Mojave . that town in mars

Mojave town. what could I say?  the first thing that call my attention is the airport with many aircrafts parking in the sand.  People explain me that the use this plane as a airplane parking.

the town is in the middle of nowhere. The sensation is that you are in mars surrounded of sand and some red mountains. It is difficult to breathe as the temperature rise with all the tarmac.  It took me 2 days to do all the resuply.  I was not able to shop and go to the post office ..

I stay in motel 6 with pool. thanks good. In this area quite a lot of military activity as there are a big base close by.

I got the new lamp and the rain cover for the pack. I bounce a few clothes. The tent also. I send it 150 miles away. I am tired of carried and never set it. I checked weather forecast and is ok.  I ordered rain pants and new shoes to kennedy meadows. Those shoes are starting to falling apart very quickly in the last days.

hours before I leave there was a big explosion follow by smoke in the airport. there were no casualties and the fire was controlled.

the best was the breakfast in dennys!!!by the way the Mcdonald that show up in the guides doesn't exist any more I believe. it has been knocked down.

Nothing else to report from Mojave town. I will always remember such a  characteristic place.

crossing the mojave

The plan was simple. wake up early, 4 AM an hike as much as possible until sun rise. Enjoy sunrise with breakfast. I sat in the los angeles aqueduct and enjoy the view.

I thought that the trail were from rim to rim but in the middle it turn right. By 11 I was cooking myself and suffering. Will was putting the pace and I was suffering to follow him. the trail goes over the aqueduct that is cover. there are not much sade, in some areas some of those yhosua trees and maybe under some bushes. I saw a mojave rabbit, it is like a cat with very long ears , also a camaleon.

it surprise to see people living in RV in the desert. Finally we saw the bridge where we could hide from the sun during the pick hour. There were already 10 hikers sleeping. every half hour someone need to move as the bridge sade moves.

After a good nap show up stranger. You crazy. you just hike the Mojave in the middle of the day....looks not much affected for the sun....

You scape from the desert between the canyons and mountains. finally you get into a deep canyon where we can see a creek and a place to camp. Mojave has been a experience but was done. no doubt this is a highlight of the pct.I rode an article that maybe  the pct would be redesign to avoid go over the aqueduct and redirect it over the mountains.  Apparently authorities are not very happy having all those hikers over los angeles water. It will lose one of those classic stages, the cross of the mojave. Even if is just a corner is nice to be on the floor of the desert.

 

 

the next day was a climbing out of the desert surrounded of wind mills. This are is a huge wind farm. I knew I will have trouble finding a good place to sleep. It was getting dark. I found a kind of deep canyon with a dry river bed offering some wind protection. I also prepare a wind breaker with rocks and logs. Even with this the night wasn't very peaceful.

Road Detour

Some people is escaping this area as it is a road detour. For me, it remain me the Camino de Santiago, I don't mind to do it. I like sometimes to see the towns, to see the real deep America. It's when you can see this type of masterpieces, I think is quite Red Neck...:

Mail box

At midday I arrived when a huge group of motor bikers arrived to the town with the Harley s etc. Having lunch many people asked me about the trail. Will and Strangers show up to joint me for lunch. After We went to the store in front as we here that there was a register from PCT hikers from the 1977!!!!

We think in all the facilities that we have now....GPS , smart phones. The equipment must be less than half the weight in the time, and water reports hahahah, what about trail angels hahahah that must be really an adventure. What about if you check the register and you see a familiar... in the 70 ?? Now still is a challenge but much more accessible to everyone. 

1977 register

I hiked the last part of the day up to Hiker town with Will. We found a snake in the side of the road without any movement. Ok no Poisson one  It seems alive, very shinny . I watched enough National Geography documentary to know that was playing death...I throw small stone rocks , not move, more,  not move. I check with an stick, fuck it is death......

We continue passing ranches and mills until we arrived to Hiker Town. Everybody told me : uummm Hiker town is weird, difficult to explain . And it is true. Hiker town is a kind of donation hostel created with decorations of western films, so you sleep in the saloon or like that. The person in charge was a little bit to much for a Charity cause: Can I have my 5 dollar donation NOW for camp in my area. NOW!!!! I skip this place. I walk a few more miles and camp in the Mojave desert with Will. He did a few years ago so always is good to do this areas with someone with some experience.

hiker town

Tomorrow we cross the MOJAVE!!!!!!

Casa de la Luna

Up with the sun rise and slowly the way down. I found the called Oasis . It is a water cache in chairs and some creepy figures between the buses. I was alone, I got a lemonade but it was still 6.30 and I was getting cold there stopped there.  I walked until 12.00 and had a break , just 20 minutes from the road. I just wanted to write the blog and do the first test with the stick pick after a month. Picture below.

stick pick test.

I reached the road walk and 20 meters after a car nearly pass me over. it was Ms Anderson, so lucky!!

- do you want a ride to my house?

- Yes please.

When we arrive there there were 20 people in the garden that start clapping as welcome and roll you a beer. Heaven.

Casa de la Luna

 I went with Ms Anderson to help to resupply with drinks and water the caches. I found the hikers that were behind me. In one I found Black swam and papaya sleeping. i woke them up , they were quite surprised to see me there.

In the afternoon we had dinner, taco salad. They prepare like a buffet around a table in the garden. Ms Anderson control the service with a stick. It was good that she sent to all the hikers to wash their hands before dinner. If someone do any food contamination his ass was slap with a stick...serious.... . The evening was just chill out in the garden. I thought this place would be more crazy but people behave. I will take tomorrow off also here. a detail of this house is that when you arrive at this house you get a Hawaiian shirt. So you see groups of 10 people with Hawaiian shirt walking in town.

