Leaving Tehachapi after a zero, the emotion of arriving at the Sierra and ending the desert in a week made me buzz. I was ready. However, the wind that came out of Tehachapi had other plans for me …
The great wind
As you can imagine, according to the hundreds of wind mills in the surrounding area of Tehachapi, wind there is wind there. I didn’t think much about that up to approximately 3 miles on Tehachapi’s walk when the wind was so hard Deborah and I could barely advance in the turn of a change. Some other hikers who left the city at the same time that we returned to the hill, but persist. Approximately 4 miles, we were exhausted to prepare against the wind and sit down to rest near a chair where the wind was howling. This was the first time on the way I really felt scared, I felt insecure. It is not a great feeling. We do not feel super safe down because of the changes with the wind, so protecting itself seemed the safest option. Deborah left his backpack and ran through the chair and climbed the hill a bit to see if there was a place to seek refuge. Returning a few minutes later, he confirmed that we could hide behind some juniper trees a little ahead. The wind blew so strong on the chair that I wasn’t sure how I would cross, my backpack acting like a candle. I began to crawl on my hands and knees, and half of the half I stood up and ran the last little. A little further we find another hiker, Skybird, also taking refuge from the wind and breastfeeding a memory. We seek refuge with her, quickly deciding to take refuge there at night. We accompany ourselves a little later for another hiker and fellow blogger of Trek, delight!
Going to Walker Pass
My short day escaping the wind I knew would cost me, in the form of miles. Now I needed to invent those miles and get to Walker Pass in 4 days instead of the 5 he had planned. It simply meant larger mile days. The following days were filled with long water as usual in the desert, while walking under the constant buzzing of wind turbines. The landscape would become a wooded path, only to return to the warm, exposed and dry desert that had become too familiar. The water caches broke the dry stretching, literally making this walk possible. Joshua’s trees remain a stable partner through this section, although only the oldest and largest of the trees provides decent shadow in the heat of the day. At the end of the 5th, I was entering the Walker Pass camp, received by my partner and his father, and a new Delicatessen sandwich! Salvation!
Walker Pass to Kennedy Meadows
My partner got on the way with me here to continue in the mountains with me during the next month. To warm your legs, we take a few days of lower mileage over the next three days. While the landscape was slowing down the transformation into one more atmosphere, it was clear that we were still very in the desert. Our climbs were hot, dry and slow. There was little refuge from the sun and the heat and the insects that came. It was sincerely a little work. When we arrive at the Kern River, hot and dry, we immediately undress and enter, enjoying cold water. So close to Kennedy Meadows, we drag ourselves along the way, ready for a rest day. We were received by other hikers who called the cowbell when we arrived at the general store. Welcome! Losing Cook’s hut for an hour or so, at least we could look for some cold drinks to celebrate this milestone. The night fell into our small carp community and someone put a film in the outdoor projector. A solid end to the desert, and begins towards the mountains. We would have a rest day in the general store before leaving for a few more days before a break on July 4. The showers and clean clothes did well!
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