Day 36: Over 500 Miles!
Date: Wed 5/23
PCT Start Mile: 498.2
PCT End Mile: 517.6
PCT Mileage for Day: 19.4
Total PCT Mileage: 517.6
The Highlights: bear prints, shin splints?, desert heat, and Wee Ville Market
Well, no pesky bears visited our campsite last night (that we know of), but we did see several bear prints on the trail this morning.
At least we think these are bear prints?
Not long after setting out, we hit the 500 mile mark! But first, we passed this:
And then, finally… the 500 mile mark. Squishy cued up I’m Gonna Be by the Proclaimers (the walk 500 miles song), and we danced around in celebration. Woot!
The rest of the morning took us through forested trail before eventually descending into more desert-like terrain.
A bit before noon, we posted up in any shade we could find. Squishy and LOL huddling under the shade of a bush, while Shawn and I squished into some makeshift shade he created. It was getting hot.
Too hot to be comfortable in our quickly shrinking shade, our lunch break was short. Heading out, we had just a bit more uphill before a steep descent that gradually turned into more gradual downhill switchbacks.
Not far into the descent, my right ankle bone and front of my leg became very tight and bothered me for the remainder of our last 7 miles. I’m not sure if this is shin splints or a muscle issue, but I want it to go away.
The day grew hot as we weaved our way through the desert mountainsides. Thankfully there were some good breezes from time to time. I hobbled along a bit behind the rest of the group, not wanting to exacerbate the ankle/shin issue more than necessary.
Around 4pm, we arrived at Highway 138. Shawn and LOL were waiting with Alpenglow, a hiker we had met about an hour ago. They had already called Wee Ville Market for a ride.
Hiker Town is another place many hikers stay, and was right across the street, but reviews had varied and it sounded as though the place had really gone downhill in the past several years. We Ville Market was 8 miles down the road, but the folks there would come to pick you up off the trail when you called, and their place was getting much better reviews, a full convenient store with grilled food to order, space for camping, and free showers.
Waiting for a ride on the side of Highway 138.
Our “pick up” was an RV, and about 7 of us piled in for the ride down the road. This may or may not be our first ride in a Winnebago while hiking the trail.
Our sweet shuttle in the Winnebago.
At the Wee Ville Market, we dropped our packs, set up our tent to claim our space in the small camping area, and made our way inside for cold drinks, burgers, and fries. And then milkshakes.
Fat and happy, we made our way to the showers, which were nothing to look at, but had glorious hot water and someone had left a quarter bottle of shampoo in a stall, which did nicely for washing hair and body 🙂 My mom had sent us a box here with a few things we needed (thanks, Mom!), and before heading to the stall, I looked around for something I could use to scrub with. I grabbed a piece of bubble wrap from the box and guess what? Fun fact: bubble wrap makes a great wash rag for scrubbing!
Throughout the afternoon and into the evening, more and more hikers arrived and soon the small green space was completely covered in tents.
So the PROs of staying here: hot food, convenient store, hot showers, and we were able to pick up a mail drop. Nice tent/hang out area. Space to charge electronics. Because there was a convenient store, I was also able to get ice to ice my leg.
The CONs – it’s right on the highway, which is going to be noisy all night and every once in awhile there is a wiff of a septic system that needs to be fixed, so that’s pleasant.
Tomorrow we have a long walk along the LA aqueduct and many of us are leaving SUPER early, as the trail will be hot and exposed through this section and we want to knock out as many miles as possible in the morning. More on this tomorrow!
