Tags 68-80: Separate Paths and the Halfwaypoint

Day 68: Last night, I slept very well. Unfortunately, we have to leave for breakfast at 7 am, otherwise I would have definitely slept longer. We're going to Ihop, a breakfast chain that surprisingly good. Then we'll take an Uber back to the trail. I'm sharing one with Ninja, Gumby, and Mrs. Gumby. The others are taking one shortly ahead of us. They're lucky because there's construction on the road and they don't have to wait. Instead, we wait for 20 minutes before the construction site. I'm doing well so far, I only feel my shin when I overextend my foot or put sudden pressure on it, for example when I slip in the snow. The cold is okay, my nose runs and I cough a lot, but it doesn't hurt anymore. However, I can tell that it will still take some time until I'm completely back to normal. Physically, it's because of the cough, and I'm still uncertain with my left leg and continue to walk as if it were injured. Unfortunately, I've infected at least Warrior, maybe even Hasbeen. I hope they both recover as well as I did and that the rest remains unaffected. The scenery is incredibly beautiful again today. The PCT has been running parallel to the Tahoe Rim Trail for some time now, and today we enter the Desolation Wilderness. 

All day long, we pass by or see lakes from a distance. From Dicks Pass, there's a great view of Dicks Lake. At this point, I would like to quote FarOut again: 'It's not harder than myself, especially after two months without my girlfriend'. With these words, maraminarik_ described the climb to Dicks Pass on June 10, 2022. 

The descent leads once again over a snowfield. I can hardly wait for the day when we don't have to cross snow anymore, but that will have to wait a little longer. Because summer is coming, but at the same time, we're moving further north. It's interesting to observe because for weeks we've been seeing the leaves of the trees budding, but they're all in the same stage of development. Since today, we're moving on the FarOut map North Cal, which is a great feeling, especially since we're also crossing the 1100-mile mark. 

The High Sierras were definitely beautiful, but also physically and mentally demanding, treacherous, and dangerous. They're like a beautiful, yet wild animal, and one should never forget that it can bite. And we haven't even experienced their worst side yet. I'm very happy with my new Sunhoodie. In fact, with my improving physical discomfort, but especially with my regained joy for hiking and my much better mood, it feels as if, in terms of my name, I have gone up in flames again in South Lake Tahoe and am in the process of rising again. And a change of outfit seems very fitting. In any case, I'm very excited to see what lies ahead. I also had a conversation with Hasbeen and Warrior. We definitely want to reach Canada together, but for the time being, we'll hike more loosely around each other, meaning we might camp separately and meet up again in the next town, just to have more individual freedom. In the Sierras, this was not possible for safety reasons, but now it shouldn't be a problem anymore, and I'm glad about this approach. It was similar before with Sorry and Butterfly, and we'll see how much we stay with them, but this system shouldn't be a problem.

Day 69: Last night, it was below freezing for the first time in a while. I slept well, but getting up wasn't as much fun. Today, the trail mostly goes through the forest, and there isn't much to see. Everything is still very wet, and the trail is often a stream again. In terms of pace, I can keep up with everyone again. 

When we reach the Barker Pass Trailhead in the afternoon, we come across some trail magic. At the moment, we're very lucky in that regard. The trail angels here have homemade sandwiches, sodas, beer, and all kinds of snacks, so we spend some nice hours here. Unfortunately, Warrior isn't feeling well, but we manage to hike 19 miles, and she holds up well. And the day after tomorrow, we'll arrive in Truckee, where we could take another zero if necessary. Sorry and Butterfly hiked on today, and I'm not sure if we'll see them again so soon. Maybe we'll become townfriends again. And during dinner, Hasbeen announces that for personal reasons, he wants to hike alone for the next 300 miles starting tomorrow. After that, we want to hike together again. So starting tomorrow, our group will be significantly smaller, and in Truckee, the Gumbys will probably leave us as well. 

Day 70: When I get up in the morning after a very good night's sleep and leave the tent after packing, I see that Ninja is already gone. Apparently, she left earlier because she couldn't sleep anymore. Today, the trail goes through ski areas, and we can see ski lifts all day long. In the morning, I deviate from the trail. Just before the Twin Peaks, there's a trail junction that's not on the map, so I don't know about it. Just before this junction, I go to the bathroom. When I come back and encounter a trail, I assume it's the PCT and follow it. After about a quarter of a mile, I realize that the Twin Peaks are on my left, but they should be on the right. I check the map and notice my mistake. Fortunately, I realized it early enough, but it's still quite unlucky. 

When I'm back on the trail, it follows a beautiful ridge. But when I jump down from a snowfield onto the ground, my left foot slips. I'm not sure, but I think I strained a ligament or something similar. Initially, it doesn't hurt at all, but throughout the day, it gets better and worse, and now I have a bruise in the evening. Luckily, tomorrow is only 6.7 miles to Truckee, where I want to spend a night and hopefully have enough time to ice my foot. In the afternoon, I receive a message from Ninja that she already hitched to Truckee today, so we arrange to meet for breakfast tomorrow. I assume she will continue hiking tomorrow, so I will probably say goodbye to her tomorrow as well. And the cold continues to spread. In the morning, Gumby feels a bit sick, and later I meet Waterbaby, who shared a room with me and Hasbeen in Tahoe on the second night and also doesn't feel well. 

