5/27/17

Day 34
Miles: 465.50 to 477
Climbing 3,000 feet on a 85 degree day can be fun. Seriously. All you have to do is set your alarm for 4:00 in the morning and hike most of the elevation before the sun lays its scorching fingers on you. And it certainly helps when the terrain cooperates and the trail is carved on the shady side of the slope. 

That way we did our first ten by ten, and it only took us an hour more to walk to a paved road leading to Green Valley, small town with gas station, convenience store, and most importantly Casa de Luna.

Casa de Luna, just like Hiker Heaven, is a trail angel’s house open to PCT hikers. It is a great place to take a nero with plenty of space to chill and meet other hikers, and every night there is a taco salad dinner, and every morning coffee and pancakes are served for breakfast. Today we were lucky, to celebrate Memorial Day weekend, we also got treated to a barbecue. Man was the chicken and corn good. 

In the evening, newcomers receive their PCT bandanas here which are donated by former PCT thru hiker Gotta Go. 

What I really enjoyed about the place, was the sleeping arrangement. Behind the house there is a path leading to a madrona like tree forest with small sites built among the trees. It’s the most unexpected thing, and you can nearly feel a hint of magic when setting up your tent.

After a great feast, we finally found our way to bed way past hikers midnight. Hopefully the calories consumed today will help us fly up the big uphill we are facing first thing tomorrow morning.