LEAVING BIG BEAR LAKE

PCT DAY 14: Mile 259.4 – Mile 276.7
Wednesday April, 27 2016: 17.3 miles (27.7km)

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So lovely to wake up with the sun hitting the tent. It feels like it has been a long time since we were sweltering in the desert heat. Our campsite was at nearly 7000 feet elevation and it was a very cold night. Probably the coldest night yet. Took us a while to get moving this morning. I was yawning before I even got out of my sleeping bag. Just have not had enough rest.  We had breakfast with the sun warming our backs.  

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Once we got going we fell into the rhythm of the day. The forest dominated by large pines that we walked through yesterday was replaced by much scrubbier looking vegetation. Strange to see this new type of  tree that looked almost prehistoric.  The trail underfoot was was largely rocky gravel and was  very hard on our feet.

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It all felt like hard work today. Maybe it was a combination of uninspiring landscape,   altitude, heavy packs – I was carrying 6 days of food and 4L of water, or not enough sleep. It wasn’t until we returned to the sweet, berry smelling pine forest in the late afternoon that I could feel our spirit lifting.  We have not seen any other hikers out on the trail today.  We had it all to ourselves. 

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Strange trees

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At about 4.30 pm as the storm clouds were building and the temperature was dropping, we were feeling weary and decided to call it a day. We set up the tent and had an early dinner before it got too cold. The only hiker we have seen all day passed by our camp as we were finishing dinner. It is now just after 6pm, the slivers of sun are still filtering through the tent and rolling rhunder can be heard in the distance.The wind is blowing and it is really cold.  It is predicted to snow overnight. And we are still in the desert with 433 miles of desert still to go.

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Setting up camp

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Dinnertime and it is getting colder

Category : Pacific Crest Trail 2016, USA