Walk for a «hero» day in the mountains

This morning I got up bright and early and I was walking at 5:30 am there had been a couple of tents nearby where they installed me, so I was as quiet as I could. He felt nice to walk very early this morning. Lately it seems that I cannot leave the camp before 5:45 am although I was motivated by the idea of reaching Sonora Pass as quickly as possible today.

This was an incredible way to start the day!

When I left the camp, I only had about 11 miles to go to the road, where I can take a walk in Kennedy Meadows North. The morning began with a long but very gradual climb. I could see the changes in the distance and knew exactly where the path would take me. It was an incredible beginning for the day and when I went up to the top of that first mountain, I could see a beautiful dawn. Unlike many of the mountain passes recently, it was completely bald and exposed. It was quite a lot up, but not so bad. He simply felt the perfect way to start the day.

While continuing walking, the sun finally came out throughout its glory.

Once I put on the top of the mountain, I simply rode along the crest during the next handful of miles. From time to time I got off a little and climbed again. I ended up spending a boy who went south and went through a PCT hiker who went to the north. But I didn’t stop at all and I just continued on the path.

Views from the top of my climb this morning.

Then, the last miles in the morning were basically downhill until I reached the road. Of course, from time to time the path had to sneak into a small shameless escalation. But in general, it was a very nice and easy morning. I was also walking next to a lot of bright, beautiful wild flowers. Roses, oranges, purple and blue, almost does not seem that they exist in nature. It was absolutely incredible. This morning, in particular, there were tons of bright pink flowers that adorned the side of the path.

Directing through the crest.

When I went to the road, there was a car in the parking lot of the path and a boy there on his bicycle. He was taking photos of himself on the Sonora sign with a large rubber chicken. I spoke with him briefly and then continued to the next parking area. I knew for having been there before the parking area a little further to the north would be easier to make a trip from. There was much more visibility there.

Looking down in a large lake under the path.

In the parking lot, someone had left a sign behind «PCT Wiker to Kennedy Meadows». So I could hold that while trying to get hooked. While standing there, another hiker walked that he had been going south. He is apparently a hiker to the north, but decided that he wanted to leave the path. Then he turned around and walked back to the road. I spent a few minutes trying to convince him to stay on his way, but he didn’t want to listen to him.

The practical sign at the beginning of the path.

After about 10 or 15 minutes, another hiker arrived north and joined me on the road. She was from Germany and must have been my charm of good luck, because almost immediately after getting there, we got a hitch. The guy who picked us up was ridiculously pleasant. He had completely forgotten that the trip to Kennedy Meadows North was long and winding. It also took much more than I expected. But finally, we arrived there and I certainly arrived long before what I had had to expect the transport service of 10:30 am

Kennedy Meadows North!

Once I got into the city, I went directly to the restaurant and had a breakfast. The girl with whom I had hooked to the city joined me and we passed a little. Then I repeated very quickly over the next few days. I just need enough food to get to South Lake Tahoe in about 2.5 days. I also took some drinks to leave the city and a couple to pack with me.

Then I was able to coordinate with outsidejay and leave my bear boat. He was borrowing one of his bear boats and he said he could leave him in Kmn and that he would come and get it. Then, in a couple of days, he will leave another cano can for me in South Lake Tahoe. Due to the regulations, I do not need a today or tomorrow. But I will need one when I go to the north from South Lake Tahoe.

While I was in KMN, I got some things that were pleasant. It has been difficult to delay and not have the internet on the way. Given that I have been walking for almost 200 days, it is crazy to think that I have had service almost every day of the year. Before parts of the south of Maine and the Sierra, I would receive service at least once every two days.

Before returning to the path, I ended up chatting with some hikers. And a couple led and left a hiker in their truck. They walked the PCT last year and their trail names were Birdbath and Trinity. Both were super kind and ended up talking with them for a while. And actually worked perfectly because they said they could take me back to Sonora Pass. Otherwise, I would have to try to hook me or wait for the transport of the 2 pm. But I hoped to obtain a fairly decent amount of mileage. What meant that the sooner could continue again, the better.

Birdbath and Trinity brought me back and it was very nice to talk to them while we drove their car. Both were super great and they really met and began to leave during their PCT through the walk. It was only 1 in the afternoon when they left me back on the path. And I felt quite productive to have gone to the city and have done everything I needed. And I was back, ready to walk again.

The second half of the day, the path was even more vibrant and lush than this morning.

When I left the beginning of the path, I had to start a climb during the following miles. But it was only about 1000–15 feet of elevation gain. I felt very strong and fed by my great breakfast. Once I went up to the top, I started a long descent. And for the rest of the day I only had a few small climbs.

Around this time, I began to notice a strange sensation in my hip flexor in the area where I injured myself about a month ago. Recently, I obtained a very large fly bite just at the top of my thigh. And ended immensely swollen and was approximately the size of half dollars. So I am thinking that the swelling could be irritating the hip flexor. Because the sensation is more a nervous pain of strange shot than a tight or sore tendino pain. I will only be attentive and see how it is in the next few days.

However, the moment was quite fun. Because this morning I vividly remember having thought about the fact that my injury was finally cured completely. In recent days I have felt really good and I have not even had any idea of the residual pain of the injury. It’s curious how time works. In truth, almost immediately after thinking that I began to feel something in my hip flexor.

I was surprised how quickly the rest of the day passed. I heard an audiobook, and the path was quite pleasant and easy. I would simply have a last climb to do towards the end of the day. But it seemed that I would be arriving further than expected and arriving at the camp before dusk. It doesn’t become much better than that.

A large pile of rocks.

During the rest of the day, I heard a new audiobook, «to shake the sleeping self» on a man’s trip on a bike trip from Oregon to Patagonia. This book was so incredibly good that basically distracted me throughout the rest of the day. And I felt that I had just floated to the camp. Surprisingly, I didn’t see many hikers for the rest of the day. I thought there would be more people who left Kmn this morning and then I did half a day outside the city.

But I really ended up I don’t have anyone until later at night. After I had gone to about 27 miles for the day I stopped and grabbed some water. There were a lot of camps marked ahead and I thought I would stop what I was talking about. Not long after that, I went through a beautiful place, but there were two other hikers there. And it seemed a space too tight to settle near.

However, when I passed, I heard someone shout my name. I apologized and said I couldn’t say who they were from a distance. He was too far to distinguish his faces. But Van Gogh and another hiker that I met earlier this year whose hiker whose name is escaping me at this time. I met Van Gogh on January on the Florida path. Then he met him in the first week or two in the PCT desert. Now here I met him for the third time this year.

Walking around a valley when the sun began to wear.

It was really great to see him, but I decided to keep walking. He had already walked very far from his camp when he called me. And a mile from there, I ended up finding a really pleasant tent place. There was no one more configured and the space was huge and flat. There was also another place of camp designated just by the path to the north where he was. And honestly I was quite anxious for camping alone. Recently, I have been presenting places for camps quite late at night and generally already have a handful of other hikers. Which is great, but it really does not allow me to enjoy the camp in the same way.

It is good to be able to do editing and video. It is also good to cook and make noise and be alive without having to feel bad with the other hikers around me. Sometimes I enjoy camping with other people and gives you good peace of mind. But it was really pleasant camping only for the first time in a time. I stood quite fast and then boiled water for dinner and hot chocolate. Then he did some writing and video work before calling him one night.

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