aidasinks
aidasinksJun 8th 2025
1/10

Day 58

Tyndall creek to bishop - 21.6 miles Total - 790.1 miles Today was the day we did our first pass and I was estatic but tired. My pad deflated about a 1/3 of the way last night so I knew I might have a hole in it. I only blew it up once throughout the night. Caleb apparently blew his up 5 times. We got out of camp first expecting the crew to catch up to us as they are fast as fuck. We had 5 miles to the top of forester, the tallest point on the PCT (13,200). Since we did the Unitas high line trail I felt confident on passes but I’ve never done a snow covered pass. All the way up we were unsure where we were going to start going steeply up and over the ridge. Every guess was absolutely wrong. It was worse than we thought. We got to the base of the steep climb after a couple of easy snow fields and followed the boot tracks up. Most of the switchbacks were still covered in snow and the boot tracks were solid in the shade. We decided to go up with no spikes as again I felt confident with my feet and the snow was hard. Straight up we went on a steep slope until we reached a part of trail that had no snow. It was a couple more switchbacks until probably the scariest part of the day. We had to cross a 10 foot fully exposed spot. Boot tracks were there but it was hella steep. A guy named flapjack easily did it with no spikes or ice axe so I thought I would just give it a go as the top was 20 feet away from us. Halfway through the snowfield was a slightly sloped down boot track where you could easily lose traction. I had to pause and just go for it trusting my feet that I would not slip. I safely made it across, breathing hard, terrified, realizing I should’ve had spikes on and an ice axe in my hand. Dad did it quickly. I kept repeating to myself how scary that was over and over and over again. Hiked a few more feet and then started to tear up from just the emotion of it all. It wasn’t bad tears at all it was thankful tears as it was our first pass together, I was so happy dad was there to give me the confidence to even do that snowfield, and it was breathtaking. The views were phenomenal and I was just grateful to even be there in the first place as again, probably 1% of people in the world see these mountains in this sort of aspect. Everything combined together was just amazing. We then stopped at the top to take it all in. We saw a group of four that took the glissade down but were postholing to get back up trail so we decided with the boot track to the rocky ridge approach. So we strapped on our spikes and grabbed our ice axes and got moving. It was soft on the other side of the pass so I’m glad we finally used our spikes. We are carrying them so might as well use them. Got to the ridge and saw our first pika! And a marmot of course. Love those guys. Once we got to the rocky ridge we took everything off again lol only to have to glissade down a small part with our ice axes. Lots of fun though and just the right amount of speed to feel comfortable. We saw our group take the first glissade aka we heard them yippee! Then we saw them take the second glissade down which was apparently super scary at like a 90° angle where people were losing control. Gourmet lost his bear can and whiskey bottle which he was able to find his bear can obvi but not the whiskey. Tragic. Apparently Louisa almost lost full control but was able to recover. Caleb tore his finger apart from the glissade leaving a blood trace in the snow for others to follow. Happy they survived and had fun while doing it but so happy I didn’t do it as I would’ve shit my pants. We then slowly picked our way down the slushy snow slipping and sliding all the way down. Nothing too bad though as we still didn’t have spikes. Sorry Mummi, we lied to you on the phone today. We will be more safe next time. We grabbed some water without filtering because we are in the sierras baby! Fresh snow melt. I will update you if I get sick in three weeks from Giardia. I forgot to mention. I did the 7ish miles from camp to the bottom of the pass with no food in my stomach. The altitude had gotten to me like usual where I can’t stomach anything. I did it on one garnola bar and a couple of bites of a raspberry pop tart at the top of the pass. I felt great though but I know I’m paying for it. Sierras will be the place I lose the most weight for sure. I have been pretty consistent on my weight so far mostly just losing fat and building muscle but staying the same weight. I need more calories. Never enough calories. We stopped for an early lunch and I tried to stuff my face with food at 10:30 to make it to the next stop. I started to realize that we needed to pick up the pace a lil as we still had like 13 miles to go to make it into the campground before town. We had multiple plans but the ideal plan was make it to the campground where we could hitch into town and stay the night. So it was a quick break and we were on the move again after talking to Marc and Caleb for a lil. Right after we left dad rolled his ankle. This is what reroute got taken off trail for early on so I started to hyper analyze his walking and pestering him with questions which he obviously loved. I had to go up front after a mile so he could get some peace and quiet. It was all downhill but it was still slow moving as there wee patches of snow fields scattered throughout the valley. It was gorgeous though as trees rose up with mountains on both sides of you. You could also see the aftermath of avalanches showing the power that they hold with the trees snapped like twigs. Beautiful. We cruised to the bottom, a lil down on morale knowing we still had another pass to finish before town. I was worried as clouds were starting to form above the mountains in the direction we were going, looking a lil dark and thundery but it wasn’t a problem at all thankfully. We had two more steep climbs which was difficult in the heat of the day. It wasn’t necessarily hot temp wise but the sun blasting down on you felt like you were being fried. Snow in the hat helped a lot. We finally made it to kearsage pass trail to bring us to the trailhead to get a hitch. 8 miles left and it felt brutal. The climb wasn’t too bad until the very top where it got steep as hell. It was gradual up until then with again, amazing views of alpine lakes and snowy covered peaks. Gorgeous side trail. We past a whole bunch of hikers that I had met in the past so that was fun to catch up a little bit. Everyone knows dad as Aida’s dad. Might be his trail name at this point. Dad kept saying how impressed he was. Californians (no offense) like to play up some of their natural landscape and we weren’t sure if it was true or not but we were entirely wrong. Sierras so far even if it’s still the beginning blew our minds today. We got the top and were promised minimal snow (they fucking lied) to the bottom. It was 4.5 miles to the bottom and it was brutal. All I kept thinking is we have to come back up which is going to fucking suck. Again, gorgeous. It was slow moving and I kept having to take a piss which was annoying but a good sign at the same time. We passed multiple lakes which were calling our names but I only had a burger and bed in my eyes. About 2 miles out I got service and FaceTimed mom which was sun to show her the scenery. Love her. I then booked it to the trailhead as I saw a van with open doors and hikers going up to it. I wanted to see if I could catch them to grab a ride into town. Sadly I missed it. I walked up to a guy asking him if he was staying the night or driving in and he informed me that he was leaving tomorrow morning at 9 to bring hikers in. I was severely disappointed knowing we had a small chance of getting a ride in that night from another driver. There were a couple of day hikers that could be awhile but I wasn’t having it so we sat down on top of a bear box looking all sad when a guy and a girl hiker came down. I explained the situation to them. She said she was going to make herself known to the driver. The guy only spoke French and girl only spoke English so it was a funny dynamic knowing she talks a lot and he smiles and nods. She was hilarious though. Hope to see her up trail. She was talking the driver UP. Everytime we would stare and he would look up we did the whole redirection look so he knew we were not interested in their conversation WHATSOEVER. 40 minutes went by between them talking and laughing before he glanced over to us and waved us and two other girl hikers who recently joined over. Dad was up front and I sat on his lap while the four pages on the guys built out can bed. Once we reached the highway I crawled back into the bed with everyone else and we all spooned. First time meeting everyone and we got close real quick. It was an hour drive into bishop which was another pleasant surprise as independence was closer. We wanted bishop tho so we were happy as clams. We finally get there and get out of the car and the girl who talked the very nice driver up told us she glissade down forester and got glissade rash. She proceeded to show us and I respectfully asked for a pick of her ass. It looked so incredibly painful. She had bled through her shorts and was worried that she bled on his blanket of his bed. She didn’t. Instead we just left our stench in his car, no blood. We stopped at a brewery and we bought the guy dinner aka dad did. We stuffed our faces which was delicious. A woman came up to us and asked if she could buy us pct hikers a pitcher of beer which was so incredibly sweet. Dad is good luck honestly. We then grabbed a motel room (super 8) and headed to bed. Today was insane. Our first pass, dads first 20+ mile day, first hitch for him as well, first town off trail. So much happened and I am so incredibly grateful. I will continue to say that in every post which might get annoying but I truly am so happy right now with where I am at and everything that has happened so far on this trip.

