Tag: California Section F

Saturday, June 6, 2026. Clear and 60 going up to 90.

Up at 5:30. On trail at 6:35.

Short 8-mile hike to the road at Walker Pass today, then hitch into Ridgecrest.

We reached the campground at Walker Pass at 9:15. Stopped there to use the pit toilet. Ran into Infinity, Armpit (Kellie), Matthew, and Emmett. They are going straight to KMS. 

We lucked out and got a hitch right away at 9:45 to Walmart. Resupplied and took an Uber to our hotel. Showered and took care of town chores. I’m trying a bunch of different things for my heel blisters as well as my two pinky toe nail issues. Hopefully, something works!

I washed my hiking shirt and bandannas in the sink. Amazing how much dirt and grime came out of those items. I’ll wash everything when we get to Kennedy Meadows in 3 days.

We rested most of the afternoon, then went to happy hour at the hotel followed by dinner on the evening. We have a ride back to the trail scheduled for 7:00 tomorrow.

It is very hot down here on the flat desert. At least 90 degrees. It is at least 10-15 degrees cooler back at elevation on the trail.

Also, we officially finished the desert section today. We will still see some desert conditions, but we are moving into the Sierras and the trees.

Technical Notes:

• Protein Shake (10oz): 330 cal, 19g carb, 13.5g fat, 36g protein 
• Banana Chips (18p, 30g): 150 kcal, 20g carb, 8g fat, 1g protein 
• Town food
• Water liters: 2
• Miles: 9
• Time: 3:00
• Up: 690
• Down: 2231
• Calories consumed: lots
• Calories burned: 1100
• iPhone battery used: 20%

Friday, June 5, 2026. Clear and 64 going up to 81.

Up at 5:30. On trail at 6:30.

Long, hot day in the desert….again.

YouTube Video of Day 43 in the Desert 

Water cache at 10:15 and 9.1 miles. Pounded 3 liters of water here.

Napped in the shade of a few Joshua Trees for 90 minutes by the water cache.

That was one nasty, hot, steep 3.5-mile climb after the water cache. I had to stop every .2 miles when a tree made a little spot of shade and rest. Glad I took 4 liters of water from that cache. I just drank two of them. Fortunately, I only have 9.5 miles to camp and water.

It’s 1:15 and I’m taking an hour break before moving on. Maybe two hours.

I got my first view of the Sierras. Way in the background. You can’t see it in the photo, but there is snow on some of the mountains up there!

Reached the water and camp at 6:30. Long, hard day, but great water. Most people are camping in the cabin here, but I prefer my tent as I’ll be up much later than the others. I had dinner at 7:30. Everyone else was asleep by 7:15.

Looking forward to a town day tomorrow before getting back on trail on Sunday. 

Technical Notes:

• Protein Shake (10oz): 330 cal, 19g carb, 13.5g fat, 36g protein 
• Banana Chips (18p, 30g): 150 kcal, 20g carb, 8g fat, 1g protein 
• Banana Chips (18p, 30g): 150 kcal, 20g carb, 8g fat, 1g protein 
• Mango (3-4p, 49g): 140 kcal, 35g carb, 0g fat, 0g protein 
• Jerky (2 oz): 140 kcal, 12g carb, 0g fat, 22g protein 
• Mango (3-4p, 49g): 140 kcal, 35g carb, 0g fat, 0g protein 
• Skittles (2.17oz): 250 kcal, 56g carb, 2.5g fat, 0g protein 
• Fritos 320
• Skittles (2.17oz): 250 kcal, 56g carb, 2.5g fat, 0g protein 
• Ramen 720
• Tuna: 90 kcal, 4-7g carb, 1g fat, 14-16g protein 
• Fritos 500
• Water liters: 8
• Miles: 22.84
• Time: 12:14
• Up: 4610
• Down: 3205
• Calories consumed: 3200
• Calories burned: 4337
• iPhone battery used: 50%

Thursday, June 4, 2026. Clear and 57 going up to 75.

Up at 5:30. Blisters feel okay this morning. On trail at 6:30.

I stopped to take care of my blisters and get water at 9:46 and 7.4 miles. Blisters are back again today. Lost Brad about 4 miles ago. Trail magic is supposed to be in 7.4 more miles from 11:00 to 5:00 today. I should be there about 1:30.

Trail Magic and water cache at  mile 17.1 at 1:40. Snacks and beverages and shade. Good water cache too. We have 6-8 miles to go to camp, and then another 9 miles to water tomorrow morning. It’s HOT out here today. We hung out until 3:30. 

Hiked 3 miles with 4.5 liters of water. Ugly inclines. Stopped for a break in the shade of a Joshua Tree at 4:45.

Camp at 6:00 and 21 miles. Probably should have gone 2 more miles to make the 9 miles to water in the morning shorter. Really gotta nurse my water this evening and in the morning.

Technical Notes:

• Protein Shake (10oz): 330 cal, 19g carb, 13.5g fat, 36g protein 
• Banana Chips (18p, 30g): 150 kcal, 20g carb, 8g fat, 1g protein 
• Banana Chips (18p, 30g): 150 kcal, 20g carb, 8g fat, 1g protein 
• Mango (3-4p, 49g): 140 kcal, 35g carb, 0g fat, 0g protein 
• Jerky (2 oz): 140 kcal, 12g carb, 0g fat, 22g protein 
• Skittles (2.17oz): 250 kcal, 56g carb, 2.5g fat, 0g protein 
• Trail Magic food – 600
• Curry noodles 450
• Dehydrated beef 130
• Fritos 500
• Water liters: 6
• Miles: 21.2
• Time: 11:45
• Up: 3012
• Down: 4039
• Calories consumed: 3500
• Calories burned: 4034
• iPhone battery used: 30%

Wednesday, June 3, 2026. Partly cloudy and 55 going up to 80.

