Wednesday, May 30, 2012
some new pics
I have been putting pics up on this website directly from my Iphone, but the better quality pics are on my facebook. If you want to check those out you can go here, if we aren't friends, and you can not view them, simply add me as a friend. Here is the link : http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150780498419147.391533.511324146&type=1
hope all is well out there in the real world...
kristo
working...
I am very lucky to be living on the PCT. I left my home, my family, my friends all behind. I ended a long term relationship with an amazing person who was my best friend in the world, all while still not knowing what I was looking for or trying to accomplish by coming out here to hike for 2700 miles.
I knew there would be a hiking community to slip into, but mainly I was coming out here just for a change in direction in my life and try to prove I could physically do what it takes, become healthier, but was expecting nothing real deep or meaningful.
What I didn't anticipate was that the change in direction would be more internal than physical. I have lots of issues I need to work out and really confront and how amazingly powerful and healing the trail is. Those areas within myself that are hard to deal with and trying to get to the root of my problems, and working to try and understand why my instinctual reactions to my issues is one that leads to getting even more down on myself. Confronting my battles head-on was something that was nearly impossible before I started hiking this spring. Now that I am out here, trekking day after day while becoming wiser, stronger, healthier, it has given me a sense of pride in myself, a feeling of confidence where I am able to face those inner demons more direct and for the first time in my life, so i can make some progress towards being a better person, friend, son, brother, lover...
Thanks to all of you who continue to send kind words, emails, txts... You are making this all such an awesome experience, and for those of you who know me, I hope the change is as evident when you see me as it feels inside me, because I already feel like a completely different person than when I last saw you.
I knew there would be a hiking community to slip into, but mainly I was coming out here just for a change in direction in my life and try to prove I could physically do what it takes, become healthier, but was expecting nothing real deep or meaningful.
What I didn't anticipate was that the change in direction would be more internal than physical. I have lots of issues I need to work out and really confront and how amazingly powerful and healing the trail is. Those areas within myself that are hard to deal with and trying to get to the root of my problems, and working to try and understand why my instinctual reactions to my issues is one that leads to getting even more down on myself. Confronting my battles head-on was something that was nearly impossible before I started hiking this spring. Now that I am out here, trekking day after day while becoming wiser, stronger, healthier, it has given me a sense of pride in myself, a feeling of confidence where I am able to face those inner demons more direct and for the first time in my life, so i can make some progress towards being a better person, friend, son, brother, lover...
Thanks to all of you who continue to send kind words, emails, txts... You are making this all such an awesome experience, and for those of you who know me, I hope the change is as evident when you see me as it feels inside me, because I already feel like a completely different person than when I last saw you.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Recap update...
Ok so I really am sorry for not being more prompt on updates. Hikers are lazy, no doubt about it, and sometimes taking time to make updates is hard to do when you hike 12+ hours, so I'll just do a recap of the sections and some high/low points:
Deep Creek > Cajon Pass ~
Hot, hiked alone, tried forgetting about the Wang all over deep creek. I missed a cougar by an hour. She was spotted at a creek crossing not even an hour after I crossed and passed by. I also saw the biggest rattlesnake yet. Son of a bitch had to be as gerthy as my arm. He was protecting the cache someone stored near the climb into Silverwood lake. Almost as soon as I saw the cache that guy started rattling, about 5 feet away, at eye level in a bush. I was able to get the water and apple without being attacked. I put in 23 miles in one day, biggest day yet.
Cajon Pass > Wrightwood ~
On an impulse call, took a day and a half off at DIP's house with his awesome family. Good Times, Christian, Scarecrow, Blood Bank an myself spent a couple afternoons lounging around his pool, chillin out max and relaxin all cool. Great group of hikers who I would spend the next week or more hiking with. Thanks again DIP!!!
