Day 49: Into the Sierras
Date: Tues 6/5
PCT Start Mile: 702.2
PCT End Mile: 709.5
PCT Mileage for Day: 7.3
Total PCT Mileage: 709.5
The Highlights: Entering the Sierras!
Today we slept in, sleeping until 7am. The weather was comfortable and the camping area behind the General Store was quiet and it felt good to sleep.
Eventually we rose in time to grab some laundry off the line, brush teeth, and catch the morning shuttle to Grumpy Bear’s, a local restaurant, for breakfast.
Grumpy Bear’s also has fast WiFi for $2 for 2 hours, so we used the time to take care of online stuffs, check the weather for the upcoming week and download any other info we needed while we ate pancakes, eggs, bacon, and “hash browns” (these were chopped up fries).
Having a little fun at the General Store.
We spent the rest of the afternoon back at the General Store. After we packed up our bags – thankfully able to figure out decent packing configurations with the awkward bear canisters – we spent most of the day just killing time on the General Store Porch, applauding and cheering each time new hikers came in from the trail.
My bear canister filled with ~7 days of food.
Because it has been so hot during the day, we didn’t hike out from the store until 5pm, our whole crew back together with LOL and Squishy. It was just under a mile walk back to the trail and we were off. Back into… the desert. Ha…
The first stretch jogged us through thick sand and low scrub brush, the trail crossed by beetles and lizards. The scrub brush was like a maze and footprints went every which way, making it difficult to tell where the trail was. What they needed out here was one of those wacky wavy inflatable arm guys that they have at the car dealerships. A beacon to head toward, choose your own path.
The landscape gradually morphed to pine forest along the river, becoming rockier and more Sierra inspiring.
We hiked only 7.3 miles, making a quick stop for water a little under a mile from the tent site where we planned to stop. One other hiker was camped at the site and we quickly set up our tent in the fading light. We cooked our dinners in the dark and then scurried into our sleeping bags. A little chilly, it will be perfect sleeping weather.
