (where the highways meet to for scissors I guess) around 5:00pm and meet James. He's in his early 20's and is hiking with a buddy who is lagging behind a little. He also is in the situation of being the best man in his brothers wedding in early Sept. so he hustling along. 

We hang for the afternoon and I make some lasagna  for dinner. Two Tone (Morgan) and Eric show up a little later and we all goof off for a bit. Once again I forget to take pictures while its light out (usually do that for campsites). 

(Sissors Crossing)   I end up night hiking 2 miles up the next incline to a cool campsite with James and his buddy George.  I will try to remember to take a picture in the morning. The moon was bright enough we didn't need to use our headlamps. I used mine toward the end because my legs were tired and I started stumbling over rocks. I have 5 liters of water also. Too much weight!

Day 4 - Hard Push To Canyon. 63.7 (16.2)

Started the day by getting up at 6:30 and packing up right away. Decided to make breakfast before leaving the campground. One thing led to another and I was on the trail by 9:00. I honestly don't know how I spent 2.5 hours doing the few things I did.Said goodbye to Ken and Tatiana. I would say I hit the desert today. Very dry air and lots of sand. Walked the crest of the hills for most of the day which lead to some awesome views. 

        The water source I went to was fed by an aquifer that was pumped into a tank which then was moved to a cattle trench. The water in the trench was pretty nasty, so I put my bag right up to the outlet (was below the trenches water line) and tried to avoid getting as much green stuff as possible. I filtered it and added my chlorine dropped just to be sure.

                From there it was a long hard push to the next campsite. My leg and feet muscles were very tired by the end of the day. When I purchased my shoes, Matt from the Sport Supply Store said, "It would be wise to do lower miles the next few days to let your feet adjust to the zero drop shoe style." I didn't really take his advice too seriously. I definitely felt it the last 5 miles which were mostly downhill.  Tomorrow I will take it easy and do less. Or, have more breaks in the day. 

       Was at the campsite around 6:00 pm. Ate dinner, stretched, took a couple Aleve, elevated my feet and rested. My dinner was a rice mix I made up at home. It tasted amazing.

  

       As I was cleaning up from dinner, Beast Master (someone I met day 1 and we are constantly passing each other while the other takes a break) walks by and we chat for a couple minutes. As he is getting ready to continue on he says, "you know what man... I'm going to call you Sunshine from now on... Because you always have a fucking smile on your face.  What do you think about that?" I think about it a couple seconds and say, "Alright I'll take that." So my trail name is Sunshine.  Write this blog and elevate my feet for the rest of the evening. Will try to stay awake long enough to see the starry sky.

Day 3 - Mt Laguna and More. 47.5 ( 11.1)

Windy all day. Very very windy for the last 4 miles of the day...The Sun started hitting my tent at 6:40, which was my cue to get up and start packing up. It was a pretty cold night. The campsite was at 5,500ft and the wind was gently blowing all night.Was on the trail around 7:50 which I was happy about. I figured I'd find a place to do my business and eat after getting my blood flowing.

Around 2 miles for the day I found an awesome spot to take care of some business. 

   About a mile later I stopped for lunch in an area that reminded me of the Colorado foothills. Lots of pine trees. Had a very large breakfast, almost 1,000 cal. I needed it.

     I relaxed a bit, updated this blog and filtered a couple liters of water. I haven't had cell service much on the trail, so I write it all out as I go with the Note app. I will copy, paste it, edit it and add pictures later. 

The next few miles flew by. My feet were feeling good despite having a hot spot on one and a small blister on the other, which I took care of the night before with the thread and needle trick. No picture... Was too cold. Note, this all becomes significant later in the day. 

Met a couple of guys on the trail who were handing out small snacks. They were promoting their brand and store. In fact they have a store in Boulder, CO. They seemed surprised I didn't know about it... I don't think they knew where Fort Collins was in relation to Boulder. 

Walked to Mt Laguna via a paved road. It felt a little odd to do so. Cool little mountain village. Decided to head to Mt. Laguna Sports and Supply with the plan of just seeing what they had. Stepped in the door to the coolest looking store I'd ever seen. So cool in fact I forgot to take a picture. It had gear from floor to ceiling with walk ways barely wide enough to fit sideways through. After I close my mouth from being awe struck, Matt asks if he can help me find anything and I couldn't help wanting something from there. So I ask if they carry Dirty Girls. They are gators designed to keep sand and rocks out of your shoes. After grabbing a pair, I walk through the store and see that they carry Altra's Lone Peak 2.5 shoes. Shortly I have a pair on my feet and I tell Matt I'm not taking them off. They are by far, the most comfortable shoe I've ever worn. Talk with Matt a bit more about gear (he's starting the trail in 3 weeks), then head up to the Mt. Laguna Lodge Store to pick up my resupply package. It doesn't have the same effect as the Gear store. As I refill my food I realize I have way too much. 

