Dan picked us up at the San Diego bus station and dropped us off right at the trailhead marker - for free. He wouldn't accept any remuneration. But he did say he'd check out our progress on the Web page. Hi Dan Rufner! Thanks for the lift and the last-minute pointers. You've been one of the hilights of our trip so far.

So at about 7AM, under clear skies, we started North from the border. We stopped in Campo to make a phone call and pick up some last-minute necessities (like an ice cream bar - thanks dad). The 16.5 miles to Hauser Creek, where we camped, were very tough. Even during some brief cloudy periods it was hot, perhaps 85 deg F, and it could have been worse. After 10 miles or so, I had blisters despite my best attempts to find some way to avoid them. The sun-baked ground was the topper. Moleskin is useless on the bottom of your feet. The last couple miles downhill to Hauser Creek were brutal. We were a bit dehydrated from the ~10 miles without water (we carried 2 qts each but it was barely enought). The pack weighed 53 lbs apiece and I'm sure that didn't help the blisters any, but, fatigue from the weight and/or miles wasn't severe. We could have reached our first-day goal of Morena Lake had the feet held out. We rested, set up camp, ate a little dinner, and went to sleep at twilight. We were not feeling good physically or psychologically. If today had been as bad as we were fearing it might be, we could have been contemplating an early end to our trip. But its a long Summer, and we will rest when necessary to keep up our spirits.

This morning we were on the trail by 7:30 AM. Our blisters drained and patched as best we know how. Feeling much better after 9 hours sleep and walking gingerly, we made our way up to Morena Lake, 3.5 miles off. It was hot again, but we were resting 15 minutes per hour to keep the feet together. The blisters were no worse than yesterday, and that was enough of a relief to lift our spirits significantly. The blisters should toughen up within a week or so if we're careful.

We spent a couple hours at Lake Morena, drinking lots of water, getting a hot shower, and eating lunch. Sure was nice. Then in the heat of the day, we set off to Boulder Oaks, about 6 miles. I tried out my umbrella as a sun shade. It works okay, but it hangs up on brush and requires the use of a hand. With the walking stick in the other, this is not ideal. I suspect I can do without the umbrella. We're trying not to hike too much in the hottest hours anyway. It's easier on the feet.

An example of this strategy is our stay here in Boulder Oaks. We had dinner early and will hike some more before dark. We'll eat trail food before sleeping. This works out better also because there's water here and there won't be where we will probably sleep tonight. Cooking and cleaning are much easier with plenty of water.

Along the way so far, we've met some nice fellow thru-hikers. Ed has been right behind us each day on the trail. He is from England and was also taken to Campo with us by Dan. At Hauser Creek, we camped with Ed and 2 other guys whose names escape me right now. They were ahead of us all day and left this campground just as we got in. Well, we better hit the trail again, we've got 3 hours of daylight left.

Tuesday (5/6) (10:50 AM): My feet are doing better. I put back on the outer socks again as my feet are less swollen. Its an improvement. The flies are voracious. They bite! We camped last night at the Kitchen Creek Road crossing, hiking in the evening is a good idea. We got in at 8PM and by 8:30 we were camped and ready for sleep. I stayed awake reading my bridge columns by flashlight so I could see the stars come out and see the tail of comet Hale-Bopp. Because it was quite dark, I got a better view of the comet than I ever have before. The stars were also very bright. I spotted a smudge in Cancer that may be a Messier object I'm not familiar with.

Wednesday (5/7) (8 PM): Camped in a tributary of a dry creek flowing into Oriflamme Canyon in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. It's getting dark so I'm writing by flashlight (my single battery AAA flashlight). We're camped in a creek bed. Yeah, its not too bright if we get any rain tonight, but this is the desert. Its the only decent flat spot around here, other than the dirt road nearby. I don't expect much traffic either, but I will take my chances on the rain.

My feet felt much better today. I think my feet and I have come to an understanding. I promise to tread as carefully as I can, and take extra good care of them, and they will stop whining about going home to take a nice long hot bath. Good foot care for me means taking off the boots and drying out the socks at every rest stop (about once an hour). I also watch where and how I step, keep the socks clean, and carefully drain any blisters which do develop anyway.

Part of the improvement for the feet has been cooler days due to the higher altitude (4800' now down from 6000' this morning). The pack has also been getting lighter, at least until this afternoon when we began a 15 mile dry hike. Fearing heat like we had the first couple days, we packed 4 to 5 liters apiece. Imagine adding 10 lbs of water to your pack! Ouch! Anyway we're now about 6-7 miles from the next water and have plenty left. We probably didn't need so much. Better too much than too little. Dehydration, besides being unpleasant, causes many other problems, like fatigue, headache, bad judgement, and poor joint lubrication. I can't say exactly how much I drink per day. At a stop where there is water, I drink at least half a gallon before refilling the bottles and moving on. 1-2 gallons a day is probably close.

This morning we broke camp at Burnt Rancheria campground in Mt. Laguna. We called home from the post office, but did not resupply here. Why? Because I'm stupid! I felt that a resupply only 45 miles into the trip would be a nuisance. Wrong! So we're carrying 8 days supplies to Warner Springs. Highlights today were the 4th rattlesnake we've seen. A great view from the Laguna Mtns over Anza-Borrego Desert and out to the Salton Sea. The Laguna Mtns were also notable for the first trees we've seen. You can't imagine how pleasant it was to see an oak tree after days of scrub and manzanita scraping at you from both sides of the trail. Then we got to the Jeffrey Pines! Also of note, graffiti on the PCT. One section follows an old road grade through a cut rock. All the rocks are covered with graffiti. Oh well.

