Making Miles

It was 1230 in the afternoon as I hiked out. I was headed back towards the interstate to cross under and head on towards Sierra city which was just off trail and I would do a small resupply and eat. I 80 crosses the mountains there at Donner Pass: yup that Donner Pass. The infamous place where the Donner party got trapped in the snow with their wagon train and allegedly resorted to cannibalism. Now thousands of people a day pass through without giving it a thought. I walked under the interstate using a pedestrian tunnel built for the purpose and hiked on up the hill past a interstate rest area and over a small mountain. I stopped by the Peter Grubb hut. It was built in honor of Peter Grubb who dies in the early 1900s of heat stroke while bicycling in Europe. It’s maintained by the Sierra Club and open for all to use. It’s a cool place and I enjoyed my snack break there but it was early and I had miles to do. I was planning on hitting Sierra City early on Sunday for snacks and breakfast. I got phone signal at the top of the next hill and called the store there to see what time they opened on Sunday. The guy on the phone told me he was generally open at 11 in the morning on Sundays but that this Sunday he had decided to close. He said he would be open till 5 on Saturday tho. crap that wasn’t good. I noticed in the comments on the app that he had been randomly closing a lot over the past few weeks and leaving hikers without a way to resupply as he was the only option in town. Well I could make it without it if I had to but i did need a few snacks if possible so I decided to try to make it the following day by 5. It would be another 30 mile day. I stoped at the White Rock Creek that night at mile 1167 a 13.6 mile day. 

The 11th I was on my way by dawn. It was 28.4 miles to the store. It was a day of ups and downs with rolling hills and forests. The sun baked the meadows as I hiked trough the wild grass. Wildflowers were in bloom and huge pinecones scattered the trail. I passed a few deer and birdsong graced my day. Streams and creeks provided all the water I needed and I was enjoying my hike. I made great time with 20 miles in by noon. I made it to the highway before 430 only to find RJ and BestBuy hitching back to the trail. The guy that dropped them off picked me up and soon I was at the store. I bought snacks and some drinks. The store sold hot food but it was closing so I walked another mile to the Sierra Pines Resort where I could eat. It was a rustic fancy place with its own trout pond that they served fresh trout out of. They let me in and placed me in the corner by the stairs in a room off the main dining area. The regular fancy guests were giving me the evil eye as I drank water from my fancy glass. Soon the dresses up folks were gone from my area of the restaurant and I noticed as people came in they brought the shabbier dresses people over to the area where I was and the better dressed more well to do folks were taken elsewhere. Soon they had caught my thought and cooked it up. I had a tiny bowl of soup while I waited. They brought the trout out while and cut the head and tail off and filleted it right there on the table in front of me. I ate it and the side of mashed potatoes. It was delicious and not super expensive surprisingly. I was full as I shouldered my pack and walked back across town. There was supposed to be free camping in town but apparently the county had freaked out about hikers sleeping behind the church and it was no longer allowed so I ended up walking way back up the hill another mile and a half to where the trail crossed the road and camping there. It was a 28.4 trail mile day and 3 miles oof hiking off trail I was tired and slept well.

The 12 I slept in till 6 and decided to stash my pack behind some trees and walk the mile and a half back to town to eat at the coffee shop. The miles went quickly and I was soon drinking coffee and eating a muffin. I let my stuff charge a bit and took car of some businesses using their WiFi and then tried to hitch back to the trail but I got no love and ended up walking the mile and a half back up the hill. I had 3 miles on before my hiking day started. It was 8 miles up from there once I retrieved my pack. A long exposed hot 8 miles of up to the Sierra Buttes. I climbed the remainder of the morning and on into the afternoon. It was a long rocky ascent in the side of the mountain. I finally reached the top a little after two and ate a late lunch before hiking down to the pack saddle campground where I wandered by the car campers before hitting another climb up to Summit lake and just a little on past where I stopped for the night. It was a windy evening and as I ate dinner after I sat up camp I noticed the huge dead tree over tent was swaying alarmingly and I just hoped it would stand for at least one more night. There were comments on guthooks that the sight was haunted by a ghost deer but I never saw it and spent the night in quiet solitude. I was at mile 1211.7 a 16.3 mile day. 