Wrightwood > Aqua Dulce
Hot. 3 detours: 1 for endangered frogs, 1 for an uncleared section of the Station Fire, and one for the invasive and horrible amounts of Poodle Dog Bush. Still hiking with that same crew, amongst others small groups as well. Really been getting stronger and meeting lots of great people from all over the world. Getting into Aqua Dulce you pass through the Vasquez Rocks area. So cool, check out movies such as Blazing Saddles, Planet of the Apes, tons of old westerns, the Flintstones -"" have been filmed here because of the awesome rock formations due to the close proximity of the San Andreas fault. Getting into AD also means hiker heaven. Where the Saufleys open their home and property to hikers to prepare for the push to the Sierras. It's great when you can be around 50+ hikers at once and not be worried about actually hiking that day! These places are where the love is felt so deep! So great to feel like a part of something so special!
Aqua Dulce > Casa de Luna (the Anderson's) ~
Well the Saufleys and CdL are only 24 miles apart, but both require at full day off for the full experience. Saufleys is where you get stuff done, it's like a machine. The Casa de Luna is where you stop to chill to the max! It's a great party atmosphere. It's the great vibe, and so many awesome people who have everything and yet nothing in common. I night hiked 24 miles from 9 pm until 7:15 am to make it in one push, not in the heat of the day. It was tough, and when our group of 5 was seperated I had to hike alone to catch the front 2 who started first. Luckily I am getting super quick and basically ran up mountain to close the mile gap between me and the front 2. Well when the back 2 caught up in the am, they had seen a cougar in the middle of the trail right where I had been, alone, on the middle of the night. They are stalking me!! Casa was great, the people are great, the trail is amazing, loving life!
Casa > Tehachapi ~
Been putting on miles! Last 5 days hiking = 24 miles, 25, 27, 18, and 10 into town today. Been rocking and getting way quick! I can absolutely jam up hills now. So awesome to be feeling strong, in good health, losing weight, and being proud of myself. We crossed the Mojave and the aqueduct mostly at night and had a great time and some great conversation with a friend named Quest! One of the greatest guys I have met on the trail and he is actually walking up to Oregon to participate in a shaman Vision Quest with his spiritual group. Amazing person, with some amazing insight into life and it's tests and ways to deal with life and be a better stronger person. Truly another blessing from the trail!
Sorry this is all so vague, trying to play catch up. I am going to try and be much more vigilant from now on so I can be more interesting and detailed...
Some super cool people I have hiked off and on with: good times, Christian, blood bank and scarecrow, Powah Nap, Quest, Dancing Feet, Bobcat, Last on the Bus, Legion and Steady, Columbus, John T, Moss... Trail Family is awesome.
Until next time,
Kristo
Deep Creek > Cajon Pass ~
Hot, hiked alone, tried forgetting about the Wang all over deep creek. I missed a cougar by an hour. She was spotted at a creek crossing not even an hour after I crossed and passed by. I also saw the biggest rattlesnake yet. Son of a bitch had to be as gerthy as my arm. He was protecting the cache someone stored near the climb into Silverwood lake. Almost as soon as I saw the cache that guy started rattling, about 5 feet away, at eye level in a bush. I was able to get the water and apple without being attacked. I put in 23 miles in one day, biggest day yet.
Cajon Pass > Wrightwood ~
On an impulse call, took a day and a half off at DIP's house with his awesome family. Good Times, Christian, Scarecrow, Blood Bank an myself spent a couple afternoons lounging around his pool, chillin out max and relaxin all cool. Great group of hikers who I would spend the next week or more hiking with. Thanks again DIP!!!
Wrightwood > Aqua Dulce
Hot. 3 detours: 1 for endangered frogs, 1 for an uncleared section of the Station Fire, and one for the invasive and horrible amounts of Poodle Dog Bush. Still hiking with that same crew, amongst others small groups as well. Really been getting stronger and meeting lots of great people from all over the world. Getting into Aqua Dulce you pass through the Vasquez Rocks area. So cool, check out movies such as Blazing Saddles, Planet of the Apes, tons of old westerns, the Flintstones -"" have been filmed here because of the awesome rock formations due to the close proximity of the San Andreas fault. Getting into AD also means hiker heaven. Where the Saufleys open their home and property to hikers to prepare for the push to the Sierras. It's great when you can be around 50+ hikers at once and not be worried about actually hiking that day! These places are where the love is felt so deep! So great to feel like a part of something so special!
