Day 36 (6/22) Racing to Buy a Beer (and Ice Cream)

I made one of my earliest starts today, leaving camp right at 6AM. I cruised down the three miles to Canebrake Road, where I checked the register. Noah had been there two days before, Positive ID yesterday. Somewhere along the way the Bum Brothers and Swisters had disappearred - likely into Onyx or Lake Isabella from Walker Pass. There were a few new names I hadn’t seen before as well, so I was looking forward to meeting them. There was a huge 2000 ft climb out from this road, but after the first couple hundred feet of gain, it turned into a nice gentle climb and I hardly felt it at all. Still cruising, still on target to arrive by 4pm. I came through a burn area, remnants of the 2009 Clover Fire. As I crested a ridge, the whole Sierras opened before me, courtesy of the burned out trees. I wasn’t really prepared for this, considering these mountains had disappeared after that one brief sighting two days ago. The range spread out in all of its majesty to the north, with only a single set of foothills remaining between me and them. Finally, I was on the doorstep of the Sierras!

I was grinning as I began the long descent down towards the Kern River Valley. In my haste, I started to aggravate my shin splints. Stopping for lunch, I stretched everything out, then got going again. Then the plantar fascia in that foot started cramping up. Great. These shoes were pretty well worn out, and definitely didn’t provide the support they once did. The final straw was when I started rubbing my heel raw, and after putting up with that for a short while, I stopped and switched into my boots. I’d be wearing them full time soon anyway, so I should be walking in them now, right? That worked like a charm to make the pain go away, for a time. But as the altitude dropped, the heat increased. These black boots soaked in the sun, baking my feet. Within a few miles, my feet were swimming in them. I pushed on, craving ice cream, beer, and the many other treats I could find at the store. At the bottom of the hill I found Lowcard, Donatello, and Ox, three other thru-hikers hiding from the heat. They thought the store closed at 9pm, so when they heard that it closed at 5, they quickly started packing, and were hot on my heels. At this point it was pretty much a straight, flat shot into Kennedy, so I set myself to a fast cruising pace. My feet though, protested, and disagreed with this plan. After 4 miles, with just 5 more to go, I was forced to swap back to my shoes from the boots. My feet were dying in the heat, and the boots just don’t breathe like normal shoes. The raw spot on my heel had a chance to toughen up though, so that wasn’t a problem. Studying the map again, I realized that I was actually an extra half mile from the store when I hit the trailhead, so it was going to be an even harder section. I came to the decision to slow down, take it easy, and miss the store, instead of killing myself for the next hour and a half, pushing a brutal 4 mph pace. In retrospect, this was a great idea, but it was hard to do considering I’d been pushing myself all day, just to give up a few miles shy.

When I finally did make it to the town, I came walking down the road when I came to Tom’s Kennedy Meadows Internet Cafe. I’d heard that hikers stay here and at the store, but I had no idea how awesome this place was. Tom has a bunch of old trailers that he’s picked up, and he lets hikers stay in them on real beds, with a real roof over their head. A bunch of people were here, including Positive ID, and Java from the Saufley’s, and lots of new faces. I threw down my pack, and joined the line for taco dinner. Sweet, I wouldn’t have to subsist on hiker food until the store opened. After dinner everyone hung around until they fired up the projector for a movie out in back. What a great way to finish up a long day of hiking. I’ll probably chill out tomorrow, then take off into the Sierras after a nice day of rest.

Miles Today: 28
Trip Mileage: 702

Photo: Amazing Sierra vista to the north. Awesome inspiration for me to keep hiking