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Latitude:37.10200
Longitude:-118.59851
GPS location Date/Time:06/30/2015 20:50:33 PDT

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

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Latitude:36.96957
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GPS location Date/Time:06/29/2015 21:23:36 PDT

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.81507
Longitude:-118.40488
GPS location Date/Time:06/28/2015 20:14:20 PDT

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Fun Fact

Fun fact: the PCT logo (see below) is shaped like a Reuleaux Triangle (wikipedia.org/wiki/Reuleaux_triangle), which is a shape of constant width. Because it's a shape of constant width, you could make the wheels on your car out of Reuleaux Triangles and it would drive just fine (just as well as if they were circles). Of course, circles are much easier to manufacture (especially if we're making inflatable wheels and not solid wheels).

Here you can learn more about Reuleaux Triangles (and other Reuleaux Polygons): youtu.be/cUCSSJwO3GU

Photos uploaded

Just updated the photos folder

https://drive.google.com/folder/d/0B_-6KdFaC6WiZDdZaE5zaE9TdFE/edit

Custom message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.80230
Longitude:-118.19917
GPS location Date/Time:06/27/2015 09:33:37 PDT

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.77071
Longitude:-118.36697
GPS location Date/Time:06/26/2015 21:42:10 PDT

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.59336
Longitude:-118.37102
GPS location Date/Time:06/25/2015 21:12:14 PDT

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.45517
Longitude:-118.22595
GPS location Date/Time:06/24/2015 22:15:03 PDT

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Photos uploaded

Just updated the photos folder

https://drive.google.com/folder/d/0B_-6KdFaC6WiZDdZaE5zaE9TdFE/edit

More Creatures

Here are some more interesting creatures I've seen:



Lobster Bee



Coyote



Jack Rabbit



King Snake



Black Bear (the one I saw was probably a bit smaller than this)

Excerptations

Wow. I haven't had internet access or cell phone service for a long time. I meant to post one of these summaries in Lake Isabella, but the trail angels that took us there were only staying for a limited time (and my phone died). So this will definitely be a longer post.

6/13: (3.4 miles) Yeah, today was a Nero. I spent most of the day in Tehachapi and intended to start hiking around 7pm to avoid the relentless desert sun. But I didn't get a ride to the trail until around 8:30 (just after sunset). I hiked until around 10 but stopped because I was tired (not "exhausted tired" but "sleepy tried"). As I set up my tent by headlamp one of my stakes nearly broke (I was pounding it with a rock and the stake struck a rock). The stake was still usable, but now had sharp metal edges that could cut the guy lines. Fortunately I still had some cell service and ordered two more online from REI to my next resupply.

6/14: (23.2 miles) aimed to make up for yesterday's Nero and hit a PR today! Hiked the rest of the 16 miles to the water source then "cameled-up" for the next one (another 18 miles away). Lots of long desert hiking today and ended up hiking somewhat into the night. Not much else interesting to say about today.

6/15: (15.8 miles) slow day today. Started out very sore and frustrated (the sun woke me up by heating up my tent and that's never a good start to a day. Hiked immediately up a hill with no shade but was greeted at the top by some nice forest! Up and down a couple more hills for the rest of the day and every time started down the hill as a great forest jaunt. Just before I made it to the next water source I met up with Gummy Bear and we camped at a campground that night

6/16: (22 miles) another section of up and downs today (we are starting the sierras after all) but the worst was the sun exposure. Every now and then there were patches of trees for shade but few and far inbetween. Lunch time was under a Joshua Tree that somewhat provided respite from the sun. 3 of us cowered under the tree. We jumped from water cache to water cache today (water bottles left by the trail courtesy of trail angels) with no guarantee that they would be stocked. But they fortunately were. Walked through lots of remains of a recent flash flood (sometimes 3ft deep ravines filled with rocks and sticks that cut through the trail).

