On 5/24 we did 10.4 miles to Wrightwood and slept at 7,773 feet. On 5/25 we did 13.6 miles to just before Little Jimmy Spring and Slept 7,772 feet. On 5/26 we did 21.8 miles to just before Sulfur Springs and slept at 5,914 feet. On 5/27 we did 22 miles just before Messenger Flats campground and slept at 5,335 feet. On 5/28 we did 21.5 miles to just after the Akton KOA. On 5/29 we did 6 miles to Agua Dulce for a resupply.
Well, I don't have much to report. The resupply in Wrightwood went seamlessly, and after catching up on some sleep and some calories we hit the trail again. We have not had many major snafus. SketchPad's feet are doing better, not perfect but better. We are going to take some extra rest days in Agua Dulce, Hiker Town and Tehachapi to rest for the hottest and driest sections of the trail before the Mojave desert and then the subsequent climb straight into the High Sierra. The only real issue we have had was running out of stove fuel before Wrightwood. Luckily we passed a freeway at Cajon Pass and followed it to a gas station and carried out some highly nutritious food for the night.
We have met a lot of great people and characters on the trail. We have found our daily rhythm and so have a lot of other hikers so we are starting to see some familiar faces on the trail. Some of the familar faces we see often is the "Pack It Out Crew", a group of three guys who pick up any and all trash they find along the way. It is very common for thru-hikers to pick up wrappers they see a long the way which might have fallen out of someone else pocket, but the Pack It Out Crew takes it to a new level. I first heard about them on the AT; they were about 2-3 weeks behind me and at the end of the 2,200 mile trip they had packed out over 1,000 lbs of trash (yes they carry a scale with them to keep track of the actual amount they pack out). We have run into them multiple times on the PCT and they always keep us laughing. We even rolled up on them in the process of packing out an abandonded 12 person tent. The trio is in extemly good shape, and the only reason we are keeping up with them is due to the fact they willingly stop at every camp spot and happily load extra pounds of trash and abandoned crap into their packs. They have a website that if you get a chance you should check out, http://packingitout.blogspot.com/2014/12/packing-it-out.html
On 5/26 we finished walking another detour (this time for endagared yellow frogs). SketchPad was in front and heard crashing through the trees and exclaimed that she just saw a bear climb a tree. She said she saw it climb a big red incense cedar. I scanned the only incesence cedar in the area, a bug dead trunk, and did not see any bear. I asked her how big the bear was and she said it was a little larger than an adolecent. I kept looking at the tree and the surrounding area for a bear but after 5 minutes of looking and not seeing anything, I was beginning to doubt her. As we were walking away I turned around one last time and saw a bear sneaking its head around the trunk of the tree (it had been hiding on the opposite side of the tree the whole time). We gave it some space and it eventually came out to the front of the tree where we were able to snap a few pictures before we took back off down the trail. It just further proof bears are more scared of humans than many believe- it is only the bears that have lost their fear which are the scary ones we hear about...
Well that is all i have for this blog post, it was kind of a scattered array of thoughts, but just know the trip is going great. Besides the family and friends in our lives, we certainly are not missing the front country.
Hey Buddy
Good way to start the day
This hiker caught up with me, I made sure to send him this picture
Pack It Out crew, carrying out trash on top of there packs
No stove, no problem (with Fred and Ethel)