Day 71: Last night, we camped on a ridge, and it was very windy. But we find a sheltered spot behind a group of trees, so we don't get the wind, but it's very loud all night long. And when the moon rises, it's like we're lying in a spotlight. Still, I don't sleep too badly. The just under 7 miles in the morning to Donner Pass are very beautiful and quickly done. Supposedly, in 1846 81, 49 settlers were surprised and snowed into this place. 34 of the settlers died, and according to diary entries, the others survived only by cannibalism. In any case, we just relax at the Big Creek Road. Gumby goes to the bathroom while I wait, and just when I head to the bathroom, a car turns in and asks if I want a soda. I gratefully accept. There are two PCT thru-hikers from last year who went on a weekend trip and are now distributing some trail magic. Luckily, they still have two sodas left. The last one goes to a hiker named Pickels, who arrives with me. We chat a bit about the trail and the Burnt Area of the Dixie Fire, which is about to start and stretches for 100 miles. It will probably be a few depressing days. The rest of the day is uneventful. We cover 24.4 miles, which we planned, and we're both very happy about it because we're slowly getting back on track. While we have dinner, a woman comes by and asks if we have reception. Her family got stuck down the road, which we could actually hear. Unfortunately, we can't help, so she walks on. A while later, she returns with someone else. While she gets her family, we chat with the man. He is a resident of Quincy, who is camping three miles away with some high school students and takes the family there. He also recommends the brewery in Quincy, which we will visit for sure the day after tomorrow. When it's time for bed, I go to the nearby water source to get water for tomorrow. Just as I've passed my tent, suddenly there's a loud crack in the bushes next to me. I startle and turn around. No more than three meters away from me, a deer emerges from the bushes, stands there, looks at me, and starts eating. I watch it for a while, then get water. When I come back, it's still there and is undisturbed by me. So I go get Warrior, and we watch the deer for a while. Eventually, it runs across the other side of the road and disappears. A crazy encounter. I hope it remembers our campsite and doesn't stumble over me tonight.

Day 72: Last night, I had a very strange dream. Somewhere in a black room stood a white square table. On one side, I was an observer, bodiless. Opposite sat 'Niklas' and 'Phoenix' and talked to each other. One spoke German, the other spoke English. One looked like me at the moment and wore what I wear every day. The other one looked like me until two and a half months ago and how I used to walk around. I don't remember much of the conversation, but it was the weirdest dream I've ever had. After getting up, we go to breakfast again at the Squeeze Inn and are recognized immediately by the waiter. Then it's time to say goodbye to Gumby and Jo. It's hardest for Warrior. She met Gumby in the shuttle to Campo and they've been together since the first moment. But I will definitely miss Gumby too. The two of them take another day off, then hike a little further on the PCT, and then rent a car and do various tours. With Hasbeen, who went on his solo mission three days ago, and Sorry and Butterfly, who left Truckee yesterday, there are currently only Warrior, Ninja, and me hiking together. The hitch back to the trailhead is surprisingly easy. The residents here are very hiker-friendly, so Sam takes us to the trailhead even though he doesn't have to go there. My right foot is finally completely fine again, and the cough is still there and annoying, but it's much better. Warrior is also doing much better, so today we manage another 19 miles, even though we didn't start until after 10 am. After four miles, we cross Interstate 80. We don't go through an underpass or anything like that, instead, we wade through drainage tunnels. Another interesting experience. 

Shortly before lunch, we pass by the Peter Grubb Hut, including a two-story outhouse. And in the afternoon, just before reaching the camp, we tackle the most annoying section of the PCT so far. We follow a forest edge where there's still a lot of snow. It's soft and slippery. Right next to the snow, the ground is completely muddy from the snowmelt. We go from the snow into the mud and back over and over again. At one point, I posthole and sink up to my knee in the snow while my foot sinks into the mud. I'm really done with snow. Allegedly, we'll be done with it from mile 1177, sometime tomorrow, and I hope that's true. We've been on the trail for 72 days now. Actually, I hope to be able to finish it in a maximum of 144 days, which means it's halftime in terms of time. And since we're only 150 miles away from the halfway point, I'm very confident that I can do it without any major problems. As I'm writing this, it starts to rain. Ninja, who wanted to cowboycamp, quickly stuffs all her stuff into her sleeping bag, gives it to me in the tent, and then sets up her tent. I'm glad I decided to set up my tent right away. 

Day 73: From what I gather, Germany is currently being hit by a heatwave. When I get up, the tent is covered in snow. It's snowing three days before the summer solstice. And the weather remains cold and changeable all day, with a mixture of snow, rain, and occasional sunshine. 

