Date: June 25, 2017
Miles: 1296 – 1320.6
“Don’t be scared to walk alone. Don’t be scared to like it. There’s no time that you must be home, so sleep where darkness falls.” ~ John Mayer, The Age of Worry.
I had the entire day to myself, since Monster hikes like a train and Roi is also faster than I am, so I spent most of it hiking at a comfortable speed and humming tunes to myself. While I was singing out loud and hoping no one could hear me, I came around a corner and practically smacked right into a young buck with fuzzy antlers. Once he figured out I wasn’t a threat, he grazed about 50 feet from me while I took a break.
It felt like a ‘take lots of breaks’ kind of day, so I stopped again at Cold Springs to wash up and replace my warm water. The Spring was true to its name…I poured some water over my head and instantly got a headache from the freezing temperature, but it was so refreshing. Finding cold water to clean up in is one of the little luxuries on trail.
The rest of the day had peeks of Mt. Lassen and big clouds rising into the sky like fists.
At one point in the afternoon, a hummingbird flew right into my face and then hovered in front of me, looking me right in the eyeballs as if to question my presence in its territory. I thought to myself, ‘I question that too sometimes, little guy.’ Eventually I reached the midway point of the PCT, which was both an exciting and an anti-climactic moment. It wasn’t my personal midway point because I skipped 300 miles of the Sierra, but it still reminded me that I’ve walked a long way. It also reminded me that I have a long way to go.
Roi and Monster had gone ahead to find a place to camp with water, but I had enough water with me and I didn’t feel like walking any more, so I camped at the midway point by myself. As I sat in the dark, eating ramen alone by the light of my headlamp and feeling bored, I realized that I like being around people more than I thought I did, especially the people I’ve met out here.
I like to hike alone except when on a trip. Then i miss people. Especially by myself camping. Good luck! Come back do the sierras. They are so awesome. Few more weeks and trails should be good! Good luck. Love your blog. I sit every morning and read all the blogs and worry about you all!