Day 19: Big Bear Birthday

Date: Sun 5/6

PCT Start Mile: NA

PCT End Mile: NA

PCT Mileage for Day: 0

Off-Trail Hike Mileage: 2

Total Mileage for Day: 2

Total PCT Mileage: 266.1

Total Overall Mileage: 281.39

The Highlights:sleeping in, good grub, and Pop Tart replacement

This morning we slept in. Kind of. I was still awake by 5:30am, but I at least rested, in a bed, much longer.

Eventually we got up, took care of some hiking town “chores”, like gear clean-up and determining how much food we needed for the next trail section, and finally headed out for breakfast.

We found the best breakfast in town at Grizzly Manor Cafe.

The breakfast was delicious and the portions huge; before long I hated myself and put down my fork, unable to finish. The staff was awesome. Everyone in trail towns can tell who the hikers are and, checking with us to confirm, the waitress said that there was a discount for PCT hikers. “How can you tell we are hikers?”, we asked. (We had showered by this point and were in fairly clean clothes). She said it was somewhere between our unseasonable tans and our telltale hiker clothes that gave it away. Fair enough.

*Somewhere under all that gravy is chicken fried steak.*

Having stuffed ourselves, we headed to the local supermarket to resupply for the next section. My #1 goal for this resupply was to find a new breakfast option.

In addition to wanting to head into town early yesterday because we were ready for real beds and real food, I didn’t want to see one more Pop Tart. For the past 18 days I have been eating Pop Tarts for breakfast. Pop Tarts are a popular hiker choice because they are simple to eat and fairly light for the amount of calories they pack. They also have a good ratio of carbs and fat (the only time in my life I’ll think about Pop Tarts in terms of their nutritionalvalue), and there are plenty of flavors, so in theory, there should be plenty to cycle through before you get sick of them. Right?

Wrong. I didn’t really grow up eating Pop Tarts, always preferring other breakfast foods. So, at first they were somewhat novel, decent tasting, and easy to eat while on the move. I soon developed some opinions about Pop Tarts, though.

My initial opinion: I don’t like chocolate Pop Tarts. My eventual opinion: I don’t like Pop Tarts. Also, by the time you get to your last day on the trail before resupply, you are basically eating Pop Tart powder, the Pop Tarts having been crushed to oblivion. I don’t want to see another Pop Tart again for a very long time. Time to identify a new breakfast option.

So, I decided for this next section, breakfast will be snacking on a self-made trail mix of peanuts, Craisins, and pretzel M&Ms. Breakfast of champions. I’ll let you know when I tire of this. Hikers are constantly looking for new food ideas. Feel free to let me know if you have good suggestions. I am not an oatmeal person, so don’t even mention it. I know it’s amazing for you, but I just can’t do it. Also, we like to eat our breakfast on the go, which eliminates options that require cooking. We only cook one meal a day, which is dinner. This saves on time as well as fuel.

Having finished our grocery shopping, our next stop was the laundromat. When you are washing almost all of the clothes you have, you end wearing an outfit in which your rain coat becomes a skirt. New fashion trend.

We spent most of the the rest of the day relaxing, but did take some time in the late afternoon to walk around the Village of Big Bear Lake. This area is a haven for outdoor activities: skiing and snow sports in the winter and hiking, mountain biking, and lake activities in the summer.

Even though the last several winters haven’t been that great in terms of snow, Michael (who gave us a hitch yesterday) said that plenty of “cidioits” still visit and vacation in the area in all seasons. At any rate, it’s a beautiful area and we can see why city vacationers and locals alike love it.