Sunday (5/11) (8 AM) (Barrel Spring ):
At last we have some time to sit and relax! We're about 10 miles outside Warner Springs where our first resupply box is waiting. (Un?) fortunately, we arrived here about 11:30 AM yesterday (Saturday 5/10). The post office won't be open until 8 AM Monday morning. So we have plenty of time to recuperate, wash ourselves, our clothes, take inventory of our food, get to know our fellow travellers, etc, etc.

But, lets fill in the missing 3 days first. One word sums it up, DESERT. Lots of it. Hot, dry, dusty, brutally beautiful. On 5/8, we hiked out of the Laguna Mtns into the real desert of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park. We ended our previously mentioned 15 mile dry stretch when we got to a buried cement water tank. Its used to supply water to fire-fighters. It has an iron lid and can be climbed into if necessary. Our filter pump hose could reach the water easily. We drank our fill and loaded up just 2 qts each as we believed the creek in Chariot Canyon had a good chance of running. However, the 2 miles and 1000' lower elevation changed the picture somewhat. It was HOT. The creek was dry, but we found a spring about a mile downstream, out of our way. We loaded up 4 liters each and headed up the trail. The trail to Rodriguez Canyon is scheduled for a prescribed burn sometime between May 1st and May 15th, but it hadn't happened yet. Our water lasted us the rest of the day and into the next morning. We camped where the trail first hits the floor of San Felipe Valley, at about 2800'. This is real desert. Barrel and cholla cactus, ocotillo and others - all with thorns. Even the sandy dirt had thorns from pieces of dead cholla cactus. We didn't have much water left, so we couldn't wash off the dust and sweat. So we slept in clothes rather than our bags. It wasn't very cold until just before morning.

The next day (Friday 5/9), we hiked the last 3 miles to the San Felipe Creek. It was running well, but we were worried about cattle contamination here, so we side-hiked up the road to a marsh called Sentenae Cienaga(?) that was supposed to be better. It wasn't. Let flow, still signs of cattle. So we came back to San Felipe with empty bottles. Cattle or not we filtered 6 liters each of this water, plus what we used there. Ahead of us was our toughest test yet.

Our plan had been to get going early while it was still cool, but the water fiasco cost us much time. We began the uphill, 23.5 mile dry hike to Barrel Spring at about 11:30 AM. The first couple miles climb were switchbacks up a south facing slope. By 1 PM, the heat, sun, uphill climb, and 12 pounds of water in our packs were making us quite uncomfortable. It became clear that to continue under these conditions would require more water than we had. We were risking heat exhaustion and dehydration. But there was no shade in sight. The sun which was baking the slope left no shadows anywhere. There were no trees of any kind. Lost of cactus and some brush. We found a mostly shady spot under some brush and rested. A short nap, an early dinner and soon it was 3:30 PM and much cooler, probably down in the high 80's or so, but there was a breeze and an afternoon thunder cloud was giving us some shade. We were quite thirsty, but had already used 1/3 of our water in the first 3 miles (of 23.5). We were getting worried. Fortunately, the storm shaded us until about 5 PM, even dropping a few big drops of rain! The higher altitude meant cooler conditions too. We hiked as fast as we could without overdoing it until passed sunsets, drinking 1 pint of water per hour while covering 2.5 miles per hour. By nightfall, we were exhausted, thirsty and dirty, but we had covered 10 miles since dinner and still had 2 liters water per person.

The next day (Saturday 5/10), we were awake at first light and on the trail by 5:45 AM. We intended to get to Barrel Spring before it got too hot. We arrived at 10:30 AM, with only a psychologically significant 1 cup of water each left. We were dehydrated, but not severely. A little luck, some good decisions on when to hike (and not), and a good rationing plan combined to get us through in good shape. At Barrel Spring, we each drank down a full liter of the best tasting water I've seen in a while! Another liter soon followed before we felt hydrated again. We should have carried 8 liters rather than 6.

The rest of the day we spent doing laundry, taking sponge baths, and eating, as more people showed up. First was Kevin, who we had passed shortly after ending our dinner break on the first hot day. He continued in to Warner Springs. Next was Edward with whom we've camped before. Then came Justin and Catherina, who we last saw at Boulder Oaks Campground. Then came Sean and (Jason?), and finally another guy whose name I don't know (captain marchs?). A thru-hiker from last year named Scott came by with a cooler full of orange juice, water, drinks, and bananas! What a treat! Scott is now working seasonally in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park removing non-native plants. Thanks Scott for the goodies.

This morning (Sunday 5/11) we've been doing inventory on our food, getting ready to pick up our box and mail some stuff home. We're still at Barrel Spring. This is a very nice cool shady place. We're surrounded by oak trees. There is a pipe coming down the hill from the spring, bringing water to a horse trough. We haven't been treating this water. So far, no signs of illness.

Two nights ago, while camped on the 23.5 mile dry stretch, we were awakened by a growl! Two short yelp-growls came from just a few feet away in the brush. Apparently a bobcat or perhaps a cougar had come upon us from upwind and seen us. It had been startled and asked "Who are you?" I'm sure it left quickly when it figured out we were humans. We never saw it, and there were no tracks to be seen in the morning.