6/17: (20.5 miles) Started off the day with a large uphill (did it at 6:30am to avoid the sun). Soon reached a junction to Yellow Jacket Spring (no Yellow Jackets), left my pack, and hiked 0.75 miles downhill to get a liter of water. Wasn't too hard, but had to hike back up that hill and that declared the little journey: not worth it. From then till lunch I was not in the mood for hiking (have I mentioned I hate the desert?) but convinced myself to carry on till about halfway before stopping for lunch. After lunch it was mostly a big downhill into Walker Pass where Trail Angels Rick and Rita took another hiker and me to their house for the night. She immediately cooked us plenty of spaghetti and we were stuffed! Also passed a major milestone- less than 2000 miles left to Canada!

6/18: (5.5 miles) Today we got blueberry pancakes for breakfast (yay for trail angels!). We made a stop at the Walker Pass campground with the trail angels to check the water cache and saw Matt and Lisa there! They joined us on the way to Onyx, where I picked up my boxes (tent stakes and a resupply) before we headed all the way to Lake Isabella (a much bigger town). I spent the rest of the time at the McDonald's eating McFlurrys and using the WiFi until my phone died (there wasn't anywhere to charge it there). Matt's boots are too small so they stayed in Lake Isabella and will try to find a place to get bigger boots. I headed out from Walker Pass Campground (saw a coyote just as I was leaving!) around 7pm and made it about 5.5 miles to a flat spot and decided the next feasible flat spot would be way too far away (around 6 miles).

6/19: (24.1 miles) again making up for the Nero of the day before. This is a new PR! Also a bunch of cool things happened today. First, I passed the 25% mark (I'm now closer to halfway than to Mexico!), then got to Joshua Tree spring and drank Uranium water (it's got more than the "safe" amount, but ok if you aren't drinking it all the time), then saw a bear on the trail about 100' away from me (it ran down the hillside through the brush as soon as I realized it was a bear)! Today had lots of big uphills and downhills in the sun, but I made it to Chimney Creek which had lots of clear, cool water. [Apparently something weird happened when trying to check in this night. Not sure what]

6/20: (21.4 miles) Kennedy Meadows! One of the most renowned names on the trail. After a brutal uphill in the heat and an even more brutal downhill (the downhill had no trees) I finally made it to the South Fork of the Kern River where I stopped for a bit to read and refill water bottles (some people took swims and such in the river). I was able to make it all the way to Kennedy Meadows and finally got to the General Store around 8pm. Made some dinner from hiker box Mac n Cheese (sketch- but it was fine) and hammocked on the porch because I was too tired to set up my tent.

6/21: (10.4 miles) Hung out at the store most of the day. No cell service, WiFi, etc and the pay phone wasn't working. Got my bear canister, ice axe, and some new trekking poles! Was able to trade my bear canister for a smaller, lightweight one (1 lb less) with the General Store. Also sent my ice axe back home because there is next to no snow on the Sierras right now. Had M&M pancakes for breakfast courtesy of the store's kitchen (and later I had a pretty decent burger too). Laundry and showers were spendy and not very good quality so I decided to skip it (besides- I had just taken a shower a couple days ago at a trail angel's). Headed out around 5:45pm aiming to avoid making today a Nero (again "Near-Zero": meaning single-digit miles for me)- and success! But that success meant getting in to camp at 10:45pm or so. Lots of glowing eyes staring at me through the forest but after lots of shouting at them I realized they were deer.

6/22: (18.1 miles) The meadow immediately outside my campsite was beautiful! Beck Meadow, I think (I wonder if Rebecca noticed that). Hiked today up a very steep hill to over 10,600 feet! The highest we've been so far on the PCT! The trek up was tough and took nearly all day. Downhill was much better and for the next couple of hours everywhere looked like a great campsite! I meant to do a couple more miles but ended up camping in Death Canyon where about 20 other hikers were also camping.


6/23: (~17 miles) In the Sierras, the mornings are always very cold (around 40°). This makes it harder to get up in the morning, but it's much better than having the sun beating down on your tent at 6:30am. Once I got all my stuff packed up I headed out around 8:20am (almost before anyone else left camp). It was more uphill back to 10,600 or so, but this time not as steep. More downhill again and we reached Diaz Creek where the next water of the day was. Because it was about 9 miles in, I had lunch here and just hung out for about 2.5 hours while other hikers showed up. About 4 miles later and the PCT met a trail junction to leave the trail and head to Lone Pine. Unfortunately, civilization's a ways away and it was about 4 miles of trail to the nearest parking lot, then 20-some miles that I hitched (all the way down the Sierras into Owen's Valley). I got to the Whitney Portal Hostel around 6:45pm or so and was finally able to catch up on some emails!

Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.60443
Longitude:-118.06261
GPS location Date/Time:06/23/2015 23:27:08 PDT

Message:I've set up camp for the night! Here's where I'll be:

Click the link below to see where I am located.
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PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.60459
Longitude:-118.06277
GPS location Date/Time:06/23/2015 19:16:52 PDT

Message:I've reached a town! Here's where I'm at:

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.32206
Longitude:-118.13129
GPS location Date/Time:06/22/2015 20:05:54 PDT

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.14199
Longitude:-118.14290
GPS location Date/Time:06/21/2015 22:52:43 PDT

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:36.01902
Longitude:-118.12331
GPS location Date/Time:06/20/2015 20:35:31 PDT

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:35.69472
Longitude:-117.98598
GPS location Date/Time:06/18/2015 21:09:37 PDT

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Custom message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:35.62705
Longitude:-118.47360
GPS location Date/Time:06/18/2015 11:31:30 PDT

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Post via SMS June 18, 2015 at 01:55PM

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood and I took neither and stuck with the trail. And THAT has made all the difference.

Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:35.68527
Longitude:-118.05331
GPS location Date/Time:06/17/2015 19:04:15 PDT

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:35.55308
Longitude:-118.13370
GPS location Date/Time:06/16/2015 20:28:02 PDT

Message:I've set up camp for the night! Here's where I'll be:

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:35.45436
Longitude:-118.31395
GPS location Date/Time:06/15/2015 20:16:05 PDT

Message:I've set up camp for the night! Here's where I'll be:

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:35.30068
Longitude:-118.26733
GPS location Date/Time:06/14/2015 21:19:03 PDT

Message:I've set up camp for the night! Here's where I'll be:

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Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:35.11505
Longitude:-118.26108
GPS location Date/Time:06/13/2015 22:50:41 PDT

Message:I've set up camp for the night! Here's where I'll be:

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One month!

I've been hiking this trail for one month as of today. I asked myself if I'm ready to be done with the trail yet. I decided that no, I'm not. I'm ready to be done with the [insert your favorite expletive]-ing desert, but transferring that to the trail in general: I'm just ready for it to change.

On another note, OKTuna (David, who is apparently going by "Dr. Chimp" now because he used to be a primatologist) just showed up in Tehachapi today! Apparently he powered through and got like 3 hours of sleep last night! He'll probably catch up to me soon.

Here's a picture showing what I look like today (I haven't done anything to affect hair or beard growth so this is one month compared to the original post):

Check-in/OK message from SPOT PCT Hawk

PCT Hawk
Latitude:35.13457
Longitude:-118.56819
GPS location Date/Time:06/12/2015 22:38:42 PDT

Message:I've set up camp for the night! Here's where I'll be:

Click the link below to see where I am located.
http://fms.ws/OASQ1/35.13457N/118.56819W

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Creatures of the PCT

Here is a brief look into some of the more interesting creatures I've seen:
Quail

Rattlesnake (I saw one just like this with a "zebra" tail)

Carpenter Bee


Tarantula Wasp/Hawk

Kangaroo Rat



Hummingbird (these guys really aren't uncommon)

Bee Fly (looks like a Hummingbird merged with a Bee)

On the Topic of Resupply Food

Here are a couple notes I want to make on some resupplys I've received. (If you have already sent a box that conflicts with something below- don't worry about it. I'll just buy something different in town). I'll try to update and re-post this as I get tired of other things or come across new ideas too.

