PCT day 120 – All of the weather
Despite it being so cold last night it was warm in the tent, and the sun came up and shone on us. I am really not that in to getting up in the mornings. I feel absolutely exhausted. Like my body is being weighed down with lead. I hear Oreo deflate her mattress and cry noooooo. It's been my signal for the last few days that I can't put off getting up anymore. I pack away and use the little drop toilet that has been conveniently placed in the forest!
One Of Us came by and we spoke to him about getting to a resort – Olallie Lake – in 9.5miles. It promises soda. I'm going.
It looked smokey out in the distance and quite autumnal on the trail.
I made good time and got to the resort in three hours. I went straight to the store and got 2 sodas and a can of Pringles. I sat on a bench overlooking the lake and waited for the others to come in.
Oreo arrived and One Of Us and Courage (a guy from Japan) and Stummy and Occupy got dropped of by their friend after having taken a zero.
One Of Us and Stummy...
After an hour it was definitely time to get a move on. I was walking along and a southbounder shouted 'Puff Puff!' And high fived me. I had no idea who it was...it was Chronicler who I last saw when we were escaping the storm by hitching into Palmdale, many many miles ago!
I continued on to the rumbles of thunder. Then as the sky got blacker it started to rain. And the lightening started. Time for the rain coat.
It was raining but not too bad and I continued walking. Then came the hail. I found cover under a tree. It only lasted a few minutes. The rain eased and I carried on. I was just starting to get hot and sweaty in my rain jacket and as I stopped to take it off it started raining again. Of course it did.
I walked through a large burn area and the thunder and lightening intensified. It felt like it was right in front of me.
I hurried into the cover of the trees and it was just in time as the rain came down hard. I sheltered the best I could under a tree and then the hail came again. It lasted a lot longer this time. My tree wasn't holding up so well and the hail was getting through. It lasted about 20 minutes and I was absolutely soaked and freezing cold.
I had 6.5 miles left to the water and camp spot. It was all downhill so I jogged. Mainly to try and get warm but also so I got there as quick as I could.
The running was a mistake. With a mile left I had a pain on the top of my ankle. The start of a shin splint? I got there at 7pm. 29 miles in 10 hours of walking – that's pretty good! There were some people with horses at the camp spot and a couple of other guys there when I arrived. I pitched my tent as fast as I could in the rain and threw myself inside. Oreo arrived about half an hour later. I was still just sat in my tent. I had done nothing apart from try to dry the inside of my tent. The horse guys – Harold and Charles – offered us some food, chicken enchilada filling with sweetcorn. It was so good!
I sat in my tent for an hour just trying to be warm and dry. Then I eventually set up all my stuff. I'm not keen on camping in the rain. I was desperate for a wee but I didn't want to go outside. I heard something hitting the outside of my tent, I shone my torch and there was a frog jumping around in the vestibule. I hate frogs. They are too jumpy. I turned off the torch and hoped it would go away.
Hopefully it will have stopped raining by the morning.