We have been spoiled brats this week and have LOVED every second of it. May 17th we hiked into Big Bear Lake, passing trail magic that we didn't even need to lift our already high spirits...a couch and cooler filled with carrots, bananas, oranges, fig newtons, and Shasta tropical punch! Did I say a couch?! Couch on a mountain! We saw two hikers on the trail who offered us a ride into town, so we didn't even have to take the time to hitch. Then as we were waiting on the two day hikers to make it down the mountain, a man on a motorcycle stopped to talk to us about our adventure. Tim said he wanted to live vicariously through us and, although we tried to turn him down, he generously gave us $20 to "party it up in Big Bear. " Tim, if you ever read this, these shots go out to you. THANK YOU.
While in Big Bear Lake, we stayed at a hostel. It was a great place to not walk with other hikers. We stayed in a room with Bryce and Hannah and hung out and had dinner with the large group we had been leapfrogging with on the trail. For dinner, we went to a local Mexican restaurant where Ryan did the local Grande Burrito Challenge. The massive burrito was 18 inches long (about the size of two Chipotle burritos). He ate it all! Unfortunately, it is not an official challenge with a reward offered by the restaurant, but just a challenge many hikers attempt. Because the restaurant didn't offer a free beer for finishing, Patrick and Bryce both bought him a beer. As if the burrito didn't make him want to explode, the two beers pushed him over the edge. He was glued to the couch the rest of the night, belly distended.
On our zero day in Big Bear, we cooked free pancakes at the hostel, went bar hopping, stole cold abandoned fries from a nearby table, watched The Great Gatsby, and ate Saucy Mamma's Pizza for dinner.
The following morning, we slackpacked, which means that we left our gear in town and only carried water and the days worth of food, for 12 miles before Kristi's dad dropped our packs off and stole her away from us for the rest of the trip. Sad face. We cried terribly and then hiked another 12 miles. Kristi left, so someone had to replace her hiker legs. Lindsay took the job as she was running away from her sadness. That girl became the energizer bunny.
However, Kristi must have been our bad omen because the next three days only got better. May 20th, the day after Kristi left, we hiked about 10 miles to a waterfall and swimming hole where we could jump off of rocks into the icy cold water to escape the day's heat. We met John, a section hiker, and Kelso, a fellow thru-hiker, who we would hike with for the next couple days. John was a great conversationalist who kept our brains occupied with interesting stories of his adventures and what was to come in the Sierras. He even plans to meet us on the John Muir Trail to hike with us this June. Side note: whereas most hikers wake up with first light and walk, Kelso prefers to sleep until 10am and run down mountains with a forty pound pack in his underwear. Picture that. Kelso also lives up to his trail name; he is sponsored by a local dispensary to talk up the thousand dollars of free weed he got. This is obvious in the fact that he hiked back three miles to search for his "lost" iPod that was strapped to his shoulder strap the entire time. Anyway, we hiked with John another 9 miles to Deep Creek Hot Springs. The hot springs were a great reward for our overworked muscles and provided plenty of eye candy as the springs attract the nudist community. The next morning, we woke up and had a morning soak in the steaming water. We flew through the first eight miles with John and Amigo until we came across a van parked at a road crossing. We were greeted by Marlene's gorgeous smile and outstretched arms, which just happened to be filled with orange and root beer floats! The only thing that unglued us from her lawn chairs was John's promise that he would have his buddy meet us at Silverwood Lake with pizza and beer. Word spreads fast on the trail. John's trail magic lit a fire in not only us but also in Pan, Soup Nazi, Cherub, Nolene, Two Hats, Band Leader, Drop Bizkuit, Rainmaker, Larry, Amigo, and Kelso. Our camp site for the night was jam packed with smelly, full-bellied hikers. The next day we felt like we were cheating doing just 13 miles to the McDonalds. We have never been happier to participate in corporate America because of you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Kelso's Aunt, girlfriend, and John shuttled our group of hikers to his house in San Berardino for a cookout, showers, and laundry. Fresh green food...num nums! We drank and played Mario Cart!
The next morning, we left Kelso's with Simba, Drama Queen, and Maton. 2 miles in, we came across a rock museum that was the artists', Drop Bizkuit, Rainmaker, and Band Leader, depiction of natural human sexual expression. For instance, a pile of rocks was labeled "orgy" and a rock in front of a piece of glass was labeled "sex in mirror." We crossed the San Andreas Fault Line. The rock formations were interesting. The rest of the hike was completely uphill. We ran into two candy shop ladies who gave us handfuls of caramels. Halfway up the mountain, we were forced to take a road detour to avoid impassable poodle dog bush. On the road, we crossed paths with Dip and Rebecca, who created and maintain the Your Never Gonna Make It Secret Water Cache. They gave us hope that there was an end to the steep climb. We spent some time at the water cache sitting in comfy camp chairs before moonlight hiking to Mt Baldy Trail Spur to camp for the night. We hiked 9 more miles to the highway crossing into Wrightwood, where we were picked up by Arnie, a local forest service volunteer. We picked up our resupply and stayed at a Methodist Church Camp that offered free showers and bunk beds to PCT hikers. We ate a huge home style meal and crashed for the night.
We decided to slackpack the next 20 miles up Mt Baden-Powell. After 4 miles and 40 switchbacks, Lindsay did not want climb 1/10 of a mile more off trail to the summit where the view wouldn't be any better. Simba said that not summiting would be an atrocity. He physically stripped her of her pack and forced her the rest of the way up the mountain. She still insists it was not worth it. Ryan reluctantly agrees, saying that the view from Mt San Jacinto was much better. At the end of the day, we hitched 25 miles back into Wrightwood to get our gear, shower, and spend one more night in the Methodist Church Camp. Only 3 more days until Aqua Dulce!
- Ry and Lindsay.
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