aidasinks
aidasinksJun 8th 2025
1/10

Day 57

Rock creek camp to campground - 14.3 miles Total - 775.9 miles Woke up chilly chilly chilly. All I wanted to do was stay in bed. But we persevered and we were brave and got up. Mostly because I had to pee and take a shit. We got ready and hit the road. Today was the first day my gear didn’t feel as heavy aka the bear can. We did our first river crossing! It was a little sketchy as initially we thought we had to go over this skinny little log but instead we found a better spot with a thicker log to cross. No shoes were wet. We had a steep climb up out of the valley but it felt good! Dad even said he felt great and on the pain scale it was a big fat zero. Which was great since we did 17.5 miles yesterday and we only had a short amount today but we did have more climbing. We then cruised our way to the turn off to mount Whitney which we decided we weren’t going to do. Mainly since we didnt want to push him and also I know I will be back since we live so close that it didn’t seem like a huge deal. Plus I will just try to get Nathan to go with me sometime soon. I was excited as based on what Marc told me, we were probably going to meet back up with the group at camp later today. They got up at 12:30am to do Whitney for sunrise. Absolute units. I would’ve been so cranky. I was excited to hear how it went. We had a little snack at a river before doing another river crossing. Also a lil sketchy but not horrible. The river was gorgeous with grass surrounding the deep river well that then cascaded down in a white flurry with so much power. I was really hungry. I think the altitude is affecting my stomach. I’m so hungry in the morning but can only stomach one garnola bar which powers me until the first lunch break and then I can finish my last few bars for breakfast. I’m starting to hate the food I’m packing which is horrible as it’s light and there’s not many options. We booked it up the next two climbs and met up with Daniel who we had been leap frogging since mile 300. I don’t think I’ve talked about him on here but he’s a sweet guy and always fun to see on trail. We leap frogged him up to the next river crossing which again was a lil bit sketchy as the log was quite thin. I made it across first and then dad. We then had lunch overlooking a grass field with the snowy capped mountains towering over us. We had one more big climb left and it was the best climb we have had so far. Stunning scenery. Vast landscapes with such beastly mountains. You feel so small. I was so incredibly grateful once we peaked and saw 360 views of snowy mountains. Marmots ran around and came close to us. An alpine lake reflected the blue sky. I didn’t realize that I wasn’t having much fun at the start of the sierras until now. It felt like we were going up and down with no reward. This was our reward. And it’s even more baffling that not that many people get to see these landscapes. So many people do not go outside or challenge themselves to see these wonders. So once again, get outside! Cheesy but true. I truly almost cried as I was walking down. Something about the last 750 miles led up to this and I’m so happy I wasn’t injured or quit or had something else happen to me where I didn’t get to experience this. Along with that it was with my dad. Someone who fought tooth and nail when I was younger to get me to enjoy the outdoors and I fought every inch of his efforts. I would not be here without him and my moms efforts to push me to hike and appreciate the outdoors. He will love reading that. I just had to come to my own conclusions. I’m feeling sentimental. We then cruised down the mountain in awe of course with the scenery until we got to our final river crossing of the day. It was a powerful river and it sketched me out a lot. Some guys informed us this was really the only way across. We had done one earlier in the day barefoot but I didn’t feel comfortable with that this time so we went in shoes in all. We had gotten there around 2 so I wasn’t worried that they wouldn’t dry out. Dad went first and created the line that I would follow and then I went. It is a balancing act of letting the water take your foot and placing it where the water wants it to go. You weren’t fighting the water but moving with it. That made it easier but I was still a bit scared and went slow. Especially since I couldn’t see with all the bubbles the rapid was creating. I got across and the guys have a respectable clap which I bowed too lol. We then found some good campsites and waited for the group. I was texting them on garmin and Caleb had texted me earlier their rough plan but they were going to camp 0.5 miles back. First of all, I was a lil upset as I haven’t seen them in 3 whole days. Longest I haven’t seen Caleb at this point so it was a lil weird. So I was trying to be understanding and texted Caleb an update on the river but immediately texted Marc a message that hinted that he should just come to our campsite. In reality I should’ve just been like come here bitches but I was trying to be understanding as they had a long fucking day. Caleb and I discussed this later lol. Dad and I had just started dinner when I spotted Louisa’s bright blue shirt and I quickly made my way to the water excitedly as my friends were finally here! They stripped down to cross which I respect and one by one made their way across, Ben first. He informed me Caleb was pissed off as he was exhausted (so fair I would be too) as he just wanted to camp. I knew the minute he got food in him he would be fine tho so I was still very cheery. Everyone got across safe and sound and made their way up to set up tents and start dinner. AH I missed everyone! I got to hear all about Whitney which sounded like a blast and saw pictures. Again, absolute units. They said it was scary as you are walking along a cliff with the black abyss below you. They apparently got there with 3 minutes to spare before the sun rose. Everyone else were too late. Dad got to know them a lil better as well as they were recounting the past few days. I got to tell them my three important pieces of information that were so thrilling: we went to bed last night at 5:45, Caleb’s playlist that he shared is amazing, and I finished my audiobook. Louisa is the only one from her group that made it with the guys. Love her as she’s super nice and hilarious. You could tell that everyone was beat tho so it was an earlier night as well. I loved hearing in a narcissistic way that people missed me because I missed them. I also have a lot of anxiety that maybe people are faking being friends with me and they all secretly dislike me, which makes no fucking sense because I’ve spent 50+ days with them NONSTOP. But it’s always a worry and it’s nice to hear it sometimes:). We are going to probably split up again as I think we are only zeroing once while they are double zeroing which they have earned no doubt after today. But we will see each other again real soon as I will make sure of it. pictures do not do the landscape justice!!!!!!!!!!

