Hannah the hiker

Day 16 was nice and relaxing as I zeroed in Lone Pine. It’s a nice little place with lots of history and character! I ran into lots of fellow hikers which was nice.

I relaxed most of the day and made minimal errands.

Day 17 I went to the post office to get some packages! I got my resupply from my dad, a sweater from my mom, and some gum and beef jerky and stamps from Conner! I felt pretty spoiled.

I packed everything up and made my way to the road to start hitchiking. I feel like normally hitchiking is pretty straightforward on the trail since it’s mostly off main roads. This time I got one ride to Horseshoe Meadow road, and then had to get another ride on horseshoe meadow to cottonwood campground. It didn’t take too long until a super nice woman named Yvette picked me up! She’s been on a road trip and had a pretty decked out truck perfect for camping. We drove up the huge switchbacks which scared us both. We talked a whole lot, she’s my kind of person. Very funny and has some great stories and outlooks on life. We bonded over how therapeutic nature is.

She let me charge my phone and gave me a coconut water. While I was drinking the coconut water at the campground two other NOBO PCT hikers showed up. She offered to drive them to Lone Pine. I was her first thru hiker that she could do trail magic for and she quickly met her second and third. I love meeting people like her. She told me to make sure I mention her in the book I write someday, I’ll be sure to.

I started for the trail at 2. I walked about 15 miles, and kept a good pace! There was some ups and downs and I got to camp by 7. I set up my tent, made dinner and went to bed. I never sleep great in towns so I was looking forward fo being back in my tent.

Day 17 was another good day.

I woke up early and left camp by 6:45. I had a nice morning with views of Owens Valley. Apparently on clear days you can see the road to Cerro Gordo which is an old mining town, and now a ghost town. I didn’t see it but thought that was pretty cool that’s it’s in the vicinity of the trail!

I had a long downhill to 9000 feet and was able to fill up on water in Death Canyon creek. Pretty ominous name, but the water was tasty and cool!

I had some uphill to 10,200 feet which was the high point of the day. I got up there at 11 and had lunch. This was at the 11 mile mark for my day. On the way up I heard lots of aircrafts flying by. They were super loud and close to the trail. I guess there is an airfield nearby, it was entertaining trying to spot the plane in the sky.

I had a pretty tasty lunch too! In my resupply box I put in tortillas, tuna, and seaweed for lunches. I put the tuna and seaweed into the tortilla and it was super tasty. I had some goldfish as well.

I left around 11:45 and continued on downhill to 7,800 feet. I walked through Monache meadow and eventually got to the bridge over Kern River. This was the definition of a lazy River. It was flowing nicely and the perfect temperature to soak my feet in. I stayed here for 40 minutes just enjoying the sunshine and the cool water. I got here around 3 and I had walked 18 miles at this point. Since I got there so early I figured I deserved the long break. It felt really nice to just relax.

I met a lot of northbound hikers before getting there that asked me if I was almost done with my hike. Since so many north bounders flipped to do the sierras after the snow melted I guess a lot of people just assumed I was one of them. So I just said “nope, going to Mexico” and then their response was “oh! Enjoy!”. Which somehow didn’t sound all that sincere.

Anyway, I’m excited for the rest of my hike!

I left the River around 3:45 and decided to hike 4 more miles to camp. I originally planned on only doing 20 miles but it was so light out, I felt good, and the rest was downhill. So I kept walking. I walked through Beck Meadow which was beautiful. It was warm out and I could smell the trees and plants. It was the perfect hiking weather. I also saw another wire gate which reminded me of Oregon and Northern California. I saw my first cactus. And! I saw more tiny frogs!

The wind was super light too which made for a calming white noise. I didn’t listen to any music and just listened to the chipmunks chirping and the wind in the trees. It was relaxing.

I got to camp around 5:15 and set up my tent. I took my time stretching and getting dinner ready. It felt great to get to lay down and relax so early in the night. I had some knorrs chicken rice for dinner which is just as tasty as it was last year when I ate it almost every day.

I listened to some podcasts too.

All in all it was just a super relaxing day. I kept a really great pace and didn’t feel rushed at any point. I saw a lot of northbound hikers but didn’t see anybody going my way. It has been nice to have campsites to myself and to just soak in some of the quiet nature alone the past couple days.

I went to bed around 7 since I was pretty tired after 22 miles!

Day 18 started off chilly at 30 degrees.

I had about 10 miles downhill to Kennedy Meadows. I saw two people, some bear poop, lizards, and lots of cacti.

I reached the road to Kennedy Meadows around 10:30 and then had a mile to the general store. Here I’ll do a small resupply, eat, and get back on the road to Tehachapi. I’m going to try and find a way to send my bear box home too.