I am not going to lie, this section was tough. However, it did include my all time favorite day on the PCT – the day I hiked 40 miles in 23 hours to Tehachapi from Hikertown. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, and let me tell you the tale leading up to that day. (also i had no time to edit or proofread this so hopefully it isn’t littered with mistakes, but my apologies if it is)
Day 28 – To Agua Dulce
I woke up with mixed emotions. We were having a trail angel pick us up at 8am to drive us to an RV campground to skip 88 miles of the trail due to the fire closure. This skip forced me to think about my relationship to having a continuous footpath. Obviously, my decision was to break my footpath and continue on the trail, leaving these miles for future Zoe to complete. (if I want too). But ultimately, I am hiking the Pacific Crest Trail for adventure and to have fun – not necessarily to do every single mile. If I make it to Canada, these 88 miles will be a drop in the ocean compared to all the miles I will have done.
Anyways, we got to the RV site around 10:30, thanks to our trail angel, Richard. Me, Collie, and Jonaton scrambled out of the car to use the bathroom and fill our waters before starting our hike for the day. It was only 10 miles to Agua Dulce which has plentiful of town food. I know we just zero-ed but mmm more fresh food. One of the restaurants had reviews of fresh pokè and it closed at 3pm. A challenge!! 10ish miles in four hours to be rewarded with my all-time favorite food.
me and my sun umbrella <3
Beginning the hike, I immediately ran into Roy!! He now goes by Hot Dog but in case you forgot, he was the hiker who carried my sun umbrella for 90 miles and I felt like I properly did not thank him. So, when I saw him I awkwardly threw $10 at him so he can buy himself a drink in case I don’t see him again. If you carry any of my lost items, you at least deserve a drink. (i think i owe a lot of people drinks out here :’) ) Thanks guys!!!
The hike itself was so hot. It felt like a 100 degrees as we went up the barren mountain. The trail went through Vasquez Rocks which was a very cool state park. Many movies were filmed in this location like Blazing Saddles and the Flintstones. The rock itself was a sandstone that has been uplifted and tilted by the Elkhorn Fault – which is a smaller fault connected to the infamous San Andreas Fault.
Vasquez Rocks with Collie and Jonaton
After Vasquez Rocks, I landed in town around 2:45pm and rushed to the restaurant. With about 10 minutes before the restaurant closing, I ordered a tuna pokè nachos and it was so rewarding. Afterwards, I skipped over to the mexican restaurant to join Collie and Jonaton. I ordered a chimichanga for dinner as the tuna nachos did not fill up. I guess I am experiencing hiker hunger. The time of day quickly dwindled and I was unsure of how far I would go. There is a campsite in Agua Dulce called Serenity’s Oasis which is a popular stop for thru-hikers. I decided to check it out before ultimately deciding to camp there. I saw so many hikers who I haven’t seen in a while and it was rewarding to see them again.
tuna nachos!!
Day 29 – to Green Valley?
Posted on FarOut, there was going to be trail magic at 4pm in 23 miles. That was the plan, at least I thought. Yet, my body had different plans. Perhaps it was the chimichanga, but I ended up leaving the Oasis around 7am due to stomach problems. (at least i was in society). Somewhat bummed, I made peace that I probably wasn’t going to get the trail magic and started my hike.
Listen, I try to stay positive while blogging but the first half of this day was awful. I was disappointed about missing the trail magic, and it was so hot that I felt like every pore in my body was producing a liter of sweat. It was a continuous uphill climb with no escape from the blazing sun. Even with my sun umbrella, there was no refugee. Except one point in the uphill, there appeared to be a beautiful shaded area under some smallish trees. Perfect. I went over and plopped myself down for a tiny break. Within seconds, gnats swarmed me from every angle, buzzing in my ears as if they were laughing at me – mocking my hope for a moment of peace. I left the spot faster than I sat down.
me and Hot Dog from the night prior at Serenity Oasis
Back in the rays, anger boiled in me. With no one around, i let out a cathartic yell as I hit my trekking poles to the ground. Clink.
