Missing The Trail Already

So i've come home for a little while. But I want to be back out on the trail already. I miss it. i miss sleeping out underneath the night sky, i miss just being able to take my time everyday and see the world from above. I miss the freedom of being able to go where ever and do whatever i want. I'm gonna head back out to the trail as soon as i can. i love being at home and seeing my family but so bad i just want to head back out onto the trail. meeting new people learning about them, then there's the people who help you out so much on the trail even if their not hikers themselves (its called trail magic) I want to be back out there so bad. can't wait to head back!!!

Trail Magic

so we are at mile 111. i'm tired , my ankles hurt and my hiking parnter is sick. so far, i've wanted to quit seveal times, but people we've met have really brightened our spirits. they're constantly telling us about trail angels who help out along the trail and the people they meet and the things they do for the PCT hikers. I've successfully hitchhiked about 12 miles into a town. I lost my camp towl, and put a hole in my left sock liner. I've been able to drop a few pounds from my pack so its a little easier and i'm starting to find my groove. everytime i get off the trail for a few days i'm always wanting to get back on. but after like 12-16 miles of up and down hills and being on thousand foot ridges, i'm exhausted and just want to rest. Did i mention i was afraid of heights??? Who's plan was it to do this trail anyways? there have been moments that have made it worth while. Like meeting all the friendly people and those who help out and then coming up to the crest of a mountain or a hill and just looking at the valley floor below or the mountains in the distance. then yesterday, going through the hills and meeting the section a trail manager, and going through the poppy flower fields and Eagle rock. it was great. it makes it worth it sometimes. the section manager gave us a beer three miles before warner springs and it was in the 80's so that was a very bad idea. I was sweating so bad and felt dehydrated. but it was a cold beer he brought in on horse back and it did hit the spot for a second was i had been drinking warm water that we filtered and boiled that morning to make safe to drink. it hadn't cooled yet so it was still pretty warm and it was a hot day. stuck my fingers with a cactus, hurt like hell, but when your hiking through the desert thats bound to happen. people have left water caches to help the hikers which has been great. we're just trying to beat the rush of like 350 people who are gonna start April 25th at the Annual Day Zero Kick Off. if we stay ahead of them then there'll still be plenty of water and supplies along the way and we're not scrounging around for table scraps. the Annual Day Zero Kick Off or ADZKO is the official start of the PCT hiking season. plus we get to see all the wild flowers growing before they wither and die in the sun and we beat the heat in the desert. why people wait so long to start, i have no idea. But if it wasn't for trail angels and trail magic, this trip would be so hard! Thank God For Them!!

Die Old Habits, DIE!!!

So i met someone on the trail. she was hiking alone and so was i so we decided to hike together. Man its get lonely out there!! Anyways, i'm in Long Beach right now cause she got sick, so we hiked to the nearest major road and her mom came and picked us up to rest for a couple of days. I need to rethink my pack weight and some of the things i am carrying. She's gonna do the same. her family has been real nice and their great people. another hiker let us know that a little ways ahead theres snow on the trail and in the mountains so hopefully thats all melted by the time we get up there so we aren't forced to back track or hold up somewhere and wait it out. its been great so far. She;s really brightened my spirits and kept me going. There was a few times when i wanted to give up cause i got lonely and started thinking about the family and everyone. I would ask myself what i was doing there and why was i doing it. a few other hikers are on the trail and are trying to rush it to make it home. I think i'll be alright as long as i hike with someone who can hold a conversation as well as she does. It also turns out that there isn't as much distance between points as i thought there was gonna be, not yet at least, so i just gotta keep thinking about making it to the next point. A coyote came into our camp site the other night, or a least came close to it. Probably smelled our food, but didn't bother us. I think we're gonna try to hit up REI today to try to exchange some gear. Also need to rethink what food i want to carry cause noodles just ain't cutting it. Met a really cool guy from Montana, trail name "Hungry Montana", he gave me an idea about salami as a meal in which i dont have to cook when i'm tired. I don't have any blisters yet which is good, Megan (girl I'm hiking with) has given me so many ideas about how to hike and what i need and dont need and what to do when i rest. I'm just so used to the structured hikes of the Marines, old habits die hard i guess.

And The Band Goes Marching On....

In the morning i head back to the trail where i left off. I was gonna redo the portion that i had already done to start with the people from trail fest, but that is going on in Oregon this year so i won't be able to attend that. but on the brighter side, i got to see my friend graduate USMC boot camp! Which was great because none of his family went to go see him. I was there at the beginning of his career as a Marine. He was really excited to see me and i guess i made him feel better. My cousin rick gave us a ride to the airport then went back to work. i stayed with Da Kidd (aka PVT. Garcia, J.) until he had to go to his gate to board his plane. I bought him a 2nd Battalion coin, which was his battatlion, and bought him lunch at the airport. I hadn't been to a Marine Corps Graduation since my own 8 years ago. It was great, saw a whole bunch of other Marine, parents crying in pride, the Marine Corps Band, and a staff sgt get a Navy Achievement Medal (NAM). Hopefully i'll be up in the Camp Pendleton area by the time Da Kidd gets to SOI so i can maybe go party with him one weekend. I also thought since I'm already in california i can talk to some of my brothers from the Marines and we can have a reunion since we didn't have one last year. But that might be a ways off from now. Anyways, tomorrow i begin the trail again and head north, placing one foot in front of the other for miles and days at a time. Wish Me luck!!!

Restarting the Trail

Once again, in the spirit of the American, I head west. Heading back to california in the morning to re-start the trail. The only thing different this time is that i will not come home unless its an emergency. if i lose my phone, camera, or any other unnessecary item then i won't stop. I'll just keep going until i can get to a major city to replace it. I got the numbers of some of my friends in cali so i can get ahold of them when i get their areas. I'm excited again, but this time i'm a little more knowledgable about the trail, and how i should do things. I dropped some wieght from my pack, got another water botter that holds half a gallon of water, and made more space in my pack. so i should have a lighter better pack to hike with. Can't wait to once again see the sunset and sunrise over the mountains and lakes. I'll feel the chill of the morning air and hear the crisp sound of frost underfoot. hopefully everything goes well and i make it pretty far until my brother picks me up somewhere in northern California or Oregon. Wish me luck, again...