Day 38 - Goodbye Desert - Hello High Sierras — Walking People Out of Poverty

May 23

Depart Chimney Creek Campground (Mile 681.1

Arrive Kennedy Meadows (Mile 701.6)

Up and out at 5 am as I was wanting to close out the Desert portion of my hike so that I could get into the mountains. I immediately noticed a pain in my right shin and was hoping it was nothing too serious. I had actually got up and away before Einstein and Atlas, and they weren’t even stirring. Unfortunately they caught up with me later, when I stopped for breakfast, but it was no big deal as they were always going to catch me sooner rather than later. The further I traveled the more intense my pain became. Fortunately I was caught by a young lady who introduced herself as Dragon, and she immediately produced some Advil from her backpack and insisted I take a couple. It took a while for the effects to kick in but eventually my pain started to subside a little. It turned out that Dragon was from Nova Scotia and she was having a great time. We walked together for about an hour or so before I turned Dragon loose. I always feel so guilty slowing the young folk down but they are always so gracious and I just love their outlook on life. As long as they can earn enough money to fund their next hiking trip they are happy. This generation have no desire to join the rat race, earn a decent living, have a family and mortgage. Hell no, they just want to hike for as long and as far as their money will take them. It would be a really interesting exercise, in 10 years from now, to get together with all the wonderful people I’ve met along the way to see where they are in life’s journey. Hopefully someone, somewhere, will undertake a study as I think the results would be fascinating. The views during the day were stunning as always, and the weather, much like most days, was very nice, and it really is a lovely way to pass a day, wandering through the countryside.

Before I knew it I had reached a road and there was a sign pointing me towards Kennedy Meadows, which was about a half mile or so up the road. I finally reached my destination around mid afternoon and was thrilled and delighted to bump into Sky and Spontaneous, the young honeymooners from South Korea. They have been constant companions since we all started our walk together on April 16th. I often wonder what happened to a lot of the people I met along the trail. As I was pitching my tent Spontaneous arrived at my camp and gave me a can of Ginger Ale, which I gratefully accepted, needless to say it didn’t last long! Once I was organized I went to the General Store, which is the main hub of Kennedy Meadows, and picked up my food parcel, and it was much larger, and heavier, than any I had shipped previously. The reason being, in addition to food, was my bear canister and new trail shoes. I should thank Katie Copeland, who kindly loaned me the container she had carried along the PCT. It was a relief to get my new shoes, as the ones I had been wearing previously were showing signs of wear and tear. I had slipped several times during the last week or ten days as a result of the tread being worn down. So it was on with the new and out with the old, which I placed with all the other discarded footwear in the hiker box.

Sitting on the deck, enjoying the afternoon sun and a beverage or two were a number of hikers, several of whom I knew. Legend, Atlas, Scientist and Sundown to name a few. I retired to my tent to sort out my food, as I had formulated a plan which I would be executing the following morning.

Later that afternoon I met up with Sundown and Atlas as we had agreed to call the owner of a restaurant that is heavily favoured by the PCT community, and he sends a driver to pick people up and take them the 2-3 miles down the road to his restaurant, Grumpy Bear. We arrived at the Bear shortly after 6 pm, and who was there, sitting at the bar, wolfing down a Cheeseburger and fries but Einstein. He barely acknowledged us as he was glued to the hockey game on TV, and quite rightly so as his beloved Washington Capitals was playing Las Vegas Knights in the Stanley Cup finals. Atlas and I joined Einstein at the bar and Sundown went over to visit with some people he knew. As I was not cooking tonight I decided to have cheeseburger and fries, which seemed to be the choice of most people, and the obligatory ginger ale. I must say the burger was outstanding, as were the fries which were the original hand cut variety. These always taste better than the plastic “McDonalds” type of French Fries which should be banned!! Yes, that’s how I really feel. After a more than satisfactory meal we got a ride back to the campground, and a very happy Einstein was only too pleased to join us. Einstein was made up thanks to his Capitals winning the game and inching one game closer to winning the cup. Before leaving we asked the driver if he could pick us up at 7:45 am to take us back to Grumpy Bear for breakfast in the morning. It had been a great day for us all and we made our way to our tents satisfied and fulfilled.