• If you send me tortillas with a filling (like PB&J or whatever), please, please don't pre-make the tortillas! These will be sitting in transition to the post office then at the post office for about two weeks (and by that time they're pretty soggy and gross). Just add some JIF To Go with some small jam packets (goo.gl/HHqcpV) or whatever you want me to make the "sandwich" with. (And I think it'll take me a long time before I'm sick of PB&J tortiallas)
• Also, some people have sent me things like peanut butter and jelly in little plastic cups. These cups aren't durable and split, crack, leak, you name it. Remember that whatever you send me will be transferred from the box to a flexible bag (containers have to be at least slightly flexible and durable).
• If you send me something like a Pasta Side or Mac n Cheese that requires milk, please include the appropriate amount of instant milk
• If you send me instant milk at all, please tell me how to mix it (or include the instructions). I can guess and try to come up with a consistency that looks and tastes like milk, but telling me how much water to add makes it WAY easier
• Pancakes seem like a great idea (and, granted, if I had thought of them before I would've put them on my spreadsheet of meal ideas) and you can send them but they're probably the most difficult thing to cook (they're also hard to clean up but so is Mac n Cheese- which is too delicious to say no). I have a tiny, very thin pan that conducts heat like crazy. So I have to make very small pancakes (a couple inches in diameter) because each side cooks almost instantly. To be honest- if you send them I will probably either cook them right away while I'm in town or avoid cooking them until I absolutely must
• Tuna. Oh, man, tuna. I have pretty much exhausted my tolerance for tuna. Which is a shame because it's such a convenient way to get meat. If you send me tuna at this point- it's pretty much going straight into the closest hiker box. Sorry.

More hiker friends (and an update on old ones)

I mentioned in the post below that I've been hiking with a new "group". It's a couple LaughTrax & Rebel (Matt & Lisa, respectively) and another guy, Gummy Bear (Noah). Gummy Bear somewhat posts very short summaries to Facebook, so I haven't linked him but Matt & Lisa's blog is linked on the sidebar ----->


I've been hiking with them since the night after Wrightwood. They're planning on zero-ing tomorrow (which I may do) but they're also planning on doing big mile days after that (and I have to put in a lot of effort to keep up with them anyway), so I may lose them.


A few times you guys have been asking about Beck & David. Beck (who is now going by Snakebite because she got bit by a snake- but apparently pre-trail) has been about a day or so ahead of me this whole time and I just met up with her at the library in Tehachapi! She'll be heading out today though and I may be heading out tomorrow or even the next day. David is, as of this post, at Hikertown and will be leaving tonight to night-hike the aqueduct like I did. So he's a few days behind.

Short Summaries (is that title redundant?)

I guess there's not much to write here, but I've reached Tehachapi and there's a library where I can use a full computer! So I'm taking advantage of this time to do some updating.


6/10: (11.6 miles) Hung around Hikertown for most of the day until LaughTrax (Matt), Rebel (Lisa), and Gummy Bear (Noah) (more about them later) showed up in the early afternoon. I decided to head out with them and we left just after 5 pm to night-hike the LA Aqueduct (most hikers do this because it's just a flat, boring section and to avoid the blistering Mojave heat). We camped just after the trail leaves the aqueduct for a bit (just to the side of a dirt road).


6/11: (19.8 miles) Today was originally planned to be ~15 miles (so we could do a 15 then a 13 to the closest place to hitch to Tehachapi). It was a long, horrendous hike in the Mojave sun amidst many wind turbines with very little shade. I was going very slow today (I blame the sun). Finally made it to the water source (3.5 miles before the campsite) and Gummy Bear told me that they were all planning on going up to the next campsite (4 miles farther up a fairly large hill). I got to the original campsite and after much thought (how steep is it really? how much closer to Tehachapi do I want to be?) I looked at the comments about the next tentsite on the Guthook app and they mentioned there was a water cache there. So I played some Christmas music (IT'S ALWAYS THE RIGHT TIME) and climbed into the sunset. The others weren't there (they did another 0.5 miles to the next spot) but the water was and I camped there.


6/12: (9.5 miles) Headed out around 7:25 (a little late) and the others were still at the campsite further down. So I hiked the remaining 9 miles all downhill to Tehachapi Willow Springs Rd and after about 45 min we hitched with a couple who hardly spoke any English (fortunately Gummy Bear is fluent in Spanish due to his Mexican heritage so we were able to converse with them all the way to Tehachapi). They dropped us off at the Chinese Buffet and we got all-you-can-eat Chinese for $9.50! And all-you-can-drink water! I'm going to try to stay with a trail angel tonight and maybe zero tomorrow (we'll see...).

