Mile 93.2 San Felipe Mtns — 109.0 Warner Springs (15.8 miles)

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Rose: sunset hiking in fields of gold & Eagle Rock Thorn: the nonstop chatting in my group, even in the dark, My social battery was empty by 3pm Bud: doing some hiking alone tomorrow

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I could tell it was going to be a hot day when it felt like 60* at 5am. I was the first to leave camp. As the temperature climbed, I kept checking my watch. So early and getting so hot.

We covered the 8 miles to Montezuma’s market by 10am. Both good and bad, that meant we were siesta-ing at the market.

The market itself was a little spot of glory: barely the size of a convenience store but every food a hiker could want. The most instant mashed potato selection. The biggest variety of tuna packet flavors. Snickers ice cream bars. Beer. Reasonable prices. We all loaded up on food, satisfied immediate cravings, and settled in for the afternoon. It was not a relaxing siesta: next to the highway, dirty ground under the tree, a cramped little yard. We laughed and chatted. I bought things on the internet for way too much money.

One group left at 1pm, which we thought was crazy given the heat of the day. We left at 3:30, and it was still too hot. The high today is 90*. The next section of trail is shadeless until after Eagle Rock in five miles.

We are now hunkered down in the shade near the trailhead and water cache. We’ll reevaluate at 5:30. The others want to try night hiking, but I want to see Eagle Rock in the daylight. The trouble is that we have to hike the 8 miles to Warner Springs in one go, because this stretch is all on private land.

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We left the shade at 5:40. The sun, although still hot, was significantly more manageable. We pushed ahead through dry grasslands with grazing cattle to make it to Eagle Rock before sunset.

The sunset was beautiful: purple mountains, yellow grass fields, the blue tinge of the soil and rocks. It was one of those times where your heart feels full. These sights, these memories, these exploits, this is why I wanted to hike the PCT.

We reached Eagle Rock right after the sun had set behind the mountains, but before light was lost from the sky. Again, a magestic and iconic moment of the PCT. I did not realize that the rock grouping stood on its own in the middle of a field. I always thought it was behind some other rocks in a desolate sand desert.

After taking our pictures and crawling all over the Eagle, we ate our dinner in the last orange and purple hues of the fading light. Only three more miles to hike in the dark to camp. Thankfully, the heat melted away with the day.

I was decidedly less social after departing our siesta spot. After the chit chat at the market for most of the day, my social battery was drained. I just wanted the quiet of the night as we hiked. Consequently, I dropped back away from the crowd to enjoy the sounds of crickets, frogs, babbling creek. We arrived at camp and cowboy camped at 9:30.