Heard in the Hills
Our imaginations thrive under cover of darkness. Deep in the blackness of night tends to be when our worst fears prevail and paranoia overwhelms rationality. I’ve been there.
Nighttime on the PCT is ripe for the adrenaline rush that accompanies an unexplained sound -- the bump in the night, the rustling of branches or crackling of leaves. Most PCT hikers have at least one story of dancing with their own nighttime fears.
When one enters Bigfoot country east of I-5 in Northern California, the antenna are on high alert once the sun goes down. And sometimes it IS a bear.
See Homestretch and Barking Spider’s blog for more PCT stories:
https://adventureclaudia.wordpress.com
I heard some creature stomping around and snorting last night. I wonder if it was Bigfoot.
I got a little lost on the side trail down to Callahan’s but I made it eventually. I ate my tasty town breakfast and drank a ton of coffee and charged my devices then sorted my resupply box. I found a pair of Altras that were just a half size too small and traded them for my falling-apart New Balances, the ones with holes so big I could stick my feet out of them from the side. I swapped the bright-colored skirt I’d been hiking in since my old shorts got holes in the crotch for a brand new pair of shorts. I feel so fine!
My pack is heavy with food since my appetite for trail food is down. One day I’ll get my resupplied dialed in. Probably not any day soon.
I saw Sweet Virginia as I was packing up, she just finished her flip flop through the Sierra. I’d like to see the Sierra one day without so much snow. I bet it was fast. I bet it was beautiful. But I have no regrets!
Just past noon, way later than I intended, I set out for the trail. Half a mile in, I saw a big hiker with a huge pack clearly struggling. “How do you do it,” he asked, “How do you get your packs so small?”
I climbed up in the heat of the day, past Pilot Rock, past day hikers and trail crews, past lizards and birds and beetles. I took a little break at a spring and drank water and dried out my tent, soaked from condensation. My last miles stretched to sunset. I stealth camped overlooking the burning sun.
Before I fell asleep, I heard tree limbs snap. Animal noises. Just frequent enough to keep me up. It got closer. I could hear the bear snorting, breathing. I wasn’t afraid, since bears don’t really attack unprovoked, but I was unnerved and definitely prevented from sleeping. I clapped, I talked, I yelled out “Hey Bear!” I played Poi E on my phone, maybe more for my benefit than the bear’s. It semicircles around my tent and I peered into the forest to try to see it in the moonlight. I thought about the ants and grubs and spiders and plants it was eating, how it had to get fat for winter. I hoped it had the same disdain for trail food that I do. It left me well alone. At about 1am, it sauntered off and I finally fell asleep.