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Post via SMS June 11, 2015 at 10:32PM

They say in order to understand YOURSELF you have to walk TWO AND A HALF THOUSAND miles in YOUR shoes.

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Photos uploaded

Just updated the photos folder

https://drive.google.com/folder/d/0B_-6KdFaC6WiZDdZaE5zaE9TdFE/edit

More summaries

[I'm doing this one from my phone so these will probably be shorter than usual]

6/3: (15 miles) Hung out a bit more in Wrightwood at a PCT-friendly coffee shop till about 10 or so. A Christian counselor that had an office next door offered us rides to Inspiration Point and I shortly took him up on it. Hiked from Inspiration Point to the Grassy Hollow Visitor Center. As I stocked up on water I got interviewed by all the rangers, then by a group of 2nd graders who came by for a field trip. Hiked Mt. Baden-Powell (definitely the toughest part of the day) and camped at the Little Jimmy campground. We decided to hang our food for the first time tonight so that was fun.

6/4: (17.7 miles) this may have seemed like a really big day if you checked my GPS data. I hiked 4.1 miles until I encountered Hwy 2 again, then hitched up about 4 miles until the PCT crossed Hwy 2 again. By doing so, I bypassed the endangered species closure for the Yellow-Legged Frog (for a freaking frog!). Passed mile 400 today! Again- hung food

6/5: (18.6 miles) Sun warmed up my tent today meaning that I was too late to get going. Hurriedly packed my stuff and ate breakfast in a shady spot down the trail. Got to the firehouse/ranger station and filled up on water, some electricity, and ate lunch. Lots of dodging Poodle Dog Bush to camp at Messenger Flats. Was feeling really lazy and instead of hanging food, I put it on top of the trash in one of the bear-proof garbage cans.

6/6: (13.7 miles) hiked the easy 6 miles to the ranger station. This ranger station was selling ice cold sodas! Plus there was a very helpful volunteer (who provided all the PCT hiker goodness, has hiked the PCT 3 times, and looks a lot like John Goodman) that we talked to for a couple hours. After this point there was no more Poodle Dog Bush, but it was a very grueling and sweaty hike to the Acton KOA. I immediately paid the $15 to camp along with paying for a soda and ice cream sandwich. Picked up my box, then spent a couple hours lounging in my hammock. There were about 10 other hikers there and we talked until about hiker midnight (9 pm). One of the other hikers and I ordered a large pizza to the KOA and it was a super expensive $43!! Didn't sleep well at all in the hammock.

6/7: (13.8 miles) the Mojave sun is relentless! Immediately from the KOA we hiked up hills in the sun with next to no shade. Eventually I made it to Vasquez Rocks State Park and was really itching to climb (again). Luckily, about 1 mile before Agua Dulce there was a guy and a girl about my age who walked up with a crash pad and wearing climbing shoes. They asked if I wanted to climb with them (would I ever!) and I put on the guy's shoes and did maybe 20 minutes of bouldering. Got their contact info and found out the girl works at Google! (maybe a future connection to get me in?) Shout out to Alan and Marie! Spent about 4 hours at the grocery store chilling with other hikers, eating ice cream, drinking Cactus Cooler, etc. Headed out later and camped just outside town. (Agua Dulce is one of 3 towns that the PCT goes through the middle of, in addition to Belden and Seiad Valley)

6/8: (20.5 miles) got going at about 6 am. Some other hikers caught up to me just as I was about to leave and told me I should try to hit Casa de Luna (another trail angel's house) tonight. So that became the plan I pushed up hills and down hills in the horrendous Mojave sun to get there. A good bit more shade this time but still tough. Made it and am sleeping on one of the futons outside tonight.

6/9: (Zero, but progress still made) tomorrow I will be doing what some other hikers have been doing and getting a ride to Hikertown. This will allow me to bypass the Powerhouse Fire closure without doing all the road walking. I'll stay there in Hikertown tomorrow night.

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Photos Uploaded and Gear List Updated

I have uploaded another photo, but I'll just include it here:

Here's the link to the rest of my photos, as usual: https://drive.google.com/folder/d/0B_-6KdFaC6WiZDdZaE5zaE9TdFE/edit

Also, I have updated my gear list to (mostly) reflect what I'm carrying now. That can be seen here: http://www.geargrams.com/list?id=20983

And then the summaries were continued...

