Day 33

Saying in Idyllwild  was great. I felt well rested and ready to hit the trail. Before I left I did a little shopping.

There is a hand made chocolate maker in town and I visited his tiny shop down a walking alley and bought an 80% chocolate bar with cacao nibs. Worth every penny!

James sent me a special care package. He found freeze dried durian. I shared some with fellow hikers but happily ate most of it myself. 

We backtracked south out of town to capture a bit more of the PCT.  It started out pretty steep and hot.

This is Hatchet and Mountain Goat. Part of the group I am loosely hanging out with. 

Camp that night was pretty with lots of cool rocks. The pyramid rock was huge.

This is Toggle, basking in the morning light.

We hiked hard to get to San Jacinto peak. This beautifully built shelter was along the route.

Some of the trail was rough and some areas had impressive rock work. This was one of the best examples of awesome trail work.

I hit the 200 mile mark...not even 10% done yet!

Ok, so there were like 4 mile 200 Markers. 200ish is fine by me.

This day we had to walk 13 miles down a hot exposed slope with no water sources. There was very little shade, and I did not have time to Siesta. I had to make 20 miles that day. The steep slope and the hotness and all the sand getting in my shoes caused me to get some blisters on my toes.

When I finally got to the water spicket many people were trying to shade up. There was one large Rock by the water spicket. The trail switchbacks for 3 miles above the water spicket. So for miles you can see the water... But not get to it

I made it to Ziggy and a bear finally that evening. Ziggy and the Bears was amazing. Mostly it was just nice to get out of that punishing wind. This wind just pushed you around every direction it was difficult to even walk on the trail. I was emotionally exhausted by the time I got there and it was so great to walk in and know that I was someplace safe. Where they live is incredibly windy and  in fact has many many Windmill Farms.  Their backyard is solid gravel is fenced in with a solid white fence. They have taken industrial outdoor carpeting and covered the entire backyard with it.They have an overhang on their house and they have set up several large canopies for shade and protection. With the wind being so strong they were like wild animals and banging and clanging made for a very noisy night. I wish I had pictures to show you but I was so wiped out and tired I couldn't even think of it. The next morning came around quickly and I was out of there catching a ride from the trail angel by 7:15.

 He gave me a ride to Onyx past which is about 15 miles south of Big Bear. As soon as I started hiking, I found a wonderful hiker cashe.  I was able to eat a banana and take rest on the couch sitting right by the trail.

My lunch that day was moldy again. This is a problem. I don't know if I can trust the food that I packed into the backcountry. I've contacted the company and I'm seeing what they have to say.

I ate some of James's famous chocolate. I had to get creative because it was just too hot. Luckily a spoon works just great.

This was my tent site the night before I entered Big Bear.

I called the trail Angel Papa Smurf from my tent in the morning. I packed up camp and walked a half-mile to the trailhead and someone from his house came to pick me up. He fed me eggs and potatoes for breakfast and then drove me into Big Bear Lake to the hostel. He has a windowsill in his house with dozens Sun activated bobbleheads.

My skirt is beginning to fall apart. I have patched it and taped it in many places but it's shredding! Luckily this just has to survive to the next town and I have another skirt waiting for me in my resupply box.

Staying in Big Bear has been nice. I got a real rest day in for once. It is a big town and it is difficult to walk around in so I had to rely on rides and the bus. What follows is simply a small selection of the bear characters you can find around town. They really love bears here!

 Hey! Who allowed this cat in here?

James also sent me a care package that contained gluten-free ginger cookies. I didn't share any of those. Here I am eating one with almond butter on it.

One of these below is a dipped Twinkie. Can you guess which one?

After my rest it's time to head out again. I feel ready. My next stop will be Wrightwood. I hear it is a very nice town.