Day 38- belay that order

444.3 to 460.0

Hound and I left the campground at 9am... and the desert floor was already heating up to 90 degrees... the climb out of Acton was directly in the morning sun... and I was huffing and puffing (and cursing and complaining)... I was soaked through by 9:15... and with all the breaks I requested... we were the last ones up the hill... Hound is super great... during climbs my job is to curse... his job is to say we are almost to the top..(even when we are no where to the top)... it works ;)

The entire day lacked shade - hotter'n a blister bug in a pepper patch as some would say... but we knew the trail walked right down Main Street in Aqua Dulce... and we also knew the Sweetwater Grill was on Main Street... so there was motivation for cold drinks and town food...

There was also Vazquez Rocks Park (in so many movies... but iconic in Star Trek)... which was one of the coolest places on trail yet... it was like walking on another planet... the rock formations begged come climb on me... we saw a film crew shooting a commercial... and despite some steep ups and no shade... we found ourselves in one of nature’s playgrounds... I highly recommend it for a day trip in Southern California....

We reached Sweetwater Grill around 2.... and food and cocktails were enjoyed.... our bellies full and the mid-afternoon sun led to a unanimous vote for napping in the shade over hiking... at 5:00- I rallied the troops to start the climb and nighthike all the way to the top... it was Hound, Hot Rocks, Chuckwagon and myself ... the vote was 2-2 on whether to just camp... hot rocks and I were able to persuade the others to move forward.. reminding them of the hot climb in the morning... so we set out... hot rocks leading the way with speed and determination... the rest of us moseyed along... around 7:15, Hound and I took a break and Chuckwagon moved on... at 7:17 Hound and I decided to just set up camp... the next morning about .5 away we found Chuckwagon camping... Hot Rocks was the only one that went all the way to the top...I sort of felt bad (at least for a second).