5/29: (14.1 miles) Got a ride from the trail angel, Papa Smurf, I was staying with to the Fawnskin post office where my box was. Then he dropped me off at the Cougar Crest trail. After about 2 miles, the Cougar Crest trail took me to PCT mile 277.9. I stopped for lunch and after I finished two hikers came by. This is how the conversation went:
          Them: "Hi, are you a through hiker?"
          Me: "Yeah" (and in an attempt to kick off introductions) "I'm Derek"
          Them: "Derek! No way! We feel like we already know you! We've been following your blog!
          How's your foot?"

So that was pretty cool! I hiked with them for a bit, then eventually they passed me (then I passed them the next morning). [If you guys are reading this, I'm sorry I don't believe I caught your names (or I forgot) otherwise I would mention you by name!]

Rebecca and I camped at about PCT mile 290 (we intended to go to 293 but it was getting dark). We have decided that my trail name is SuperTramp (after Chris McCandless) and hers is Gummy Child (because she once offered everyone Sour Patch Kids with the phrase "would you like some gummy children?").

5/30: (20.2 miles) Felt like a very slow (and HOT! over 100!) day. I got going about 2 hours after Gummy Child and didn't see her again until the Hot Springs. Yes, I hiked to the first Hot Springs today (Deep Creek Hot Springs). "Clothing Optional" might as well say "there will be a bunch of naked old dudes here" so that was...interesting. Decided not to camp there- not because it was technically not allowed (people were doing it and all was well), but because I didn't want some sort of drug-fueled ruckus starting around midnight. So I left late and hiked until I found a good spot (which, unfortunately, wasn't for another 2.2 miles)

5/31: (16.2 miles) another 100+° day! Unfortunately, I learned the hard way today that you should not run out of water in the desert. In the morning I was out of water for about half an hour (not too bad), but then again I was out of water much later for about 2 hours (or more). Water is by far the heaviest thing to carry (I usually carry around 2.75 L or just about 6 pounds). I can carry more, but it's obviously not going to be too comfortable (especially if I'm just out of a town carrying about 4-5 days of food). So I cut it really close with water this day (maybe too close) but I was fine and was able to camp by the lake that night.

6/1: (15.4 miles) McDonald's day! The trail has many little surprises along the way and one is where the trail waltzes right up to I-15, within 0.4 miles of a McDonald's and a few small convenience stores. I ordered a Big Mac and large M&M McFlurry (I dreamed about ice cream while hiking the last couple of days). I hung out there for a few hours, then decided to stay at the Best Western across the interstate. Their biggest discount on rooms was the PCT discount, so that was nice! Got a good shower and a good bed for the night.

6/2: (0 miles hiked, but progress was still made) Wrightwood is where my next package was, so I had to get there. It's about 27.8 miles from Cajon Pass (where the McDonald's is). Unfortunately, those miles entail 5000 ft elevation gain, almost no water, and Poodle Dog Bush almost everywhere (the plant we're constantly warned about- like Poison Oak but worse, supposedly). I was also basically out of food (but could have bought more at the convenience stores). Wrightwood is a very PCT-friendly town and the hardware store keeps a list of all the trail angels and their contact info. They sent me this list and I was able to find someone to give me a ride from Cajon Pass to Wrightwood. Since then, I've got my package, eaten some food, and will be staying with another trail angel tonight before I reunite with the trail tomorrow. [I haven't hiked any PCT miles today but I still say "progress was made" because I jumped ahead 27.8 miles of trail]

Progress vs other plans

Some people mentioned that they would like to see a graph of how I'm doing compared to how I thought I was going to do. I've made a graph of this here (this can also be seen at the bottom of this sheet). This compares my progress to a 15 miles everyday plan, a 20 miles everyday plan, and my original plan (which had me finishing Oct 1st and was somewhere around 20 or more miles everyday). I also have marked on the graph when I would like to finish (which is the dot at the top representing Oct 13th- I start my job on the 16th).

[You should be able to come back to this post and it should update automatically as I add data to it]

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