The 13th of July was another day of hiking. I stayed up in the ridge in the morning enjoying the sunrise. I crossed j on bed and down to a saddle for breakfast by a creek then climbed back up through the forest to pass by Duck Soup Pond. It was loads of up and down but still good hiking without too many rocky sections of trail. The afternoon heat slowed me down but I made good time. Water was getting scarce and I knew I was going to have to stop earlier than I liked if i was going to have water for camp. I decided to fill up at Alder Spring and carry extra water to the next campsite 1 and a half miles further up. The spring was a half mile off trail so I dropped my pack and walked down to it. I got 4 and a half liters of water and carried it back and loaded it in my pack. Water is heavy and I didn’t want to carry it any further than I had to but I needed to  get to a good camp spot for the night. I slowly walked the mile and half to where the map said the flat spots were and found my spot for the night. Another hiker was there but he was just resting and left soon after I arrived. I sat up did my chores cooked ate and retired for the night. 1238.4 A 26.7 mile day

The 14th I was again up and hiking before the sun was awake. In the morning I got to go down for a few miles and I enjoyed the hike through the trees in the cool dawn air. It a dirt trail for a change and relatively easy hiking. As the world woke I made  good time. Mid morning I reached the low point for the day and faced the long steep ten mile climb back up to lookout rock. It was going to be a long day. I started climbing before 11 as I crossed a large creek on a nice bridge there were dayhikers frolicking in the water below. I starts my way up hiking on and on through the sun dappled woods. I made it 4 more miles by 1 and stopped in the side of the hill for a quick lunch. I ate and resumed the climb 2 hours later I was still making my way up my morning climb lasting on into the hot afternoon. A little after 4 I finally reached the top and took a much needed break on lookout rock but as there was no shade and it was rather warm I didn’t linger long and soon hiked in. I continued across the ridges until a little after 6 when I stopped and made camp. I filled up at a spring that was a bit stagnant and carried it a bit further to 1264.2 where I stayed for the night. A 25.8 mile day

The 15th it was time again to head for town, Belden was just less than 23 miles away, and my resupply box was at the RV park there. I was hiking as I watched the sunrise and climbing yet again 6 miles up I went in the morning knowing from the top it was down down down to town. I reached the top mid morning and started the long set of switchbacks down the mountain. I made good time knowing there was town food at the bottom. Back and forth I went slowly descending to the road below. It was a nice hike through the trees and I made good time arriving at the Belden Town resort around 1230 for lunch. The California Governor had closed all inside dining again but They were serving people on the back deck. There was a bunch of other hikers around and we all talked a bit and I had a cheeseburger and fries it was good and I hung out for a while but then had to go. My resupply box was at the rv park a further mile and a half down the road. I hiked down the blacktop in the hot sun and reached my destination when I arrived the thermometer in the shade on the porch said it was a hundred and ten degrees. Chris the owner gave me my box and a flat spot near the river to camp. I sat in the lawn chairs and worked on my blog enjoying the evening before retiring for the night.

I was packed up and walking back down the road by 4 am the next morning on the 16th of July once I made it back to the trail it was 13 miles up. A monster climb up what I believe was Frog Mountain though it was unlabeled on my map. I started climbing before 5am and was still climbing 6 hours later. It was a long way up and I just kept placing one foot in front of the other as the day heated up. I persisted and finally reached the top in the early afternoon. I rested for a bit but soon continued on still having miles to go. I hiked on down to the meadow in the saddle and across to cold spring where I filled up and climbed back up another couple o miles to a nice flat area where I sat up camp for the night. I was at mile 1307.3 a 20.5 mile day. 

