25.46 miles - Total to date - 411.06 miles
Ascent - 7742’ , Descent - 6442’ - Ash Camp Campground (1468.4) to campsite at (1494)
Stress injuries. Repetitive stress injuries. That is what I am trying to avoid. I figure I need to be resting as many or more hours than I am hiking to avoid them. I don’t know where the scientific evidence is to back this conjecture, somehow it just “feels” sensible. Then again, the fact that I can’t feel the earth moving tells me it is sensible to assume it is stationary and the heavens revolve around it. hmmm . . . This is why we rely on the scientific method to sort what “feels” right from what actually is. But, for my hiking, I will try to rest 12 hours a day to match my 12 hours of hiking, regardless the lack of scientific evidence. On days when I do 30+ miles I am hiking 14 hours and down only 10. 25 miles seems to be the break even point; 12 hours hiking-12 resting. Double D has hiked from the Mexican border-1400 + miles. You’d think he would be “in shape”, and he is, but repetitive use injuries caught up with him this week.
I was a few minutes late getting up this morning, only a few. I saw an interesting article on my email and took 5 minutes to cruise through it before rising. Derek, not hearing me rattling about at 5:00 am thought I might be sleeping in, but soon roused as I started packing up.
We were on the trail by 5:45 am, stopping at 3 miles to get water, then off again. It was a day totally in the trees. Even at the high points on the ridges we were in timber with only peek-a-boo views out into the smoke haze that substituted for scenery. At one point we dropped into Trough Creek and across a nice wooden and steel bridge. Here I found Double D sitting with his back against a tree, his leg up on his pack. He had complained of pain on the front of his ankle yesterday and iced it at the creek, but now it was really hurting. He said he was going to sit there for a couple hours until the pain subsided before going on. I went down to the creek and filled his water bottles. Derek and Braxton suggested ways to tape to alleviate what appeared to be shin splint pain, although it was concentrated just above the ankle. He had taken Ibuprofen 25 minutes before. I stalled drinking water and fiddling with my pack, encouraging him to go. Derek and Braxton had already left. He put on his pack and left. Faced with uphill, the pain was less than pounding downhill. I did not see him again that day. Once moving, the pain subsides and only stopping and letting it cool down brings it back. He hiked the next 20 miles to the road to Dunsmuir nonstop. Double D (Casey) is 23, from Michigan and a Junior at college in mechanical engineering. He is a soft soul with iron will and is tough. I enjoy his company.
Derek, Braxton and I continued to leap frog each other as the miles clicked by. We were on top of the ridge with 8 miles to go to I-5 near Dunsmuir. Derek and I had determined we would camp five miles from the road for two reasons. That was 25+ miles for the day and we would not have to pay for a hotel room. Braxton headed for town.
We filled up with water at the last creek crossing, then hoofed it another mile or two to a logging road crossing. For the past few days we have been skirting clear cuts and at times hiking right through the middle of them. I found Derek on the shoulder of this seldom used road, preparing to camp. I joined him, but the level of dust and rocks on which I was about to camp was beyond my tolerance. Without my pack I went a hundred yards down the trail and found four nice tent sites in the trees. We moved to this location.
Being In the trees all day and having the sun obscured by smoke does not make for good solar panel energy production. My backup battery was only half charged and my phone was at 10%. I laid my panel out in the red, smoke filtered sunlight for half an hour, but made little gains. I mentioned this to Derek. He carries three batteries to charge his devices. He had one I could use and I charged my phone back to 100%, thanks to his generosity. Derek does not carry a stove, eating cold meals three times a day. Tonight I shared my chicken and rice dinner with him. “Good trade”. I talked him into watching the first five minutes of my retirement box video on YouTube (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=vp2c3XIooIM), betting he would watch the rest once he got started. He did. I enjoyed watching a few of his videos from earlier on the PCT, “Microadventures” with Derek Cullen.
Did I mention it was hot? It was. I slept on my inflated pad until 1:00 am with no covers. The forecast is 100+ temperatures for the next week in Shasta. That coupled with the Carr fire burning only 20 miles away could make for uncomfortable hiking, but probably no worse than what I have experienced so far. I checked the PCTA website yesterday for trail closure. None in front of me all the way to the Oregon Border. However, the trail is closed behind me, from Belden north for 44 miles to Highway 36. Glad I made it through before it closed. Hopefully, north of me will stay open for two more weeks so I can complete my hike. If so, I will have hiked the entire length of California, except for 140 miles from Tehachapi to Kennedy Meadows South.
Trail sign at Trough Creek.
The bridge over Trough Creek.
Making 10 miles by 10:00 am is always a benchmark. Most days I make it with time to spare. This day I did, but forgot to snap a screenshot of my phone at 10:00 am.
No comments:
Post a Comment