Start: 0730 - East Fork Carson River
End: 2030 - Sherrold Lake
Miles (today): 23
Miles (cumulative): 1086 (941 PCT, 91.5 alternate, 53.5 off)
It took me a long time to fall asleep last night - my stomach was really upset (probably from eating that s'mores sugar bomb), my left foot was cramping, and my calf/knee throbbed like crazy. When 0600 rolled around, getting up to hike seemed like such a daunting task - all I wanted to do was sleep.
Surprisingly, once I started to hike, my calf seemed ok. Don't get me wrong, it still hurt - I'm pretty sure I need several days of rest for it to heal completely - but it didn't hurt too much worse then it had before the events of yesterday.
About 30 minutes into my hike I ran into Saunter (who I met at met at Hiker Heaven and haven't seen since). It turns out he had been camping across the trail from us last night and even called out my name as I walked past him for water. Yikes! Obviously I was in a really bad state when we finished hiking last night! He completely understood, though.
Saunter and I ended up hiking together all day. Hiking with different people is great - I love getting to know other hikers and I also love learning about their hiking styles. Saunter's style is true to his name - he takes his time and really enjoys himself (although I suspect he walked slower than usual for my sake). Similar to Escalator, Saunter hikes for time and doesn't worry about the miles. It works - I had the best day! Even with a questionable calf/leg, I made it 20 miles without really thinking about it (or my injury). Of course, it also helps that I had someone to talk to. Saunter really helped me put some things in perspective - his outlook on life is wonderful. :)
The trail is so beautiful! We met a southbound hiker who said he thought this section was better than the High Sierras and, even though I thought he was crazy at the time, I think I know what he means now. As soon as we went over Wolf Creek Pass, everything changed. (This hiker also told us that Coppertone was at highway 50 and that there was trail magic at Ebbetts Pass, although he wasn't sure either would still be there for us.)
at the top of Wolf Creek Pass
on the other side of Wolf Creek Pass
Saunter decided to stop hiking around 1830, so I stopped with him and waited for Nick. I didn't wait long. We debated camping with Saunter - part of me wanted to stop (I had tweaked my leg a few times on the loose gravelly trail towards the end there and it was starting to really bother me) but Nick wanted to get in a few more miles (and, well, so did I) so we continued on.
I am so very glad we decided to continue, because a few miles later we came upon this sign at Ebbetts Pass:
What?!? Trail Magic? :)
The trail magic the southbounder told us about was still there! It was superb and it came at just the right time - Nick and I had just been talking about how we might not make it to South Lake Tahoe by Thursday like we planned, which meant we might be short a dinner. Well, not anymore! We were fed burgers (I had a fish burger, it was amazing), hot dogs, fruit, potato salad, beans, cookies, m & m's, crackers, cheese... It was incredible and just what we needed. Once again I was appalled by all the food I shoved into my face, but, well....
While there, we met Spooky and Bivy. Bivy said he had heard about Nick and me which was weird but nice, too (well, hopefully it's nice, I didn't get a chance to probe further). Downtime, Scoal, and Swiss Miss also showed up for the magic. I loved every second. I also loved getting the chance to trial eating and then hiking a little more. While it was a little difficult to hike with an overstuffed stomach, I did enjoy not having to cook once we got to the campsite.
The trail angels at Ebbetts Pass: Jagermeister, Robin, Forever 50, and Lizard
Along the trail:
this pile of rocks seemed so out of place
this hiking stick memorial made me laugh
