We made it to the Heitman's in Old Station, and we haven't left yet. But that has nothing, I assure you, to do with Evie's Birthday Celebration last night, nor the several beers consumed, nor the fact that we stayed up 'til midnight playing "I Never" in a tree house.
I'm telling yall, this trail is fabulous. Literally, when we finally, after 60+ miles of roads, found the trail again, I wanted to kiss it. But I couldn't because I was too full of barbecue and wine, and it was getting dark, and we were trying to hike at least a few miles. I was full of barbecue because the trail goes right to Drakesbad Resort in the middle of Lassen National Park and Drakesbad has a hotsprings pool and showers and barbecue on Wednesday nights, which is when we happened to be there. And they LOVE hikers. Everything but the food was complimentary, and food was half off.
And this treat of a trail stop happened right after our road walk, and the road walk, which was so hard on my body, was delightful in many other ways because I had the Six Pack around, and folks were still wonderful to us even though we weren't on the trail. When we passed through Greenville we collapsed on the high school lawn with strawberries and coconut Popsicles from the store across the street, the caretaker let us into the boys locker room where we got to take cold showers. He even provided us soap and towels. So when we got to Drakesbad we weren't even that stinky.
And now we're in Old Station at the Heitman's house and we've showered and eaten wonderful food yet again. If we're not careful, we might get too used to these creature comforts!
Lucy reminded me on the phone the other day, that she rarely hears about the trail. Instead she hears about all the soft beds and the margaritas and the big breakfasts and the ice cream and really, I assure you all, we are hiking! We see trees and dirt and rocks every day! We eat lots of nasty bars and Mike N' Ikes and sweaty cheese with dirty fingerprints on it. We find lakes occasionally and jump in, and crash in the bushes at night time, and then we get up in the morning early early early (Evie has a new little ditty he likes to sing at 5am as he throws pine cones at all of us still peacefully sleeping) and hike some more!
And speaking of swimming holes, we swam in Lower Twin Lake (another goddamn Twin Lake) and it was incredible! It was warm enough to actually swim, and the bottom was hard packed mud and the water was crystal clear so we could see all the way to the bottom when we were swimming, and we could see the light playing of the water reflected on the lake bottom. It was idyllic! Another place to go back to. And today, when we finally leave the Heitman's, we shall hit a long waterless stretch in the hot, dry sun. But we hear there are caves to take refuge in, so maybe we won't really hike until evening anyway.
Oh this trail is full of woes . . .
Friday, July 25
Wednesday, July 23
Six Pack back on the Trail!!!
Space Man Spiff called today to let me know that the crew has finished the road hike through the fire and come out on the other side unscathed. He said it was hard, but a good bonding experience for the Six Pack and they are all glad to get their feet back on the trail. YAY, SIX PACK!!!!
Tuesday, July 15
A HAPPY BIRTHDAY POSTING ON SPIFF'S BIRTHDAY!
A HAPPY BIRTHDAY POSTING ON SPIFF'S BIRTHDAY!
Spiff's 'Rents ascended to PCT
From sea-level north to Yosemite.
Mammoth Lakes to Tuolumne
The 'rents were mightly impressed with all to see.
Strong confident hikers striding across the meadow at the end of a day, 900 miles into the journey;
Other parents bringing treats and hugs, enjoying the celebration and feeling appreciated!
Fellow hikers forming a helpful family, watching for each other.
Devouring mail and treats freshly extracted from the post-office.
Siblings immensely happy to see each other again.
Six Toed Pterry resting with Daddy Longlegs, wondering....
But he was still able to keep up!
And he still had a few side-trips in his tank along the 80 miles to Sonora Pass.
That's what we did see, and hope you enjoy the glimpses here!
/Users/cdlaird/Pictures/iPhoto Library/Originals/2008/July 1, 2008: Yosemite; Spiff and Six-toes/DSCN1126.JPG
/Users/cdlaird/Pictures/iPhoto Library/Originals/2008/Sye and Andrew and friends: Yosemite 2008/DSCN1151.JPG
/Users/cdlaird/Pictures/iPhoto Library/Originals/2008/Sye and Andrew and friends: Yosemite 2008/DSCN1155.JPG
Spiff's 'Rents ascended to PCT
From sea-level north to Yosemite.
