8/23/20; mile: 1,912; elevation: 5,866 ft.
Lakeside campsites are so nice, especially when mosquito season has ended. Mark and I “texted” about his visit to Shelter Cove Resort. I’m bound and determined to get there early. I’m saddled up and moving by 0615 and have over 4 miles to get to the trailhead, and then another 1.5 miles to get to the Shelter Cove Resort.
Shortly after 0800, I’m at one of the entrances to the resort when I run into MacGyver and Salt, who are just leaving. After introductions and small talk, they inform me that Mark and Mia are already at the store and restaurant waiting for me. They point out a walking shortcut (in lieu of following the road) and off I go. The resort has a store and restaurant with picnic tables and water access. They have a small area designated for hikers and they also accept resupply boxes. Having friends like Mark and Mia just add to the plus column. Not that we had pre-arranged this visit; he was in the neighborhood visiting family and brought his sister along so she could see thru-hiker culture. Let the resupply begin!
First up is second breakfast. Mark buys me a breakfast burrito and coffee. Not long after we’re almost done eating, some other hikers show up. And its the Cuddle Puddle crew, still working on their Oregon Challenge. With that, Mark heads to the car to get his boxes and bags of goodies for the hikers, top of the list is the fresh fruit. Meanwhile, I retrieve my resupply box and head to the hiker area, let my pack explode and get to work. Top of the list are the Hoka’s that Sarah sent back to me. No more Altras for me on this trip, my feet just changed. Sometime in this period, Tommy-So-Happy arrives! Was it really like Lake Tahoe when I saw him last?
The smoke in the air brings up a topic no thru-hiker likes: fire. The Lily Fire to our north is now contained, but the PCT is still closed for a couple of miles but with a detour that isn’t horrible at all. That is news I can live with. Fires keep popping up; please let them stay away from me.
Afternoon arrives quite early, Mark and family need to leave. I’m embarrassed to say I didn’t one picture of any of them! (Edit: Thank you Mark for sending pics to add!) I need to hit the trail. I can’t get sucked into a vortex here. I pack up my now-dry gear, say goodbye to my hiker friends and head back to the trail. I feel invigorated, I’m motivated. Let’s get moving.
Once back on the trail again, it’s after 3pm and of course it’s uphill. I don’t how far I’m going today, but if it’s a lot of uphill, I may have relaxed and consumed a bit too much at Shelter Cove too much. Less than an hour later, I’m across Highway 58 and hoping for some more trail magic, but no joy. I really don’t need it, but hikers still WANT it. And then more uphill. Looking ahead at the map, after this hill climb for a mile or so, there isn’t much water on trail. And y’all know how much I hate dry camps, right?
So I choose the next set of lakes for the night. But of course, all of the best lakeside campsites have people already. I end up at the last one, and the last on trail water for my day. The sites aren’t great, but at this point I’m ready to be done with the day. Not a lot of miles, but I did resupply and got to see Mark and Mia…..again.
Savior out.
Nice surprise to have this update show up in my emails.