Aqua Dulce > Casa de Luna (the Anderson's) ~
Well the Saufleys and CdL are only 24 miles apart, but both require at full day off for the full experience. Saufleys is where you get stuff done, it's like a machine. The Casa de Luna is where you stop to chill to the max! It's a great party atmosphere. It's the great vibe, and so many awesome people who have everything and yet nothing in common. I night hiked 24 miles from 9 pm until 7:15 am to make it in one push, not in the heat of the day. It was tough, and when our group of 5 was seperated I had to hike alone to catch the front 2 who started first. Luckily I am getting super quick and basically ran up mountain to close the mile gap between me and the front 2. Well when the back 2 caught up in the am, they had seen a cougar in the middle of the trail right where I had been, alone, on the middle of the night. They are stalking me!! Casa was great, the people are great, the trail is amazing, loving life!
Casa > Tehachapi ~
Been putting on miles! Last 5 days hiking = 24 miles, 25, 27, 18, and 10 into town today. Been rocking and getting way quick! I can absolutely jam up hills now. So awesome to be feeling strong, in good health, losing weight, and being proud of myself. We crossed the Mojave and the aqueduct mostly at night and had a great time and some great conversation with a friend named Quest! One of the greatest guys I have met on the trail and he is actually walking up to Oregon to participate in a shaman Vision Quest with his spiritual group. Amazing person, with some amazing insight into life and it's tests and ways to deal with life and be a better stronger person. Truly another blessing from the trail!
Sorry this is all so vague, trying to play catch up. I am going to try and be much more vigilant from now on so I can be more interesting and detailed...
Some super cool people I have hiked off and on with: good times, Christian, blood bank and scarecrow, Powah Nap, Quest, Dancing Feet, Bobcat, Last on the Bus, Legion and Steady, Columbus, John T, Moss... Trail Family is awesome.
Until next time,
Kristo
It's been a while....
Sorry it has been so long since I've done a solid update, a lot has been going on, and I have been busy, hiking, and living life!
After leaving Deep Creek, I put in one hell of a day, going 23+ miles for my longest day of the hike. I hiked completely alone and only saw 2 hikers all day, one was Columbus who was taking a break down below the Mojave Lake Dam. I met up with him later that night and he told me he saw a mt lion right where he was taking a break when I had passed. It was about an hour after he'd seen me, he saw the lion about 15 feet above the trail on some rocks, so I was surely being spied on by the mountain cat... So after spending the night at Silverwood Law doing some 'stealth' camping in the picnic area, I had 16 miles to push to make it to Cajon Pass on I-15 where McDonalds and chevron awaited. It was a long hot grind, with like a million snakes jamming the trail, but I made it and had a small meal, but about 6 trips to the drink area to refill my pop. (Oh yeah, I call it 'pop' now instead of soda. I don't know why but I think californians are the only ones who call it soda in the first place, but everyone out here calls it pop.) So while waiting to push on further, I was lured by an awesome guy named DIP (dad in pain) who is hiking the PCT himself this year and is recovering still from an injury early on that required some rest... DIP lives about 30 minutes from Cajon Pass and took 5 of us in for the rest of the day and a zero day the next day. He has an awesome pool, and BBQ area, an amazing family, and is very generous, wouldn't let us lift a finger and made us do nothing but relax. By far some of the best 'magic' I will receive this trip. The rest, showers, and clean clothes were amazing, not to mention the 20k calories I must have eaten/drank in 40+ hours of relaxation. Thanks again DIP ~ you, Becky, Callie, James, and Katie were awesome!