aidasinks
aidasinksJun 7th 2025
1/8

Day 56

Dutch meadow and spring to rock creek camp - 17.4 miles Total - 761.1 miles Woke up to everything soaked. Before I fell asleep everything was pretty dry after the rain storms but the condensation drowned my rain fly. It was cold too so it was a pain to unravel and then put on the outside of my backpack to hopefully not get everything else soaked. Dad did cold coffee and oatmeal bc we only have one small fuel can and I think it’s leaking when I don’t have my pocket rocket stove on it. The valve is fucked up I think so I need to get a new one. I was freezing and wanted to hit the trail so we started the long gradual climb up to our first alpine lake! It was about 8 miles up which sucked. Still getting used to the altitude so I’m sucking air even when I’m going slower. We had incredible views of the sierras all snow topped and gorgeous. Every mile we had to ask ourselves which one was Whitney and everytime no one knew. We saw two marmots chillin on some rocks right before chicken spring lake. As we were heading up, a hiker going SOBO showed up in the horizon and I immediately recognized him as uncivilized. He had gone up to lone pine as he had a stomach bug and now was making his way back to meet Klara to hike the rest of the sierras with her as she is nervous for the passes. We had offered as dad has a lot of experience but uncivilized does too so she is going to stick with him! It made me feel reassured as I was starting to worry about her as we all know she can do the passes but I wanted her to feel safe and ease her anxiety about it. Glad he was going to help. We then came up to chicken spring lake and we’re immediately met with amazing views of Rocky too shale mountains with snow highlighting its peaks. The water was still and clear sparkling in the sun. We met a guy who swam out to the middle of the lake, but he was stating he was having difficulty with the altitude and wasn’t feeling energetic so he was heading down to lone pine to re-evaluate and maybe skip the sierras. That didn’t make any sense to me as it takes awhile to adjust to altitude and why would you leave in the first 4 days because he wasn’t feeling energized enough. I’m being a hater right now but the mindset seemed off. I am personally not feeling that enthusiastic about all the elevation but I know the views are worth all my suffering. We hung out around chicken spring lake for just over an hour, relaxing and fighting off the too friendly chickmunks. We saw another marmot walk to the water which was adorable. Wish I could just hug those lil guys. Then we made the last climb before we headed down down down. Brutal on the knees. After 12pm I feel so lethargic and eepy. I could use a mid day nap now while in the desert it felt like I could go go go go and never stop. The second half of the day I usually just can’t wait to be done and in my tent going to bed. We did see a couple more marmots which were always exciting. I think our count was 6 today. I kept trying to do their call which I think I nailed personally. Definitely America’s got talent worthy. We got to camp around 3:30 and I immediately washed my feet. My feet are fucking disgusting. If you had tripophobia you would scream bloody murder as I have holes on every inch of my soles and balls of my feet. Dirt gets stuck in it too and it’s nasty. I’m about to lose both my pinky toe nails and my left ring toe nail as I have stubbed it way too many times and it’s become red bc of the blood pooling under my nail. I’m shedding dead skin everywhere and I have so much discoloring that you would think I am a mutant. My toe nails are filled to the brine with black dirt. So I did a lil cleaning and tried to tidy up as best I can for tomorrow where I get it all nasty again. 4:30 hits and I’m like fuck it let’s make dinner. I chose a knorr rice side and I I think I have hit my limit with my first food on trail. I haven’t even had that many of those bitches and I’m mechanically trying to chew so I don’t throw up the rice side. It took me probably close to an hour to finish the cup of rice. I had two burritos with Cajun style chicken flavored knorr rice with deli style tuna (first mistake) and then after two burritos and lots of gagging later I finished the last half just out of the pot. At this point it’s the texture where the rice and pasta have the same texture that makes me gag. I can’t do it anymore. I’m broken. Dad ate my favorite meal of mash potatoes mixed with chili soup. So so so so good on trail and so easy to stomach. We were in bed by 5:45. Well I’m going to listen to my audio book plus I had to write this. I don’t plan on falling asleep anytime soon. Tomorrow is going to suck ass and the day after is as well. So much elevation over so little miles. I never thought I would say this but I kinda miss the desert. It’s like I’m restarting again. The desert felt almost like a comfort zone where I was so used to it and now the sierras are pushing me outside my comfort zone which is scary. The views though are so incredible that it is worth the suffering. Hopefully at least. We are only 60ish miles into the sierras. Technically it really started after lone pine so we are 10 miles into it. Also just noticed my rain fly now has a small hole in it. God-fucking-dammit.

aidasinks
aidasinksJun 6th 2025
1/9

Day 55

Campground to Dutch meadow and spring - 15.1 miles Total - 744.1 miles Boy was the military getting on my fucking nerves last night. We are not in war why are we flying the most noise deafening fighter jets across the pristine wilderness. I can only imagine what the birds and the other animals are thinking. This would continue throughout the day as well. It’s cool to see them fly so close to you but goddamn at dusk?! Go to bed. Anyway we started strong with an easy 3 miles before the climb. The climb was graded really well and it didn’t hurt too much to go up. We hit around 11,000 today. Dad was feeling it for sure but I just ride his coat tails pretty much the entire day. I have to hold back sometimes because I’ve almost gotten struck by his walking poles. Once we got to the first false summit we saw Ella and reggae which was a pleasant surprise as I was not expecting to see them at all today as they were pushing 22 while we were going 15. Talked to them for a little bit before they headed off. Our goal was to get lots of breaks in to acclimate and also to make sure dad felt good. I have to remember I’m 700 miles in while he’s about 40 miles in so of course I’m going to feel better than him. The pack was feeling pretty good as well. Still hurting but I can tell my pack is under 40 pounds now with a 1 liter carry. Makes a huge difference. We stopped for lunch after going to a lovely water source. Probably one of the prettiest I’ve seen just with the contrast of the Rocky ground to the green grass and little stream. Felt magical like a fairy should pop out and cast a spell on you while a deer munches on grass clueless. There were little buttercups along the stream as well that added to the magic. We then pushed on. I was getting so eepy while walking that honestly if we stopped I could’ve fallen asleep. The only thing that kept me up was the thunder rolling in behind us. About 0.3 miles from our potential camp it started to lightly sprinkle on us. I was worried as my tent was on the outside of my pack and I didn’t want it to get wet. We were thinking maybe we would push on a max of 4 miles but we weren’t sure until the rain kept coming and that made up our minds that this campground will be our home. We landed there around 2 and around 2:30 we started to set up our tents as it didn’t look like the rain would stop anytime soon. Right as we are setting our tents up it’s starts to rain harder so I’m panicking trying to fit the stupid tent pole into its slot while things are getting wet. I think I figured out how to put up the rain fly before the tent so the inside won’t get wet. I did it ungracefully this time so I plan to redeem myself the next thunderstorm which will most likely be tomorrow around 2-3pm. It was pure pan ick though. Then the wind was blasting the rain onto the one side where it could soak through so I put my stolen aka found 3/8th inch pad to allievate the soak. It worked and I felt like a genius. I then had to maneuver the last cross bar onto the top of the tent while in the tent which was a struggle but we made it happen. It then rained for the next 3 hours on and off with thunder here and there. I enjoyed it as I just sat and munched on whatever snacks I could get my grubby little hands on. I did have to fight for it as the bear can is human proof just as much as bear proof. I listened to my audio book while the sun warmed up my face and tent as well as it rained down on us. Practically fell asleep. After around 5 it stopped and we went to go get water from the creek which had had some cow attention in the past making it difficult to reach without getting my flip flops and feet soaked. They had put in beaver analogs which was cool to see although the water needed to be higher for it to fully spread out. Maybe I will see a beaver up here. WHICH I have never seen as the ones at the preserve I worked for last year all fucking died from a tick bite right before I started working there. Pissed. We then made dinner of very water downed knorr pasta sides which was kinda even more gross after I added lemon pepper pouch meat. In bed and cuddled up by 6:20. Saving my pee until 8 so I don’t have to get up in the middle of the night. It’s cold out so there’s no need to be outside. I’m outside enough already. I was texting Marc on the garmin all morning practically and last night trying to figure out the plans. Again, it’s the first day on trail I haven’t seen or been near them which is really strange. I knew it would happen eventually but I will say I do miss the group. Very happy to be here with my dad though don’t get me wrong, I love him with my whole heart and even more. Just wish I could have both though at the same time. That’s life tho, what can ya do. Peep the new free goodr sunglasses. I feel like a woman with an opinion and will say it. So the usual basically but add more pizazz.

