May 15, day 46, km 731
After 8 days and 7 nights, we reached Agua Dulce (=sweet water). And we've got internet – time to update our blogs!
May 11, day 42
After yesterday's rain day at Little Jimmy campground, this morning looked considerably more cheerful. We left a bit later, in order to give our stuff a chance to dry and drink a toast to our wedding anniversary again. Today's schedule included our first detour! Due to precautionary measures, part of the trail is closed on Yellow-legged Frog Mountain. We have several options, decide to hike the 10 miles along the pass road before returning to the PCT. We don't mind the sacrifice, considering it's for conservation purposes ;-)! Late in the evening we found a great place to pitch our tent.
May 12, day 43
Sunday, Mother's Day. We're off early because we hope to cover 30 km today. After a mile, we reach Camp Glennwood, where we refill our water supplies. There's an actual letterbox at the camp, where you can mail letters without stamps. Of course we take advantage of that and sent postcards to Sandra in Luxembourg and Gabi, our blog translator in Germany. We wonder if our postcards will actually arrive! We also meet solo hiker Matt, who did the PCT in 2016, but was forced to break off in the Sierra because he'd lost too much weight. This time he's better prepared.
A mile on: Trail magic!!! in the truest sense of the word: on a parking lot near the trail, we discover a richly laden table. Mother Jenell and her son Andreas, from Los Angeles, supply hikers with a wondrous cornucopia: soft drinks, beer, fruit, sandwiches, homemade hummus, sweets, even homemade baked goods make our hearts beat faster. Another couple of hikers, Blue Jay and Mango, join us. A bit later, Matt arrives. He's about to send his mom a text message for Mother's Day – then realizes he's left his GPS along the trail during one of his breaks. Without further ado, Trail Angel Jenell drives him the few miles back to the pass, where he hikes another 3 miles before locating his GPS. An hour later, he's back at the pass, where Jenell meets him as agreed, to drive him back to the campground. We catch the happy ending just as we're heading off. Since it's lunchtime, the table is cleared and we're invited to take whatever we want. As far as food is concerned, the day is saved. Although we don't make a lot of mileage today, we feel fortified.
A mile later, on another parking lot, we meet up with three fun guys – Americans with Mexican roots – who do trail running: Ken, Tim, and Constable. Bread, bananas, and Coca Cola are put on the table – and we're invited to eat again ;-). A terrific encounter! Ken is especially enthusiastic about us, Germany, German history and architecture. He invites us along to Lancaster, but we're committed to continuing on the trail ... An hour later, we're finally on our way again – with bread and bananas in our backpack, of course! It's just past 3 pm and we've covered all of 4 km! Ultimately, we make 25 km, and that's fine. We make camp a little ways above the local fire station. Great sunset with a great view!
May 13, day 44
At the fire station we replenished our water supplies, which should last us for the next 30 km. After our lazy magic Sunday, we're determined to meet that goal. Days like this, every single kilometer counts. At the fire station we met Stefan, a mechanical engineer from Switzerland responsible for brands and patents. We discussed the Brexit, among other things. We interviewed him for half an hour; a bit later, in the woods, we did a follow-up interview for an entire hour! Late in the evening we found a campsite on the grounds of the North Fork ranger station. The ranger provides water for hikers every day.
May 14, day 45
In the morning, we meet Nadine, a graphic designer from Stuttgart, and her American husband, Russell. They met in 2015 at a waterhole along the PCT. Love at first sip! While they didn't finish the PCT at that time, they've been together ever since, married four years, and this year they're celebrating their honeymoon by thru-hiking the PCT. We're amazed to hear they started a week before us. They're slower than we are! The first ... epicures like us ... A wonderful interview ensues.
Today we'd planned to reach Agua Dulce. But once again, the best laid plans of mice and men ... After 12 km downhill, we meet Sonny, a Swede who's been living in America for ages. He's a one-man welcoming committee for hikers, waiting by his gigantic campervan in a parking lot. He wanted to escape the Swedish cold, he explains. Nadine and her husband are also already there. As is former Marine officer Victor, whose trail name is Semper Gumby. He's our first southbounder: hiking the PCT from north to south. Why? "Because everyone else does it the other way." He appears to be very free, has no fixed schedule. A true philosopher! We shoot a terrific interview with him. That's why we're making this film: because we keep meeting incredibly wonderful people!!!! "Bad people don't hike the PCT – it's too strenuous."
Well, all this rather sabotaged today's kilometer target. We stayed till evening, having a meal together. Sonny barbecued hamburgers. In fact, one should ideally take two years to hike the PCT. Instead of just racking up kilometers, this would leave time to truly savor all the places, people, and situations one encounters en route! All too often, we have to continue in order to meet the daily quota ... We attempt a compromise: hiking and discovering the country and meeting people. After dinner, we covered another 8 km, thus racking up a satisfactory 20 km. We cowboy camped in a spot overlooking Freeway 14.
May 15, day 46
The night was damp; our sleeping bags were quite wet in the morning, although it hadn't rained. Our food supplies were getting low, so overall our timing was good. The last 12 kilometers to Agua Dulce we hiked through the Vasquez Rocks, enormous rock formations. Dozens of movies were shot here (e.g., Star Trek, Planet of the Apes, Game of Thrones). When we arrived, there was even a Universal Studio team here! Immediately after arriving in Agua Dulce, we ate a delicious meal in a Mexican restaurant. Then coffees at Sweetwater Cafe across the street.
In the evening, we drove to "Hikers' Heaven," about a mile away. Amazingly, Saufley’s gigantic premises offer a real campground with a complete infrastructure. Around 40 tents were pitched in the garden. Horses, dogs, and chickens also inhabit the premises. Your laundry is taken care of. The garage was chockful of postal packages waiting to be claimed. There's a tent where you can recharge your portable devices. There were even a couple of Singer sewing machines available for taking care of repairs; next to that open-air showers and a barber station. The guesthouse offers a bathroom with shower, a fully equipped kitchen, and a living room, where a small group was riveted to the latest episode of "Game of Thrones." Everything is facilitated by volunteers. And everything is free! Here, the slogan "America, the land of opportunity" is still taken literally. In the evening, we sat around the campfire for a long time with many other people: with Stefan and ... Downhill Mike, who arrived a day before us. During the night it rained. It remains to be seen how our tent holds up this time!
Pictures