Dog Bite and I grabbed the shuttle and hit the bakery again in the morning.  Last night his mother and brother showed up to wish him happy birthday.   He seems really happy. 

 We talk a little bit about retirement.  He is was a school principal on some island off the Washington coast.   I think he misses it.   Now he splits his time between Washington and Palm Springs where his mother lives.   Like me, he is finishing up the trail.   He started in 2016 and had to get off in Oregon due to an injury.   After breakfast we split up on the walk back.   He wants to take pictures and, well, I’ve been there / done that. 

  

I hit the post office following a long ling of hikers in.  My man, McGriddle is there.   We last saw each other at Steven’s pass when he jumped in the ride that had dropped me off from town.  I finally get the McGriddle story.   Apparently back in Southern California, he ordered a McGriddle at the McDonald’s stop at hwy 15.   The place is kind of a PCTer landmark because you hit it at mile 341 when the hiker hunger is starting to come on pretty strong.   There’s a reference to the place in my 2017 entry

Day 23 – McDonald’s | Adventure Blog (baumingaround.com)

Anyway, he can’t stop raving about it, so they suggest he try to hike the next 23 miles to Wrightwood solely on a diet of McGriddles.   He buys 15 of the things and pulls it off.  He says he will never eat another one again, heh. 

Endless and QB are sorting through their boxes and will be leaving on the 3:00 shuttle with most of the others.   I somehow miss saying goodbye.   That is the way things go.  As for me, I’m staying in town for another day to eat and give my feet a break.   When I hit the trail tomorrow, I’m burning full speed for the border.   I heard Patches is over at Sehekin Valley Ranch getting fattened up.   Dog Bite, Patches and me will probably hit the trail together on the 9am bus.  

I head back to a lonely night in the PCT camp