Mission Creek (229.5) to Arrastre Trail Camp (255.9)
Miles today - 26.4
Back on the trail at 3 am for some more night hiking. The trail climbed several thousand feet following a creek up a canyon. We made it up out of the canyon before the heat, otherwise it would have been really brutal. Even so, I was still having a hard time. I don't know if it was the lack of sleep or if I wasn't eating enough, but I had no energy. I told Magellan and Laura to go on without me because I just wasn't able to keep up.
I hiked alone for a few miles for the first time in a few days. I was feeling a little down and starting to have some doubts. Then I stopped for lunch with Yankee Son, Hallmark, Bronco, and Brother Man, and for whatever reason I felt great after that. We were high in the mountains so it was a lot cooler, there were nice trees, and views of San Gorgonio (pictured below, the peak covered in snow), which I learned is the highest peak in southern California (~11,500'), which answers my question from the other day.
Later in the day we passed some trail magic. Sodas, cookies, and a couch put out by the Big Bear Hostel.
(Above: me and Yankee Son chilling on the couch)
I felt unstoppable and ended up putting in nearly 27 miles, my first ever marathon. My time of 15 hours probably isn't good enough to compete on the world stage yet though.
We got to camp and three hikers from last year (Honey Badger, Dump Truck, and Murphy) were there doing some trail magic and had hot dogs, beer, and snacks. I'm glad I put in the extra miles today.
This is probably my favorite campsite so far. We're in a nice forested area with a little stream nearby. There's almost 20 hikers here and we had a fire which felt great on this cold night.
We had our first encounter with the much talked about Poodle Dog Bush today. This ugly plant thrives in burn areas and gives you a nasty rash if you come into contact with it, and supposedly it can be so painful that it has ended thruhikes before.
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