Nov. 2: A Ridge and a Burn Zone by Night

I was so impressed by Ranger Springs that I returned in the morning just to get them on video. And I still managed to get packed up and hike back to the PCT before Owl and Phoenix had caught up.

My major goal for the day was to climb up to the ridge near Devils Peak, for the word was there was cell service from there. So it was an easy five miles before the climb started, a snack break to energize for it, and then a surprisingly easy mile up to the ridge. I guess I overhyped it.

So I found a shady spot trailside for lunch, then moved up to a rock in the open where the cell service was strongest to upload some blog posts so that you, dear reader, would not have an interruption in the daily posting schedule. This took about an hour, which was enough time for Owl and Phoenix to catch up just as I was finishing.

At this point I let them know that my mom had just booked a cabin at Hyatt Lake Resort for the night of the fourth, and they were welcome to stay in it if they could make it by then. It was a day earlier than they had planned, but…

I packed up and passed them, moving extremely quickly across the ridge as it spread out and then narrowed again. I was putting on the major speed because I wanted to reach the next reliable water source on trail, much further than they intended to go, and I had already sat still for well over an hour.

Because I was going so fast, I missed a hard turn the trail took and ended up following a side trail down Luther Peak for most of a mile before I stopped overlooking a pond for my afternoon snack. Luckily, I checked the map at this point and realized my mistake, so I packed up and climbed back up to the junction. Now I was really behind schedule, but I had no reason to change plans. I would just have to do a little more hiking after dark.

I passed Owl and Phoenix a few miles later, waved, and kept walking at full speed. Every seemed to have already figured out that I had missed the turn.

After dark, the trail wandered across rolling sandy flats filled with burnt out tree husks as the same big orange moon Owl had described over Crater Lake came up behind them. There were plenty of logs crossing the trail, but they were easy to step over and the trail was easy enough to find even in the dark.

It was pretty late by the time I reached Christi’s Spring, which was a thin, hard to collect trickle in some bushes below the trail. A bit of wandering among the bushes led me to the campsite, and I was finally able to go to bed, still on track with my plans.

Total distance: 22 miles

Trail progress: 19 miles