Rain

Raining in Idylwild Ca. Sitting in a laundromat with another hiker buddy trying to stay warm.

Pouring rain kept us off the trail today. I set my tent up and wandered into town seeking dryness and warmth. We kept running into other hikers, and eventually decided to get a room to escape the deluge. 

Tomorrow is forecast to be better weather!

Warner Springs

I am taking my first real zero day here, but by midday I'm anxious to be hiking again. I've found I do better starting off in the morning, so I'm waiting for tomorrow to start.

The Warner Springs Community Center hosts hikers and offers burgers, laundry, showers, and iPhone charging. Pretty much all that we need.

The center

My campsite.

Distances

Day 1 to Morena lake. 20 miles

Day 2 to mile 38. 18 miles

Day 3 to Mount Laguna campground 9 miles

Day 4 to Rodrigues Spur crossing. 21 miles

Day 5 to Scissors Crossing. 9 miles

77 miles down the trail.

Julian Cal

We woke up this morning at 4 and hiked 9 miles to Scissors Crossing, where we hitched to the small town of Julian for free pie at Moms. I've been making good mileage, but it is harder than I want!

The trail community is nice. Lots of interesting people. As a photographer I've been christened "Papa Razzi" as a trail name.

I think we'll get up early tomorrow for 13 miles of brutal uphill before I get too hot

The last day

Sitting at the gate

Tomorrow I'll be hiking

One last flight to Cal.

Re supply boxes

All packed for future mailing

Butterflies cavort

In 24 hours

Someplace south of Lake Morena

Learning about heat

The past few days I've been with my family, my father in Eugene and my brother in Portland. It's been a lot of fun but now I am heading to San Diego. Tomorrow morning Campo!

My brother's monument to me!

Anticipation

...

In Eugene, at my dad's house, packing food boxes.

It is kind of amazing to me how this big pile of miscellaneous candy bars freeze-dried food and other outdoor equipment has magically transformed into eight convenient boxes. I'm doing a combination of mailing supplies and buying as I go on this trip, and I have A total of 11 boxes that will give me from Mexico through Oregon. In Oregon I'll reassess what my tastes are and buy food and send the remaining boxes from my brothers house in Portland.

The past few nights I've woken up in the middle of the night with random worries those night fears that haunt you. But when I wake up and keep on with my tasks I'm finding that it's all coming together so I'm optimistic. My loaded pack with the first three days food to give me to Mount Laguna weighs 20 pounds. I'm sure that there will be some sorting out as I get going but that seems pretty reasonable as a start.

Training

 

I've been asked what kind of training I am doing. Here in the Niagara region in Ontario I've been able to walk/hike all year long. In January it was really cold, low single digits Fahrenheit, and this is a windy place. So it has been a cold season.

Lately I've been walking 6 - 10 miles most days. I also wear a pack with 26 pounds of water. 

Chloe enjoys these walks quite a bit.

Orientation

A new adventure
Hiking for days at a time
Was I here before?

Orientation
I leave in a week to begin my attempt at through hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. I'm a little anxious.
The gear is mostly assembled, the food plans are in place, but still, it's a big deal to me.

I've done this before - not a long hike, but various climbing expeditions, career changes, moves from one continent to another - so I should have some familiarity with putting my self in a new, possibly uncomfortable situation. Still, come to think of it, I had anxiety then as well.

A friend once said that the hardest part of any climb is getting to the point where it's easier to go forward than to bail. That's always been true for me. With that in mind I am looking forward to passing that first point, somewhere in Southern California, where I think Gee, this isn't as much fun as I thought it would be. Once I've passed that point I should be good to go. Barring unforeseen, uh, stuff happening.

None of this would be possible without the support of my lovely wife Dory, who is showing more-than-usual patience and has been encouraging even when it might not be her first choice.

There are more tasks to completed - on to the next thing!