PCT Map Miles 256.2
Miles Hiked 192.0
Elevation 7,595 feet
Miles Hiked Today 16.2
Today was a generic day. I left Mission Camp about 7 AM and right off the bat, the trail went up. The trail ultimately went up to 8,700 feet before going down again. There were patches of snow, but none that slowed me down on the trail.
My push was to get relatively close to Big Bear City. I contacted a trail angel, Kenny, who hosts hikers, and arranged for Sunday and Monday at his place. Supposedly for $45 per night you get your own room. For some reason, I’m a little suspicious of the setup, but I’ll find out Sunday.
I arrived at the Arrastre Camp at the end of the day. Much to my shock and dismay, a large Boy Scout Troop was coming in to spend the night. OUCH! I was in a bubble of hikers including the young women from the Netherlands and Austria who told me about a bear sighting a few days earlier. We all went to an area away from the Boy Scouts and setup camp. Later the young women came up to me and asked if I would build a fire. As far as I knew, this was not a restricted area, so we made sure the site qualified as a campfire site. After doing so, I built a nice fire. All the hikers in camp joined us and we had a pleasant evening as the night temperatures began to drop.
Tomorrow is the last day on the trail since I’m going into Big Bear Sunday.
I’ve acquired a morbid fascination with dead trees. See below images. I’ve seen a lot dead trees caused by fires.
