Kennedy Meadows is a small mountain town with a population of about 200 people, though year-round population drops down into the twenties range. But Kennedy Meadows is a very big milestone for PCT hikers as it signifies the end of the desert section and the beginning of the Sierras for Northbound hikers. In normal snow … Continue reading Flip [off] the Snow
That night, Steve got enough cell phone signal to check his voicemail. The voicemail was important enough for us to decide to go into town early to return the call. Steve woke up a little queasy from the rough day we had the day before, but we only had 4 miles to the alledged water … Continue reading Into the Sand Trap
The next section out of Hiker Town is one of the most popular night hike sections of the trail since it is about 20 miles of flat, shadeless, dry, hardtop hiking along the LA aqueduct. But Patch, Hulk, & I decided to take the aqueduct on in the daytime. We set out from Hiker Town … Continue reading Fun & Folly of the Desert
We arrived mid-morning at Hiker Heaven to be warmly greeted by fellow hikers and hiker volunteers. We were immediately given the tour of the amenities available. The Saufley's yard had a smattering of tents set up, with chickens meandering around, scratching for bugs around the tents. Their garage had been converted to a very well … Continue reading Trio of Angels
As we left Wrightwood, we summited Mount Baden-Powell on a very beautiful morning. Our recent SOBO hike & new trail friend revitalized our excitement and energy, making the fairly steep 2,800 foot ascent pretty fun. The 9,406 ft peak brought about many emotions among the group: excitement, pride, joy, and awe. The mountain, named after … Continue reading Our first nights apart
Some important terms to know for long distant trails: NOBO - Northbound (Mexico to Canada) SOBO - Southbound (Canada to Mexico) Yo-yo - Complete the trail one direction, turn around and hike it again the other way (yep, crazy right?) Flip Flop - completing the whole trail, but hopping around to different parts of the … Continue reading Mix in some SOBO
Our second hitch gave us a good tour of the town, as well as recommendation of where to stay. We settled into the Black Forest Lodge, complete with fireplace and more importantly, shower. It only took about three rounds of shower apiece to finally feel like we wouldn't get the white towels dirty while drying … Continue reading Soak in the Hot Springs
Wow, what a week of wind! We last left off with us leaving behind the idle lifestyle in Idyllwild. We were finally back on trail! Since we were practically restarting as far as conditioning and fitness, we took the shorter access trail to get back to the PCT, rather than the ridiculously steep and longer … Continue reading The Wind to Oz
It's amazing how you can spend months of planning and thousands of dollars on gear to have a good leg up on your upcoming thru-hike, only to have the whole event compromised by a $30 pair of insoles. Steve's foot perils all began when his standard insoles began to bunch up while hiking. No problem, … Continue reading The Soulless Insoles
Our Easter morning started out as any other day on trail. We'd camped at a lovely flat overlook of the Tule Creek Valley, large enough for our whole family and more. We only had 6 miles until the water cache, with another well maintained water cache 2 miles from there. So our 14 mile day … Continue reading Easter Magic
SMOR Adventures 