Mammoth Lakes to Tuolumne
The 'rents were mightly impressed with all to see.
Strong confident hikers striding across the meadow at the end of a day, 900 miles into the journey;
Other parents bringing treats and hugs, enjoying the celebration and feeling appreciated!
Fellow hikers forming a helpful family, watching for each other.
Devouring mail and treats freshly extracted from the post-office.
Siblings immensely happy to see each other again.
Six Toed Pterry resting with Daddy Longlegs, wondering....
But he was still able to keep up!
And he still had a few side-trips in his tank along the 80 miles to Sonora Pass.
That's what we did see, and hope you enjoy the glimpses here!
/Users/cdlaird/Pictures/iPhoto Library/Originals/2008/July 1, 2008: Yosemite; Spiff and Six-toes/DSCN1126.JPG
/Users/cdlaird/Pictures/iPhoto Library/Originals/2008/Sye and Andrew and friends: Yosemite 2008/DSCN1151.JPG
/Users/cdlaird/Pictures/iPhoto Library/Originals/2008/Sye and Andrew and friends: Yosemite 2008/DSCN1155.JPG
A newbie on the PCT
I joined Spiff and Six Toes for 3+ days on the trail from July 3-6. We hiked 76 miles from Tuolumne Meadows to Sonora Pass. It is AWESOME, AWESOME, AWESOME! Join them for a day or two. Be trail angels for them or someone else. It could reorder your priorities. It has for me. I can’t wait to join them for another stretch later this summer.
I posted more pictures at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11311360@N08/sets/72157606179092051/. The terrain drops your jaw like a ton of bricks. What I’ve heard about the high Sierras is true: they are like the Enchantments in Supersize mode. It is granite country, and lake country, with Montana-sized meadows and temple-like ridges. Spending a few days away from concrete and cars, and in a place like this, raises fundamental questions about what is important and what is not. (Important: Food, water, sun, bugs, being kind to your feet, sharing, friends and loved ones; Not important: Almost everything else.)
I met up with Six Toes, Spiff, Charles, Judy, Andrew, and Edith, in Lee Vining, CA. We had a great dinner, heard tales of the trail, and laughed a lot. It was like a birthday party – which is a good thing because it was in fact my birthday. Andrew, Edith, and I visited Mono Lake the next morning as Spiff and Six Toes got their supply boxes ready. In the afternoon we all walked north on the trail until Charles, Judy, Andrew, and Edith said goodbye and turned back to Tuolumne Meadows.
That’s when it hit me that I really was on the trail – with hardened trail veterans and 75 miles to go. In my haste to get ready I impulsively bought new shoes. This is not usually a good idea before a long hike. Six Toes and Spiff had to keep moving and it was my job to keep up. I had images of emerging 75 miles later with bloodied stumps where feet used to be.
Fortunately, things turned out pretty well and my feet survived intact. This is a good thing because I needed all my blood for the mosquitos. Mosquitos are industrious little buggers, and those of you who care about them will be happy to know that we donated many, many liters of blood for the hatching and rearing of mosquito babies.
*
The first thing to know about hiking the PCT is that everyone has a nickname. I first met a woman who called herself - with no sense of irony or need for explanation - "Shake 'N Bake." Her husband is Low Rider. Spiff and Six Toes have shared a lot with them, including, as far as I can tell, hot tubs and motel rooms. But they do not know their real names.
On our first day out we were joined by Jellybean, a wonderful woman with whom I went skinny dipping in lakes and slept in a broken down motel room before learning her non-trail (i.e., real) name. Later we were joined by Lil' Wrangler, who is not little at all, but who got his name because he ordered four corn dogs off the Lil’ Wrangler children’s menu at a restaurant in southern California many weeks ago. Lil’ Wrangler’s cap even has a nickname, as the words “Super Visor” are written across the bill. Maybe it is the thin air, but this type of humor works on the trail.
Later I met Squatch, Nibblewill Nomad, Barely Legal, Llama, Johnny Two Stoves, two of the Three Amigos, and – apparently because he is from Italy and needs no additional nickname – Lorenzo.
