Hiker Heaven - Days 24 - 27

Day 24

Mile 369.3 to Mile 393.0 ~ 23.7 Miles

Today the mission was to summit Mt. Baden Powell which sits at 9,399 ft. The first 4-5 miles of the day were nice and flat then we hit the junction for Baden Powell. It was 4 miles of constant intense uphill hiking. By the time I had made it to the top my legs were sooooo tired and I was sweating like a pig. I sat upon the peak and thought two things...

One, I absolutely love being at the top of a peak. Some hikers didn’t summit San Jacinto because of the 5 mile side trail and some didn’t summit Baden Powell because of the .4 mile side trail. I will gladly hike the extra miles to accomplish a summit. Something about overlooking such a vast amount of land and being able to have 360 degree views brings me so much joy. Also the sense of accomplishment you feel when you take those last grueling steps and reach the peak is such a fulfilling feeling. I sat upon the peak of Mt. Baden Powell with a huge smile on my face until I had my second thought.

Two, Mt. Baden Powell sits in Los Angeles County and looking down and out at the beautiful surrounding mountains and the towns and city afar all I could see was smog. It made me legitimately sad seeing all the smog in the air and thinking to myself how stunning this land/area would be without it. Can’t we just take a big vacuum and suck it all up? Oh well, I’ll keep wishing.

Overall today was a fantastic and beautiful day on the trail.

Day 25

Mile 393.0 to mile 417.2 ~ 24.2 Miles

So when I was in Wrightwood, I downloaded a bunch of podcast and I was beyond excited to listen to them. I had listened to everyone of my downloaded songs about 50 times over and I was ready for something new. About an hour before lunch I thought it would be a good time to play one of my podcasts. Come to find out the download didn’t work and I couldn’t play any of the episodes I downloaded... I was crushed. All that anticipation and excitement down the drain. Back to the music for the 51st time.

When I finally sat down for lunch I kicked off my socks and shoes, laid out my sleeping mat and took out my pita bread, cheese and pepperoni and started to chow down. I looked to the left and there were thousands of ants... some starting to crawl on to my mat and others onto my backpack. I didn’t know what to do! I really didn’t want to put back all my food, put my socks and shoes back on and hike further down the trail to find another spot. So, I ate my lunch with some company. It was irritating and I got bit once on my back, but it was better than the alternative.

Day 26

Mile 417.2 to mile 440.2 ~ 23 Miles

This morning I got my first REAL trail magic. There was an easy-up and a table set up near the trail. This lady and gentleman called us over and said come enjoy some trail magic! This table had donuts, fruit, cookies, candy, beef jerky and Gatorade. The spread was unreal! As I partook in some donuts and Gatorade I got to meet the couple who supplied the magic. Rob and Laurna, a couple from Thousand Oaks, and hopeful hikers of the PCT in 2019 or 2020. They were gracious enough to pay it forward to us hikers today and it meant the world! It was amazing and I left with my sweet tooth satisfied and my belly full.

After the trail magic I was reflecting on how happy and blessed I am to be out here hiking this beautiful trail. It’s been 26 days out here and I have been healthy and my body has allowed me to hike hard. The weather has cooperated and for the most part I have experienced perfect conditions. I have also met some amazing people from all over the world and all have different lifestyles and perspectives on life. God is good and I am so thankful for this journey.

I have about 14 miles into the next town called Agua Dulce. Seems to be a small town but there is a place called Hiker Heaven that is a fixture of the trail. All the hikers who pass through town stay at this place. I am excited to see what all the hoopla is about and visit with fellow hiker tomorrow!

Day 27

Mile 440.2 to Hiker Heaven ~ 14.3 Miles

Ever wake up on a cold morning to go to school or work and there is a solid layer of frost on the grass as you walk out to your car? Well imagine sleeping in that grass. I went to bed last night, cowboy camping, and the temperature dropped a heck of a lot more than I thought it would. I woke up this morning around 6:45 with my sleeping bag covered in condensation/frost. My backpack which was laying next to me was covered as well. So getting out of bed was a little more difficult than usual. My cold body shivered as I packed my wet gear into my wet bag. I wanted to start walking as soon as I could because I knew that’s what would warm me up. So without breakfast I started to hike. At about 9:00, after hiking about 5 miles, I stopped. I took out some breakfast, took my sleeping bag back out and sprawled it out to dry. After about 30 minutes my gear was dry and my sprits were back up.

I got into Agua Dulce around 1:00 and went straight to Hiker Heaven, a house that’s backyard is transformed to accommodate hikers. They have showers, charging stations, laundry, and couches to lounge on. The massive backyard is filled with tents and roaming chickens (and 1 mean rooster). I was so excited to get out of my stinky clothes and clean up.

Later in the evening my Uncle Rick, Aunt Susan, and Aunt Carol, all who live about 45 minutes away from Agua Dulce came to pick me up and take me for dinner. We went out for a wonderful meal, I had a cesar salad, chicken fettuccine alfredo and I side order of french fries (with ranch of course). It was so great to see family and hangout for a couple hours. My belly is full and I’m so thankful I got to see them!