So like I said, DIP took 5 of us in. I have been hiking regularly with a group of folks now. Scarecrow and Blood Bank are a couple, and two other guys Christian and Sheldon (now GOODTIMES). We have been hiking together for a couple weeks now. At Agua Dulce (mile 454) you come across some true angels: The Saufleys.
They are amazing. Their property is truly a machine! Their garage is a legitimate Post Office, they host upwards of 50+ hikers a night and is an amazing a cheap option to get lots of stuff done (hiker chores) before making the push to the High Sierra and get out of SoCal. From hiker heaven, it's 2 weeks until Kennedy Meadows where you are in the mountains, and out of the desert, so lots of gear and changes are made here to be ready. The great thing about places like this is the social aspect! Seeing all the hikers you have come across and catching up, hanging out, and all while not even hiking! So awesome. I had pizza for the first time in a month and it was amazing! The rest was very nice after pushing 150 miles through the Los Angeles forest in the area where the STATION FIRE of 2009 was. So sad to see and walk through such destruction. A by-product of a forest fire is a plant called 'poodle dog bush' and it is horrid. It dominates areas that have been burned, it takes about 2 years to appear, and only lasts about 1-2- but it is out of control. It irritates your skin worse than poison oak, and calamine and technu wont touch it. So lame. We even had to detour around it because it is growing so bad right now....
I'm rambling and tired. More later.
Thanks
Kristo
After leaving Deep Creek, I put in one hell of a day, going 23+ miles for my longest day of the hike. I hiked completely alone and only saw 2 hikers all day, one was Columbus who was taking a break down below the Mojave Lake Dam. I met up with him later that night and he told me he saw a mt lion right where he was taking a break when I had passed. It was about an hour after he'd seen me, he saw the lion about 15 feet above the trail on some rocks, so I was surely being spied on by the mountain cat... So after spending the night at Silverwood Law doing some 'stealth' camping in the picnic area, I had 16 miles to push to make it to Cajon Pass on I-15 where McDonalds and chevron awaited. It was a long hot grind, with like a million snakes jamming the trail, but I made it and had a small meal, but about 6 trips to the drink area to refill my pop. (Oh yeah, I call it 'pop' now instead of soda. I don't know why but I think californians are the only ones who call it soda in the first place, but everyone out here calls it pop.) So while waiting to push on further, I was lured by an awesome guy named DIP (dad in pain) who is hiking the PCT himself this year and is recovering still from an injury early on that required some rest... DIP lives about 30 minutes from Cajon Pass and took 5 of us in for the rest of the day and a zero day the next day. He has an awesome pool, and BBQ area, an amazing family, and is very generous, wouldn't let us lift a finger and made us do nothing but relax. By far some of the best 'magic' I will receive this trip. The rest, showers, and clean clothes were amazing, not to mention the 20k calories I must have eaten/drank in 40+ hours of relaxation. Thanks again DIP ~ you, Becky, Callie, James, and Katie were awesome!
So like I said, DIP took 5 of us in. I have been hiking regularly with a group of folks now. Scarecrow and Blood Bank are a couple, and two other guys Christian and Sheldon (now GOODTIMES). We have been hiking together for a couple weeks now. At Agua Dulce (mile 454) you come across some true angels: The Saufleys.
They are amazing. Their property is truly a machine! Their garage is a legitimate Post Office, they host upwards of 50+ hikers a night and is an amazing a cheap option to get lots of stuff done (hiker chores) before making the push to the High Sierra and get out of SoCal. From hiker heaven, it's 2 weeks until Kennedy Meadows where you are in the mountains, and out of the desert, so lots of gear and changes are made here to be ready. The great thing about places like this is the social aspect! Seeing all the hikers you have come across and catching up, hanging out, and all while not even hiking! So awesome. I had pizza for the first time in a month and it was amazing! The rest was very nice after pushing 150 miles through the Los Angeles forest in the area where the STATION FIRE of 2009 was. So sad to see and walk through such destruction. A by-product of a forest fire is a plant called 'poodle dog bush' and it is horrid. It dominates areas that have been burned, it takes about 2 years to appear, and only lasts about 1-2- but it is out of control. It irritates your skin worse than poison oak, and calamine and technu wont touch it. So lame. We even had to detour around it because it is growing so bad right now....
