Day 21--Holcomb Crossing Camp to Campsite Near CA Hwy 173

Written Monday, 10 May 2021

Knowing today was going to be a hot one, I was up, packed, and on the Trail by 0420 after a quick breakfast to get as far as I can before the heat gets unbearable. I definitely have come to enjoy these early hikes with my headlamp, as the nocturnal animals are finishing their work for the day and the diurnal animals are starting theirs.

Even though sunrise isn't until around 0620, by 0520 there's enough twilight that I can turn off my headlamp and navigate the trail easily.

Not too long after that, we roll past the 400-mile mark in the Trail. Yep, we hung another Benjamin!

Shortly after leaving camp this morning, the terrain I am walking in changed significantly from flat and sandy to rocky and very steep. Not that the trail is terribly steep, but all around me the rises and drop-offs are very sharp, and the water I was camped beside last night is now in a gorge, far below.

Transitioning across the gorge actually requires something you don't often see in this part of the Trail--bridges! Usually, in this part if the PCT, if you are crossing a stream or creek, the trail builders have the Trail descend all the way down to the water, cross the water, and then climb back up the next hill. Here, the climbs and descents would be so radical that they have put in bridges instead. Very nice bridges too, ones that must have taken an incredible amount of work to construct here in the back country.

About 1015, I arrive at what I assume will be the highlight of my day, a naturally occurring hot springs, fed by hot water from volcanically heated underground streams. No surprise, this is a very popular stop for hikers and locals who can hike a couple miles in from a nearby road.

Also, it's clothing-optional.... You will be glad to know, I'm sure, to know that I opted in to clothes because nobody needs to see any of my paler parts, which are whiter than white.

I did definitely get in the hotter pools and soak my sore muscles. Besides, after all, otters love water!

I also caught up with Peanut Butter and Jack, who left Big Bear a day ahead of me. Had a great conversation about the music of our eras and where the circles of our Venn diagrams overlap (the Stones and The Grateful Dead).

They lite out ahead of me, and I briefly consider staying for a while longer, but it's incredibly hot, and there's very little shade, so about noon, I decide to head up the Trail.

All in all, this was a worthwhile and relaxing stop (although I could have done without Naked Biker Granny... please, please, please put on your top).

Feeling a bit lethargic, I deploy my secret weapon: the frosted Honey Bun. There is absolutely nothing good for you in this "pastry"--just enough bleached, refined flour to hold together the 8 different types of sugar (and 6 preservatives). But that stuff is like injecting glucose directly into my veins, banishing the after-lunch blahs.

Which is good, because the Trail here is hot rocky. Pretty soon, I'm panting, but my muscles are still bathed in sugar do I let going.

At about 1500, I reach an honest to goodness river crisding where I have to wade through ankle-deep water to get up the Trail. I think this is my first feet-wet experience on the PCT. There will surely be many more to come.

On the far shore, I meet a couple, Carlos and Marisol, from Victorville, out having a nice afternoon outside the city. They offer me a Modelo and a burger and want to chat about the PCT. I mention that I was once stationed in Victorville (at George AFB, 91-92), and Marisol says, "Damn! That was a long time ago!" I think to myself, "Sister, you are so right!" but I just laugh.

We really had a good conversation about trail life and life in general for about 29 minutes. It was a wonderful, relaxing few minutes. Carlos and Marisol and I have nothing in common and probably, "in real life," would never even meet, but here we are exchanging our rawest views on life. They clearly don't have a lot of money, but they are happy to share some of what they have with me, and they refuse my offer to pay them.

I hate to part company, but the Trail pulls me back to it, feeling so much better than when I stopped. For the next hour, I really can't think about anything else but oit conversation and Carlos and Marisol's kindness. The hot springs, as it turns out, was not the highlight of the day. For all I know, I missed the prettiest and best spot on the Trail.

What I didn't miss was a water stop, where the Trail gave me an immediate opportunity to pay Valid and Marisol's kindness forward. I run into Top Rock, whom I last saw at Voon Creek Cabin. His water bag had spring a leak, and he had lost the O-ring from his water filter, making gathering and filtering water challenging to say the least. Luckily, I had an extra bag and an extra O-ring to give him, so I did.

Peanut Butter and Jack are also there getting water by the time I set out. At around 1700, the heat is finally starting to break. The moles just reel off, as I hike past the Mojave Rivers dam (see photo above-- notice anything missing?) and down through a major waterworks that serves Los Angeles.

By 1800, I had made 27 miles on the day, and I knew I was going to make 30 (for the first time ever) before I stopped.

By about 1915, my odometer clicked over 30 miles, and I started looking for a place to camp, which I found just 0.3 miles further down the road. 30.3 is a stretch for me, but I'm not a wreck.

So, here I am, rolled out in a flat spot, separated from a state highway by about 50 feet, and jammed up against the fence of the water project's power plant. Cowboy camping again, naturally, as the sun goes down.

Just at dark, Top Rock shows up, and I point out another flat spot nearby, which he seems happy to use.

I'm safe, dry, and warm tonight.

Miles Hiked Today: 30.3 (New PR) Total Miles Hiked: 324.3

Sea Otter Fact of the Day: Sea otters generally learn their food preferences from their mothers. For instance, if mom likes clams, their offspring are likely to have a preference for clams too.