aidasinks
aidasinksJun 5th 2025
1/6

Day 54

Campground to campground - 18.4 miles Total - 729.1 miles Woke up around 5 and stayed in my tent with my eyes closed until 5:30. Everything was a little damp on the inside and outside of my tent as we camped right by the stream. Dad and I were planning on leaving around 6:30 so I took my time. Normally I rush out of camp but I’m taking it easy and making sure the man is happy and has his hot coffee. Wouldn’t want to mess with him otherwise. We were planning to stop every 5 miles to take a break but that quickly went out the window. 7 miles out was a good river so we pushed toward that. We made good timing and felt strong. We met up with the guys and the girls at the stream and rested for probably an hour before going out to conquer the big climb for today which would be 2000 foot elevation gain, felt like 6000 but we will ignore the at fact. It would also put us at around 10500 ft high. Which if you think about it the man was at 100 feet not 24 hours ago in ridgefield Washington and now he’s at 10,500 feet. What an absolute machine. We went slow which was nice to just slow down and take it in. I am also 700 miles into this so while it was hard it wasn’t too bad. It was mostly my shoulders that felt like melting away in pain. There were no comfortable positions. Dad was setting the pace. I told him I’m prioritizing him and I don’t need to be with my original group or camp by them if he needs to stop for the night. I want him to enjoy his time and not worry about me. He was moving slow (his words not mine) but again, the man is 26 miles in to the pct and crushing altitude already. We stopped for lunch with the group and immediately got swarmed by mosquitos which was NOT fun. The group moved ahead and we slowly started moving again. We orginally were going to go 16 but still wanted to sleep by water so that made us push to 18 miles to be 0.2 miles from water. We were kinda getting chase down by thunder storms in front of us and behind us. We timed it pretty perfectly where we peaked as the thunderstorms were starting to form behind us. Right before we peaked, it started to sprinkle and snow on us just a little but the sun was still out which kept us warm and happy. Dad was hurting but it didn’t seem too bad unless he was downplaying it. I can name probably two of the best feelings in the world which are 1. Taking a sauna and jumping into a cold lake and 2. Taking your goddamn heavy ass backpack off for a break or at the end of the day. The weight lifted from your shoulders feels like I’m bounding through a goddamn flower meadow with the sun beaming on my face as I twirl and fall into the tall grass. That’s how good it feels. Putting it back on feels good until 5 minutes in, your shoulders are screaming from the depths of hell asking for forgiveness as if they have sinned. Anyways, just thought you guys should know. On our way down, it was gradual but that didn’t stop my knees from hurting, and every other part of my body. Hip is feeling good tho, tried a new technique I call keeping your hips aligned. Seemed to do the trick for now. We then got to our campsite which is about a mile behind the guys. We could’ve pushed but 19.5 miles on dads first day would be too much honestly. It was almost too much for me. We are still deciding if we do mount Whitney. Dads permit we are not sure if it will allow him to go up. Might try based on how he’s feeling. In my head, I could do mount Whitney whenever as I am so young and youthful plus I’m not necessarily a peak grabber. All power to y’all if you are. I rather stick with dad. Plus the guys are doing it and if we don’t we could catch up to them as they are pushing 22 miles tomorrow while I think we are shooting for 15. I think I just gotta realize that we are going to be left behind. Once I come to terms with that, I will be fine but it’s hard letting your group go ahead of you when you have been with three of them since day 7 basically or in come and Caleb’s case day 1. They are great guys and while I do want to try to be with them till the very end it’s kinda inevitable that we are going to break apart. Marc’s getting off trail for a good chunk of time to hang with his girlfriend, the bard is getting on trail for a week and he’s not sure if he will finish as he wants to move back to New York. I like his approach of setting a goal (in this case finish the sierras) and then see how you feel and then decide whatcha wanna do. Seems like there’s little pressure and it seems nice. But eventually we will have to split up. Hopefully we will see each other again and link up as they have shaped my experience on trail for the better but we will see. Need to take the bards plan and not put too much pressure on it and see where the journey takes me. I’m just happy to be here with my dad and I want him to enjoy his time which means going easy for the next week so he can get his trail legs. So we set up camp a mile back and just relax before doing the usual chores of filtering water and eating dinner. Today though we had dehydrated peach cobbler as a treat. So good, I could eat that every night. Highly recommend. Then we headed to bed around 7:30ish. I convinced him to roll out with my tiny cork ball as I swear by it for the main reason I never got any tendinitis or other long lasting problems in my knees all the way down to my feet. He said it felt good so I’m taking that as a win. Early night for a good recovery and ready to take on the next pass.

aidasinks
aidasinksJun 3rd 2025
1/3

Day 53

Kennedy meadows to campground - 8 ish miles Total - 710.7 miles Woke up excited as today was the day that my dad was coming! We packed up all our gear after breakfast and did some chores. I had to sew my quilt as one of the Bungie cords snapped like week 3 and I never got around to sewing it aka I was way too lazy. Fixed that with a botched see job and then Caleb swindled me into sewing (badly) his hole in his pant pocket. He really just asked and I was willing to do it. Stabbed myself with his shitty needle tho so Klara was nice enough to give me a nice sharp one. After that we just waited it out. I anxiously kept checking his location as he got closer. A thunder storm hit while we were waiting and Marc and I were in the hammocks during the worst of it. Cold and a lil damp we waited it out. I ended up getting a burger despite saying I wasn’t going to. A sloppy good ass burger. Delicious. After my dad lost service I couldn’t see his location so I had to guesstimate when he was coming aka around 3. Sitting nervously on the bench I saw him and rob pull up in their car. Quickly I got up to go meet him and he walked out of the car and instantly I’m tearing up. Seeing him smile at me as we hear hugged made me cry even more as I was so excited to see him after 53 days out in the wilderness. I saw him a little watery eyed as well but we won’t expose him too much. I got to meet rob the guy who brought him out, who was very sweet. After a couple minutes the guys came out to greet my dad and rob enthusiastically especially since Marc got squeezable peanut butter and jelly as well as Caleb got new shoes as my dad picked them up from the rei store for him. We quickly organized everything within 45 minutes of him showing up and started the 8 mile journey to camp. Dad and I stuck together for the most part while Marc was talking to rob for the first couple of miles. 3 miles in…trail magic of spaghetti for pct hikers. Dad is good luck! We decided to stay even though we weren’t that hungry and talked to the trail angels. They were so sweet and very inspriring saying to make the most out of the sierras and make as many memories outside in the wilderness as you can. Sierras will change you and challenge you and you will be better for it. That got dads retirement meter up to 20%. We are working on 100% by the time he’s done in the sierras. Or it will put him through so much pain he might need a sedintary life after I’m through with him. Then he headed out for the final couple of miles to camp. The guys passed us and right before camp we hadn’t seen rob since spaghetti so we waited. He had some issues with his pack so he was about 10ish minutes behind. We walked into camp around 8:30ish and basically went straight to bed. Great first day with the father! Good intro and gorgeous sunset to put him right as ease diminishing his stress hopefully. Forgot to mention my pack weighed in at around 44 pounds with ice axe, 8 days worth of food, micro spikes, and bear can. HAVE YOU EVER HAD 44 FUCKING POUNDS ON YOUR BACK AND WALK UP HILL. I CANT FEEL MY SHOULDERS. They are gone. I’m tired. After 8 miles. I’m 700 miles in and I still hurt goddammit. Dads pack weighed in at 42ish pounds with a liter of water. I had 2 liters. Don’t know what I’m carrying where my pack is heavier.

aidasinks
aidasinksJun 3rd 2025
1/3

Day 52

Another zero in Kennedy meadows Woke up at a reasonable time this morning of around 6 which is the latest I’ve gotten up in awhile. I chilled until I went to go take a leak at the toilet and then sat around for breakfast to be served. These towns can vortex you insanely where you just spend your dime on anything that sounds good. Plus their prices are just the right amount of cheap where you think you can spend money and it’s okay but that quickly adds up as you buy one million ice cream sandwiches. It was a busy day including taking a shower finally, and then lounging around until the guys came back from triple crown outfitters. Then I had to do laundry which was criminal as it was $5 for a ride pod and to use the washing machine. Caleb and I just did it together since everyone else was productive yesterday. I don’t necessarily remember what happened in the early afternoon though surprisingly. I think we just talked and lounged around in the hammocks. Rachel’s boyfriend came though around dinner time as he’s joining to do the sierras with her. I got the cutest video of them running up to each other and hugging. Adorable. I had two ice creams today and two snickers. I’m living large physically and emotionally. I also got this fire veggie turkey wrap. First fresh vegetables in awhile lol. I need to start a burger count but I think I’m around 20ish at this point. I need to eat better but it’s kinda hard on trail. Plus it’s all about getting calories and stuffing my fat fucking face in town to make up for the calories I don’t eat on trail. I can never get enough calories. The bard came back to trail after his aunts birthday celebration! He was a beast, in order to get to Kennedy meadows in time for a ride he did a 33 mile day which is insane as that was a ton of elevation to even get into Kennedy meadows. Absolute unit. We caught up and also met his parents. His dad goes “I saw the video” I was like what video but it was the hurricane shot video. Crazy thing to show his parents but it is a pretty iconic video. All it shows is I know how to take a slap and that Caleb is afraid of me just enough. They were super nice though! We then lounged around again before we got pulled into mafia or wolves as a different variation. Luckily I was never the wolf bc idk if I could lie with this group. Normally I’m a great liar in mafia but with people I’m not fully comfortable with quite yet I don’t think I could scream at them stating they are a wolf. Give it a week and I’ll have them all fooled. Or not. I could be just all talk. The last round I was the narrator. I fucked up lol. I’m going to blame it on the dark but I think I was also just nervous. I was standing behind the group asking the wolves to open their eyes and point at the person they wanted to kill. I for the life of my could not see the second killer and I was like oh well what can ya do. Stupid stupid stupid. The seer can ask who the killer is and it was mono and he pointed at Ben which I just couldn’t see if his eyes were open, I could only see Matthias. I said no but it was Ben. I think I also fucked up klaras save as she was the doctor. Oh well. I told mono next round that it was Ben and I fucked up. While it was partly my fault he did not say it with his chest to the group and he ended up getting voted out by the group lol. Then next round Ben got voted out but before he did, he threw Matthias under the bus as the other wolf. Weird round. Hopefully that all made sense but only if you have played mafia before. I won’t explain it lol. As I’m writing this kinda late, I just heard Caleb rip the juiciest fart. I know it was him as he has no shame in the tooting world. Mad respect. There are some weird ass people here though. Fire and ninja while I have never had a great talk with them they come with some wierd vibes. Apparently uncivilized overheard fire talking how he got arrested at trail days on the AT for throwing a rock at a girl and then getting surrounded by other hikers? Ninja is the guy that has accusations against him. It is funny to see everyone kinda decide up into age groups. While we do have a spread of ages in our group we all kinda give off the same vibe. DAD COMES TOMORROW! IM SO EXCITEDDDDDDDD