Well shit – i guess I don’t know my own strength because one of my trekking poles bent in half. Ain’t that instant karma. I hit my trekking pole once more to try to straighten it out but instead my pole broke in half. Well shit again. At least I have a tent that only requires one trekking pole. Humbled, I got to the top and then walked downhill to the piped water source.
The bugs were bad at this water source but not as bad as the previous stop. So I stayed. I allowed my body to cool down underneath the trees and had an early lunch. I watched the birds play in the puddles surrounding the pipe. It calmed me and I enjoyed witnessing the animals, unbothered by my presence. It definitely balanced my negative mood.
bird in the water source
I got up and continued into the heat. Just trying to get to my location without getting too caught up in the fact that I will probably be coming into camp late to people who experienced an epic BBQ that I will to miss. The hike was hard. With every slight shade, i lingered until anxiety bubbled in me that I won’t make it before sunset. I stopped and went and stopped and went. Until eventually, I got to a road crossing where I heard laughter. Weird. I took a few more steps until I saw it – a white sign that wrote “Trail magic” with an arrow pointing to the sign. No way.
I followed the path and there was a tent set up with a classic picnic pattern cloth draped over a foldable table underneath. Two hikers occupied the folding chairs with a couple facing towards them as they chatted over hot dogs and watermelon. I began to beam. This was above and beyond trail magic.
Trail Magic – Thank you Chris and Mary!!
I sat down and introduced myself and was immediately offered a cold coke-a-cola and homemade pasta salad. The couple was named Mary and Chris and have been doing trail magic since their daughter, Rocket, did the PCT in 2023. As I slide into my seat, I acknowledged mentally that I will not be doing 23 miles today and I will allow myself to stay until the thick of the heat passed. I stayed until for 3 hours, chatting and enjoying the food and company. This random act of kindness completely changed the mentality of the day. Thank you Mary and Chris!!!! This moment felt so deeply special to me as I was overwhelmed with gratitude.
Afterwards, I left the magic around 3:30pm and got to my campsite at 7:30, completing almost 20 miles for the day. I set up camp alone, thinking once again I will be camping by myself. I reflected on how this day took a complete 180 as I stared in the white moon in the sky. Right as my ramen was about to be complete, a fellow hiker name Quinn joined me at my campsite. I greeted his company with open arms and enjoyed the conversation over my cold-soaked ramen.
(cold soaking is cooking with no stove – if you put ramen in cold water, the noodles will be soft within about 30 minutes)
Day 30 – to Sawmill Campground
Officially a month into trail and so far so good! The plan for today was to do about 23ish miles. The water for the day was far and few between. I went about 4 miles to the Green Valley Ranger Station to fetch the first water of the day. To keep this day short and sweet; it was hot and it was long. I still had about 12 miles left by 3pm since I barely moved during the most intense part of the day. There was a lot of poodle-bush in this section; a poisonous plant that produce irritation on your skin. As I walking, I crossed a dirt road and heard someone yell my name. I stopped in my tracks and it was a fellow hiker named Grandma. She told me to take the road walk as it cuts off a mile and the next few miles on trail was filled with the poisonous plant. Happily, I followed grandma on the dirt road. She offered me some candy and we discussed our respective hikes as we haven’t seen each other in a while. I actually met Grandma on Day One and saw her again when I skipped the miles. It was fun hiking with her and finished the day following the sunset. I got to the camp late-ish.
Sunset on the roadwalk
Day 31 – to Hikertown
Anotha Day Anotha unholy hot day. The goal was to get to hikertown – a strange but iconic spot on the PCT. It is a little plot of land that has many mini Hollywood sets near Lancaster, CA – within the middle of the Mojave Desert.