          Mail a package, with a whole bunch of stuff I'm done carrying home (4 pounds worth!). This includes some food. Found a faucet to fill up my water and do a little laundry. Met Ken and his wife Tatiana. They are from Washington DC. I end up meeting them later at the Mount Laguna Camp Ground about 5 miles down the trail. 

The next 5 miles are very windy. I have to walk with a major lean into the wind or it blows me off the trail. It's amazing how much drag comes from having pack on your back. Decide to stop at the Camp Ground because I'm cold, the next camp sites were 7 miles ahead in a canyon (which tend to be cold) and I already went 5 miles further than I planned for the day.  

                  

   Relax for the evening and do a little laundry. Chat with Ken and Tatiana. As the sun goes down it gets cold, so we all head to our tents. 

        

Day 2: 36.1 (16.1 for the day)

Woke up to a layer of thick fog and the sound of hikers packing up 6:25am. There was a lot of dew on my rain fly, I figured it would add some weight, but I could stop as some point while I made breakfast on the trail and dry it out. Little did I realize, it felt like I was carrying the 6 liters from yesterday when really it was only 3. 

Was on the trail by 8:00am.  Around mile 1.5 I stopped to make breakfast and dry out my rain fly. Honestly I think it reduced my pack weight by 3 pounds. 

The trail here was very easy and I enjoyed the cool morning temperature. Refilled my water just before going up the long incline which lasted the rest of the day. 

Around noon it was getting really warm and a lot of hikers were sitting in the shade saying, "I'm going to relax for a few hours till it cools off a bit." I wanted to reach a larger creek called Yellow Rose Spring. I didn't see any yellow roses.  Ate lunch in a camp site next to the creek around 1:45. It was really hot if your weren't in some shade. For lunch I made my Spegetti with dehydrated chicken. It was pretty good. I used my Mountain House package from this mornings breakfast to let it cook. 20 minutes later it was ready to eat. 

Relaxed at the campsite and loaded up on water until around 4:00. From there it was up hill until the stopping point for the day at mile 36.1. There was a large oak tree which was the identifier for campsite which held 4 tents fairly comfortably. 

  Met and chatted with Carly, Jen and Will. All four of us are solo hikers which was cool. Carly and Jen had spent most of the day together. Will is legally blind, meaning in order to read anything on his phone he has to have the phone butted up against a magnifine glass which is then like half an inch from his eye.  Got cleaned up with some wet wipes and crashed around 8:30.  

Day 1: Campo to Lake Morena; 20.0 (20.0)

Didn't have the greatest nights rest. There were easily 25 people staying at Scout and Frodo's. To accommodate all the hikers, they setup 3 large tents which could hold 6-8 hikers each.         

In my tent, there were at least 3 snorers which made it hard to fall asleep. I eventually and hesitantly put in earplugs. Hesitant because I did not want to miss my 5am alarm.  The morning schedule was nice. Wake up at 5, pack up. Breakfast at 5:30. Loading in the vehicles 5:55. Depart at 6. 

 We arrived at the trailhead shortly after 7:00 which then everyone waited their turn for a photo at the southern terminus. We also took a group photo, which I think will be emailed to me at some point. 

   

  

   

After the photos and the goodbyes (to the trail angels) where complete, I walked down around a barbed wire fence to touch the Mexico boarder. From there the walk north began. 7:34am

   I hiked with various people throughout the day, learning who is who and whatnot. I spent the majority of the afternoon by myself as everyone's pace is slightly different and as the day goes along, some hikers slow down.   It was a gorgeous day and I enjoyed all of it. But man was my pack heavy. 6 liters of water which had to last me through mile 20, lake Morena. 

         I stopped for lunch around 2:30, mile 15.4. I relaxed and let my feet rest while my food digested a bit.  

   The trail in this part of California is much more lush than anticipated. The desert is ahead! The area I am hiking through received quite a bit of rain in the past week, which may be why it is so green. 

          I reached Lake Moreno around 5:45. I was going to stop short, but I felt good enough to make it to the campground, so onward I went. Nothing too exciting happened in camp except the shower... It was $1 for the shower (towel not included / not available). I was a little chilled from the sweat and the luke warm shower didn't really help. But after drying off (as much as I could with a little hand towel) I felt better. 

       There are 10 people in camp right now and they are all heading to bed. I don't plan on getting up super early tomorrow. Looking to go 10-15 miles.