aidasinks
aidasinksJun 2nd 2025
1/3

Day 51

Zero day in Kennedy meadows Woke up early feeling great. There’s one bathroom at the general store that we are camping at for free and with the amount of people that are here right now I knew the line was bouta be long as hell. So I got up and moseyed my way over to go to the bathroom. No line. Beauty. It was also 5:30am so idk why I thought there would be a line. Went back to my tent and immediately felt ill. The hungover from last nights case race hit me. I spent the next three hours fighting demons. Waves would hit me and I would feel queasy. I planned how I would throw up just in case if it happened. I had a trash ziplock that I would fill with my vomit if need be and I would try to do it as quietly as possible so no one would hear me. I couldn’t do it outside my tent as people would see me and hear me which would be WAY more embarrassing and I couldn’t use the bathroom because it is too far away and what if I create a line and then everyone knows. So that was my plan. I laid face up staring into the Abyss while listening to my audio book the red rising by pierce brown (plug) with my arms above my head internally moaning as wave after wave hit me. I also had a pounding headache that I took ibeprofen for after I ate a snickers. That was all before I felt like shit. Luckily, it never came to that. Around 8:30 I mustered up the courage to step outside and test out if I could stand and not throw up. I was a very brave girl. I did not and I knew I could make it to breakfast but I dreaded the fact everyone would see me walk in. I made my way over to Marc and Caleb at breakfast who immediately asked if I was okay as I have reputation for being up early. Informed them how I was fighting for my life in my tent. The breakfast here was great: sausage, big ole blueberry pancake (all you can eat), eggs, fruit, orange juice (sunny d, ew) and hash browns. Delicious but I knew I couldn’t eat the eggs or it might make me sick so I gave them to rock licker. After breakfast I called dad to figure out logistics for when he comes in 2 DAYS!!! If you have ever tried to figure out logistics while still slightly hung over, sleep deprived, and sweating your ass off from the heat of the ball of fire that we call the sun, it is terrible and not fun whatsoever. Again, I was a brave girl and we got it done. We aka rock licker and Caleb and me (sorry way too many ands but I’m too lazy to change it now so I’m going to write this long ass explanation instead) then decided to head to the river about 0.6 miles down the road. It was perfect until it got cloudy and cold so we headed back to the road and try to get a hitch to grumpys for lunch. We got one but I was squashed between Caleb and rock licker sitting sideways which was so uncomfy. We got to grumpys and immediately ordered chicken nuggets, and two pepperoni pizzas. I got mine but Caleb never got his so he waited basically two hours for the most mediocre pizza. We got to catch up with this one couple that I can’t remember their names but I love the woman’s voice. I could listen to her for hours plus she’s funny. During this time there were some dark rain clouds rolling in. We knew that a thunder storm was coming as the forecast predicted it but this looked mean. We waited for a hitch and after multiple failed attempts a guy in a pick up truck pulled up and told us to get into the bed. All 9 of us jumped in quick, tighltly packed together with everyone’s new gear, held on tight as the guy respectfully drove into the thunder storm. Everyone not close to the front was starting to get pelted with day rains drops. Based on their reactions it looked like they were getting shot lol straight to the eyes. We got back to the general store just as the rain subsided but the thunder was still booming close by with flashes of light streaking through the sky. Just as I was walking to my tent rocklicker who left earlier than we did said hi and I saw how comfy he looked in one of the two hammocks that I just had to join. I spent the next 5 hours I wanna say swinging my lil heart out and scrolling reels on that hammock. Marc and Caleb would come in and out and eventually hang out fully with us. Caleb was a menace with the noises today. I think he misses Ben lol. We can’t be the Ben for him like he needs us to be. It was funny tho. For about 2 of those hours I tried to get caleb to go grab my quilt as I was just cold enough to be slightly uncomfortable and I gotta live up to my trail name of Goldilocks. I need everything to be just right. Eventually I think he caved as I did get my quilt and it made leaving the hammock even harder. I was soosoooo comfy. But rock licker was sleeping there tonight so eventually it was time to head to bed. I need to add this story here but it was told to me yesterday. Louisa had a friend that got so incredibly drunk on a night out that he tried to jump over a fence that had those spires on the end of them. It was a black stake basically. When he jumped he landed on them wrong and he got stuck. They had to give him a trash can to balance himself on it and cut him out of the black metal spire fence and bring him to the hospital. Louisa is telling us this and going through the pictures and she gets to the last one and guess fucking what. One of the spires had gone right through one of the guys balls. No blood or anything just a clean shank. He was so drunk that he barely felt it but that’s why they had to cut him out because he had punctured his balls with the fence. This is my new favorite story and I will be telling everyone I know about it. Omg also it’s a really big thing on trail to get a Fanny pack and wear it for easy access to shit so I bought one and I already love it. It is also nice for town days and you basically have everything you need right there. Haven’t tried with the pack but I’m excited as it frees up pocket space for more shit. Another note is I’ve gotten so lazy now that showering seems like such a big hassle when I don’t have easy access to it. The shower is outside and you have to pay and it seems like such a big deal so I still haven’t showered and I know I smell so so so so bad. I’ve done no chores actually today. I will productive tomorrow I promise.

