I unexpectedly got signal on my phone this morning and have been sitting on the same rock for about 3 hours in the sun replying to emails, comments and bouncing my mail forward from Tehachapi. I also ordered new insoles from REI to be sent to Independence (who knew feet could be so expensive and needy!)

All of the shaded areas are infested with fire ants so I’m baking out here but wanted to use this opportunity for a quick update. Your comments have been truly inspiring! Because of the lack of signal I haven’t been able to respond to them all, but I love reading your reactions and feedback. Please keep it coming. I also realised in my Breakdown into KM post I hadn’t posted the Academy Award winning crying video. It’s updated now and rivals the rattle snake video for entertainment value.

The Sierras are absolutely stunning and everyone seems to be quite content moving slowly through them. I left camp last again at 8:45am this morning and despite my 3 hours plus break here I haven’t seem another hiker since which I’m thoroughly enjoying. I am hoping that UB will catch up soon though and won’t be too upset that I left him behind in KM. We have talked about climbing Mt Whitney together so many times so I’m completely slowing the pace so we make it there around the same time.

After climbing the peak yesterday we had another 6.7 miles to walk to water and camp. It was 6pm when we left the base and made it to camp at 8pm after motoring with our heavy packs. The gang from the night before were there sitting around a campfire and I had just enough light left to get water from the spring, find a place to camp and change into my sleep clothes. I had to cook dinner in the dark after everyone went to sleep already but thoroughly enjoyed the mac, cheese and tuna I prepared.

The climb yesterday rejuvenated me and put me in high spirits that have continued into today. I think slower mornings with coffee and oatmeal are doing me well and despite my pack weight I was walking a lot better today. I had a squirrel gnaw into my trail mix today and there’s some kind or scary bee with a huge stinger that likes to fly close to me, but other than that nature has been good to me and after I post this entry I’m looking forward to some more climbing into the mountains.

Just climbed 12,900 feet (3520 meters) up Olancha Peak just off the PCT to get cell reception and the last two posts out! It’s amazing up here but I don’t think many other thru hikers will experience it with Mt Whitney only 50 miles away. I’m up here with a hiker I just met today called The Godfather. He started the same day as me but I only bumped into him today. I won’t have signal for at least another 80 miles at Independence.

I’m cowboy camping under a huge rock up the hill from at least 7 other hikers tonight, 15 miles from Kennedy Meadows. It was definitely one of the more stressful ‘town’ stops with so much to rethink and prepare for the Sierras and very little time to rest.

I was so thankful Dr Sole was there, not only to look after my feet but also for my sanity. His motorhome and shaded sitting area became my home to eat, sit and repack my pack at least 20 times. I got lucky twice yesterday jumping in on the last laundry cycle with Mud and Dingo before the water ran out and I even scored myself a bed in one of Tom’s caravans with Mermaid!

In the afternoon I bumped into John, the local guy with wifi, so UB and I were able to get some of our posts and videos out and check a few emails. The connection was slow so I wasn’t able to upload all of my posts or videos but I was happy to make some kind of contact with the outside world. Sadly it’s going to be at least another 7 days until I get connection in Independence.

I slept well in the trailer bed but woke with the sun and was actually lucky to get to Dr Sole’s in time to snag the last two breakfast burritos. Afterwards I checked on UB who was in need of more rest and food before departing into the Sierras. This left me with the tough decision of staying one more day in KM or heading out solo. In the end I decided I just couldn’t sit around for another day with the anxiety of the Sierras building and left for the trail just after 10am.

My pack is super heavy with a bear canister, ice axe and extra clothing. I don’t need the ice axe but I couldn’t send it to Canada from the KM store so I decided just to carry it with me to Independence. I’ve put my sleeping bag in the bear canister and carry it on top of my pack. It fell off twice today, luckily not over a steep ridge or I would have lost two very important items. I’m working on a better way to secure it.

I had to stop a lot today because of the weight of my pack and about 6 miles in I found a shady spot under a tree and actually slept for about an hour. I obviously needed a little more rest than I thought. There were lots of hikers heading to the campsite 15 miles in so I didn’t feel rushed at all going that distance and had quite an enjoyable walk through some beautiful scenery. I saved two hikers a long walk back to the river by giving them a litre of my water and walked with another solo girl Katie for a while before hitting the last stretch into camp.

We’re right next to the Kern River so I got to wash my socks and feet before filling up water for myself, JT and Travis before making dinner around the campfire. It was the first time I actually ate my vegetable cous cous and I really liked it after adding a bit of mashed potato.