Nicknames are sort of given and sort of chosen. Despite having the unquestionably best name of all, Barely Legal was trying to change her nickname to Wild Child. You tell me which works best.
The second thing to know is that hiking the trail is a metaphor for life itself – you travel with others, but ultimately you are on your own. Groups form and dissolve without any communication that I could discern. Jellybean simply was part of our group. Then Lil’ Wrangler was too. Llama could have joined us, but he hung back and I did not see him again for two days.
A third thing to know is that hiking the PCT is not like backpacking as I know it. When I go backpacking, we lug a ton of stuff up to a pretty spot and look around for a nice area to make home for a couple days. We set up a kitchen area, set up the tent, and find a spot to stash food away from rodents and bears.
Through-hiking, in contrast, places no premium on finding the “right” spot. Instead, when it is time to get ready for bed, everyone flops on their own plot of gound like puppies and pulls out their books and journals. Tents, if used, pop up in a minute.
I slept without a tent for two nights. The stars and constellations are tilted compared to what we see up here in Washington. Cygnus the Swan, Lyra, and Aquila the Eagle soared overhead throughout the night. My sleeping bag got wet, but I copied Spiff’s lead and hiked in the morning with the bag draped over my pack. It dried up in no time.
For many people, hiking the trail comes to define their lives. Shake N Bake told a story about a friend who hiked the PCT four years ago. When asked by a mutual friend what she had been doing lately, this friend began, “Well, I recently hiked the PCT…” The trail was that important, that much a defining experience in her life.
*
We had a car waiting at Sonora Pass, and drove to Bridgeport for the night. After breakfast we drove back up and hung out as Gordon – a trail angel in a white van – blasted the song “Out on the Crest Trail” over his van’s speakers. We danced – I caught Six Toes dancing on video – and hung out until there was no longer any excuse to stick around. We said goodbye and Spiff and Six Toes shouldered their packs and disappeared into the trees of Sonora Pass. It was a hard moment. I considered dropping everything to join them on the trail. Gordon’s song says, “There’s a strong wind, and it’s pulling me northward. To the Canadian border. And I’ll soon be there.”
Sunday, July 13
Rosie's
We met Rosie the day we climbed into Wrightwood, way back in May. She had just lost half her food and her entire cook set to a coyote the night before but was in jovial spirits none the less. We didn't see her again until Agua Dulce, where she was hopping off the trail to return to her normal life in the Lake Tahoe area. But she gave us her number and a month and a half later, here we are, in her living room, using her computer, her phone, her laundry and hot tub and kitchen and bikes, and sleeping in, well not her bed, but one of her beds.
I want to be a trail angel at some point. The utter mental and physical relief that comes with having a place to crash in civilization is unbelievable. Not to sound too cheesy, but I feel so overwhelmed with thankfulness and gratefulness at all her generosity - she even has brought us leftovers from her catering company: ceaser salad and chocolate cake and fajitas with fresh salsa and guacamole. Yum! But really, I would feel this way if she'd simply offered us a soda or a backyard to sleep in. It doesn't take much.
Speaking of which, I know some of you are interested in helping out with our fire dilemma. What would be most helpful at this point is:
- If someone would bring us two bikes, preferably that would fit us and are in decent condition.
- If someone would be support crew while we walk or bicycle the 100 + miles around the fire closure. This would include bringing a car full of coolers that would in turn be full of orange soda, VitaminWater, Gaterade, Tecate, avocados, grapes and strawberries, plus numerous grocery bags full of cookies and Cheezits and chips off all kinds. Maybe a couple Snickers bars too. And if you could wing it, some ice cream. Don't worry, this wouldn't all be for us. Whenever you saw some dirty hiker on the side of the road, you would offer them their pick of said goodies. Oh, and if you had leftover pizza, we'd want that as well. Sye also says to include more Thai and Indian food, and maybe a salad. I think he want's healthy food, but he's an anomaly amongst hikers.
photographias
on top of mt. whitney
six toed pteradactyl napping (can you believe the location?!)