I'm rambling and tired. More later.
Thanks
Kristo
Monday, May 14, 2012
Big Bear Lake to Deep Creek Hot Springs
Well after the awesome time and place that is Big Bear Lake and hostel, I set out from hw18 at mile 265 heading to Wrightwood at mike 360 something for my next resupply, however there are a few 'attractions' along the way. At mile 306 there is a natural hot spring seeping from the mountain. They say it has something to do with being so near the San Andreas Fault, but I am fairly uneducated on the reasons they occur. This particular area is sweet with 3-4 different pools and temperatures and someone has affixed a large tube for it to pour out like a hot shower into the cold water of Deep Creek a little below. Such an awesome place for a rest to get clean(ish) and chill. However, this is a known nudist area. People come all the time to nude-it-out here and since there are trails for day use to it, it is packed on the weekends, and I couldn't avoid hitting it on Sunday. Well Sunday is apparently when the gay male nudist social club makes there outing, cause there were 50+ gay dudes walking around all day in day backpacks and shoes, and only those. So yeah, pretty interesting, and there were a lot of other nudists as well and lots of people wearing clothes too (like me and most the hikers). Everyone got along and it was real chill and after a little bit, you hardly noticed all the wang hanging around. It was like 110 degrees and I couldn't bring myself to take off hiking through the desert in that heat, so I stayed all day and spent the night. I left this morning and pushed 22 miles for my longest day yet and I feel good and getting stronger.
The other 'attraction' is the Cajon Pass area which I will hit tomorrow. Less than a mile off the trail where some highway is, is an offramp with a Chevron, McDonald's, and Subway. EVERY HIKER goes to that place just to get cold drinks and hot food, things I am learning to cherish much much more. I am about 14 miles from there tonight and because I stayed at the hot springs I lost the chance of making it for breakfast, but I'll make do!!
Thank you to all of you that txt me randomly, it really helps with the homesickness, I appreciate it. And that's for all the support and kind words on Facebook! I am glad I can share with you what I can and that you all seem to enjoy it!
Until next time...
kristoOUT
The other 'attraction' is the Cajon Pass area which I will hit tomorrow. Less than a mile off the trail where some highway is, is an offramp with a Chevron, McDonald's, and Subway. EVERY HIKER goes to that place just to get cold drinks and hot food, things I am learning to cherish much much more. I am about 14 miles from there tonight and because I stayed at the hot springs I lost the chance of making it for breakfast, but I'll make do!!
Thank you to all of you that txt me randomly, it really helps with the homesickness, I appreciate it. And that's for all the support and kind words on Facebook! I am glad I can share with you what I can and that you all seem to enjoy it!
Until next time...
kristoOUT
Friday, May 11, 2012
MANY THANKS....
So much thanks to those of you who have donated to help me out!!! You made my stay in Big Bear very comfortable, and without the support of people like you, the foods, drinks, and rooms that help me recover once a week or so would be much more stressful if it wasn't for the help from you guys! Thank you so much, you know who you are, I couldn't do it without you!! You all fill my heart with so much appreciation and love.
I hope you all have an amazing weekend, I only plan on hitting about 50-60 miles by monday morning!!
THANK YOU SO MUCH....
~ kristo
Big Bear Hostel...
Well it is about 7:15 in the morning and I will be heading back out on the trail soon. I hiked 114 miles in 6 days, getting so much stronger. It feels so good to be getting into shape.
I stayed at the Big Bear Hostel yesterday and last night. The PCT community is so amazing. So fun to just hang out with hikers all day and not be hiking. We all kicked in a little money, and bought some ingredients and had ourselves a hell of a feast. It makes being on the trail have a family feel to it. For 5 bucks we all ate until full and spent much less money than we would have going out to a restaurant.