The 17th my goal was to get as close to Lassen National Volcanic Park as possible. The trail went thru the park for just over 19 miles and since I wasn’t carrying a bear can I wasn’t allowed to camp in the park so I had to make it all the way through in one day. My goal was to get about 10 miles away and then I would do the 10 in and 19 through and camp at the border. I needed to do at least 27 miles to make it work. So, off I went, it was down for a while before I reached the base of Butt Mountain and climbed up and over I went down the other side and reached the highway where most hikers hitched into the town of Chester but I didn’t need anything so I crossed and continued on. I was feeling wore out, hot, and tired. I struggled up the next hill and was making slow time. I had to make it tot he next water source to camp. I eventually reached stover spring where there was a small pond with a flowing spring feeding it that I got water from and I sat up camp near the pond I was 11 miles from the park and 30.3 miles from the far side of it where I planned to camp on the next night. Mile 1334.8 a 27.5 mile day. 

The 18th I was up at 3 AM hoping to make miles while it was cool. I was moving slower than usual. I wasn’t sure exactly but I knew I had covered close to 200 miles in the last 7 days over rough terrain and mountains. My left ankle was quite unhappy and starting have weird twinges when I walked. I was pushing hard. My mom had already booked a room in Old Station 10 miles on the other side of the park for Sunday night so I could get a bit of rest. I had to wait on my box to arrive on Monday anyway. But that was tomorrow and I had 30 plus miles to make today. So I hiked, I climbed up and made the 11 miles to the border of the park. I was actually excited one of my goals is to visit all the National Parks and I had never been to Lassen before. So I hiked in and added another park to my list. Just a few miles in I dropped my pack and took a short side trip down to the Terminal Geyser which isn’t actually a geyser but is a boiling spring and a whole lot of steam coming out of the ground. It was cool and I watched it for a bit before climbing back up to my pack. Once I retrieved my gear I headed in and in another couple of miles took another short side trip around the boiling springs lake which is a weird green, Martian looking boiling pond that bubbles and hisses and steams, the boiling mud around the edges bubbles and bursts and plops making strange  blurping sounds. It was weird and coo and definitely not somewhere you’d want to take a swim. I walked by slowly enjoying the strange sights and sounds and continued on my way. From there it was down past the Drakesbad resort which I could see but I was too late for breakfast and too early for lunch so I didn’t stop. I walked down by the camp grounds and stopped for a snack break and then I climbed up out of the valley and went deeper into the park. I met several dayhikers and talked a bit. I enjoyed hiking through the forest and in mid afternoon came upon a beautiful lake. I was completely out of water and there wasn’t any coming up so I stopped and filtered a couple of liters. I wanted to stay but still had another 10 miles to hike. I started on. I met an older gentleman who didn’t have any gear with him other than a small fanny pack and a bottle of water. I asked him if he needed anything and he said no it was only a couple of hours back to his car. I offered to filter some water and refill his bottle but he said he was good so I hiked on following along the lake as I reached the other side I could resist the temptation no longer it was hot and I was going for a swim. I took off my shoes shirt and socks and went into the lake. The cool was was exhilarating and I felt 100 times better immediately. I swam a bit and then sat in the shore drying off. After a while I reluctantly grabbed my pack and went on my way. It was still a long way to camp. After the lake I entered a burned area where the forest had been destroyed only dead trunks remained and offered no shade. The sun baked the landscape and I felt like I was cooking in my clothes as I kept walking. 8 miles later I was still in the burn when I reached a puddle of water in what used to be a creek and filtered enough water to survive the night. From there it was a further 2 miles to the park border and my camp. I made it a little after 7 pm. I had started walking at 330 that morning a 15 and a half hour day and 30.3 miles on trail I was at mile 1365.5. 

The 19th I knew I was less than 10 miles from the town of Old Station so I slept in till 6 pm and then got up and hiked it was and easy mostly downhill 8 miles to the highway and then a further 2 to the Cafe. I made it by 10 am and had breakfast. I couldn’t check into my room till 3 so I just hung out. I met another hiker named Cous Cous and we chilled on an abandoned porch in the shade. The gas station where I was supposed to pick up my box said it wouldn’t be there till after 2 pm on the following day so that’s where I’m at chilling on a porch in Old Station California waiting on a resupply box.