Hikey Mike

Day 31 – Zero in Wrightwood

Waking up inside is always a nice surprise after getting used to camping, and it was made even better this morning by the fact that one of the people staying with us had been walking the trail with their service dog, who I spent the first 30 minutes of the day petting before heading into town

Wrightwood is a beautiful mountain town, full of hikers in the summer and skiers in the winter. Normally quiet, we were surprised to find almost every home in town having a garage sale as well as a larger market in the centre of town. Apparently an annual event in the town with so many people visiting for Memorial Day, as soon as breakfast was devoured, we got to shopping.

Thruhikers aren’t great shoppers, because we will only carry things that are as light as possible or that can be eaten or drunk, but exploring all the homes in town was a fun morning activity and a competition quickly started of who can find the most ridiculous outfit without letting the owners realise we were judging their old clothes.

This fashion show was however thirsty work, and by midday it was quickly agreed it was time for beer, heading to the local brewery for a few too many beers and lunch before heading over to the Airbnb of the group we’d met a few days earlier to watch films and join for dinner. There ended up being 13 of us eating together, which was a nice change from the quieter few days on trail and we all agreed to do the next section together. We got to bed early, with a big day ahead of us tomorrow

Day 32 – 15 miles

Today was dominated by Mt Baden Powell, at 9,400ft being not only one of the higher peaks in the desert section of the PCT, but also my first chance to summit one of the major mountains after my elevation issues up San Jacinto.

While lower than San Jacinto, the climb is notoriously brutal with 3,000ft gained over a continuous 4 mile stretch of purely uphill, only made worse by the afternoon sun. I broke the climb into chunks, with short rests at the end of each switchback (with nearly 50 of them, this meant a lot of rests) and then food and water breaks after each 1000ft of climbing.

It took over 2 hours, but eventually I made it to the summit, where the whole group had decided to stop for lunch and celebrate every person for making it to the top

This summit also brought about another important landmark, receiving my trail name.

I’m not sure how trail names started, but they’re now an important part of trail life, with people being named for events on trail; largely for stupid things people have done; but once given a name then that is all you’re known by. There are many people I have met out here who I have known for weeks now and have no idea what their actual name is.

Every name has its own background, but being able to associate each name to a story makes remembering the names of the hundreds of people you meet on trail much easier.

Some people started the trail with trail names from previous thruhikes, such as Trail Jesus aka TJ, who with long brown hair and bushy beard helped a retired minister at the top of a mountain on the Appalachian Trail.

Others got their name early days on the PCT, like Packrat who we are 80% sure accidentally carried a small mouse in his food bag his second day on trail; or Maghee who rather than the usual rehydrated meals, has brought a small frying pan and a whole pot of Ghee to cook his dinners with.

Slowly throughout the trail more and more people will get their names; I have spent time hiking with Bonk, Chinchilla, Mash, Skyrim, No Plan, Eyebrow, Lorax, Hazy, Socks, Snake Farm and countless others who all have their own unique stories on how they got their names.

And so we get to me; summiting Mt Baden Powell after 2 hours of hard climbing, breathless and ready to lie down, and as everyone starts cheering me on a large dust devil whirlwind suddenly forms in front of me the second I summit and welcomed me to the top. I assumed it was caused by me panting so hard to catch my breath, but of course it was instantly decided that this was a momentous enough occasion to be named and after a short deliberation, I was finally christened with Twister.

I’m writing this 10 days later, and since that point I have not been called Michael by a single person I have hiked with, and have introduced myself as Twister to every new person. The change is sudden but expected on the PCT, with it now feeling as casual to react to Twister as hearing my own name. One of the many quirks of trail life.

Day 33 – 18 miles

We all camped at the same campground the night before, with the perk of entering the Angeles National Forest being organised campgrounds were more frequent, containing luxuries such as benches and pit toilets (which I can only compare to a festival toilet, a porta-potty with a giant pit below)

After a short stretch, it became decision time. Part of the day would be required to be walking along a closed off highway due to a trail closure to protect an endangered species of frog, I’m still not really sure why. However there was an option to get on the road slightly earlier and skip a 1000ft climb on a notoriously tricky and damaged section of trail. I made my mind up pretty quickly, a morning of road walking!