Ninja has already left earlier. She has three months off with a sabbatical, which will end at the end of the month. Therefore, she wants to challenge herself again and walk as many miles as possible today, maybe even attempting a 24-hour challenge. The plan is, however, to meet up again in Quincy and hike to the halfway point together. So Warrior and I are hiking together as a duo again. The trail leads through an area that reminds me a lot of the Black Forest, if you replace the sandstone with volcanic rock. For breakfast, we make a small detour to Jackson Meadows Reservoir. There's a campground here with water, picnic tables, trash cans, and toilets, even with a flush. True luxury. Then we continue, and before 3 pm, we reach our destination for the day, Highway 49. Unfortunately, many things are closed in Quincy on Tuesdays. So we have lunch at Jeffrey's Pub, which feels like the only place open. But the food is good, so it's fine. Afterward, we meet Ninja at our room in the Gold Pan Lodge. After completing her 24-hour challenge by covering 103 kilometers, an incredible feat that I have great respect for, especially since the trail was not easy and there were many meters of elevation gain, she arrived yesterday and is taking a zero today to hike with us again tomorrow. Since we will have a zero in Chester in three days, where we want to take a break, Warrior and I decide not to do laundry here. After a shower, we go for a resupply. On the way, we get a free ice cream at the toy store. The owner and the employee there are very nice, and we chat a bit. After the resupply, we meet up with Waterbaby and a hiker named A.K.A., whom Ninja met yesterday, and due to lack of alternatives, we have dinner at Jeffrey's Pub. I'm always happy to meet Waterbaby, and A.K.A. is a cool guy too. Back in our room, we talk for a while. Ninja met Hasbeen here yesterday. After hiking 35 miles per day for a few days, he now has problems with shin splints. At the moment, he's hiking with another group. We'll see if and when he contacts us again. On top of that, we once again have a deep conversation about the burdens we each carry, which occupies my mind for a long time.

Day 77: Last night, I couldn't sleep well. At first, I thought a lot about our conversation, then it was very warm in the room, and then some mosquito bites started to itch like crazy. I was really looking forward to breakfast at Morning Thunder as FarOut said it's one of the best on the trail. Unfortunately, they're closed today. So we go to Sweet Lorraine's Bakery instead. The breakfast sandwiches are great and are topped by the muffins. We don't have to wait long for a hitch back to the trail either. We are picked up by a man who just quit his job and is now going fishing. We drive a little further down the road and pass A.K.A. on the way, whom we also take with us. Shortly after we're back on the trail, we enter the Burnt Area of the Dixie Fire. With an extent of up to 100 miles, it's the largest Burnt Area we traverse. It's not continuous, but most of the time, we pass completely burned trees and shrubs, walking on ash. As a result, our legs also look like that. The goal for today is Belden Resort, which is right on the trail and has a grill, a bar, and a small store. In addition to breakfast, we also get dinner there. Belden is located on the North Fork Feather River. The descent is steep, and we'll go up again on the other side, over a total of 1750 meters of elevation gain in 13.7 miles. But I'll deal with that tomorrow. But at least I'm looking forward to hiking again and to the trail, the zero has really helped with that. Otherwise, not much happened, except that I was dissed by a fortune cookie: 'A closed mind is like a closed book: just like a block of wood.'

Day 79: The journey to the halfway point is beautiful, actually the landscape becomes more interesting again with volcanic rock. However, we also go through burnt areas again for a long time. And then we arrive at the halfway point. After two and a half months, we have completed half of the trail. It's a strange feeling. It's a huge milestone, and I'm excited about the trail that lies ahead. But at the same time, it's been a very long time that I've been on the trail, and we're only at the halfway point. Especially in the past few days, hiking has felt more and more like a job. Getting up every morning, packing up camp, and walking. That's what we have to do. And at the same time, California just won't end. The halfway point is definitely a boost of motivation, but I can't wait to finally leave California and enter Oregon. But before that, there are still 350 miles to hike. 

After spending some time at the halfway point, we walk another eight miles to reach Chester. Just as we arrive at the road, some hikers are dropped off by a trail angel who then takes us to town. We're incredibly lucky with hitching once again. Not only does she drive us into town, but she also has sodas with her that we drink during the ride. In town, we have lunch at Pine Shack Frosty, where they have incredibly good milkshakes. 

Afterward, we go to the hostel, take a shower, do laundry, the usual. For dinner, we meet up with Waterbaby, and afterward, we go to a bar to celebrate Ninja's last day on the trail. There we also meet A.K.A. The evening in the bar is great, we play pool, cornhole, and drink beer. It gets very late, and we don't go to bed until 1 am. Normally, at 9 pm, it's 'Thruhikers-Midnight', so you could say we stayed up all night.

Day 80: Today was a typical zero day, so eating, resupplying, checking equipment, and relaxing. Chester is one of those elongated towns with oversized properties. Nevertheless, everything is within walking distance. So we had a very relaxed zero day. I'm looking forward to hiking again and to the trail, the zero really helped with that. Otherwise, not much happened except that I was dissed by a fortune cookie: 'A closed mind is like a closed book: just like a block of wood.'