Well this morning I lounged on the front deck of the cabin for most of the morning. I’m packed and ready to go, but Gordon seems to have other problems. The new owners took over the place last week and they don’t seem to be too interested in serving hikers. Gordon told me the owner does not want him to drop/pickup hikers due to concerns about liability (whatever that means). Anyway, I have to cool my heels until the owner dude leaves at 12 o’clock.

Wasn’t all bad. The chairs on the deck are super comfortable and there’s plenty of shade. I took a long nap until Riley, Gordon’s dog, came by to wake me up and get going. Gordon ran me back to Shelter Cove where I left my battery charging. Got that packed, then he dropped me at the trail while picking up another set of hikers. I gave him a $50 for the troubles and wished him luck with the new owners. From the sound of it he’ll need it.

Back on the trail and feeling good. Today’s activities involves a couple of nice climbs from 5k to eventually 6500. Encountered a couple of older guys hauling gargatuan packs on the first climb. We chatted for a bit. They asked me how far I go in a day. I told them 20 to 25 miles. They laughed and said they planed to 30 their whole 5 day trip. Heh. Bet those packs had a couple of liters of burbon.

I was passing lake after lake on the first climb. Around 1910 is a lake called Lower Rosary which was beutiful. The trail runs right along the shore line so I stopped, had a snack and snapped a couple photos.

A couple PCT kids passed me throughout the day. We just chatted for a couple minutes and they continued bounding up the hill. Probably going to be a common feature of my hike. Most of the folks I’ve met through-hiking started in late March and now have their eyes firmly on the prize. They want to knock out the miles.

My target for today was a campsite at the peak of the second climb (mile 1921). When I got there around 7, I found Gnocchi and his kid Lucas in a tent all ready to turn in. I’d met them earlier at Shelter Cove. Gnocchi is a genetists who lives in San Bernadino county. He is an Italian from Argentina and quite the character. He did the California section of the PCT in ’18 and is trying to finish the Oregon section this year with his son. His kid says he is there to monitor his dad, then head to graduate school in the fall.

Anyway, the campsite is on the edge of a big hill. Lots of flat spots for tents surrounded by trees. Not a bad spot, just lacking in significant views. Mosquitoes are pretty bad here. I suppose tomorrow will be more of the same. I started with 4 liters today and still have 1 left after dinner. I’m still amazed at my lower water consumption. This pack makes such a huge difference. I plan to keep dialing my carries down. Saving 4 or 5 pounds of weight is worth it.