Tomorrow probably will leave very early. the trail is close because of a fire from last year. I have 20 miles of road Walk until Hiker town, another emblematic place of the PCT.

detour map

Around the Green Valley , mile 460

Easy start to avoid the heat. On the way up I found a couple going down , the way was carrying 2 packs because the other hikers did not fell good , look to me like food poisoning. I offered to to stay looking for the bags but they were ok. At this time Hatchi already overtook me and he was on top of the hill having breakfast.

I push down until 12.30 and found a perfect spot for a Siesta. I slept over 3 hours as did not slept much last night with the night hiking and the early start. When I reached the Andersons water cache I met Sunny. He camped half way of the way up to the next summit, I continue , I wanted to camp in the top of the mountain as regularly there are some good areas to camp in the ridges and Bingo!!! Very lucky . I set camp in the dark and prepare dinner. I heard some screams , I recognize the voice , was Microwave doing night hike . I have dinner with them and after sleep. nearly all the hikers are switching to night hike as it is the hottest part of the trail. People struggling  with the heat and you consume more water. The sun drain your energy. I am 50 % 50 %. I do sun set and dawn and I sleep during the hottest hours. I find to difficult to  full switch to night and I will miss many nice views. Dawn is the best, the best pictures the best lights!!

leaving the saufleys

after a day of pizzas and beer was time to be back on the trail.  I was worried just in case the grocery store were already closed.  Last week I was a little short of food, so this time I wanted to make sure this doesn't happen again. When I put the backpack it was already night.  6 days of food and 4 litres of water. , It was one of the heaviest days. I was glad to hike in the dark. 

The first miles go in road to exit aguadulce. When you get in the trail is when start the solo night hiking.  You start seeing sades and shadows. I found a pair of shoes in the middle of the trail.
ok, where is the body.? This is what I dont like of solo night hike. When you start to see things that don't suppose to be there. ..

I couldn't hike much with my headlamp as it is not bright enough. ..I ordered a properly one tomojave town. It would be with me in a week.

I slept in the side of the trail after just 8 miles

Agua Dulce - The saufleys

I opened an eye and I saw Ziana preparing a pack . I looked to the the other side and I looked to swam. Yep let's run before the sun rise. By 8.00 we were sweating like crazy, I thought this is going to be hot day. We stop in the tunnel under a High- way, short break, we keep going to reach the Vasquez Rocks County Park where has been recorded the Flintstones and a bunch more of movies. Many day hikers and I think we missed the opportunity to camp in a spectacular scenery. 

In Agua Dulce is what is call Hiker Heaven. It's a family with a ranch that started to host hikers years ago. This start to grow and grow and now in the busy period they can have up to 50 hikers. Everything is well organized. They offer what we really need. Laundry, power, mail service, internet and a backyard where to sleep. The atmosphere is really good. there are a fire in the middle and people all around. This is the place to rest for 1 day and start to organize everything for the Sierras. 

Hiker Heaven

The town is like a western movie, full of horses, ranches and low houses. Time to get some real food and sodas!

getting back into the desert!

I opened an eye at 5.00 and wow, super sun rise, it is nice to cowboy camping and wake up like that.

 I did alone the first miles . I just reaching back the desert. Pines changes for low bushes. Heat rise. I had 10 miles to go to the next water supply in a ranger fire station. Around 11 am I start not to fill very good. I did not sleep much not much food and not much water . I push half an hour , I arrive little tipsy. Too hot. All the hikers were there having lunch and sleeping. They told me that during the night some deers were crossing the campground I rested until afternoon and I started the hike up with black swam. He and me had problems with the knees so we go slowly . 

taking a  break during dog puddle bush detour

Some walk road. The last part was terrible climb but on the top we were rewarded with a super sun set. The way down was in the dark. Lamps on !! It was quire difficult to find the spots in the dark. I found funny when there are several hikers at night walking in the forest ....We finally found a decent place. Ziana, Back swam, Papaya, Tinman, Girly girl and me had dinner and time to sleep. Knee are hurting when we go down in genereal but they survive. I am having a lot of fun with this guys hiking those last days. Probably I will stick with them if the keep a similar pace.

Back to civilization

Everyday we are getting lower and lower and the heat going up. So I woke up around 7. The trail had plenty of this dog bush but I start to get bored of it so i start to get straight into it. Down down. At 10 am I reach a water point and also the rangers put a cache with sodas....o thanks a cold coca cola in this heat. I rest a little bit but I did not want to stay to long before the super heat. Ziana said she goes ahead , I stick with her. Too hot. During the time in Los Angeles mountains I forgot what is the desert heat. We have to keep going as there were to shade where to hide. Finally we get to the botton of a canyon with a dry river bed and some shadows. We had lunch in the middle of the bushes. Tinman an Papaya arrived in the hottest part of the day. Red and sweating. you are crazy, they keep going, they really want to reach the road where there are a properly camping with a small bar. Around 3 I started the way to the camping with Ziana and Swam. Whem we reach the bottom we had beers waiting for us and Tinman ordered some pizzas to the parking lot where we were, Sweet!!!

Break time !

After we went to the camping to hang out. We had a needed shower and we jump into the pool. Back to the desert for sure. The next 2 weeks are going to be like this. We need to switch back to early start with night hiking , siesta and late hiking to keep going. Next week also we got into the desert floor. We will cross the Mojave. That area is close for fires. There are all  over as has been 4 years of draught. There are two detour. People is getting 20 miles rides to avoid the road. The other possibility is  hike the los Angeles aqueduct , I don't know, maybe 20 miles. people said it is quite hard as no shadow and no water. I am in for Mojave night hike!!!!