We had to walk ~20 miles up until the first camp ground in Lake Morena. It was quite hot during the day, even for us who are used to the Israeli hot weather...
Within few hours we were already way ahead of most of the people we saw at morning. Surprisingly we are in quite a good shape :)
The views on the way reminded us the views from back home...
Finished the 1st mile out of 2663 miles :)
We arrived lake Morena camping ground at around 5. The first thing Roi did is to go to the local store and buy ice cream and a bottle of beer. Meanwhile I had a shower (we don't carry soap with us, so just warm water shower. But it still takes the dirty out of the skin).
By 8 we were already lying in our tent, filling up the batteries for the next day.
The next day we had a long climb and it felt like it was hotter than the day before. You need to plan your stops very well so you'll have enough water for each segment throughout the day.
We met Bird man again (he stayed at Scout & Frodo and left a day before us).
Somewhere after lunch break we lost our trowel and only realized that few hours later... :(
After a long 23 miles and the first snake encounter on the trail we arrived to Mount Laguna and started looking for a place to pitch our tent. It took us more then 30 minutes to find a place while freezing (the temperature went dramatically down...). At the end, with a little help from fellow hikers, we found a spot to set our tent at the local picnic area.
The next day we decided to hike only 13 miles.
We walked to the general store near by and bought food for the next couple of days and had a nice big breakfast in front of the store with yogurt, fruits, beer and pretty much every thing we found in the store.
Just before we were back on the trail Roi saw Matt, which apparently found our trowel yesterday :)
We arrived to the tiny camp ground next to huge boulder just on time to see the sunset.
The spot was super beautiful, already crowded with other hikers but very exposed as well, which means windy.
Right before everyone were ready to slip into their sleeping bags, an ant appeared between the rocks. Than another one, and another one. All of a sudden houndreds of ants ran between the tents. Luckly our tent was far enough from the scene.
The next day we hiked 21 miles which was the hottest day so far, we took a long lunch break for 1.5 hours to cool down a bit. Then we kept walking and walking and walking on exposed trail without any shade...
When we finally arrived to the camp ground at Scissors Crossing the nicest surprise was waiting for us - a lot of water and a picnic box full of ice and cold beers !!!
It was definitely worth the long walk! every mile of it :) and all this was done by a trail angel called Monty (which we met 2 days later).
After drinking the beer Roi and another hiker called Michael started to play together - Roi played his ukulele and Michael with his fiddle.
Later Roi got a free fiddle lesson :)
The next morning we had to carry a lot of water (6 liters each) since we were about to hike 24 miles almost without places to fill up water.
It was our longest day so far but we made it just on time to enjoy the last sunlight hour in Barrel Spring camp ground.
When it got dark, a few frogs joined us and made an awful noise...
Few photos from our 24 miles day:
First 100 miles :)
The last day was a very short one. The view changed to green endless fields, the heat was bearable, and there were water every 10 minutes. A perfect ending for PCT section A.
We only hiked 9 miles!
On the way we passed through the Eagle rock, one of PCT famous milestones.
The section ended in a community center in Warner Spring where you can eat good lunch or breakfast, camp, take a shower and so on.
We had a great cheeseburger and an apple pie and call Monty to pick us up to his place.
The next day we had a zero day (no walking), with so much food Monty cooked, and in between Roi and him played the guitar and ukulele...
Tomorrow we are back on trail, starting Section B.
I can see you're having fun! Enjoy!
ReplyDelete(and do try to use soap from time to time :-) )
I love it that with all the careful planning of your luggage, Roi included his ukelele! It is good he is not a cellist ;-). Thanks for the trail journal...
ReplyDeleteA shame you skipped the 3rd Gate Cache, after I restocked it especially for you the day you left. At Monty's at the moment, catch you soon.
ReplyDeleteNoam, we didn't. I filled 2 liters there while thinking about you. :-)
ReplyDelete