Camp: 400.8
I woke up today right at 6:00 as the sun burst over the mountains behind Baldy and lit the bare summit where I slept. I was happy the wind had died down, but I hadn't slept well so I pulled the sleeping bag back over my head to shun the sun away.
I slept for another hour and a half and the sun continued to rise, despite my protests.
I was happy to be sleeping where my dream really began. I was even happier to find out I had fulfilled a second dream upon waking; clouds had moved in like a tide and covered the entire Inland Empire several thousand feet below me. I'd always wanted to be above the clouds on a mountain top.
I packed my stuff at a slow pace (I cowboy camped for the hell of it so I had no tent to pack up) and said goodbye to the peak.
I guess because the peak was mainly bald of trees, it got full sunlight and as a result no snow was left there. Within a quarter of a mile back down off the top to the PCT the snow was back. It was nice for a while because it was a little icy and I didn't sink during the traverses.
I watched the hundredth crow ( or raven?) battle another bird overhead as I followed a ridge top that curved around mountain after mountain.
They maneuver and dive at each other with the precision of fighter jets. Two, then three, four or more join in. Then they split up and go into pairs, each one riding the back of the other barely inches on near suicide dive bombs along the rocky pitch of the mountain.
They swirl constantly, trying to establish the dominant position. Every once in a while one will separate from the pack and ride the wind pushing up the mountain and it would push him in high above the rest. Them it would come careening down like a missile at a near vertical angle at another bird.
I stopped walking and stood there as they swooped low over my head and right in front of me, oblivious or unconcerned with me completely.
Every time I crossed the Angeles crest highway it would be completely empty, but very stunning how empty it was. This man made road cuts through the heart of the San Gabriel range, and I rarely see a car on it.
I see bear warnings everywhere. Thing is, Ive never heard or seen of a bear down here.
I'm gonna make 400 today. Im moving fast and feeling good.
I think Dan is a day or so ahead. Joe is more than two days, about 50 miles. I wanna catch them.
It's gonna be really hard to make up that mileage on them, especially when they're going to be doing decent miles every day too. It might take a week or two. Probably won't happen in these mountains, maybe in the desert ahead. But I'll catch them. :)
The suns going down but I want to make it to 400. I push on as hard as I can. I'll go until I can't see tonight. Just about when I need to put on my headlamp, I see the rock outline 400 Joe made several days ago on the ground. I snap a picture and move forward. Camp is .8 miles away.
I get to camp and it's a remote boyscout cabin. It looks warm but it's locked. I set up my tent behind it near some picnic tables.
Its dark now in the woods. Really dark. I climb in my bag and stare blindly into the blackness outside my tent.
I don't know what all these bear signs are about but I'm not taking any chances. I sleep next to my food.
I'll punch that bear in the face before I give up my Cheetos.
No comments:
Post a Comment