aidasinks
aidasinksMay 31st 2025
1/8

Day 50

Campground to Kennedy meadows - 3.8 miles Total - 703.4 miles Woke up late as we had all the time in the world. It was hard for me as I am so Ansy. We got up and planned to go to the river to swim before we headed out to the official end of the desert. The water was so cold so I didn’t get in but just put my nasty lil toesies in. We hung out with mattias, kit, Louisa, Rachel, reggae, and Klara. Klara is hilarious. We were swapping stories about the most embarrassing moments of our lives. We will keep it in the goss circle and leave you guys teased. It was so good. We then headed out in a brother bear line for the last 4 miles talking and giggling and gaggling. We then had our last little road walk and most of the group went ahead while Rachel, Louisa, and I stayed back to walk in with reggae who was just a bit behind. The best part about Kennedy meadows is when you walk up everyone at the general store claps for you as you have just finished the desert section and it is the gateway to the sierras. It almost made me tear up as Ella and all the other hikers stood up and clapped and rang the cowbell for us. I kept making the joke that I really wanted the clap at Kennedy meadows. Foul joke but it landed everytime with the group. We immediately got in line for food but it was a long line and as we were standing there the store owner came up to us to explain how there is a woman who didn’t have money yesterday but had $20 bucks to get cigs today so watch our stuff. It was a little weird as she kinda made it a race thing but tried to play it off like she didn’t but the woman was a little weird as she was sitting on some old man’s lap bouncing a bit. Then she took off her shirt. Weird vibe here honestly but I don’t think she was a hiker. While in line I felt a bit faint as the smoke was coming off the griddle and it was hot and we hadn’t sat for awhile. Louisa and reggae was kind enough to order lunch for me while I sat to regain my temperature and not feel faint. We then waited for our food for like an hour and a half. It was still fun tho. We planned at 4 to do our race case which involves a two person team (we had to pick one of the opposite gender and someone from a different trail family so we had to mingle) and then finish a 12 pack of beer. Ella and I were partnered up as I vetoed that she and Caleb couldn’t be paired up as I saw how they were going band for band at the VFW finishing 6 pints back to back. If they were paired the challenge would be done in 10 minutes. Anyways, Ella was the man in our partnership and boy did she drink like one. She carried for sure as I drank 4 beers and she killed 8 like an absolute machine. The first beer went down easy but the belching and the gas that was brewing in my stomach caused me to be uncomfy sitting as well as standing so I had to put two hands on the table bent over like a bitch. I was getting chirped by the amigos as well as chirping me with positive re-enforcement to get me to drink more. Both strategies failed. Then Ella started respectfully yelling to pull my shit together and chug. I could not and would not throw up as 1 throwing up infront of so many people would kill me and 2 imagine throwing up just beer. NASTY. The third beer was the hardest and took me the longest and by the time I opened the fourth beer Caleb and Klara were declared winners with the clanging of the cowbell. After we could enjoy the beers but I was still suffering. I still ended up drinking three more but that’s besides the point. I then took over as manicurist as all the guys were asking for pink and purple nails with little smiley faces and hearts. So girly pop of them. Bryan kept coming back as he was messing up the same finger over and over again. I had to redo it 6 times and I was bitchin him out bc of it. Sailor Aida came out and was a lil too aggressive with my potty mouth. It was so fun tho! I was pretty drunk but we weren’t slowing down. The girls had a lil gossip sesh and I got to have some in-depth conversations with them which was super nice to have girl time. I really like the girls. Klara is so fucking funny and was matching Caleb’s energy perfectly. I’ve never seen him so happy to have someone on par with his humor. Truly spectacular. They were like the two kids in classroom that should not sit by each other. I then around 9:30 headed to bed. Drunk of course. Would regret it in the morning.

aidasinks
aidasinksMay 31st 2025
1/10

Day 49

Chimney creek camp to campground- 17.6 miles Total - 699.6 miles Big climb at the beginning of the day today so I got up and immediately chugged 200 mg of caffeine to give me the motivation to climb. And boy did it give me wings. I flew up with mountain once the caffeine hit me. Initially Louisa passed me like the beast she is (without caffeine) but she grabbed water so ended passing her. I eventually caught up to Marc and we hiked the last 1.5 miles uphill. Right as we crested we got the most magnificent view of the snow covered mountain tops of the sierras. Closer than the last time we saw them we could see mountains upon mountains. We sat on a log at the top just taking it all in with Louisa. Despite me knowing I’ve walked 700 miles and finishing the desert section, it’s kinda crazy to comprehend. You just take day by day and you don’t think about the mileage as much after you hit 100. Everything just now kinda flies by. It will definitely get tougher and I will have rough days where it feels like the miles are not coming as fast but so far the desert section has been wonderful. I did have a lot of expectations coming into the desert including taking more siestas, it being way hotter, I was expecting to drink out of algae filled troughs, and be in the windmills for longer, and be with an all girls group. So far I haven’t experienced those things like I thought I would have. Especially since a lot of the pct YouTube videos highlight those aspects the most. I do think our dates and year have been really lucky with weather and snow. It feels like the perfect time to be doing this. I have really cherished the desert section as I have met some of the most magnificent people who I have hiked with and are hiking with. Anyway, I’m done being sentimental. We had a snack at the top of the climb (after feeling fucking amazing climbing) and then headed down with Marc, Louisa, and gourmet. We got to know Louisa a bit more (she was in the big group we have been leap frogging for awhile). She’s super cool as are most woman on this trail! We got to the water source and it was hot hot hot! Caleb stated that he was Booking it to the water where we could swim. I started the pace and when I tell ya I was putting my whole mind body and soul into the fastest I’ve ever hiked you wouldn’t believe. Everyone was on my trail. Sweat dripped down my temple. I was huffing and puffing trying to drink water and walk as fast as I can. The guys chirp me for not liking to set the pace and lead mainly bc it feels like I’m being chased and I can’t go my normal speed. I like to follow. I’m a sheep what can I say. So this was a change. But the minute we hit the mile marker 696.9 (LOL) I pulled back and let everyone pass me. Plus, not to make excuses, but my sock has a hole in my heel so that bitch was rubbing and hurting. Truly I was just slower than the group. Louisa hung with Caleb at the front which was mad impressive cause if you know anything about Caleb is when he has water or a town in his eyes he is a mad man with his pace. The man fast walked 4.2 miles in one hour which is insane as most people walk normally around 2ish. She kept up which makes her a mad woman. I think we did basically 4 miles per hour tho. The terrain was flat and the mountains rose on either end of the plateau. We are not in the desert anymore (duh but still gotta put it into perspective). It was a gradual change that kinda hit me today. We hit the water just as Ella and the amigos were leaving which was sad bc I wanted to hang with her but she had some back chafe and wasn’t feeling the best so she wanted to just get into Kennedy meadows and be done. So valid. We did 17 miles by exactly 12. Reader should be impressed. And for the next 4 hours and 30 minutes we lunged and swam. It was glorious. I went in with all my clothes as I was hella stinky and sweat stained. I dunked and got up and my clothes clinged to me which I hated so not recommended but it was needed. I lounged in the sun which was hot hot hot! Caleb and I had a photo shoot of him posing on the rock in the middle of the stream. Sports illustrated swimsuit addition certified. It was just Caleb, not me. Louisa’s group started to show up throughout the afternoon and the best part was seeing them each get into the water and the light would come back into their eyes as they dunked their heads and soaked their bodies. One of the best feelings. Around 4:30 we headed to look for a campsite. 0.6 miles up there was huge one. We were stupid and didnt grab water before as it was only 0.3 to grab water but then it was a miserable 0.3 to grab water. Not our brightest moment. Once I started cooking dinner people from Louisa’s group showed up. I was the first to cook so everyone flocked towards me which was great as I didn’t have to move one bit. It was a cute family dinner. After talking and eating for a bit, I got convinced to head to the water again with Rachel, Louisa and the guys: Caleb, mattias, kit, gourmet. I only put my feet in before some of the guys got butt as naked to skinny dip. All power to y’all but I’m a prude and this white ass body will NOT be seen by others. Nobody wants to see that. Louisa and I were joking that we know everyone so well now and some of these guys are basically our brothers that the last thing we wanna see is them butt ass naked. Eyes to the sky aka having a real deep conversation so we don’t gotta see anything. Again, all power to y’all. Then we headed to bed. It’s supposed to be hot tonight aka around 60ish degrees which is wild to think we started this trail when nights reached below 30 degrees. Insane in the membrane! Insane in the brain (please tell me you get the reference). We have come so far and have experienced such a big change. New challenges await but at least it is with my dad for this next section. Which did I mention? I AM SO EXCIRED FOR! AHHHHHHHHHHHH! He’s going to love it out here. He’s going to be hopefully so zen. Anyways, goodnight pookies! Xoxo Forgot to mention, my cheese was basically crying from the heat and leaked all over my food bag, and partially on my tent bag, and on the inside of my backpack. Idk how to get rid of cheese oils but I’m doomed. Imma be called the cheese touch or some shit like that. So nasty. Still ate it tho but then it got worse. It was in a bag too.