When I woke up that day I got my water from the strangest water source I have ever seen. It was a water tank that looked like a tank that I had to create a contraption to fetch the liquid. With a trekking pole, a stick, and a 2 liter CNOC bag, I dipped my project into the water while lying on the dirt floor. I felt so gross but grateful that this existed. The other water sources in the area had reports of floating dead mice and this was supposedly clear. It tasted good enough and I am posting this blog far in enough in the future to confidently report that I did not get sick.
my contraption (for a video, follow @zeaglehikes) on instagram
I went back to my campsite as the water source was 0.3 miles off trail and began to pack up. I did not start my hike until 8am that day. It was mostly downhill but I was really struggling. At one point, I laid out my groundtarp (a tyvex sheet that I usually put under m tent) and curled up on the ground underneath some shade. For the third day in a row, I could my sweat drenching all of my clothes on my body. Full drops of water leaked down my hair and my eyes began to sting wondering why I was doing this. Not every day is comfortable or fun. This felt like torture and according to my Garmin Weather app, it wasn’t suppose to be that hot. Yet here I was, unable to move due to feeling like I was existing in a sauna.
With some spoonfuls of Nutella, I motivated myself to keep going. Apparently, there was a incredible water source coming up that might be vital for my physical and mental state. When I arrived, I saw Grandma and about four other hikers hanging out in the shade. They confirmed that it was actually 96 degrees and they have also been struggling. Seeing them made me feel revived and reminded why I am here. Being uncomfortable is apart of the journey. The high highs will always be coupled with the low lows. Perhaps it is a ying and yang relationship. And little did I know, the next day will be my all time favorite experience.
I reached the 500 mile marker!
I arrived at hikertown at 6:30pm where I was immediately greeted by dogs and authentic mexican ice cream. I hung out for a bit and just enjoyed. It felt good to be somewhere with reliable service, reliable shade, and reliable water. I ended up cowboy camping under the stars in the field of hikertown, trying to get as much rest as possible for the following day; the Tehachapi Challenge.
Hikertown
Day 32/33 – to Tehachapi, 40 miles in 23 hours!!!
These two days blurred into one and it felt like my body was unstoppable. The next section of the hike was through the LA
Aquaduct that runs through the Mojave desert and is notoriously hot with no shade. The tradition is to this section at night, and if you are crazy, keep pushing to the road that gets into Tehachapi – a total of 41 miles according to Far Out. I love a good challenge and I was getting excited to attempt it.
But before I could begin the hike, I had to hang out all day because I wasn’t going to begin the challenge until 7am. I unfortunately did wake up at 6am but then I got to shower which was very needed. Afterwards, I got a shuttle to the Neenach Cafe and Market which was ran by the same people who own hikertown. There is some rivalry with this market and the Weeville market. But I decided to go to the path of least resistance which was the Neenach. I spent majority of my day within their four air conditioned walls, while hanging out with the hikers that were all around me. I really enjoyed it as I spent all of my money on the food in the cafe.
At the Cafe!
While hanging out, Avocado and Free Lunch showed up and the Wrightwood crew was almost complete again!!! (Emily and Pia – we missed you!!). I had my LA Aquaduct crew – Collie, Jonathon, Avocado and Free Lunch. My heart was full again – the gang is getting back together. There were plentiful of other thru-hikers around me whom I also equally enjoyed their company. I also saw Hot Dog again and he did this section at 1pm. His quote him – he was a “roasted Hot Dog.” For me, the majority of this day felt like relaxation and rejuvenation before the big challenge.
the start of the walk!
At 6:00pm, we came back to hikertown which is very close to the trail. At 7pm, we began. With headlamps fully charged and giggles that filled the air, we walked towards the huge metal tube that run through the ground for miles. It felt like a high. This was an iconic section of the PCT that I was looking forward to before my hike. I think it is so cool that you follow the LA water supply for 18 flat miles in the middle of a true desert. Though we could hear the water under our feet, we had no way to access it.
aquaduct!
