Days 103
Start: White Ridge
Finish: Scott Mountain
Daily Mileage: 32.3
PCT Mile: 1562.6
Most of the day today was following a ridge. First it climbed up which was hard to even notice, and then it endlessly wound in and out of valleys, keeping about the same level. There were many lakes just far enough below to avoid a quick side trip. It heated up quickly, and it would have been nice to jump in a lake.
One nice addition compared to yesterday was water sources at least every 4-5 miles. I filled up at each, and drank a ton of water today, probably a couple gallons. The day got pretty warm, especially on some exposed stretches of trail, and I had to keep guzzling water to keep up with my sweat. It definitely didn’t get to the 110 forecast in the valleys since we were at elevation, but it was definitely at least 90.
After lunch, it was that much hotter. A couple other hikers we had been leapfrogging with were looking at taking a siesta, but I hadn’t done that yet this trip. The temperature didn’t seem hot enough to stop all hiking. Plus we wanted to get around the Shelly Fire ahead as quickly as possible before it or the closed area got any larger.
We were able to see the smoke plume from the fire later in the day, reaching high into the sky. It looked plenty manageable for us to continue on our path. We will take out a few miles from the fire.
Towards the end of the day, both Honeybun and I were getting tired. Neither of us had slept well, and the hot weather and miles were starting to get to us. However, since the trail was mainly flat and downhill, it was manageable.
There was no realistic campsite with water, so we carried for the last 4 miles, including a climb at the very end of the day. Despite the late hour and miles already done, we were still able to fly up the climb.
We ended up doing 32 miles today. We hike 11-12 hours daily, including breaks, and today 32 miles fit into that. The going was relatively easy, and we probably only stopped for an hour total which works out to a constant 3mph for the entire day. Not bad for one of the hottest days of the year. Once again, we should get to town a day sooner than planned, but it will be good to do that and get the first fire behind us.
