I slept well in the little dirt bathtub I hollowed out of the ground above the trail. The wind died down, but the clouds persisted. My quilt top was wet by morning, but the water did not penetrate through the inner down, so I stayed warm.
Dealer and seven did alright too. We are all a little proud of our ingenuity. Of course, we violated several Leave No Trace principles, but we were desperate. Maybe we should do like developers and get some “offsets” – land we own and promise never to camp on!
The sky over Antelope Valley looks foreboding. What is down there. What will we experience in the hottest part of this section?
The Plan
Seven’s idea is to hike far enough that by the end of the day tomorrow we will be very close to Hiker Town. Hiker Town will be our launching point for walking the hot arid path over the Los Ángeles Aqueduct. Seven has picked out a campsite at Sawmill Campground about 18 miles away. The only complicating factor is the Powerhouse Fire Burn Zone, which is brimming with Poodle Dog Bush. We may hike around that area on the road.
Since I am deferring to Seven today, I just have to worry about walking. So we walk. Ideally, we want to collect water in a sunny spot where we can dry out our wet camping stuff.
War Zone
The route today takes us through the Sierra Pelona, a range that runs westward through the Ángeles National Forest. The trail attempts to follow a contour line (same elevation) gradually down to Lake Hughes Rd.
The day does not know what it wants to be. When I look east over Lancaster and the San Andreas Rift, the skies are arid with high cirrus clouds blocking the sun.
On the other hand, the Pacific Ocean keeps sending these enormous clouds billowing over the westward mountain ranges.
I am walking through the middle. When the Ocean wins, clouds cover the trail and I wish I were wearing a jacket. When the valley wins, the sun comes out, I wish I would stop sweating so much.
Another kind of riot
The abundance of flowers next to the trail today is startling.
Some of these varieties I have never seen before.
Others are have strange shapes
And others invite you to certain doom.
This last flower is the dreaded Poodle Dog Bush. I have mentioned them before and they are prolific and large along the section of the trail that runs through the Powerhouse Fire Burn Zone.
I don’t even want to get close enough to these plants to take a halfway decent picture.
A road runs parallel to the PDB-infested area, and we decide to take it. Not one person that we encountered on the trail today decided to walk through the PDB zone.
Challenges
As we approach the junction where the road joins with the trail again, Dealer asks Seven how far away it is. Seven, who is supposed to be navigating, realizes that we have gone half a mile beyond the junction. Our water was on the section we just passed.
Dealer and Servín exchange words that I won’t repeat. I suggest that if we continue on the road a little farther, we can still get to camp and get water, too. The road goes up and then down to the PCT.
A change comes over Dealer. In our normal hiking arrangement, I hike out in front and Seven and Dealer hike together somewhere behind me with Dealer behind Seven. But right this minute, Dealer takes the lead up the road, head down, legs pumping. This burst of speed catches me off guard. Gamely, I try to keep up. I figure she will soon run out of gas. She doesn’t. I do. I am huffing and puffing like a maniac. She seem unmoved by my condition. Seven is 20 feet behind.
We go on like this to the top of the hill where we look around for the intersection. I remark about how fast she is. She replies that it’s the downhill hiking that she doesn’t like. Note taken.
Guzzler
I am not sure what a guzzler is, but the map keeps referring to cisterns as guzzlers. Our last task of the day is to find the guzzler near camp. We eventually do. It looks like this. The roof channels rain into a cistern below the cover. To get the water you have to reach under the cover and fish it out.
Since I have the longest arms I try first. I can just barely reach the water but I eventually draw out enough with my cup for everyone and we head down to camp.
Camp
There are a bunch of hikers in camp. We all gravitate to the same general area.
The plan for tomorrow is to hike only 14 miles. I decide we can all sleep in a half hour. Am I not merciful?
- June 10, 2023
- Starting marker: 479.9
- Ending marker: 498.2
- Miles hiked today: 18
- Total PCT miles: 468
I’m behind on your updates, but I wanted you to know that this one was very entertaining. And I learned what a guzzler is. Thank goodness for long arms!