aidasinks
aidasinksMay 30th 2025

Day 48

Joshua tree spring to chimney creek - 17 miles Total - 682.0 miles I actually had a good nights sleep surprisingly. I haven’t had the best time sleeping as I always wake up more than once throughout the night. Which I did but I fell back to sleep quickly. It was also warm last night so that was a nice change. Today tho kinda kicked my ass. We started with a climb out of camp and even though it was small I was huffing and puffing. Then the next little climb had me sweating like no one’s business at 7 am in the morning. So many people are pushing to Kennedy meadows that we are meeting a lot of new people. Met pink panther and she was super cool but she’s pushing pretty heavily to meet up with her husband for their one year anniversary. Met up with Marc after the first climb at a water source and we filled up and then took a small break after 5 miles. Caleb also caught up to us at that point. The change in scenery is quite cool though. We have definitely hit the beginning of the sierras as it has gotten more green with more trees. A super nice change with a lot more shade. Still hot tho. I think there is a big heat wave hitting california as the news puts it as an unprecedented heat wave at this time of year. Good news is it’s melting the snow which I don’t want to have to deal with in the high elevations. After the break I sweated my ass off hiking 2000 feet plus of elevation. The grade was pretty good but I just felt slow. I know I wasn’t but it was kicking my ass. Finally got to the top for lunch and then Caleb and I booked it to the campsite as we were promised a possible swimming spot. We were practically running down hill and even tho it doesn’t take much I was dripping sweat. We pulled up to the water and we were informed there was trail magic!!!! We haven’t had a proper trail magic in awhile. It was a couple who had just gotten to Kennedy meadows and were paying it forward with drinks and best of all FRESH FUCKING FRUIT! You don’t know how good that tasted. I’m not getting enough vitamins for sure and that cured it. Watermelon, strawberries, and pineapple made my taste buds dance with happiness. I also chugged a Gatorade and a coke. I don’t like soda outside of trail but it tastes like pure gold on trail. We then picked our campsite and chilled out before finding the swimming hole. The water was so so so cold and it healed every part of my feet. I didn’t get all the way in as it was small and secluded and could barely fit the four of us on the rocks. We headed back and started dinner before we saw our beautiful leap frogging group who we keep seeing. Love them so much at this point that when we stop leap frogging I’m going to have withdrawals. We hung out at the picnic table before a guy pulled up with beers and coke and Gatorade. I can hear my belly slosh around if I move it with all the liquid in it. Caleb did not like that. I think it’s hilarious. Talking and getting to know them has been super refreshing as there are only so many subjects you can talk about with guys you have been around for almost two months. I’ve hashed out all my drama, life goals, politics, and so much more with them. I got nothing left in me. I started audible today as well and was informed how good red rising is by Caleb so I started listening to that. So good so far. Wish I had a physical copy but that’s too much weight and I’m ultra light, DUH! Jk im not but so far it’s been really good. I kinda blacked out on the climb since I was so focused on it but then I would come out of my state and remember how fucking tired I was walking up hill and would have to take a break. I can’t believe we are so close to Kennedy meadows!!!! I have dreamed about the day we walk into it and be done with the first section of the PCT of the desert. Actually insane! We won’t have to worry about water which will be a great change of pace. Next worry is bears and snow and then after the sierras fires. But one goal at a time and one section at a time as well as one day at a time. Super excited and ready for the change!

aidasinks
aidasinksMay 29th 2025
1/4

Day 47

Lake Isabella to Joshua tree spring - 11.8 miles Total - 665 Slow slow slow day until we started hiking later in the day. First we kicked off the day with some delicious breakfast skillets at the same diner we have been hitting for breakfast for the past three days. The chef knew us. When the waitress came back to our table she said that when we walked in he stated that we were ty e breakfast skillet gang. Became a regular within just a few days not to brag. I added a cinnamon roll to my order which was delicious but I quickly hit a wall and made the guys finish it. We then rotted in our motel room as long as possible before check out before we made the trek to the library as this is where the bus was able to pick us up from to bring us to walker pass where we left off. We got a nice little hitch into it by this older woman named Shirley. She drove around like a speed racer Antonelli as she joked and I am the only one that got it lol. She dropped us off at the library which did fool up our plans as we were going to go to grocery outlet bargain market so we did end up having to walk back the 0.8 to grab that and subway. We chilled at the library aka Marc and I scrolled and also watched a YouTube video of a guy making a car out of four e-bikes. We were giggling and gaggling in the library. Then we went to subway where I ordered a foot long and ate one half so I could pack out the other half for dinner as we were getting a late start and I knew I didn’t want to cook late at night. Then we went back to the library and caught the bus at 3. Ninja the guy mentioned yesterday was on the bus which I was far from thrilled about worrying that he was hiking and going to camp next to us. Luckily after the 45 minute bus ride we got off and he didn’t but that didn’t stop him from giving us all fist bumps… it was not as hot around 4 but we had a 6 mile up hill which got me sweating like a pig. Initially my calves were so tight and they cramped causing my feet to kind kinda numb or at least pins and needles. I had to stretch out and that did the trick and then I was flying. We pass mosey again! It’s so fun to be leap frogging with her. She’s such a beast, I love her. We then did most of the climb and met back up with four fingers and Mike who are with Ella’s group. I forgot to mention right as we pulled up to the trailhead Ella was getting out of a hitch so we got to catch up with her. Her feet have been hurting so we pushed on without her but I think we are all camping in the same spot tomorrow which I’m excited for. Anyway, they said that there were a ton of people ahead of us all potentially camping where we planned. So we booked it. Luckily we passed more people and met up with klara who also is in Ella’s group and we got to chat with her for the last mile. I hate to put Caleb on blast but it’s important that I express my emotions on here. He made a joke that I did not like whatsoever. It crossed a boundary for me and I expressed that to him and then booked it ahead as I needed space because I was fucking annoyed. I was practically running down the trail and he tried to catch up. Eventually he yelled out hey like I’m sorry and we talked it out which was nice. Totally forgive him and he realized my perspective on it so now we are besties again. Plus these guys at this point are like my brothers between the teasing to caring for each other. I truly don’t want to cross any lines with them as I have full total respect for their girlfriends and their relationships. I think it’s super important to have that boundary and to not cross it. It was bad joke and he realized it and apologized and that’s all I could ask for. Like I said we are besties again. Anyway, got to camp and got a good campsite which is all I could ask for. Apparently bears frequent the area so hopefully none bother me tonight. There are a lot of rustling in the bushes but when I used my flashlight, it was only a toad. Praying nothing gets into my tent or food which I have in ziplock bags and then in my backpack inside my tent. I should be good. The hike today was literally a gain of 2800 feet and a loss of 2800 feet. It actually was a net gain of +10. Back where we started basically. And the next two days are basically the same thing. So stupid.

