Day 11
Sonya and I decided to hike the fire alternate route and then hitch from the highway. The past couple days were hot and we moved slow. Today was no different. We had been pushing past 20 mile days since leaving Mount Laguna and we were tired and hurting.
I’m so glad that we didn’t pass up the alternate route, as the scenery was beautiful! There was old burned area and the wind whipped us on the ridge.
Once we got to the highway, we waited about 10 minutes for a ride. A guy that recently moved from South Carolina picked us up. He told us about his three daughters that were either working as nurses or going to school for nursing. He dropped us off at an intersection of two highways, as he was continuing past.
The next guy that gave drove us the last miles into Idyllwild was a local. He enjoyed picking up hikers and listening to our trail stories. After a quick tour of the town he dropped us off at La Casita, a Mexican restaurant. Sonya and I had been craving tacos all day!
Afterward we met up with Papa Oats and his brother. They had a cabin and offered us floor space for the night.
Day 12 – zero day
Taking a full day of rest in Idyllwild was great. I had coffee and pastries, picked up my resupply package, ate a lot of food and had a flight at the local brewery.
It is crazy watching and being a hiker in town. We all move at a much slower pace than when we are hiking. The hiker hobble takes over, when your muscles freeze from resting too long, and then you slowly limp around.
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