I am sitting at mile 265 and will be rolling into Wrightwood in about 5 more days because it is about 100 miles away. About half way to Wrightwood I will climb over Cajon Pass and you better believe I will be hitting up the Mcdonald's and Subway (only a mile off trail) as a halfway treat this week....
Miles 151-267 were pretty amazing. I climbed up and through the San Jacinto's nearly to 10k feet elevation, back down to the super hot desert with 100+ degree heat and to an elevation around 1800 and then right back up into Big Bear to about 8500ft again. I was worried before I ever set foot on the PCT that I would dread all the elevation climbs, but it is not that way at all. As I get stronger, I could care less about the elevation gains over so many miles. One thing I have learned about the PCT as a thru-hiker is that the PCT is a relatively "easy" trail to hike. The grades are like 15% max because the PCT is officially a PACK trail, meaning that it is built for pack animals. that means the entire trail is at a grade which horses and goats/sheep should have no problem. Don't get me wrong, you still may be climbing 7000 ft elevation over 10-15 miles, and it is a grind, but the trail itself will never be TOO steep. It ends up being lots and lots of long graded switchbacks to get you up and down mountains. Which is fine by me, leads to lots and lots of amazing view points!!!
I have to give a huge thank you to my Mom and Dad and Step Mom. With a bit of "behind the scenes" drama, they were able to keep me calm and collected and focused on my goal, and mentally ready to move on and keep hiking forward. It is a weird thing, the hiking/walking is becoming the super easy part, it is all the other outside stuffs that seems to want to get in the way and put a damper on my mood, or drive. I am working hard at staying mentally strong and being capable of conquering all the battles that come my way, but I am very thankful to have such an amazing support team, with so many people that want to see me succeed.
Thank You All....
~Kristo
Monday, May 7, 2012
the Jacinto's, miles 150-210....
well I took off from hw74 on Thursday around 12:30-1:00 pm headed into the San Jacinto wilderness. I was alone for real for the first time, no real group I was hiking with or camping with, which was nice. With no mile number to make it to and no group to catch up to, I hiked 14 miles to the top of a mountain where I witnessed one of the most amazing sunsets I have ever seen. It was really sort of sad no one was there to share such an amazing moment. It is times like that I sort of wish I had a hiking partner.
The next day was ALL up hill, 16 miles kicked my ass, but when I got to Saddle Junction where about 5 trails interconnect I was reunited with Blacksnake and a fella I met at KO ned Eddie. Eddie and I did 19 miles the next day up and down Fuller Ridge and through the snow to descend out of the amazing mountains back into the crappy hot desert. Today we did 16 miles to put us back into the 100+ degree heat at 1300ft elevation. 9000 plus is more where I prefer it!
So today we stopped at a trail angel home here on I-10 about 4 miles east of Cabazon and 14 west of Palm Springs. These folks (ziggy and the bear) run an awesome trail angel home and promptly give you a tub of hot water and epsom salt as you arrive to soak your feet in, and the love just goes on from there. Food, computers, ice cream, the works, all for simple amd cheap donations....
Five of us got a taxi and took it 5 miles to the Indian Casino where we gorged on a buffet and came back here to hang out with 10-15 other hikers or the night. We have a 55 mile push to Big Bear and I can hopefully get there by late Wed or def early Thurs. I am going to be staying at the BB Hostel in BB Lake part of town...can't wait to get there and take a good shower and do some laundry...
I posted some of the pics from my digi cam on facebook...check me out there as well...
I STILL miss you all, and love getting txts and emails when I get service, so please keep sending them, it's really the only way for me to still feel connected to you guys at all. I find myself missing home a lot and wishing you all could be doing this with me. I get super jealous when I see a group of friends doing this together...
Hope all is well...I know I am...
Gonna weigh myself in Big Bear to see if I have lost any substantial weight yet...
Until next time..
