Day 46 Miles 623.5 – 643.75 May 10, 2017

Figure 8:

This morning we were on trail by 7 which was good cause today was just as hot as yesterday, but with far less clouds. We started going straight up the mountain immediately and it was beautiful. Both yesterday and today we have had wide views of the Mojave. This part of the trail has a lot of loose sand that makes every step take more effort. It reminds me of when we hiked the Lost Coast trail in Shelter Cove, CA.

Throwback photo – The Lost Coast Trail

That trail goes all along the ocean and you are navigating your steps on a black sand beach, much of which is loose sand. Those are some of the best 3 days of my life spent listening to the constant pounding of the ocean and the scenery was unbelievable. Our goal this morning was a water cache we were sincerely hoping was in 7 miles and our prayers came true! What we came upon was a sight that makes our little hiker hearts happy. There was tons of water and snacks! Oh, the snacks. I got there first and when I saw Daddie Gizmo come around I yelled, “There is food!.” He was thrilled. This meant we could eat a good snack before lunch and not be rationing our food before getting to town. Phew!!! The cache had charging packs for phones, duct tape, pop tarts, Nutella, granola bars, peanut butter, aspirin and more. We ate, refilled H2O, charged our phones and left $5 in the donation box. What a treat!! Feeling refreshed and refueled we headed out for another big climb – 1800ft up over 3.5 miles and then came down the mountain another 2.5 miles before having our siesta.

A little rest in the shade after the 3.5 miles up

Climbing this mountain and loving it 💞

We found some shade and made velveeta shells and cheese for lunch. After last nights terrible dinner this was so good. We both agreed we will be bringing this on trail again. It’s really easy to make and anything cheesy is always good on trail :). I took a nap for over an hour after that while Daddie Gizmo rested but never actually fell asleep. We also saw our first thru hiker on a horse! I was so excited. This woman said her husband meets her some nights and she camps others. Just a woman and her horse enjoying the great outdoors. After a 4+ hour siesta we got back on trail feeling incredibely refreshed. No surprise that we were heading to the next water source in 7 miles. This put us at another 20 mile day. Not too shabby. Since we left after 6, the weather was perfect. We saw a really gorgeous sunset and watched the rise of the full moon. Fortunately we had the peanut butter and Nutella from the cache earlier so we didn’t have to cook dinner that late. Instead we had the dips with pretzels we already had and BOOM, a meal. Throw in some beef jerky and a fruit bar and you have a feast! It’s 10pm and Daddie Gizmo just told me he likes nights before we go into town because we stay up later and we use all the battery on our phones and juicepacks. It’s the little things. I’m at a really good spot in my book so that is my next move tonight 😉