the highest pass, way up theretahoe with the tourists
now that thai food sitting on the table isn't teasing me, i can think a little more clearly. we are still in tahoe area, trying to figure out how we are getting around this fire up ahead. there's 100 miles of trail closed, and i'd really like to walk around somehow, but a 100 mile highway walk sounds grueling. where's our road bikes?! it may be a hitching situation. plus, the air quality around here is already pretty bad, and walking through days of thick smoke sounds also grueling. if we do hitch, i guess we'll get back on schedule! probably would get off trail north of sierra city around quincy, and then back on around chester. tough year for fires.
despite some hazy muggy days this last section, desolation wilderness is beautiful. aloha lake. go there. maybe a little later than this time of year because of the mosquitos. i'm convinced that you all would smell the deet on my from a mile away at this point. it just works so well, and nothing else does. there were so many lakes to jump in on friday, and we just picked a few or else we would have never gotten anywhere. but lake aloha is certainly the best. lots of granite, warm water, not mucky, and no mosquitos in this mosquito nursery land.
the fires have made the sunrises and sunsets surreal, red sun and days that feel cloudy because the sun can't shine all the way through. and i think it contributes to the mugginess.
as pteradactyl said, hiking with her dad was awesome. not only could he keep up, he hiked much faster than me, and ran up an extra peak to look around. peak bagger. that same day, we also ran into a few hikers, one of whom had hiked much of the pct last year and had brought treats for thru hikers. the friend that was with him, for those of you who have known me for a long tim, was chris loeffler who i went to middle school with! weird coincidences. he didn't know i was on the trail, but lives in san francisco and was out hiking for a few nights.
well, at this point we've hiked over 1000 miles, come almost half way, and i think northern california is where my motivation wanes a bit. especially with the fires. i know there's so much more to see, but we haven't been hiking with folks we know (i think all our friends are behind us), and it's just not, as alex said, the same as the high sierras. but we're hoping to possibly see my brother tomorrow (the logistics are difficult, but it would be a great bday present!), and keep sending us your love. comments here are nice, and emails, and phone calls, and, well, care packages! i haven't been writing as much to send to anyone to transcribe, but i will certainly keep trying. those long days just make me want to sleep at the end, or read a good book. which, of course, i don't carry. so i just settle for the oddly entertaining guidebook, trying to sound objective but often sounding full of opinions quipped in the oddest ways.
despite some hazy muggy days this last section, desolation wilderness is beautiful. aloha lake. go there. maybe a little later than this time of year because of the mosquitos. i'm convinced that you all would smell the deet on my from a mile away at this point. it just works so well, and nothing else does. there were so many lakes to jump in on friday, and we just picked a few or else we would have never gotten anywhere. but lake aloha is certainly the best. lots of granite, warm water, not mucky, and no mosquitos in this mosquito nursery land.
the fires have made the sunrises and sunsets surreal, red sun and days that feel cloudy because the sun can't shine all the way through. and i think it contributes to the mugginess.
as pteradactyl said, hiking with her dad was awesome. not only could he keep up, he hiked much faster than me, and ran up an extra peak to look around. peak bagger. that same day, we also ran into a few hikers, one of whom had hiked much of the pct last year and had brought treats for thru hikers. the friend that was with him, for those of you who have known me for a long tim, was chris loeffler who i went to middle school with! weird coincidences. he didn't know i was on the trail, but lives in san francisco and was out hiking for a few nights.
well, at this point we've hiked over 1000 miles, come almost half way, and i think northern california is where my motivation wanes a bit. especially with the fires. i know there's so much more to see, but we haven't been hiking with folks we know (i think all our friends are behind us), and it's just not, as alex said, the same as the high sierras. but we're hoping to possibly see my brother tomorrow (the logistics are difficult, but it would be a great bday present!), and keep sending us your love. comments here are nice, and emails, and phone calls, and, well, care packages! i haven't been writing as much to send to anyone to transcribe, but i will certainly keep trying. those long days just make me want to sleep at the end, or read a good book. which, of course, i don't carry. so i just settle for the oddly entertaining guidebook, trying to sound objective but often sounding full of opinions quipped in the oddest ways.