Before bed I started putting all my food in my bear canister and realised I should have tested it back in KM because it doesn’t all fit. I should also have my toothpaste and deodorant in there too… Eeeeek! Hopefully I’ll eat enough tomorrow so that I can squeeze it all in tomorrow night. I’ve put the canister on the other side of the rock I’m sleeping next to and have my ice axe in arms reach in case anything tries to attack me or my backpack. It’s a good thing I’m camping in a big group tonight!

I’m laying on the back seat of Dr Sole’s truck which is the closest I’m going to get to a bed for at least another week. I finally reached Kennedy Meadows this afternoon at 4:45pm after a drama packed day and 25 miles. It’s been an emotional day all round and I’m honestly feeling the most out of my comfort zone since I started this trip. I’m overwhelmed by preparations for the Sierras as I have so much gear and most hikers seem to be taking so little. No one seems to be taking an ice axe or micro spikes and all of the extra layers I packed into my box are deemed unnecessary by those who have hiked this section before. Will I be camping in snow, how cold will it be and can I survive out there on my own? After two days of solo hiking through the toughest section for me on this hike I think I’ve lost a little self confidence and am slightly frightened by the thought of being on my own in the Sierras. UB and I have talked of hiking together but after he successfully completed 52 miles in under 24 hours with two other hikers I realise he’s in a whole other league and eventually our differing hiking speeds will separate us.

I was up at 4:30am and broke camp an hour later having to pack up my tent for the first morning in a long time. I filled up water at a stream I wasn’t expecting to find 3 miles away and had breakfast and coffee 5 miles in at one of the springs. I could tell by the heat of the morning without the sun that it was going to be a hot hot day. What I wasn’t expecting was a 10 mile stretch along a continuous ridge with no shade, surrounded by burnt out trees. About 4 miles into the unforgiving repetitiveness of this horrible section I started to lose it. Each corner I rounded only provided a view of more of the same shadeless rocky stretch and eventually I just broke down.

When I finally pulled myself together I spent the last 5 miles singing at the top of my lungs to distract myself from the trail and the intense pain in my feet. Half a mile from my next water source I walked past a huge rattle snack that rattled so loudly I ran back up the trail before turning around to see it slithering towards me. It seemed to slither into a hole so that I could only see its rattle poking out but when I made a mad dash past it, it rattled so ferociously that I literally squealed and jumped in the air. The end of the video is worth the wait! 🙂

The water source I got to barely had water at all so I decided to rest my feet, clean my socks and eat and just fill up at the river four miles away. Luckily I was carrying enough water for this luxury. I found a nice shady spot but there were fire ants everywhere and after being bitten twice I quickly packed up and moved on.

The next stretch was probably the flattest of the whole trail and thankfully so as the heat was almost unbearable. If it wasn’t for the thought of the Kern River coming up I don’t know how I would have made it. I found a perfect spot to fill up water and then took off my shorts and wore the rest of my clothes in the river. I was able to put my whole head under water and scrub 7 days of dirt off my body. I felt like a new woman coming out of there, and although my feet were still aching I felt like I flew through the final 5 miles almost missing the 700 mile mark.

When I got to Kennedy Meadows I overshot the road and had to come back after seeing Phil waving his arms at me from the top of the road. He was on his way to the river for a swim and handed me a beer for the final 0.7 mile walk up to the store. When I got there I found Dr Sole’s camper van and UB and Snort sitting up there under the shade. Dr Sole went to work on my feet straight away and also had a look at my finger which has been in a splint for almost 2 weeks now. It’s healing well but may still need some time.

Once my feet were done I went to the store and picked up my resupply and bounce box, plus my Salomon shoes which I don’t need anymore and a package from Stephanie with a pair of Wright socks and some Cliff bars. Thank you SO very much!!

Dr Sole cooked me up the biggest steak I’ve ever eaten and corn on the cob. He even washed my and Snort’s hair so I’ve been extremely spoiled, plus I get to sleep in the back of the car as opposed to the ground. There was a local who came by tonight who said he has wifi, and given there is no signal here and nothing until Independence I’m going to have to hit him up tomorrow to get these posts out. It’s been so depressing to not be able to post my updates, receive comments or any emails or texts. I think it’s a contributing factor to my mental state at the moment.

Tomorrow I need to do laundry, shower and sort out my pack and gear. I hope I can sleep in a little as I think the lack of sleep is adding to my Sierra anxiety. Goodnight from KM.

