The highlight of the day was Mission Creek. I would hit this water source at the fourth mile of the day and stick with it for the next 15 or so. During that time the PCT crosses the creek something like 20 times. The neat thing was that over the course of the day I walked all the way up to the origin of this stream at a fast flowing spring, augmented by a handful of other springs until it became the rushing torrent I first experienced.
The thing about creek crossings us that they can really slow you down. There are essentially the options when you have to make a water crossing: find some rocks or logs to walk across on, change into sandals and walk across, or plow straight through on your shoes and walk them dry. I always prefer the first option of rock hopping as it is generally the faster than sandals and less uncomfortable than wet shoes. This means in order to successfully cross, I first have to do some scouting for a suitable path. The best ones are narrows with plenty of high, flat, dry rocks to walk straight across. The next best option is a large downed tree spanning the water. Aster that, it comes down to finding something with enough dry landings that you can make it across safely. Those can be the most challenging, and oftentimes I'll pick a route, go halfway, then return when I realize one step is impassable. Fortunately, over the course of the day, the crossings became easier as the stream narrowed, so I had lees and less of a challenge each time. I made it safely across every time, and only once did I astronaut did the your of my back foot in the water.
The other highlight of the day was snakes. If you haven't noticed, I haven't had any serious snake encounters yet, and I have yet to see a rattlesnake (though others have). Over the course of the day I would see three different snakes, none with a rattle, each over two feet long, and all clearly eager to get out of my way. The way they move is really intriguing, and it was neat to see one move effortlessly up a hillside. I am slightly concerned about the lack if rattlesnakes though, because I'm afraid that my first encounter will now be even more unexpected and frightening. One possible explanation may be the fact that I have heavy footsteps, so the snakes notice me coming and get out of the way before I bother them.
Around mile 18 I was wearing down as I started to climb out of the river valley. I decided on an early dinner of parts, mashed potatoes and spam. That did miracles for my body, and soon enough I was ready to crank out another 4 miles to being me within 23 miles of Big Bear. I camped up on the ridge, in a field of ground squirrel holes. In no time I was fast asleep, with the plan to wake up early in the morning to do my miles before the Post Office closed at 4:30.
Miles Today: 22
Trip Mileage: 244
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