Day 9 - Dirty

Day 9 - Friday, May 4
Agua Caliente Creek (115.1) to Tule Canyon (131.9)
Miles today - 16.8

I got off to a slow start and was the last person to leave camp. I just wasn't in the mood to pack everything up and put my funky hiking clothes back on. When I did finally get moving there was a long, hot climb waiting for me. It was a tough morning, physically and mentally.







In the afternoon I made it to trail angel Mike's house. He wasnt there, but he lets hikers fill up their water bottles and hang out in his yard where there's some shade. There were a lot of hikers there. I was surprised when Charles showed up. He was having problems with blisters and was moving really slow, so I wasn't sure if he'd catch up.

After resting for a couple hours I felt refreshed and ready to get in some more miles. The trail went up and over a ridge and suddenly there were great views of Mount San Jacinto in the distance.



I'll be going over it next week. I think it's the highest point in southern California but I'm not sure.

My campsite tonight is in a really dusty area. The wind is blowing and now all of my stuff is covered in dirt. This is the first night I've camped alone, although there are a few people camped a little ways down the trail. I watched the sunset from inside my tent.