Sunday, July 15th: Todays PCT miles = 20.3. Total PCT miles 968.9. This morning I woke up at Glen Aldin High Sierra Camp to the sound of weekend hikers scurrying around trying to get there things organized. There were so many people at that camp that once I woke up all I wanted to do was get as far away from there as possible. I had to go to the bathroom but I couldn't just use a tree because there were people everywhere I turned so I had to wait in line for 25 minutes. If all those damn people hadn't been eating mountain houses they wouldn't have spent so much time in the bathroom. Anyway, I busted out of that camp by 7:45am. My earliest start in weeks! We play a little game with the day/weekend hikers. We try and guess what fresh and clean smell each person is going to have by the look of them. Then when they get close enough we can determine if our guesses were correct. For instance, a cute girl with clean long blond hair... I usually go for the shampoo smells. They seem to overpower all except Downy and Irish spring soap. I feel like I could hunt day hikers pretty successfully by just following their scent. You can smell them for miles!
Today was a pretty standard day on the PCT. I hiked 3 miles then took a short water/snack break. Then another 5 miles before I re-uped on water. I ran out of sweet water (water treatment) about a week ago and you can't but it in any store except REI. So, I was worried about how I was going to treat non potable sources of water. Thats when Baboon and I found a water filter/pump on the trail. No one claimed it so now I've just been pumping my water. The trail provides! After the water break I hiked another 3 1/2 miles up and over a mountain to a beautiful lake. Baboon was fishing when I got there. He said there were no fish in the lake....I say he just couldn't catch one. Either way, he didn't eat fish for lunch. I took a little nap on the sandy beach of this lake and admired the intricate sand castle someone had obviously invested some time into. Typo from New Zealand met another New Zealander at this lake and got to chat to him for a while. He said the man is doing just a section of the PCT and has been traveling all around the world for the past 13 years. I would love to hear some of his stories. Typo said he was a little crazy though. He said in his adorable New Zealand accent that the man "has been on the move a bit too long and is mad, but nice"
After the lake I climbed up and over Benson Pass. It was a hell of a way to end a days hike; hiking over a pass. Now my belly is full with lentil soup and crackers and I'm camping by another lake with Typo, Baboon, and Michigan Wolverine.
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