Day 14 May 20, 2017

• Daily mileage 19
• Total miles 254
• Hiked from 5:00 am to 4:00 pm

Today featured a brute of a climb, failed trail magic, real trail magic and a great fund raising event.

Nobody else set up camp near me last night so I had a crazy great spot all to myself.  Got up just before dawn and was hiking at first light.  What looked on the profile to be a simple enough climb turned out to be a brute.  Very un-PCT like.  Plus, I just was not in a groove this morning.  Oh well, the hill got climbed, albeit slowly, very slowly.  Like three miles took two hours type slowly.  The hike up the hill was mainly in an area that burned a couple of years ago.  The PCT only recently reopened after the fire.     

Sunrise in Mission Creek

Recent forest fire     

Again, recent forest fire

The the trail returned to it's mild mannered self for the rest of the day.  I had mentioned in a post a couple of days ago that through hikers start drooling like Pavlov's dog when we see man made shade beside motor vehicles anywhere near the trail.  Well, sure enough at mid-morning, I crest a hill and there it all is.  So I hustle down there as quickly as my old legs would go, dreams of goodies dancing in my head.  Well, when I got there, it was one of the scariest collection of humans I have seen.  They were there on a camp out or team building as one guy described it.  I personally think it was a gathering of the SoCal Militia R'Us clan.  And they had no interest in what us hikers were up to.  I have a theory that had I stood up and said "Donald Trump is a great American and yes,every man, woman and child should own at least a dozen guns", then the beer coolers would have opened up and they would have thrown a rib eye on the BBQ for me.  But I did not say that, so I left without so much as an offer of a glass of water.

In the early afternoon, I came to the junction of the trail and an access road, and there was real trail magic.  Cougar (PCT 2016 alumnus) and his family were giving away mandarin oranges which were still cold.  Man, since when did I get so excited about fruit?  Well, since I could not have any for two weeks.  

Good bye San Jacinto

Hello San Gorgonio

Then from there down to where I am camped tonight, there has been a procession of very tired looked people who have hiked 30 miles in support of the local Make a Wish Foundation.  I mean, how great is that to be here on the right day to see these people doing this.  There are 80 participants in the event and they raised $225,000.  Pretty impressive group of people.

So, in conclusion, I did not get shoot by the local militia types and I had a very good day.  I am all set up for a short day tomorrow to get into Big Bear as early as possible.

Home for the night