Day 4 – Mt Laguna to Mile 61.5

MM: 61.5

Trail Miles: 18.9

Miles Walked: 20.2

I woke up early, before the others I think. But I was still the last one to leave the room. I was way behind in my blog posts and finally had cell/internet.

I told Slim I was going to leave at 0800. Good thing he didn’t wait for me. I didn’t leave the room til 0930. I immediately stopped at the Mt Laguna Visitor’s Center. They had a water spigot hikers could use. This stretch of trail is dry with few reliable water sources. The next 4 days would be an education in water management and planning.

I’d considered upping my carrying capacity and buying additional water bottles. Smart Water brand bottles are all the rage on the PCT. They are the best when it comes to weight vs. durability. The numerous Nalgene bottles I left at home are too heavy in comparison.

Thanks to a 20 oz Gatorade bottle Slim had given me, my water capacity was just over 6.5 Liters. I knew not to count on water caches or trail angels and magic. The caches may be empty and the angels have jobs, families, and lives beyond helping thru-hikers. No, I needed to ensure I had enough water to make Scissors Crossing at Mile Marker 77. With the help of the PCT Water Report, an online crowd-sourced document thats updated daily, my last reliable water source would be mile 48. After that, there was some uncertainty. So yes, it was tempting to buy 2 more liters. The problem is, 1 liter of water weighs 1 kilogram. That’s 2.2 lbs. My 6.5 liters already weighed over 14 lbs.

I had a flashback to a question BILS asked me before dropping me off at the border. “What’s your water strategy?” Uh, strategy? My brain already had a bazillion things racing through it that morning. Water strategy was not one of them. I had an instant blood pressure spike as I realized I had no water strategy.

I stammered to answer, but then remembered that during my training walks I typically drank 1 L every six miles. It was a start. I’d tank up everywhere I found water beyond the 48 mile point.

Sure enough there was water at mile 48 and 53. One was a picnic area along the Sunrise Highway, the other at a trailhead. I finally had to use my filter. Some of the water is spring fed, some is tanked in by truck. Regardless, a case of giardia would be an unwelcome turn of events.

The trail today followed the Sunrise Hwy. It’s between 4000-5000 elevation, along the side of mountains with spectacular views. The steep drop-offs were surprising. For someone with an aversion to heights, it was toe tingling. If you fell, you were in for a few thousand foot drop.

I recognized a few faces at the water stops. People are still talking about the crazy lady from Day 1.

There was trail magic at Mile 59. A trail angel had left tangerines and grapefruit in some Rubbermaid bins. The angel had even left a bin for the peels, vice having to carry them out. (Leave No Trace). The kindness of trail angels is truly inspiring. They help hikers – whether it be water, food, shelter, rides to town, even search parties. I’m sure I am just beginning to understand their generosity and spirit.

I had planned to hike until 1900 (7pm) and hopefully catch up with Slim, but it was getting windy and cool. I decided to stop at a campsite at mile 61.5. I’d done 18.9 trail miles. Hiking 2-3 more miles only to set up my tent in the dark, making it 4 for 4, was not appealing.

I thought the shrubs around me would provide some protection from the wind, but that wasn’t the case. My tent uses trekking poles instead of tent poles, and I have to stake it — it’s super light weight but it is not self-standing. With the wind, I staked it out but then placed large rocks on each stake as extra insurance. The forecast for tonight and tomorrow calls for rain.

It’s my first night camping alone and not at a campground. I’m fine with that, and actually happy to be doing so. I’m a bit of an introvert and enjoy the solitude.

I cooked dinner – Knorr Pasta side with dehydrated Tuna. The windscreen HH made for me proved its worth once again. In the windy conditions, it would have taken a long time, and wasted a lot of fuel, to boil the water for dinner. I finished the night with some Russian Tea (Tang & Sweet Tea mix) and Swedish Fish. It was international night.

Lights out with a howling wind at 2100 (9pm).