Idywilld- Big Bear

If I had to name some motifs from my hike so far, they would start with “HOW did I break THAT?” and “holy cow, this WIIINDD”. 

A mouse ate part of my tent and the wind broke my umbrella after turning it inside out and almost swiftly lifting me off the mountain like Mary Poppins and I sheared one of my tent corner’s paracord on a rock and I broke my pack’s belt buckle. Whatever, I have duct tape. 

The wind, though. My new least favorite type of incliment weather. It has turned my sun umbrella inside out too many times to count, and whips sand into my mouth even when I sleep. Woo! This section even brought us about 4 inches of unexpected snow (unexpected to me, the one who didn’t know about the incoming weather until a sweet hiker named Big Owl knocked on all of our tents and said that there was a 75% chance of snow this coming night and that we’d have temps dipping below 25*, yikes). I woke up to my tent sinking in from the snow, and flakes brushing in on my face from the wind. We had to trek through the falling snow aup through the San Gorgonio mountains- much harder to keep track of the trail but much more rewarding! We were able to find respite in a little hiker cabin on our trek that next morning for a coffee break and rewarming session. 

My FAVORITE part of this section was that it took me through towns that I have been many times before, but under such different pretense. I walked there! I got to stop in Palm Desert at my parents house and host a couple of my hiker friends for showers, laundry and a calorically dense taco night and pint per person ice cream party. Four days later after a hot and windy climb through the desert and the snow storm, I find myself in Big Bear for another night of rest and chores. So cool to be in these places and know my way around and get to share that with all of my new hiker friends. 

Im finding that the trail life is finally settling in. I feel like I’ve got a routine in terms of coming and going from towns- what I have to get clean, when to time the laundromat, grocery store and post office runs, and what kind of food will make me feel fueled for the next section. Even more so, my camping routine is smoothing out nicely. My friend Lucas says, “this is more of a walking trip than a camping trip”, and he couldn’t be more right. I’ve now got a knack for how many miles I can and should go in a day, and when I like doing them. I know what it feels like when I didn’t drink enough electrolytes the day before, or didn’t get enough calories in. My sleep is generally dictated by the wind speeds or temperatures- this section being a bit rougher in those categories.

I did, however, cowboy camp for my first time on the trail! Meaning I’m a lazy lobster and found a camping spot that was out of the wind and on such forgiving terrain that I didn’t have to put up my tent and just slept under the stars instead. It was FABULOUS- we found a little creek called Mission Creek just past the I-10 out of Palm Desert and slept next to it, listening to the frogs ribbetting all night. 10/10 first cowboy experience. 

Big Bear was the first town stop that I didn’t feel rushed for time to do chores or get in relaxation time. We had planned to hitch from the junction of the trail and I-18, but before we could even get to the road a day hiker came up to us and asked if we needed a ride into town- he had hiked the trail in 2014 and was just finishing a short morning hike and figured he’d take some trail people into town on his way home. He dropped us off mid Saturday morning and we were so grateful for the speedy experience so that we could have extra sun time to dry all of our frozen shoes and socks and wet tents from the snowstorm. We went to a breakfast joint and just asked for the biggest breakfast plates they had. I really like ordering that way, I have to get the calories in so I might as well be efficient about it! Their menu said “generous” portions, which was true, and I still could have used more. 

I did my laundry for the first time in a laundromat (it’s taken me 26 years to live without a washer and dryer, I’m realizing now), and had a little guitar entertainment while waiting for the clothes to get clean and dry. Only in hiker world will you have a group of dirty hikers happily making up laundry songs to the music of a light weight carbon fiber guitar in a busy laundromat. I don’t hate it.

We’re almost halfway through the desert section, which is the “warm up” for the Sierra. Today marks 20 days of being on trail, and I’m feeling extra grateful for the friends I have made made in this short period of time. It only take a few miles of chat to make a new best buddy out here. Also feeling extra grateful to my friends and fam for being such a fabulous support system and making me feel like whatever I need is just a call away. Thanks team! 

My pack is heavy with 6 liters of water and 6 days worth of food for our longest carry yet- 24 extra pounds, YIKES. This section is supposedly tame, until we climb out of El Cajon into the eastern LA area. Hopefully that counteracts the weight I’m carrying. I’m excited to see what this section has in store!

Thanks again for reading! Hopefully you’re able to follow my stream of consciousness exhausted blabbering enough to get a hold on what’s happening out here. Cheers!