This feels like the never ending trail section, and even after a 27 mile push today from Walker Pass I’m still 23 miles from Kennedy Meadows. I haven’t had signal for four days now which is obviously frustrating as I can’t post any of the blog entries I’ve written since the crazy wind storm leaving Tehachapi.

I’m lying in my tent for the first time since the crazy thunder storm I was caught in departing Big Bear. I’m camping alone tonight and after coming across a bear on the trail today I feel I need some protection from the wilderness. The bear was very young and although I wasn’t scared of it, I was terrified its mum was going to come around the corner and attack me.

The day started with trail magic and Yogi cooking us pancakes. I managed to eat five and wash them down with coffee made by Meadow Ed who I only learned today was the man in Cheryl Strayed’s book ‘Wild’ who goes through her monster pack and helps her lighten it. He has been doing trail magic in Kennedy Meadows for over a decade which is how he got his name, but now he goes to Walker Pass because it’s a campground with no accessible water and it’s in the middle of a huge dry stretch. I can’t thank everyone who was helping out there enough for looking after us so well.

I left camp after breakfast at 6:30am and started with a huge climb out of Walker Pass. I was soon overtaken by UB, Phil and Henry on their 52 mile mission to Kennedy Meadows. I wonder how they’re doing. Honestly after 27 miles my feet completely gave up despite so many encouraging massages along the way to even get me here. I did do the first 19 miles in my camp sandals because of my new blisters but went back to shoes for the last stretch because of all the sharp stones on the trail today.

I think we all got a little too comfortable in the desert today skipping one of the water sources 1/4 mile off trail to go 19 miles to a stream which was barely running. On top of that me and many other hikers today only left camp with about 3 litres and with so much climbing in the heat of the day we were pretty dry by the time we reached the muddy stream.

Because my water pump had broken, UB had left behind one of his litre bottles of water for me and his big 4L Platypus with Dingo and Mud. I was so very thankful but at the same time concerned with how much water he’s carrying on this huge dry stretch. The water report is a little outdated because it said the stream was flowing well but it’s obviously dried up a lot since then. I’m worried about the herd of hikers behind us who will really struggle with water through this stretch.

I cooked Ramen noodles and salmon for lunch/dinner while I was at the stream and a few more hikers caught up including two girls I met on Day 1. Despite the heat I left the stream at 4:30pm with the aim of doing at least another 7 miles so I have the same distance to do again tomorrow to get to Kennedy Meadows. Dingo, Mud and most of the other hikers today stopped at the top of the ridge about 5 miles back so I’m very much alone out here tonight. After seeing the bear, then a baby snake and having a bee fly into my shirt I’m on higher animal alert than normal but am looking forward to a good night sleep with no wind at all. It’s actually deathly silent which means I can hear everything moving outside the tent. I just freaked out at something scratching outside. Time to turn out the lights!

This is the first night on the trail where I really don’t feel like writing this blog. I wasn’t in a great headspace when we started walking early this morning at 6am but it wasn’t until around 7am that I realised that UB was in a far worse headspace than me.

I’ve learned a lot about UB over these last 600 miles, but today I think he opened up on a whole new level about events that have happened in his life and some parts honestly disturbed and enraged me so much that as we hiked on I honestly lost all of my energy to even put one foot in front of the other.

We walked about 4 miles before stopping to make breakfast, then another couple before I needed to stop to put on my hat and sunscreen because the heat suddenly returned in force, then again half an hour later where I actually fell asleep for a while. I felt a lot better after the quick power nap and a few snacks and took the lead for the 7 mile stretch into Walker Pass campground. We hoped there would be some water left there because we were running low and it didn’t seem we would make the 28 mile haul to the next source.

About three miles down the trail UB took the lead when I detoured around a fallen tree and this is when I realised his head space hadn’t improved despite the long counselling session. He threw his hiking poles in the air and when one landed on the trail he picked it up and threw it off the side of the mountain into the trees below. I won’t go into the cause of this sudden outburst as I know he will tell his own story on his blog one day, but a little bit further down the trail he pulled to the side so I could continue on ahead.

When I was in sight of the campground and could see what I hoped to be trail magic up ahead I sat in the shade and waited for UB to catch up so we could walk in together. When he reached me he was not good, and about ready to end his trail experience then and there. We talked for a while but my positive words and encouragement didn’t make much of a difference until we entered the campground to a round of applause from the other hikers sitting there in the shade enjoying food and beverages from the incredible trail angels present.

We were handed an ice cream sandwich, told to offload our packs and then sat down under cover to enjoy cold drinks and a table full of food. UB and I looked at one another in complete disbelief and I could tell that only human nature of this kind would be able to change his mind about the trail.

