Category: Backpacking
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Day 4 | Mile 32.6 – 42.6
Into the town of Mt. Laguna today! I saw the first snow on trail, but it was just a small patch. The desert shrubbery gave way to a tall pine forest (oh the wonderful smells!) as I climbed to over 6000′ elevation. ⇠Previous Day Next Day ⇢
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Day 3 | Mile 20 – 32.6
Water is flowing! I crossed over Kitchen Creek in the morning, and kept my feet dry. I saw an egg, but didn’t collect it since it’s not Easter just yet. It has been incredibly beautiful, but also incredibly windy. In the evening, we saw SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launch of 22 Starlink satellites. ⇠Previous Day…
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Day 2 | Mile 14.0 – Mile 20.0
I got an easy quick 6 miles in before the afternoon showers. I enjoyed beautiful views of Morena Reservoir before descending down into Lake Morena County Park for the evening. We saw many other hikers camped out, making use of the quarter showers (which were either ice cold or burning hot), restrooms, and Malt Shop…
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Day 1 | Mile 0.0 – 14.0
And so it begins, again, again! The Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail’s Southern Terminus is located between Campo, California, United States and Tecate, Baja California, Mexico. It’s a tradition to walk a little south of the terminus and stick your hand (or your foot, if it’s not gigantic like mine which will likely get stuck)…
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PCT Gear List
After two previous thru-hike attempts, you’d think I have my gear dialed in. And I do! But every year, gear comes out in pretty new colors and there’s always shiny new things to try. Here’s my gear as it stands today, but feel free to check back to see what exchanges I make as I…
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My First Backpacking Date
Aside from backpackers I’ve met while on a trail, I’ve always backpacked alone. It’s been a hard sell for my non-backpacking friends to want to purchase, and then carry, a lot of gear just to go somewhere to sleep on the hard ground. And then along comes Tom! Tom and I finally found one night…
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Planning a Primitive Camping Date
Have you ever felt inclined to work up a good sweat with a great hike, then not change your clothes or bathe, and crawl into a tiny space with your beloved (who is in a similarly rank state) and stay there for about nine hours? No? Ah, well, I can’t say I blame you, but…
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Days 60-64 | PCT 2021
Day 60: Zero #12 All day in bed resting, and pizza delivery. Day 61: Zero #13 More meds, and rest, and soaking in the tub. Then enchiladas! Day 62: Zero #14 My sickness is going away, but my ankle is still swollen. Not sure if I should try and get back on the trail tomorrow.…
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Day 30 | PCT 2021
Mile 307.9 – 318 Soaked in the Hot Springs again in the morning, and moseyed through desert wildflowers in the afternoon. ⇠Previous Day Next Day ⇢
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Day 29 | PCT 2021
Mile 289.9 – 307.9 (+4 miles to town) What a magical day! There was a little ice cream place 2.5 miles off trail… and it did seem like a good day for ice cream, so off I went. There I ran into Smitten and Cloud Ripper, and we hatched a plan to make it to…