Day 40 - PCT 2024
Miles Hiked: 14.9
Total Ascent: 1,911.1 ft.
Total Descent: 1,879.3 ft.
The wind kept waking me up overnight. I didn’t sleep overly well and I woke up early. I decided to get packed up and head out before Kathryn. My tent was dry from the wind overnight. so it was easy to pack up. A hiker named Janet passed me while I was packing my backpack. She stopped and we exchanged pleasantries.
My knee felt a bit better this morning but still not great. I probably should have stretched a bit more before starting to hike but I really wanted to get some miles in before the heat of the day. My mistake.
The hike was interesting this morning. From the power line right of way that I camped at last night, the trail dropped down to a power plant. I passed Janet on the way down. The PCT becomes a bit of a road walk at this point. I studied my FarOut maps just to ensure I was on the correct path, which I was, and I followed the PCT signs around the plant to the start of a State Park.
The trail heads back into the forest and up a ridge to overlook Silverwood Lake. What a lovely sight! The sun was getting hot and the lake looked so inviting. I followed the trail around the lake until I came upon a water source about 6 miles into my hike. I decided to take a break and spread out on my mat for a while. I filtered some water, drank a good amount and filtered some more. Janet eventually hiked over and she stopped to chat. She’s having phone battery problems. Her phone is dying far too quickly. I had been on and off my phone all day, taking photos, sending texts (love the days with cell reception!) and using maps and my phone had only drained about 10%. Hers on the other hand, was on airplane mode, no photos taken, no texts sent and her battery dropped from 60% to 15%. I’d be stressed in that case too. I suggested she stop at the lake campground to charge up and she hiked on.
I was tempted to stop at the lake for a quick dip but my knee was starting to act up again so I felt it was important to carry on. If I had stopped, I probably would have camped there and the FarOut comments reported a bear stealing hikers' food. Not good for the hikers. Not good for the bear. I reached civilization at the underpass of the highway and I debated hitch hiking to town. I texted Malcolm for his thoughts. My knee wasn’t overly painful but something definitely wasn’t right. He helped me decide to carry on to camp, another 6ish miles. Take it slow, he said. Take breaks. Drink water. All the important stuff that I should have listened to but didn’t. I just wanted to get to camp and get off my knee. I took a Naproxen, my last daytime one, and carried on.
I hiked up the ridge. It was hot but the views were stunning. Never short of beautiful views out here. The climb was tough on my knee but nowhere near as bad as descending. I found a water source with some shade and sat down for a quick lunch break. It was much needed. I filtered water and started hiking again. Kathryn texted saying she ripped her backpack open and had to find another hiker to borrow their sewing kit so she’d be quite behind. Gear doesn’t last long out here.
Eventually I came upon the camp Kathryn had suggested the night before. It was tiny. Only room for 1 tent. I carried on. I stopped again at a water source, this time collecting three litres to prepare for a dry camp. I kept hiking until I found space for two tents. Lo and behold, there was a tiny creek behind the site so we had water after all! Kathryn eventually made it up to camp. Thankfully her pack is sewed enough to make it down to Cajon Pass.
I’ve been stretching out my knee since arriving at camp. It seems to be helping. I can move it. I can bend it. I can sit crossed legged and with my knees to my chest. It doesn’t hurt. Just hiking, mostly downhill but I can feel there is something off. I reached out to my trainer, Lee. He thinks it might be an IT band issue and sent me a video of a massage technique to try. I’ll give it a whirl. I’ve reached out to Dr. Morgan at Blaze Physio, she works with thru hikers along the trail, and I’ll try to get a virtual consultation with her tomorrow when I reach Cajon Pass. Until then, I’m going to take Advil PM and try to get a better night's sleep.