~ Kristo
The next day was ALL up hill, 16 miles kicked my ass, but when I got to Saddle Junction where about 5 trails interconnect I was reunited with Blacksnake and a fella I met at KO ned Eddie. Eddie and I did 19 miles the next day up and down Fuller Ridge and through the snow to descend out of the amazing mountains back into the crappy hot desert. Today we did 16 miles to put us back into the 100+ degree heat at 1300ft elevation. 9000 plus is more where I prefer it!
So today we stopped at a trail angel home here on I-10 about 4 miles east of Cabazon and 14 west of Palm Springs. These folks (ziggy and the bear) run an awesome trail angel home and promptly give you a tub of hot water and epsom salt as you arrive to soak your feet in, and the love just goes on from there. Food, computers, ice cream, the works, all for simple amd cheap donations....
Five of us got a taxi and took it 5 miles to the Indian Casino where we gorged on a buffet and came back here to hang out with 10-15 other hikers or the night. We have a 55 mile push to Big Bear and I can hopefully get there by late Wed or def early Thurs. I am going to be staying at the BB Hostel in BB Lake part of town...can't wait to get there and take a good shower and do some laundry...
I posted some of the pics from my digi cam on facebook...check me out there as well...
I STILL miss you all, and love getting txts and emails when I get service, so please keep sending them, it's really the only way for me to still feel connected to you guys at all. I find myself missing home a lot and wishing you all could be doing this with me. I get super jealous when I see a group of friends doing this together...
Hope all is well...I know I am...
Gonna weigh myself in Big Bear to see if I have lost any substantial weight yet...
Until next time..
~ Kristo
Friday, May 4, 2012
just some pics....
A few pics I took of myself...the moon was so bright last night I couldn't sleep! Like a flashlight on my face all night...
Thursday, May 3, 2012
couple half days to rest up...
Well I am still being effected by the KO event last weekend. After my first 7 days of hiking, throwing a big halt on the hike to attend the KO and meet everyone else hiking as well, it left me 1.5 days behind the group I had been hiking with. So since Monday morning I have pushed hard and put up 50 miles in 2.25 days, but my feet were feeling it! So after hiking only 10 miles yesterday morning to make it to the Paradise Valley Cafe, a super amazing lady named Annie gave me a ride down to Idyllwild to take the rest of the day off in town. It was an amazing ride with deep conversation, that had us both from tears to smiles within 15 minutes. It made the whole last day and a half of hiking through weather plus the slight pain totally worth it! It was one of those moments you can't even imagine happening until it does...
So I am in IDW to let my feet heal up a bit. No real blisters, just a callous and sore feet. When I got here I actually split a cabin with 2 guys I have hiked with in the past and almost my whole original hiking group, now 2 days ahead of me are here resting as well. So it was awesome to see some of them around town. Last night I went to a small Wine Bar called Idyll Awhile and got fairly buzzed. I met up with Keala from Hawaii and Melissa (the bobcat) and even though we are hikers, being with the two ladies (and being freshly showered and cleaned) led to the locals buying us most our drinks, and Dave the bartender is a beer enthusiast and took me all over the world with beer selections. It was an awesome day just perfect for getting me rested up a bit and recharged before making a 7 day push to Big Bear by next weekend.....
So I am in IDW to let my feet heal up a bit. No real blisters, just a callous and sore feet. When I got here I actually split a cabin with 2 guys I have hiked with in the past and almost my whole original hiking group, now 2 days ahead of me are here resting as well. So it was awesome to see some of them around town. Last night I went to a small Wine Bar called Idyll Awhile and got fairly buzzed. I met up with Keala from Hawaii and Melissa (the bobcat) and even though we are hikers, being with the two ladies (and being freshly showered and cleaned) led to the locals buying us most our drinks, and Dave the bartender is a beer enthusiast and took me all over the world with beer selections. It was an awesome day just perfect for getting me rested up a bit and recharged before making a 7 day push to Big Bear by next weekend.....
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