aidasinks
aidasinksMay 28th 2025
1/5

Day 46

Zero day in lake Isabella I know we are taking a lot of zeros all of a sudden and it’s slowing us down but truly there is no reason to enter the sierras unless I want to posthole and hike in a ton of snow without my dad. So I’m loving the zeros. Woke up sweating as usual. Started my period. SO FUN! Since I’m excerising so much I was two weeks late:) we headed to the diner once again and literally ordered the same exact thing but this time with toast. Resupplied at the dollar general for cheap as fuck which was amazing. I planned out next few days on trail which will be three full days and a morning basically. Lots and lots of elevation coming our way. Then we rotted for way too long but I loved it until it gave me some eye strain lol. I then cleaned out my pack and organized everything with my resupply. Everyone else went to lunch but I rotted some more lol. Again loved it. Then we all had a gossip sesh which I won’t spill the tea on because now I got some pct readers on here and I can’t talk as freely as I want aka spread shit that isn’t about me. Which I realize I shouldn’t spread but in my head no one is reading this but I need to remind myself that people are and I need to be trusted and not spread shit so I’m not going to spread shit even tho I want to. So sorry guys, no more juicy tea from trail unless it’s not too personal OR I get permission OR it’s from another trail family that I know will never read this. But if you guys call me personally I will spill everything. ANYWAY, gossip sesh with the boys was great and I think it was very beneficial. We then headed to the river once again and hung out there before pizza. Pizza was dank but I’m still pissed it wasn’t buffet style like I was promised. We got thrifty ice cream as well which the rainbow sherbet was a lil disappointing but still good. Headed back to the pink motel where rock licker and Ben from Boston got picked up to head back to trail even if they didn’t want to lol. Hopefully we will see them before the head into the sierras. I know I said I wouldn’t gossip but this is about someone I know will never read this. Leo the kind trail angel who picked us up yesterday took the guys to trail but dropped off this notorious guy off at the motel named ninja. Ninja has THREE sexual harassment accusations apparently on trail. We saw him at hiker town and I hate to be this person (sike!) but he looks creepy as hell. Apparently he has tried to enter three different girls tents without permission. I think I heard a story that he was on the AT and a girl met him and then he kinda followed her for an extended period of time making her super uncomfortable. Overall, I am very happy to be with a group of men who will beat the shit out of him if he tries anything. I mean I could too but why should I lift a finger. JOKING. I would beat the absolute living shit out of that man if he tried anything. He would regret the day he ever interacted with me if he even tried. Anyway now he’s staying here at the motel so I am very happy to be leaving tomorrow and getting as far away from that man as possible. I know also that it is just by word of mouth and accusations but the man looks creepy and that’s all I need to know. All doors are locked tight tonight. Overall, good day with a lot of rotting and very excited to get on trail tomorrow. It’s supposed to be really hot tho so we are leaving later in the evening to night hike a lil. Omg I almost forgot we got a hitch back from the river to the pizza place. First thing the dude says “is it okay if I drink and drive? Californians are so not chill with that anymore even tho so many people do it.” The look I gave rock licker, you guys should’ve seen but I had no choice but to hop into the back. We only went like 2 miles but I was holding on tight. He also was like I wasn’t sure about picking you guys up but you have a decent looking lady so how bad could you guys be. It’s like the tooth to tattoo ratio. It was the craziest hitch we’ve got and truly we should’ve said no to it but we got to the pizza place safely thankfully. I am also realizing how fucking disgusting I look based on just my shirt. Omg that thing was just washed and I still look like that.

aidasinks
aidasinksMay 26th 2025
1/9

Day 45

Cabin to lake Isabella - 8.2 miles Total - 653.2 miles Woke up on the porch to half my sleeping bag wet from condensation. We had planned to head out at 6 but I can never follow a plan even if I make it so I was out of camp by 5:45. Plus I just kinda wanted to hike alone as it’s the only time of day where we are kinda separated and have true alone time. Love the guys but a bitch needed to be alone that morning. It was an easy day as we lost 3000 feet of elevation. Gorgeous views of the sierrras in the distance with a perfect downhill grade. I made it to the campsite where snake eyes who we met after scissors crossings like day 8 would come to pick us up and bring us to lake Isabella. He has this cool ass built out truck with the tent on the top of the truck. We were talking a lil before I saw the guys pull up. Next thing we know tho Leo a trail angel who was going to bring rock licker into town pulled up as well asking if we needed a ride. Caleb and I hopped in as snake eyes couldn’t fit everyone and he had to wait for Ben from Boston to come who was a lil bit behind. Leo was a sweet guy and he ended up having breakfast with us at the diner. The diner was goooooodddddd. Basically everyone and their mother got a breakfast skillet and a milkshake. The place had 50+ flavors for milk shakes and I got the most basic aka chocolate on chocolate. Still good tho. We got table pancakes and the skillet also came with biscuits and gravy. I downed it all and I honestly could’ve had one more to top it all off. After we walked over to the rank motel that had boarded up windows and pink. We decided to stay here for our zero. Despite the rough outside the place was nice on the inside. Outdated but nice. I can’t judge as I smelled like shit and we all look homeless. We then headed to a river because there was no way we were getting on a boat despite our gloating that we would. The river was fast and deep so we had to pick our way to find a nice eddie to hang by and dunk in. Apparently the river has over 300 drownings so after we heard that stat we were extra careful. It was ice cold and refreshing. We were also promised a pizza buffet from online sources but that was a dead end. Instead we ended up going to the diner once again for burgers and the burgers were gooddddddd. I got a Baja with green chilies and a green chili ranch sauce. So good but I was full from all the food we had been eating. I forgot to mention we had Burger King as an appetizer to the diner burger dinner. Hiker hunger is real. After we went to the bar Arlie’s next door to our shit motel. Best part was Ben finally got his karaoke night. The man has a voice. He yodeled for us and then sang Whitney Houston I will always love you. Truly amazing. The old ladies kept turning to us stating he needs to be on American idol. One of the guys kept making sexual jokes towards him? Couldn’t tell what the vibe was with him if he was gay or not. At one point he stated he would swallow anything. Strange but I guess a voice like the bards would do that to you or at least the guy lol. Also one woman sang the I’m proud to be an American song and had a good amount of people stand with their hands over their hearts while she sung her heart out. Felt like a fever dream. Glad Marc the German got to see it. It felt ironic but you knew it wasn’t. Ben from Boston also went up and sung a metal song which was electric. 11/10 performance. Then we hit the hay. Nothing like the VFM in Tehachapi but it was a good night with some good singing.

aidasinks
aidasinksMay 26th 2025
1/8

Day 44

Dove spring canyon road to cabin & Mclvers spring - 22.1 miles Total - 645 miles Last night I cowboy camped with Marc in a tiny space sheltered mostly from the wind. The bugs were bad at sunset and continued to land right on my fucking eyes which was disgusting but then it calmed down. I kept waking up and at one point late at night I looked up with my blind eyes and I thought I could make out the Milky Way. I put in my glasses and the night lit up with stars and the Milky Way. Fun fact a very small percentage of the entire population has seen the Milky Way due to light pollution. Get outside you fools! It was truly spectacular and I’m even more excited to see it in the sierras! Marc woke me up at 4 as we planned to try to do the big climbs early in the day. Everyone at camp was up basically at 4 anyways but Marc tapped my sleeping pad and jolted awake stating that I was awake…stupid. We then packed up and noticed Ben was also awake. Ben and gourmet asked us to wake them up but I have a strict policy that if you have to ask you should just set an alarm. Even tho I didn’t. LOL. I know I’m a hypocrite but Marc didn’t wake me up the first time I asked him a couple of weeks back. So I’m salty. Anyway Ben, Marc, and me headed out to do about an hour and a half of night hiking under the stars, red lamps, and the sliver of the moon. The Joshua trees looked like people bending over in all different direction with only a small amount of light back lighting them. I loved it. As the sun rose it painted the sky and highlighted the true desert below us as we hiked. I fell behind bc I took a quick shit. When I mean quick I mean like 2 minutes max with wiping. TMI but I’m proud of it. I caffeinated as well so I caught back up with them before our first stop to the first water cache. We pulled up to rock licker and Ben from Boston packing up their tent site. The pervious day we invited them to lake Isabella with us tomorrow and today they bought the plan. Recruiting everyone at this point to try to get on a boat. We chilled out for about 45 minutes and then went to tackle the big climb of the day. The first two miles felt so good. The grade was so chill plus I’m fit now so everything is like sooooooooooo easy. Then I kept getting false summited in the last mile. Once I crested, I saw the most beautiful thing ever, the snowy tops of the sierras! I immediately called my dad and told him about it. Again so so so excited for him to come out. We then had like 3 more miles after we peaked so we booked it to get lunch. Gourmet and Caleb caught up as we were having lunch pretty quickly. Then we booked it to the cabin. At one point the bard got ahead and saw a brown black bear which we tried to get Marc to see as he has never seen one but it scurried off trail before he could. Right before we got to the cabin we had a long ass road walk that was brutal as ATV and four wheelers kept passing us. One stop and gave us Cheetos an absolute score. We got to the cabin and quickly claimed Territory. The woman who gave us some Cheetos was there with her crew and they gave us pickles, one sandwich which we split by eating two bites each, garnola bars, two beers, and seltzers. Score score score. We then ate first dinner before more four wheelers showed up. Second dinner followed. People are always so interested in us so they always ask so many questions about the experience which is so fun to answer. I feel like badass with their reaction. The guys are sleeping in the cabin while I’m going to sleep on the porch hoping a bear doesn’t come. I willingly chose this but praying no bears or other critters checking me out but there are others in the area as well as a dog. So we will know if there is soemthing around.

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