Start: 1200 - Ridgecrest (Budget Inn)
End: 1500 - Ridgecrest (Motel 6)
Miles (today): 1.5 off-trail
Miles (cumulative): 670.5 (567 PCT, 89.5 alternate, 14 off)
We almost caught the 1430 bus back to Walker Pass - we were standing by the bus stop sign and everything.
And then I finally made the decision to rest a little more.
My body just isn't cooperating at all. All morning I tried to ignore the fact that I still felt off. All morning I tried to pretend that I would be fine once we started hiking again.
But the walk to the Starbucks across the street (where we waited until it was time to catch the bus) brought back feelings of nausea again. Still, I figured I would be ok because sitting down inside Starbucks made me feel better.
After we filled up our packs with water for 20 miles and walked the 0.5 miles to the bus stop, I was once again nauseous and full of denial. I told myself I just felt off because it was 109 degrees outside and that I would be fine, just fine, once the heat subsided and we started to hike in the cooler afternoon.
Waiting for the bus was torture. Nick continued to ask if I was ok and he continued to remind me that we could easily stay another day or two. I didn't want to delay us any further but told myself that if the bus was late it was a sign and we'd stay.
The bus was late.
Nick found us a less expensive place to spend the night. The 1 mile walk here was rough (even the wind was hot - it felt like a hair dryer was blowing on me). We attempted to hitch but didn't have any luck (funny how that rejection made me feel worse about the whole situation). I'm totally adding the distance we walked today to our total because we had our packs on and because it was so challenging. :)
It feels so good to lie down.