PCT - Day 28: 5/16/2018 - to Casa De Luna

Trail miles: 12.3 from 465.9 - 478.2
Miles hiked: 14.0

Morning View

Getting going this morning was a challenge. It was chilly and my sleeping bag was wet with condensation, so I just sat there starring at the sky thru the mesh top of my tent. I didn’t want to move.

After probably 45 minutes, I finally started packing up. Several other hikers passed me as I was still sitting there in my trail side tent spot.

First to pass by was Chilly Bin followed by Hoosier Daddy, then Tapeworm (aka Pacemaker), then Opera, and finally Socks. Each asked how I was doing and expressed concern about my wrist/ankle problems.

Ziploc waited for me to finish packing up and we started up the trail. I was still shivering from the cold morning and the packing away my freezing cold trekking poles.

Soon the sun was warming the terrain and Ziploc and I caught up to Socks in a section with lots of wild cucumber. We marched onward towards the fun times awaiting us at Casa De Luna in Green Valley. The three of us hadn’t hiked together much and we passed the time with good conversation.

Resting on the Trail

At the trailhead, the famous trail angel Terrie Anderson herself picked us up and gave us a ride to her home (aka Casa De Luna). We were welcomed with hugs, and a quick point into the backyard which is a Manzanita forest.

Hitching ride to Casa De Luna

Trail People

We wound our way through a maze decorated with hand-painted rocks with custom messages. The short and narrow trail weaved through the shaded forest and the occasional patch of sunshine. Quickly we pitched our tents, hung out our sleeping bags to dry, and went back to the house to hang out in the backyard.

Bare Beer Bear ?

We spent the next few hours drinking beer & wine, joking with each other, rotating from sun to shade, and just generally sharing good times.

Napping in the Sun

I realized that my friends here are also reading my blog whenever they have WiFi since Opera and HoosierDaddy clearly communicated that my last post touched them. It’s a real challenge as a semi real-time blogger to express all the feelings that I have while on trail, knowing fully that some of my readers are the people I am closest with. It puts me in an incredibly vulnerable situation, where my trail family gets a glimpse into the inner workings of my heart & head, even if I never get to see that part of them. Either way, I’ll just continue being honest in my writing, since it’s important to me that this blog reflects my PCT experience as I felt it, and as I saw it, as I lived it, and how I want to remember it.

Plus, I trust each of these amazing people, and if given the right opportunity, I would share any of my feelings with them face to face too.

Trail Family

After a few beers, we got sorta silly again during our afternoon lounging session. Somehow, my right toenail, and everyone else’s too, is also now painted too. This time Tapeworm chose silver as the color to brand our group’s right foot with.

Tonight, the generous Anderson family fed over 50 hikers the famous taco salad. We are all camping in the forest behind their property tonight. We’re also staying for a much needed, and well earned zero day tomorrow.

I’m going to cherish this experience and enjoy tonight and tomorrow. I think I’m finally allowing myself to live in the moment. Only on Friday morning, after our zero day, will I allow myself to consider the challenges of the upcoming hike to Tehachapi.

"I'm going to ride this shovel to Tehachapi"