4.15.2018 Sunday Day 22

This morning was another cold start. Although the water bottles didn’t freeze, we were pretty slow to start. I don’t think anyone of us spoke a word until we knew everyone was packed up and ready to go.

The plan for the day was Splinter’s Cabin which was just under a 20 mile day. We stopped for lunch at a tent sight half way through the day. I ate and quickly fell into a slumber. Not sure how long I was out but I know I missed an entire conversation with a hiker who joined us at the same spot. Whoops!

Anyway, 20 miles is a long day. As my knee had been feeling better these past few days, I’ve gone without wearing my compression sleeves and brace. Today it felt a little sore as the miles kept ticking off. I’ll see how it feels again tomorrow and maybe go back to the sleeves. The creams and salves I have received seem to be doing wonders as well, so thank you for those!!!

We went through a lot of burn areas again. It’s sad to see devastation of a forest fire up close. it was probably around mile 15 or so a younger hiker passed by us headed southbound. I’m pretty sure I was hiking uphill and out of breath and didn’t say much to him, but he commented on my Idaho hat and said he was going to be going to school in Montana this year. As Laura and I were slowing down, he caught back up to us a few miles later. We said “hello again” and he kept about his way. When we crossed the bridge here near Splinters Cabin, he showed up once again. This time he asked us if we liked beer. Of course we said yes. His name is Nathan, he grew up near Lake Arrowhead and hikes the trails all around here. He is hoping to thru hike next year. Nathan gave us beers and we thanked him profusely. I wasn’t quite sure he was old enough to purchase them, but he said he just turn 21. He hopes that he receives the same kind of trail magic when he hikes the PCT. Nathan went down to deliver a few more beers to hikers that were camped near the river. We opted to camp up top near the cabin–that is more like a picnic awning area. It’s a tad windy up here, but we met some other hikers that are cowboy camping in the shelter. Cowboy camping is when you don’t set up a tent. We chatted with the other hikers in the shelter and made our dinners there too. They were are a fun group; Mike, John, Wiley and Drag. Wiley has a ukulele with him so he played while we ate dinner. Some of these guys started hiking on March 14!!!! They’ve been through some of the bad weather and have been having a lot of fun in every town. That’s what they call getting stuck in the vortex. It could be another night of my house blowing down but I’m committed to making it work. It’s definitely warmer tonight though so if it blows down, I’ll just get back up and fix it 🙂 it’s all part of the adventure.

I can’t believe I’ve been out here for 3 full weeks already. Everyday had been so different. Every turn in the trail provides a different view. Every mistake turns into a lesson. And every hello turns into a story. I feel so fortunate that so many people have helped me get where I am today! All those here and all those at home. Thank you. Tomorrow we will pass the 300 mile mark. It still seems surreal. We’ll probably spend some time at the hot springs tomorrow at mile 307 and we should be at Cajon pass (I-15) by Wednesday morning. Wrightwood still by Friday.