Once again I over indulged on cake, chips, beer, soda and then dinner of spaghetti, chicken, polenta and salad. I donated $20 but that didn’t even seem enough given the way this trail magic transformed our day from one of the darkest to something so positive. It’s 52 miles to Kennedy Meadows from here and the challenge was set to see if anyone could make it in 24 hours. There’s no way in the world I’d even attempt it but UB, Andrew, Phil and another dude are going to depart at 6am tomorrow and give it a shot. I’m going to try my best to make it in two days given my new heel blister and the heat over the next couple of days.

I’m in my sleeping bag with a terrible headache right now but I’m glad I got to write this all down. It’s been a long day but I honestly feel that hitting Kennedy Meadows will be a new beginning after the desert into the Sierras!

We didn’t get a peep of cell signal today which meant that I haven’t been able to contact the post office in Tehachapi to bounce my box and socks to Kennedy Meadows and UB hasn’t been able to contact his mum who is meant to be meeting him this weekend. I also haven’t been able to post my blog entries and hope I’ll be able to get this out tomorrow.

Today was completely relaxed and one of the most chilled we’ve had on the trail so far. I didn’t sleep that well again but in the morning it was already bright by the time I poked my head out of my sleeping bag. We had a snack before leaving camp then hiked 2 miles before stopping to make breakfast burritos and coffee. We sat with a hiker called Legend who was one of the first people I met on the trail on Day 1.

I felt good after a proper breakfast but because I’ve lost quite a lot of weight and my hip belt is now as tight as it will go, it started rubbing really badly on my hip bones to the point that my skin started to bleed. I successfully fashioned padding out of a pair of socks and now the pack sits more comfortably around my waist. I may need to contact ULA for a small hip belt regardless.

We paused again after another 6 miles when we thought we had cell coverage but sadly not enough to send a text or make a call. Instead we looked at photos on our phones from before the trail. Everything prior to the trail feels like years ago and it was scary how far removed that reality now feels. We’re definitely in a bubble out here on the trail and sometimes it really hits me just how incredible it is to be free in the wilderness for this amount of time. I was even saying to UB after we decided to break at 3pm, eat then sleep till 6pm, then walk again, that we make our own time out here. You can sleep, eat and hike whenever you wish really, other than the weather to guide your decisions it’s really up to you.

The desert section we crossed today would have been extremely hot with limited shade, but the temperature this week has been so mild and the wind is still so strong that I didn’t even wear my big rimmed hat through one of the hottest sections. Today I tried a pair of UB’s socks called Dry Max which he swears by and I’ve got to say they worked a treat. Even my existing blisters didn’t hurt as much. I also went back to wearing the original insoles of my shoes as I think the heavy gel ones I got from Dave in Mount Laguna might actually be hurting the bottoms of my feet. UB has heard the broken record of my foot bitching for weeks now but I’m really hoping after Dr Sole has a look at them in Kennedy Meadows and hopefully rids me of my old blisters, I’ll be in good shape moving forward.

15 miles into our day we reached the last water cache for 25 miles which is the longest waterless stretch on the trail so far. This was the reason we decided to rest until evening because we had a huge climb straight after the water which would have drained our supply too quickly.

We’re now up in the mountains again and I can feel the Sierras are right around the corner. We ate more food today than any other on the trail so I feel we’ll be in great shape leaving Kennedy Meadows next week. The only challenge is getting through this next stretch without running out of water or getting sick from it like many other hikers during this stretch.

I had a terrible sleep again last night, partly due to the wind but also because my poor tummy was rumbling after the Ramen noodles didn’t quite fill the void. I had stuffed a packet of white chocolate Oreo cookies in my sleeping bag to snack on during the night, but the packet of six mini biscuits only left me wanting more.

I was already awake at 5am and knew it was time to rise as the mist started rolling in and the temperature outside started to drop. I was on the trail by 6am and literally walked through cloud, mist and drops of rain for the first four hours of the day.

For the first time on the trail I reached the 600 mile milestone alone and was all rugged up in my rain jacket trying to keep warm. I stopped once on the trail before the first water source when I finally got signal to post my blog from the night before but my hands were so cold I could hardly type and uploading all of the pictures took 30 freezing cold minutes. When I was done I put gloves on and ran a mile down the trail to warm up my poor freezing body.

We walked through paddocks of cows and a number of hikers encountered a huge bull right in the middle of the trail. Lucky for me he was off to the side when I passed but I still took caution after the chapter in Wild where Cheryl gets charged by the bull which had to be in this very location.