Saturday, July 12
naps!
i took a nap today. i think it's my first nap on the trail (or rather, off the trail at our amazing friend's house who hiked a month and a half on the pct and invited us here). 6 toes naps all the time, which i am so envious of. i also hiked seven miles, got a ride from bill the sheriff who's wife hiked the pct two years ago, ate a burger, drank a bear, ate two fajitas and cornbread with honey butter, took a shower, washed clothes, and took a nap. and now...amazingly, i'll get to eat thai food!!! alex and rosie are driving up right now. i can't wait. i've been craving thai food, and indian food (which i kinda got to eat in a not-lightweight foil pocket), mostly i think because they have different kinds of fat than good old american diner food. anyone want to meet us with take-out from an amazing restaurant? ok, i will have to write more later because this food awaits. and thru hikers don't wait for food to get cold.
Barker Pass and Tahoe City
We came out today at Barker Pass, a trailhead not far from Tahoe City at mile 1,126.7. A couple hundred more miles and we'll be halfway done with this trail. Actually, with the millions of fires blazing along our path, we might already be done with half the trail we'll be allowed to walk this year. If you haven't been following the news (which I certainly am not following) you might not know that One Hundred of the PCT are closed. Let me repeat. One Hundred miles. Shit. Our options include making up some alternate road walk or hitching around the dang closure. Either way sounds awful to me. Twenty miles of dirt road walking utterly ruined my feet - I don't know what One Hundred miles would do. They'd probably just fall off in protest.
Anyhow, the trail since the High Sierra has been a little anti-climatic. I'm sorry to actually admit that, but the High Sierra were stunning and the rest is reduced to simply beautiful. But my dad came and hiked with us for four days out of Tuolumne Meadows, and it was wonderful to have him along! I actually was hoping he would have posted his account of the journey by now . . .
I'm a bit tired of writing, and luxury of all luxuries, I'll be able to finish this up later tonight! If, that is, I'm not too busy hot-tubbing or watching a movie . . .
Wednesday, July 2
tuolumne meadows
can you believe it, we've had visitors!! i thought the day would never come. i guess marta didn't quite mention...that she didn't get that last chunk of writing in the mail, she got it in person! i saw that she wanted to visit us in independence, and marta and johann and the baby showed up at 3am (typical), and we hung out at the campground. six toes (alex) and i had to hike out the next day, but it was so worth it for us, as short as it was. and marta even brought my favorite dessert. yummy five day old danish potatoes from nielson's. haven't figured out what our first visitors get, but they're extra special.
and... they beat my family out here. came into red's meadow and met my parents riding up on their bikes! there were a few other family members of other hikers there, but none on their bikes. we met them briefly that afternoon, and again here in tuolumne meadows, where we've been treated to a much neaded break away from the trail for two nights. each in our own huge queen sized bed. they're soooo comfortable. and living food. and good company.
and...there's more. six toes pteradactyl's (still alex) dad is meeting us tonight to hike with us for 4 days starting tomorrow. you all really can't space yourselves out a little more? we expect this many visitors as we get closer to home...
and... we got not one, but two care packages here! lisa and kelsy are amazing. really. sounds like other people are wanting to send stuff, but don't really know where to send it to, so i'll try to update that list. and on that note, i've heard we may not have internet for a few weeks, so don't rely on the blog to leave us messages, best to use the phone.
if anyone's interested, i think i'll have to come back and hike the john muir trail in a few years. like we've been saying, the mountains are amazing.
and... they beat my family out here. came into red's meadow and met my parents riding up on their bikes! there were a few other family members of other hikers there, but none on their bikes. we met them briefly that afternoon, and again here in tuolumne meadows, where we've been treated to a much neaded break away from the trail for two nights. each in our own huge queen sized bed. they're soooo comfortable. and living food. and good company.
and...there's more. six toes pteradactyl's (still alex) dad is meeting us tonight to hike with us for 4 days starting tomorrow. you all really can't space yourselves out a little more? we expect this many visitors as we get closer to home...
and... we got not one, but two care packages here! lisa and kelsy are amazing. really. sounds like other people are wanting to send stuff, but don't really know where to send it to, so i'll try to update that list. and on that note, i've heard we may not have internet for a few weeks, so don't rely on the blog to leave us messages, best to use the phone.
if anyone's interested, i think i'll have to come back and hike the john muir trail in a few years. like we've been saying, the mountains are amazing.
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