The plan was to sleep until noon. The sun had other ideas. By 8 or 9am it was already too hot to stay in the tent — I climbed out of the sleeping bag and then out of the tent as quickly as possible, looking for shade. Plenty of trees around, but none where my tent actually stood. Most hikers had already left for town early.
I made breakfast as usual, moved everything into the shade, and left the tent standing. Later a French hiker came past whose hotspot I could borrow to check on my solar panel delivery. Another four days, apparently. So I decided to walk on and take a bus back from the next town — not ideal, but the best idea I had.
I stayed a bit longer anyway. A German couple I’ve met several times turned up, and we ended up talking for a while. I finally got moving around 2pm. Didn’t get far — about 3.5 miles. Then I turned off the trail onto a genuinely terrible dirt road, the kind I wouldn’t trust even with a tractor. From there it was another 2.5 miles to a bus stop. I had to hurry, but I caught the next bus into Big Bear. The bus is free, incidentally. That seems to be common in touristy parts of the US, which is pleasant.
I went to an outfitter and picked up a few things, including a new headlamp — rechargeable rather than battery-powered. Black Diamond Storm. Significantly bigger and stronger than the last one. The shop is about a quarter hiking gear, the rest fishing equipment. Lures, rods, clothing, even bow-fishing kits. A pretty cool shop, even if I was mainly there for the hiking section.
By then it was nearly 6pm. A hostel nearby for about $36 a night — I planned to stay two nights and take a zero day. The rooms sleep eight, though only three beds were taken. A nice place, with a common room and a ping-pong table. I had a long conversation with a retired geologist — genuinely interesting. Ended up using the kitchen and cooking the way I do on the trail rather than ordering pizza.
A brief moment of panic when booking the room — I couldn’t find my passport and was already imagining the worst. It was tucked away in a different pocket than usual. All fine.
An entertaining day. New faces, good conversations, and a few ping-pong games with the other hikers.