I was super stoked that we began our hike late in the evening because I was still somehow sweating. I was so glad that I did not join Hot Dog for his 1pm aquaduct experience. It felt warm and the actual hike was a bit boring. But the five of us filled the air with literally whatever we could think of. Our conversations ping-pinged around to a in-depth swedish history lesson, detailed summaries of the audiobooks we have been listening to, and learning more about one another. The full moon was the next day, so we gleefully allowed the moonlight to illuminate our path for us. The joshua trees danced in the shadows as we listened to Harvest Moon by Neill Young. (Even though we were under the almost Strawberry Moon).
Free Lunch walking on the aquaduct
Around 12:30am, we approached mile 18, there was a bridge with reliable water and Collie, Jonaton, and Free Lunch decided to stop. Free Lunch debated on continuing but he already did 19 miles that morning to get to hikertown so to say it in slang, he was “cooked.” (tired). I was ready to keep going but I waited for Avocado to decide whether she wanted to continue or not. And I wasn’t sure if I would have continued if she did not. But she decided to another five miles with me. We turned on our headlamps, and the trail took a turn into one of the largest wind farms in the country. We walked right through them as they glowed red in the nightsky. We also saw multiple mice. At 4:30am, we reached Avocado’s intended campsite. With red bull flowing through my veins and excitement, I wanted to keep going.
me and redbull <3
At 5am, the morning light began to glow right as my headlamp began to dim. My headlamp was dying and it was perfect timing. I reached Tylerhorse Canyon and decided to an hour break to eat and refill on water. With no sleep, I decided to continue. I saw a fellow hiker named Little Prince through conversing with him, realized I am actually exhausted and needed to take a nap. So, with the first somewhat clear spot, I set up my tent and took a quick 45 minute nap with my sun umbrella situated in my tent to block the rays beating down on me.
blocking the sun!
Afterwards, I felt refreshed and started to think I could actually complete this challenge. I broke down my quick camp spot and continued onward. I just cruised. It felt like something clicked in my body and my steps came naturally. My legs propelled rather than protest. My spirits were high and I felt like I was floating through the trail. Around 12:30, I completed the last big climb before the road to Tehachapi. On top, there was a water cache that was maintained by a trail angel with umbrellas and some fresh fruit. I met Mulligan up there and we chatted for a bit. We had 10 miles to go, all downhill.
Mulligan and I decided that we were going to get a ride into town together and I was planning on staying a trail angel’s house, Stay Gold, during my stay in Tehachapi.
two miles out from the road!! feeling good
I flew for the last 10 miles. I felt so strong with no usual body aches or pains. I ended up getting to the road around 5:40pm – marking the completion of the challenge within 22 hours and 40 minutes. I felt so proud of myself!!!
Mulligan and I got a ride into town with a woman named Cheryl whose number was posted at the trailhead. I was dropped off at Stay Gold’s house and was greeted by so many thru-hikers who also completed the Tehachapi Challenge; Grandma, Speedgoat, Quinn, Alex, and Little Prince. We ordered pizza together and cozied up on Stay Gold’s couch. I also met Stellahikes, who is a hiker attempting to complete all three long distance backpacking trails in the USA in one calendar year!! (Appalachian, Continental Divide, and Pacific Crest Trails). Highly recommend following her journey @stellahikes on instagram.
me and stellahikes!
I fell asleep with the highest of highs. I felt so good about myself and my body. Here are the stats (not including breaks).
(only walking time)
Day 33
I took a fat zero in Tehachapi. It was very needed and I got to resupply at Walmart. I am very grateful for Stay Gold’s hospitality. Thank you for a refreshing and beautiful stay in his home :). I also got to see the LA aquaduct crew on this zero and see Pablo and Flo who I haven’t seen since Palm Springs!! The highs are highs and the lows are lows and I am joyous to experience every nook and cranny thru-hiking has to offer.
Thank you Stay Gold!!
