Daily miles 18
Total miles 77
After a restless night’s sleep, we got up at 5:30 and realized that rain had come into the privy from under the door. Unfortunately, our sleeping quilts and under quilts got wet from the rain water. We just packed up our stuff and planned to hike out since it was only misting outside. Right before we were about to head out, Lid (formerly known as Lewis) opened the door to our privy! We were all surprised to see each other. We spent some time catching up on each other’s afternoon from the day before. We were happy to meet up and we headed out on the trail together.
The morning was a mix of drizzle, mist and just overcast skies. It was quite windy at times and we were all quite cold. We stopped at the first (and only) water in mid-morning and put up SweetPea’s hammock tarp to get out of the rain. We shared the tarp with several hikers that came through for a break.
After eating a snack and relaxing for a bit, we took down the tarp and continued our descent out of the mountains. Luckily the rain petered out as we walked. By the time we got down to the bottom, we were wearing fewer layers and were feeling better.
At the road, we got a hitch into the town of Julian with a local guy who seemed to know everyone in town and gave us some helpful town info.
Upon arrival into Julian, we headed straight for Mom’s Bakery and got a piece of pie with ice cream and a hot drink. Mom’s is kind enough to give this treat to all PCT hikers for free. After pie, we headed to the Mexican restaurant in town for some good and cheap food.
We loaded up our water containers and were planning to head back to the trail (since all the cheap rooms in town were taken), when we ran into a hiker (XC) we had met earlier in the trail. He had a very large motel room he was sharing with two other hikers (Swiss Monkey and Rainbow) and we decided that we would stay in town and sleep on the floor of their room. So…. now we are showered and our wet things are drying out. We are very content and happy to be inside tonight. The chance of rain will continue through tomorrow, but it will be nice to start the day warm and dry.
The two other hikers your shared the King Suite were Tanja “Rainbow” Bach and Reto “Swiss Monkey” Durrer and you did mention Robert “XC Crow” Corcoran.
Thanks Reto! When we wrote the post we couldn’t remember your names! But we certainly remember your generosity and willingness to share your room 🙂 we hope you are doing great!