When you are outside day after day there is no escape from the elements. I begin to understand how fire, wind, earth and water gained such importance in the lives and minds of early populations. These four elements are the overbearing influences in our lives as we make our way north up the trail.
We rise at 3:50am each day to avoid the blazing impact of the late morning and afternoon sun, hoping to get most of our hiking done before the fire in the sky roasts us. And that fire in the sky has dried the landscape over the past years, making wildfire a real possibility. We spent an entire day walking through a burned out area, a testament to the power of fire.
The wind can be a blessing or a curse depending on time, temperature and intensity. Under a blazing sun a brisk wind is such a blessing, providing needed cooling. But that same brisk wind in the morning when the temperature is down and we have not exerted ourselves to get warm is a nuisance.
The earth we walk upon is not flat. Contrary to what I envisioned, the southern part of California is mountainous, and beautiful. Today, we followed the PCT as it wound thru magnificent open fields, along side a babbling creek shaded by giant sycamore and oak trees, across open slopes of chaparral and thru rock and boulder fields. Each unique, but all equally beautiful in their own right.
Water is both a curse and a necessity.
When it falls from the sky as rain or dew and wets all our gear and clothing we consider it a pain and wish it would stop. Yet, that same annoying fluid becomes so very precious when water suitable for drinking is found only every 20 miles along the trail. It dictates where we camp, how far we walk and the weight of our packs, for often 6 or 7 liters are aboard, adding 12 to 15 pounds to our packs.
Today we left Warner Springs after the "zero" day yesterday. We made a few adjustments to Sally's boots, taping blue foam to her heels on the outside of her socks to get her feet secure in her boots. It appears we found the correct fit, because we hiked 15 miles while climbing 3000' without inflicting any further damage to her feet.
Something unusual happened today. We walked along a creek for about 4 miles!! For the past 121 miles we have only crossed two creeks and seen one other.
Another treat today was seeing water win out over fire. Afternoons are usually filled with the blazing sun but the clouds formed around noon and shielded us from the sun. We hiked the afternoon in shade with cooling breezes that kept us comfortable.
We camped at 5000' amongst boulders although we did not get a chance to enjoy the scenery much. It was dark within an hour of our arrival and we rose at our typical 3:50am the next morning to start hiking by 4:45 so darkness obscured our surroundings.
We are with our gang again-Far Out, Event Horizon, Back Up, Grasshopper, Coyote and two new comers, Matt and Rebecca. By "with our gang" I mean we are leap frogging each other on the trail. Sally and I left 2-4 hours earlier than everyone else, but by noon most everyone had caught us, but we all made it into camp within an hour of each other.
Tomorrow marks two weeks on the trail. Just like a freshman at a four year school these first two weeks have been exciting-making new friends, checking out the campus, etc. But, the newness is wearing off and the real work is beginning. We have lots of hot days ahead of us with many miles to travel.
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