24.6 miles - Total to date - 620.8 miles
Ascent - 4324’ , Descent - 4578’ - Tent Site at mile (1676.8) to Tent site at mile (1701.4)
I had my campsite to myself last night. The magnetic pull of a trail town, in this case Ashland, Oregon has everyone putting on extra miles to get there. I was camped 42 miles from town which is too far for even the most ambitious hiker to do in a day. Everyone camped closer to town, generally within 35 miles, an achievable distance of one really goes for it. Also, everyone near me on the trail is racing the calendar to get to Canada before about September 20. They know an early winter storm could end their trip and keep them from completing just as they approach the finish line.
I woke up at 4:30 am this morning to the strong smell of smoke. In my half sleep, I imagined too much light outside my tent. Could a forest fire have started overnight and be threatening? I climbed out of the tent and verified there was no cause for alarm then crawled back in and slept until my alarm woke me at 5:00 am.
The California/Oregon border was just twelve miles away. In 12 miles I will have hiked the entire length of California. 1706 miles. I know I did it, but it seems impossible that taking one step at a time that monstrous distance can be conquered. As I hiked, I thought back about all the places I had seen, the border wall at Campo, Mt. Laguna, Warner Springs, San Jacinto, Hiker Heaven, Casa de Luna, Hiker Town, Tehachapi, Kennedy Meadows, the magnificent Sierra, South Lake Tahoe, Sierra City, Crazy Belden, Old Station, Burney Falls, Dunsmuir, Seiad Valley and now the Oregon Border! And the people!! The kids I encounter daily and those wonderful trail angels. The accepting businesses that put up with dirty, filthy, stinking customers plying their stores and restaurants. This is such a great adventure!! Yet, on the face of it, it is grueling. To do 20 miles a day requires 10 hours of walking. 6:00 am to 4:00 pm, averaging two miles an hour. If you stop to rest, eat, talk, adjust equipment, get water, etc. that time blossoms into 12 to 14 hours. When water is short and dictates a longer distance day, the pace must increase along with the hours.
The kids on the trail are amazing!! Bright eyed, loving life and adventure. They are animated and so very much alive. Every town is an adventure, every hitch hike a thrill. Food is all about calories, not nutrition. Honey buns, bags of chips, cookies, Little Debbie snacks. Low calorie veggies can wait until October. They have miles to cover and need calories to burn.
Trail families form. Six to ten people hike together because they have the same pace and goals. They visit trail towns together and share rooms, sometimes all 10 in one. They eat out at restaurants together, laughing uproariously inspired by their freedom, friends and shared adventures. It is so fun to watch. They are infectious. Life is GOOD.
There is no age discrimination on the trail. At 64, I am one of the oldest, (3 times most of their ages) yet the “kids” treat me like one of the group. We hike together, camp together and eat out together. It is wonderful to be surrounded by people who are excited about life.
I stopped after four miles at Alex Spring to replenish my water bottles. Hoover and two others I had not met were packing up camp. I scrambled down of the ridge to the spring and filled my water bottles. It is a good thing I am going out tomorrow. My water filter is very slow filtering, even after backwashing it. Also, the bags I fill with the contaminated water and then squeeze to force the water through the filter have all developed leaks making it near impossible to filter water.
Around 10:30 am I reached the California/Oregon border. How cool! I was so excited. I had just completed walking the entire length of California!! Amazing! Exciting! Incomprehensible! I took pictures of me with the various signs to mark the occasion. I signed the trail register “Coach and 1st Class” as I have every register. She may not be here in body, but I feel her with me every step of the way.
Reaching the border does not mean I am done. It is still 28 miles to I-5. With 12 done, I hoped to do at least another 12 to get me close enough to finish up by tomorrow afternoon. I continued on the trail. I switched my Guthook app to Oregon from Northern California. I found the data for the waypoints was. Or correct. Somehow it got corrupted in the downloading. I can tell where I am on the trail, but distances to and from landmarks are way off. If I had cell signal I could download Oregon again and it would probably be correct, but I have not had cell signal for 3 full days. I check about every 15 to 30 minutes. No cell coverage.
I was stopped to eat second breakfast or first lunch and some Sobo hikers stopped to talk. They welcomed me to Oregon and wished them well in California. As we were finishing up, Huck and Dimps come hiking up. I thought they were miles ahead. They had planned to hike to the border last night, but they told me they were so pooped that they stopped 4 miles short and camped, then got up this morning and walked to a ramshackle cabin a mile from the border and hung out there for a few hours hoping to catch Road Runner so they could all cross the border together. Somehow she snuck by and they missed her.
I hiked with them for about an hour. The trail was slightly downhill, making it possible for me to keep up with them. Our Sobo hikers said there was trail magic about ten miles ahead. This inspired quick walking, but it was too far for me today. I had already done 18 at this point. 28 was within my range, but not at the speeds these two hiked at. I'd have to hope they replenished the magic tomorrow. I stopped at a spring 14 miles from I-5, 24.5 for the day. That's enough for me.
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