Am I Really in a Desert? – PCT 2017: A Hiking Story [02]

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Part 1: Scout and Frodo ‘A Homely Beginning’

Day 2 (30/03) – Water in the Desert

I set off alone at around 9am in the morning, as one of the last hikers from the campsite. I remember reading from last year’s hikers, how many litres of water needed to be carried at this point – like 6–7 litres from memory. For us in 2017, the winter rains had changed the desert into a water wonderland! There were small cascades everywhere, and some creeks were so wide you had to take your shoes off to cross.

I passed several new animals in the first few days, most of which were completely new to me – including several snakes (almost trod on one) – none were rattlesnakes, thankfully.

I caught up to Eyran and a guy called Nicholas and hiked with them. We decided at one point to go off trail for a refreshing swim and some lunch down by the creek. It was a great 1-mile detour and we felt much refreshed.

We came to a nice green area under some trees and by a small stream. It was only 3:30pm, but we were all wrecked from the first huge day, and decided to camp there. Eventually, many others also decided to camp there too – a popular spot!

We had a small fire and some dinner, and had some introductory conversations, as most people had not met prior to the evening. I learned that evening that Eyran was not very experienced in hiking and was very under-prepared. He had barely any food (I gave him some noodles), no maps, and basically no idea of what he was into. He had a large learning curve ahead of him, that’s for sure, ‘I guess I could help him out somewhat’, I thought. As it grew cool, we eventually retired into our cocoons of warmth.

Distanced hiked: 12 miles (19.31 km)

Total PCT hiked: 32 miles (51.5 km)

Day 3 (31/03) – Mount Laguna Gear Store

Nicholas headed off early, and Eyran and I started our day at 8am. We talked along the way about hiking and what kind of food he should bring, and how he should navigate. The scenery changed from semi-desert, into a pine forest – the first real trees we’d seen yet.

We arrived at a small place called Mount Laguna, which deviates from the trail and contained three of the hiking essentials: post office, restaurant, and gear store. Food came first – a delicious burger and chips with a beer, followed by a visit to the gear store.

At the gear store, we got a free run-down of our equipment from veteran PCT hikers. I already knew my pack and tent were ‘too heavy’, but decided to hear out the advice. It was a great decision. Mike was blunt and to the point, making me question all gear. I ended up switching my overly large Gregory Baltoro for a Hyperlite Southwest – a lightweight pack weighing 2kg lighter. I also removed many dry bags, a pair of shorts, a bottle, and some other small items. It felt good to have a lighter pack – I’d been eyeing this pack for some time in my gear research.

We spent so much time there that we ended up camping in the nearby ‘closed’ campsite. We ended up camping with Matt, Jen, Leia (all that started with me) and a girl I just met called Crunchy (trail name).

A ranger drove past, and we got worried he would kick us out. Our conversation went like this:

Him: “Y’all campen here tonight?”

Us: “….Ummm yeah”

Him: “OK, y’all can light a fire if ya want” *drives off*

“Well, that went better than we expected”, we laughed.

Distance hiked: 9.5 miles (15.29 km)

Total PCT hiked: 41.5 miles (66.79 km)

Next Post:

Part 3 ‘A First Time for Many Things’

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