To PCT mile 1645.4 (stats here).
I slept very well. The grass under the bugnet was soft and the previous night at the hostel yard was too short, making me tired. I got up 5:30am and moving 6:15am. I felt no urge to go fast so I had a relaxed pace. I kind of waited the others to catch up with me, especially as there had been talk to get to yet another lake midday. It would be nice to have a swim there with others, this time with no rush.
I had not checked the elevation profile for the day. It was a surprise how much ascend there was, especially as the previous day there was already plenty. I kept my usual breaks after 2 and 4 hours, but then stopped at Paradise Lake after 5 hours. The lake was small and shallow and had a muddy bottom. Nevertheless, it was nice to dip in as the day was getting hot. After I got up from the lake, Bandit appeared. He did not want to swim but pushed on.
After the swim the day was uneventfull. There was quite a lot of going up. My left ankle started to trouble me, and there were feelings of blisters on the left heel. So, the new shoes seem to start causing problems immediately. On my 8 hour break, I stumbled into Bandit, who was reading a book on in his phone. There was also a group of elder hikers, that I socialised with. A deer was circling around the area, seemingly begging us to give some food. We did not. Somebody sometimes apparently has.
The rest of the day was steep downhill. It was not easy going, as there were a lot of bush and my left foot started to hurt even more. First I was thinking about catching up with Bandit but then I just needed to concentrate on cope with the pain. My left calf joined the pain party. There was a long section of burned area that did not contain any water or suitable camping spots, so I was forced to continue further than I would have liked. After getting to a bridge that went over a creek, I was disappointed to notice that the only suitable camping spot was already taken. Continuing 2 miles further revealed me a good spot. It was getting dark but the spot was quite perfect. I was able to cool down my feet in the creek, and had the nice spot just for myself. But oh man, it was over 11pm again before my head hit the pillow.
I slept very well. The grass under the bugnet was soft and the previous night at the hostel yard was too short, making me tired. I got up 5:30am and moving 6:15am. I felt no urge to go fast so I had a relaxed pace. I kind of waited the others to catch up with me, especially as there had been talk to get to yet another lake midday. It would be nice to have a swim there with others, this time with no rush.
 |
| At the bottom of the valley. |
I had not checked the elevation profile for the day. It was a surprise how much ascend there was, especially as the previous day there was already plenty. I kept my usual breaks after 2 and 4 hours, but then stopped at Paradise Lake after 5 hours. The lake was small and shallow and had a muddy bottom. Nevertheless, it was nice to dip in as the day was getting hot. After I got up from the lake, Bandit appeared. He did not want to swim but pushed on.
After the swim the day was uneventfull. There was quite a lot of going up. My left ankle started to trouble me, and there were feelings of blisters on the left heel. So, the new shoes seem to start causing problems immediately. On my 8 hour break, I stumbled into Bandit, who was reading a book on in his phone. There was also a group of elder hikers, that I socialised with. A deer was circling around the area, seemingly begging us to give some food. We did not. Somebody sometimes apparently has.
 |
| The lake made good swimming, although a bit muddy. |
The rest of the day was steep downhill. It was not easy going, as there were a lot of bush and my left foot started to hurt even more. First I was thinking about catching up with Bandit but then I just needed to concentrate on cope with the pain. My left calf joined the pain party. There was a long section of burned area that did not contain any water or suitable camping spots, so I was forced to continue further than I would have liked. After getting to a bridge that went over a creek, I was disappointed to notice that the only suitable camping spot was already taken. Continuing 2 miles further revealed me a good spot. It was getting dark but the spot was quite perfect. I was able to cool down my feet in the creek, and had the nice spot just for myself. But oh man, it was over 11pm again before my head hit the pillow.
 |
| The trail just keeps continuing. |
Comments
Post a Comment