The 8 mile stretch can be pretty brutal on the feet, with tarmac walking for the first time in over a month, however it was a section I ended up really enjoying, I spent my first hour alone and powering along the road, including a lovely stretch through a tunnel where I could really belt out my daily playlist thanks to the echo.

After an hour and a short break, the others caught up and a group of 8 of us walked on until lunch. The trail is usually so thin that any conversation requires walking in a single file lone, so the road walk provided another benefit of being able to walk next to each other and talk like normal people. Without having to focus on the route or where you were stepping, we ended up having more fun than should normally be had walking on tarmac for 8 miles in the sun

After lunch, we were back on trail for what ended up being a pretty easy afternoon walk. Up above 7000ft, my body was definitely getting used to the higher elevation and the shorter climbs were becoming much more manageable. Finding our next campsite, we settled down for the evening, slightly surprised to see a single cloud in the sky at the same altitude as us. At the time it was a fun image, but turned out to be an early warning for the next day.

Day 34 – 21 miles

Waking up, the temperature had dropped considerably overnight, which was a relief after the heat of the prior few days. The morning started well, however after quickly gaining altitude in the first few hours, the clouds quickly went from just above us to completely covering the path, creating a very cold, damp environment

After struggling in the sun just 24 hours ago, I spent the whole day in my jacket and with very limited views of the mountains around us due to the clouds which continued all day.

After a group stop for lunch, we all agreed to do a further 10 miles, but slowly the wind began to increase and made hiking cold and difficult so I made the decision to stop early and protect from the conditions. Pitching my tent in 30mph winds and wet from the clouds was a long and frustrating experience, but I eventually managed to dive into my tent and close off to the outside storm by 7pm.

Slowly falling asleep, I was startled by a voice outside shouting ‘does anyone want a brownie?’. Thinking I was dreaming, I slowly poked my head out the tent to see a trail runner that was out on a jog carrying a backpack full of brownies, after a quick chat he revealed he runs this route once a week and always brings out treats for hikers. I took 3 brownies off him, wished him luck on the rest of his run and then buried myself back in my tent for an early night.

Day 35 – 21 miles

Expecting the tent to blow down at any stage during the night, I was pleasantly surprised to wake up warm and dry in the morning, but this did make the process of packing up and getting out of bed very slow knowing I would be going out into the cold.

The morning was pretty straightforward, although the area had suffered from a lot of blown down trees which had damaged the path and in some places not been fully cleared, creating a slight obstacle course at times. Turns out clambering over a cold, wet tree is not a glamorous activity

By the afternoon, I had reached an RV park that is popular for having a store and indoor seating in a very exposed section. Thrilled to find a cold drink, I picked up two sodas only for the owner to ask for $12. After asking them to repeat the price twice, I returned a drink and begrudgingly paid $6 for a small drink while staring angrily at the owner. But as I’ve now learnt, the trail provides. Five minutes after leaving the store, I bumped into two day hikers who after a quick chat asked if I wanted a bottle of coca-cola that they’d packed for the walk but never drunk. These things always work out.

Day 36 – 8 miles

The next morning was a quick walk into Aqua Dulce where I’d be meeting Jean, my grandad’s cousin, and spending the night with her and her family.

Surprisingly the mornings walk actually provided some brand new terrain. After walking through a long dark tunnel under the highway (which due to the echo of my footsteps, convinced me someone was walking right behind me the whole way), I emerged into Vasquez Rocks Park, filled with large jagged rocks making the area feel other-worldly. The park has been used as a filming location for many films and shows, including Star Trek and Planet of the Apes, but I was just appreciative for the interesting change of scenery

Leaving the park, I entered Agua Dulce, a small town but one of the few you walk directly through on the trail. After time for breakfast and a quick resupply, Jean arrived to take me to their home in Santa Clarita.

The day with Jean and her family was a lovely break from the last few days of walking, with the full afternoon and evening spent sharing stories about Birmingham, travelling and my time on the trail so far. It was a real pleasure to meet a brand new side of the family and to see how many similarities there were with our side of the family despite over 4 decades living on different continents. After eating for most of the day, I went off for an early night to make the most of a long sleep in a bed before the walking started again tomorrow morning