Date: 5/10/16
Miles: 21.5
Total Miles: 148.8
After drifting off to sleep to the sound of Frank Sinatra at Mike’s Place last night (true story), the gang was back on the trail at 6am this morning. Another perfectly clear sunny day and by 7, I was already getting hot as we climbed up. Today was a day of lengthy ascents and descents, all of it under a sweltering sun. At one point late in the afternoon in the worst heat of the day, I began thinking to myself “the sun is winning!” By day’s end, everyone agreed it had been the toughest day on the trail so far.
In between breaks we pushed hard to get in as many miles as possible before retreating to what little shade we could find. Along the way, we saw what looked like a common garter snake trying to swallow an entire lizard. Definitely a first.
Just 6 miles before calling it a day we happened upon an unexpected water cache that was a godsend as we had all been rationing the 5 liters we had started the day with, anticipating that there would be no water for 25 miles.
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We’re all in bed early tonight after a grueling day, and my now fixed sleeping pad should have me dreaming in no time. Tomorrow, it’s 3 miles to a road crossing where we’ll walk a mile up the highway to a cafe for both breakfast and a resupply box before making our way to Idyllwild.
Carol Brownscheidle says
May 12, 2016 at 7:05 amLove all the pictures. Feels like I’m walking with you, without all the blisters, shin splints, equipment failures……
Gary Michaud says
May 12, 2016 at 4:15 pmEnjoying the posts. Hope you can soon walk off those shin splints. Ace I feel your pain. I am following you all the way. Footloose.
jmountainman says
May 13, 2016 at 7:11 amThanks Footloose! Wish you were out here with me. Hoping for the best on the shin splints after a little rest here in the town of Idyllwild.
Kerston Swartz says
May 13, 2016 at 9:16 amThat snake picture is f’ing crazy. I wonder if the lizard won?
Also, hope you guys are wearing sunscreen.
Miss and love you!
jmountainman says
May 13, 2016 at 9:22 amAh, yes, sunscreen. So glad you asked, Kerston. One of us is doing just fine in the sunscreen department, while the other…not so much. I’ll let you guess who’s who, of course.
Kerston Swartz says
May 13, 2016 at 10:18 amI have no doubt who is who in this story.
I couldn’t get that snake/lizard photo out of my mind, so I forwarded it to one of our herpetologists for interpretation. I will let you know what she says!
Have fun buddy.
seattlesucksblog says
May 13, 2016 at 12:59 pmHere’s what our “herp” says:
“The lizard looks like a CA whiptail. The snake looks like a gartersnake. I am surprised too, that if it is a gartersnake, it was able to take a whiptail since they are super fast even among lizards.”
There you have it. You are now a herp too.
jmountainman says
May 13, 2016 at 8:34 pmThanks for the intel Special-K!