Wrong Address...

Hey all you package senders: I posted the wrong address for Kennedy Meadows.
Here's the right one:
Kennedy Meadows General Store
96740 Beach Meadow Road
Inyokern, CA
93527

Wrightwood, CA

(Boyscout surveys the sunrise scene from Apache Saddle)

Greetings from mile 369: Wrightwood, CA. I've joined up with a gelataneous group that varies from 4-10, and we've been pounding some pretty fantastic landscape these past few days. Blisters have formed and popped and formed again, and every sunset and sunrise has been staggering. The trail angels (both intentional and impromptu) remain overwhelming in their humanity and generouisity.

I've created a Flickr account so as to share some more pictures (as I can only do 5 per blog here, and I ain't no blogoholic). You can check it out here. They are mostly in order (save the ones I had to edit and rotate) starting with most recent.

Also, I've added a link under Friends and Family for "Walk for Wildlands". They're an organization that raises money in order to procure and preserve tracts of wilderness. If you don't want to send me a box of cookies at Kennedy Meadows(winkwink), and even if you do, please consider donating to these guys! Once I'm off the trail and working again I plan to do the same; it doesn't seem right taking in all these staggering vistas without giving a little back.

Oh, and if you do want to send cookies or other hard to get items (dried papaya strips that resemble bacon, trader joe's dried banana halves etc), you can do so here:
Caitlin Burns
******NOT THE RIGHT ADDRESS
1445 Kennedy Meadows Road****NOT RIGHT ADDRESS
Inyokern, CA 93527
The Right Address is: c/o Kennedy Meadows General Store
96740 Beach Meadow Road
Inyokern, CA 93527
**I'll be there around the 9th of June, so make sure to send it with ample timing. Thanks!

Root Canals to Rattlesnakes: The first 150 miles.

After hiking about 70 miles, my tooth began to throb and I knew I probably needed to get it checked out. Begrudgingly, I used my iPhone (both stupid and stupendous in the wilderness!) and found out where the nearest dentist was: Julian, about 6 miles back and a 12mile hitch hike from where I sat, hot and cranky in the mid-day heat. I sucked it up and backtracked, only to rejoin my original hiking partner (Evan, aka Boyscout, Cubscout, Cubby jugs or Few Words) and new hiking bud Elise in what turns out to be California's Pie Capital. We wasted no time sampling the wares.

Turns out I had an infected tooth (due to bad work before...) and needed another root canal. Fun! The root canal guy, Doc. Masters, comes into Julian two days a month to do his dirty work. Just so happened that the day after I got there was the day he was coming to town. Fancy. Thanks a ton to Dr. Bob and Dr. Masters!

Having lost almost two days, and with the full Milk moon rising, I decided to see if I could hike through the night to make up lost miles...solo. Very intense but unbelievable experience: an unseen but very audible rattler nest I woke up, coyotes, washes, and lots of steep canyon walls...

...But the experience was so surreal I'd do it again in a heartbeat. About 13hours, 26 miles, and 5 rattlesnake experiences later, I found myself getting a ride from Barrel to Warner Springs where I again rejoined other hikers and "reality".

... This was the second to last of the rattlers. He wouldn't move out of the trail, so as I tried to walk around him I pissed off/woke up his buddy just a few feet below him. This was all before 9am... and at that point it all got kind of funny. But not funny enough that I want to see or hear anymore anytime soon. I think 5 rattlers in less than 30 miles fills the quota just fine.

Now resting up in Idyllwild, where I'll leave from tonight to hit some of the most varied (re: steep!) terrain of the trail so far. Whoo!

l

Thinking of renaming blog: America, F*@$ Yea!

It was windy and clear at the Southern Terminus, with no one but Border Patrol around for miles. Being there - not being able to see into Mexico due to a dividing road and big hideous wall - once more codified my belief in how dumb walls, borders specifically, are. Robert Frost was right, there is something that does not love a wall, and walls certainly make shitty neighbors. We did some jumping, paid our dues and hit the dusty, wall-less trail.

I can't wait to see what my feet look like after mile 500. This was about mile 30. As bad as they look, the preemptive taping lead to only one blister (my comrades' dogs are covered and hurting)



Still relatively flat, but very lovely view from Camp 2.

Misty morning of day 3, absolutly stunning around Garnet Peak.

We've just gotten an idea of how hot (and sexy!) the desert will be.

Border Line

We (Chrissy & Azad - our gracious drivers - Evan and myself) made it down to the border in three days and two stays. Thanks much to Megan and Billy in Oakland, and Rio and Will in San Diego. Many a fine burrito and last minute tweaking in between. Also, the MOMA in San Fran - an amazing William Kendridge exhibit is up - and a Strep diagnosis in Oakland. That was exciting... as you can see:

(Yeah health clinics for the people - Oakland/San Fran are full of free and low cost clinics!)

Tomorrow, May 2nd, myself and the young one, Evan, skip the Kentucky Derby and make our own for Campo and the PCT beyond.  He prepared with more burritos and the leg lift/rest technique in San Diego's Balboa Park:   

  After safely ferrying us and our very few belongings to the trailhead, Chrissy and Azad take off to enjoy their time together on the coast on their own journey back home. Thanks guys...have fun!