I grabbed enough water to get me to the water cache 15 miles away and was able to borrow Birdman’s windshield to make coffee around 9am. At 10 the sun finally broke through the clouds and suddenly the whole environment around me changed into beautiful forest.

When I stopped for lunch I had to pop one of my old blisters on my heel which has flared up again and rub the soles of my feet which are REALLY starting to hurt. I don’t know if it’s the new insoles or overuse but this pain feels pretty serious and flares up around the 10 mile mark. I tried using Dr Sole’s magic green potion on them but even that didn’t ease the pain. I’m hoping two days off in Kennedy Meadows will do them a world of good. Sadly I still have just under 100 miles until I get there.

I had two great surprises as my lunch stop today. The first was seeing UB coming up the trail having put in some serious miles to catch up with me, and the second was he had my stove windshield, bowl, cup and spoon that I’d lost!! Miraculously he bumped into Robin and Garth who had picked it up for me not far from where I left them at camp. I’m so relieved to have them back! Thank you Robin, Garth and UB!

After lunch we hiked another 7 miles to the water cache and stopped once so I could tend to my aching feet. I think I need to take the next few days easy and just rest them when they flair up. Tonight UB cooked up a feast of macaroni, beef, rice and beans, a nice change from Top Ramen. I have a Snickers bar on the ready but I’m hoping tonight that my belly’s so full I won’t be waking up for a midnight snack.

We’ve had zero reception for the last week and somehow I’ve managed to find a local in Kennedy Meadows to invite UB and I back to his house to use wifi! Thank you so much John! He’s even preparing me a Corona and lime as we speak…

Here’s a few more videos of the terrible weather I experienced that I hadn’t been able to post.

I barely slept last night after escaping the 70mph winds on the ridge top and finding shelter with Robin and Garth. It was so windy that I had to cover my entire head with my sleeping bag, and because I jumped in fully clothed, I had to empty my pockets to sleep comfortably which meant I had my phone charger and cords, maps, wet wipes, Advil, a few loose Jolly Ranchers and my wallet floating around inside my sleeping bag too.

I woke to a beautiful sunrise and relived the previous night again with Robin and Garth, showing them the videos I took of the experience. I packed up in about 15 minutes and must finally have my systems dialled in because Robin said it was like watching a ‘how to get ready in the morning’ hiker video. They also said they’d never seen anyone get into their sleeping bag faster than I did last night.

I thought the worst of the wind was over but was bitterly disappointed as soon as I came into a clearing on the top of the mountain and got pounded again. It sucked the life out of me and I stopped to rest a few times, trying to determine if the smart thing was to go on or not. When it started to rain I knew I had to keep moving or I’d freeze.

It took me about 45 minutes to travel one mile but I was rewarded by the sight of a tent up ahead and found the Swedes (Laptop and Feather) and Lullaby, Travis and Ninja Tank all camped together. They had all experienced the insane winds yesterday but managed to bunker down early enough to stay protected overnight.

I was thankful to have hiking company but the worst was actually behind us and the 12 miles to the next water source was easy in comparison. The boys chose to rest in the sun so I carried on solo to get to the water so I could enjoy my cup of coffee for the day. Unfortunately on the way I discovered I’d lost my Caldera Cone cup and bowl, the windshield for my stove and my only spork. Thankfully I still had the soda can element and my pot but the windshield I tried to fashion out of stones didn’t work at all well and it took 3 times the fuel to even get close to boiling water!

I was also sad to discover that after lending my water filter to another hiker who thought he may have broken it, that it is totally inoperable. This means I’m carrying dead weight 135 miles and I’ll have to use the Aqua tabs I’m carrying as a backup. Thankfully Travis has lent me some bleach in case I run out of tabs in this long stretch.

Travis and I headed out from the lunch stop ahead of the pack and I chewed his ear off having not had a hiking partner for a full day. I never realised how chatty I can be after spending just a day on my own. He let me go ahead either while he took a toilet break or just to rest his ears, so I carried on at a decent pace through a long stretch of burnt out forest until my feet were too sore to continue.

After some tender love and care they were able to carry me another 3 miles to the campsite I was aiming for, 22 miles from where I stated this morning which given the conditions isn’t so bad. The whole group decided to stop here for the night and we even bumped into Birdman and Cowboy who were camping within earshot of us. I borrowed Travis’ windshield to cook my Top Ramen and his spoon to eat. I really need to sort myself out with a new windshield, bowl, cup and spoon by Kennedy Meadows! It’s an early night for me in bed by 9pm, hopefully I’ll get a better night’s sleep tonight.