The last couple nights have bee rough. Yes we were in a Best Western... But I was in the room with Mr. Clean, who snores quite loud. I ended up on the floor next to the air conditioner (to drown out the sound). I was up early to eat a nice large breakfast before packing the rest of my stuff up. One last shower and a few phone calls was on my todo list.
While waiting for the bus back to the trail, a car pulled over and asked if ST and I wanted a ride. We gratefully accepted.
After a short walk along highway 58, up up up was the next 8 miles. With 7.6 days of food and 4 liters of water... This was a major challenge. The miles passed by much faster than anticipated, which made weight a bit more bearable.
A few thunderstorms started toward the trail after lunch. Miraculously, the path of the trail seemed to dodge all of the storms at the right time. It was great hearing some thunder. I miss the T-Storms in Colorado this time of year.
There were a ton of windmills in this area. I was happy the wind was manageable compared to a couple days ago.
At the water source (mile 17 for the day), a bunch of hikers were hanging out, eating dinner and setting up some tents. I relaxed a bit, are dinner and filtered water. I wasn't very motivated to walk anymore (my feet were hurting from carrying all the weight.
Around 7:30 I was back moving. My game plan was to hike around 3 more miles... Which would put me at 20 miles for the day. I came close. The sunset was spectacular. Maybe the second best of the trail so far.
Setup camp and relaxed. Suggested to Anna that her trail name should be 'Back Track', because she often takes a wrong turn and has to back track to the PCT. She liked it.