Day 10 - Highs and Lows

Day 10 - Saturday, May 5
Tule Canyon (131.9) to Hwy 74 (151.3)
Miles today - 19.4

Last night was miserable. Not only was the wind blowing dirt all over everything and into my tent, it was also blowing my stakes out of the ground. My tent collapsed on me three times. Finally I put about 50 lbs of rocks onto the stake that kept pulling out. I was so irritated that if it happened one more time I was packing up and hiking through the night. Luckily my tent held up after that and I actually got a bit of sleep.

I woke up early and was on the trail at 5:30. Early morning is probably my favorite time of the day to hike. It's quiet and peaceful and I like getting some miles done before it gets hot. I didn't see anyone the first few hours, but I did see some wildlife. I saw three snakes, one of which was laying right on the trail and didn't want to move, so I walked around it.



Then I saw a fox while eating a snack at the bottom of a canyon. It came out of nowhere probably not knowing I was there, but then I think my stink scared it away.

I ran into Wampus Cat and her boyfriend Zen in the afternoon and hiked with them for stretches the rest of the day. Wampus Cat is one of the three other hikers I met at the airport in San Diego.



The sun was brutal today and every mile was a struggle. The water cache was empty so I really had to conserve my last 1.5 liters over the final eight miles. After what felt like forever we finally crested over the last hill and saw the road, and there were two big tents there. I didn't want to get my hopes up, but I thought how great it would be if they had cold drinks. It was even better than I could have imagined. Tarzan and Little Steps are trail angeling here for the weekend and had all sorts of treats: water, veggies and dip, chips and salsa, Snickers, margaritas, and they were even cooking omelettes for everyone.



Dr. Sole was also there to take care of people's feet. A lot of people have blisters. I've been lucky so far. Charles now has the trail name Toenail after having one removed by Dr. Sole.

After recovering for a few hours I walked a mile down the road to Paradise Valley Cafe with Toenail, iPod, Spencer, Wampus, and Zen. I ordered the Jose burger, which had Swiss cheese, avacado, bacon, hot peppers, lettuce, tomato, and onions. It was incredible. Also got some sweet potato fries and my favorite beer, Green Flash West Coast IPA.



Today was one of the hardest days I've ever had and my feet hurt like hell, but it couldn't have ended better. Moments like this remind me how thankful I am to be out here.