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!

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