Up at 5:30. I might have gotten 2 hours of sleep last night due to the insane wind. My tent stood up well, but the wind kept threatening to rip it down all night. Extremely noisy. Windiest night so far.

Packed, ate, and on trail at 6:30. Picked up more water just .5 miles after camp. Taking 4.3 liters with me today for the 20.3-mile water carry. 

More windmills on and off all day.

Lunch at 11:19 and 11.35 miles with Bobbie and Kellie. Chilled for over an hour. 

I just opened my last litter of water with 4.6 more miles to water. Unfortunately, 2 miles of that is steep uphill.

You run into some odd things on the trail.

Crossed the 600-mile mark late in the day.

Reached water at 5:00. Lots of people here, but most are moving on. We decided to camp here instead of going 2.3 more miles. Feet hurt and great water here.

I found out why I was struggling today. Those new insoles I started using yesterday gave me blisters on both heels. I never get blisters! I don’t know if I have what I need to treat them. I’ll make something work. Will have to see how they are doing in the morning. Very frustrating.

Technical Notes:

• Protein Shake (10oz): 330 cal, 19g carb, 13.5g fat, 36g protein 
• Banana Chips (18p, 30g): 150 kcal, 20g carb, 8g fat, 1g protein 
• Banana Chips (18p, 30g): 150 kcal, 20g carb, 8g fat, 1g protein 
• Mango (3-4p, 49g): 140 kcal, 35g carb, 0g fat, 0g protein 
• Tortilla: 140 kcal, 24g carb, 3g fat, 4g protein 
• Tuna: 90 kcal, 4-7g carb, 1g fat, 14-16g protein 
• Mango (3-4p, 49g): 140 kcal, 35g carb, 0g fat, 0g protein 
• Fritos 300
• Skittles (2.17oz): 250 kcal, 56g carb, 2.5g fat, 0g protein 
• Peak Refuel White Chicken Chili: 760
• Jerky (2 oz): 140 kcal, 12g carb, 0g fat, 22g protein 
• Fritos 500
• Water liters: 4.5
• Miles: 20.77
• Time: 11:00
• Up: 4272
• Down: 3409
• Calories consumed: 3090
• Calories burned: 3776
• iPhone battery used: 40%

Tuesday, June 2, 2026. Partly cloudy and 59 going up to 80.

Up at 6:45. Finished packing. Brad left early to slack pack 7.5 miles that I’m skipping. We will hike 16 miles with no water after he gets back and ships a package from the post office. Should get on trail around 11:00 this morning. 

I sent Pit Crew the packing and shipping instructions for my next two packages after Kennedy Meadows. One in Bishop, CA and one in Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite. Both are due to meds, otherwise I would have just resupplied locally. 

I managed to get a haircut. I tried 4 places yesterday with no luck.

I had a good rest in Tehachapi. I really need my new shoes, but will have to make do for 8 more hiking days. My body is doing great other than my feet. 

Ugh..just tried on my pack. With a FULL 5 days of food and 3 liters of water, this thing weighs around 36 lbs. I just keep telling myself it will get lighter as the day progresses.

Ubered to the post office so Brad could ship a package to Tuolumne Meadows. We got a ride from a nice lady we met at the post office to the trailhead. On trail at 11:30.

The 5.5 mile uphill to start the day was hard and hot. Heavy pack isn’t helping. We stopped for lunch at 2:10 and 5.3 miles. Rested for just under an hour. We have 10.3 more miles to water. Probably getting there around 7:30. Sunset is 8:05. Gonna be tight to find a camp spot and set up before dark.

We can see a boneyard in the middle distance with several airline planes at the Mojave Air and Spaceport.

Just hiked the rest of the day. Nothing special. We got to a barely trickling stream at about 6:40. I carried out 5 liters of water as we are not sure how far we will have to go to find a place to camp and the next water tomorrow is in 20.3 miles. That much water makes my pack weigh in at 40lbs. That’s a record for me!

Dumb luck, there was an unmarked tent site just .3 miles ahead. Made camp about 7:10. The spots are windy, but it’s not sandy, so I was able to get the tent pitched solidly. At least I thought so until the wind gusts got nasty around 8:15. I think I will be okay tonight, but we will see. 

We made dinner at 7:30 and got into our tents by 8:00 as the wind started to pick up. The wind is almost always bad after sunset in the desert. I think I understand the physics behind that. 

Overall, a good day back on trail after a Nero and a zero in Tehachapi. One last long water carry tomorrow, then it gets easier the following 3 days into Walker Pass and our overnight stop in Ridgecrest to resupply.

Technical Notes:

• OJ 400
• Chorizo and eggs 700
• Eclair 250
• Coffee
• Mango (3-4p, 49g): 140 kcal, 35g carb, 0g fat, 0g protein 
• Fatty: 210 kcal, 8g carb, 14g fat, 12g protein 
• Mango (3-4p, 49g): 140 kcal, 35g carb, 0g fat, 0g protein 
• Curry noodles 450
• Dehydrated chicken 170
• Skittles 100
• Fritos 450
• Water liters: 3
• Miles: 16.2
• Time: 7:30
• Up: 3944
• Down: 2182
• Calories consumed: 3010
• Calories burned: 3264
• iPhone battery used: 53%