We traded the wind for the heat today and I’m not sure which was better. After dragging ourselves out of bed and packing up, we ate breakfast down at the spring. There were many more people camped there than last night, some of whom we recognized from the last few days before town. As we ate some songbirds picked through the mud next to us – looking for bugs or pockets of water maybe. Whatever it was, they didn’t seem too concerned about us. We finished eating and hit the trail quickly to beat some of the heat.
Even though our elevation profile looked easier than yesterday, the day seemed to be nothing but uphills. We passed by more windmills and through desert scrub that started to give way to juniper. Mid-morning, just as it was really starting to warm up, we entered a burn area. It must have happened fairly recently because it was pretty barren between the charred tree skeletons, but at the base of some seemingly dead trees some new oak and manzanita shoots were starting to appear. I’d be curious to know how it looks a year from now.
After 13 miles and an especially tough climb we stopped for lunch at Hamp Williams Pass, a nondescript meadow. We couldn’t keep our eyes open and our food got a little extra time to steep while we got power naps. It was hard to get back on the trail – all we wanted to do was to go back to sleep – but we had to make the miles. 6 miles and a steep climb later we reached Robin Bird spring, the next water source. We had been conserving because of the heat so the first thing we did was filter a quart for each of us and flavor it up. It was wonderful to guzzle a cold drink after sipping on bathtub-warm water all day.
After leaving the spring we hiked until dark, trying to get all the miles we could. We had been shooting for 25 but as usual we moved slowly in the heat. Luckily there were many campsites scattered throughout the pine forest we had moved into and we found a place just off the trail but well-screened by trees. Tomorrow is supposed to be even hotter – 100 degrees back in Mojave – so it will be another tough one for us. The good news is that Sunday will be cooler so we should get some relief eventually.
– Posted from the PCT
Location:Pct mile 606