We twitch and sweat through the night, a result of so much exertion on our bodies that are not used to this level of activity. I’m not sure how long this will last but we aren’t the only ones experiencing it. We are off to Lake Morena as we watch bunnies in the shade. We get full sun at 7am. We refill our water bottles on the RV side of the park and then walk to the PCT reserved site.

We dry our rainfly from condensation while getting more water, having breakfast, and making good use of a bathroom again. I wasn’t expecting this many flush toilets along the trail, but I appreciate them. We see our second “hiker box” which can be any container (tote, bucket, cabinet) full of things deemed no longer worthy of carrying such as sweatpants, uncooked beans, and collapsible water bottles.

Ravi says hi as our passing him yesterday made it seem possible to get here last night and now he feels ill. He’ll go into town for wi-fi as we walk into a green desert. We stopped at 11am to rest among the sticks and leaves in the shade because we are now hiker trash and are reassured that everything we have on will be dirty. Gert and Rachel soon come along and invite us to their snack break under the bridge around the corner.

We’re glad to see Rachel made it through her first day and has now paired up with Gert who plans to look after her (as she’s probably the same age as his two sons). They tell us that they saw Ravi and Grandpa in town. Oh, and if you thought 50 permits a day meant that many people on the trail, you were as mistaken as we were. There are only a few of us so it’s easy for trail angels to keep tabs on hikers too.

We reach Boulder Oaks Campground at 1p and Rachel finds a hiker box with a thick book and a heavy beer. We take some water and stretch in the shade as they set off ahead. We passed two horseriders and a family with a dog two hours later. We are definitely getting the solitude that we revel in while outside. We reach Cibbets Flat Campground before 530pm and there are a few vans but otherwise empty.

Steve (a man on a holiday weekend with his family going back to the city) tells me that kids are awesome and that I should watch out for lions, tigers, and bears on the trail. It was my trekking poles in one hand that caught his attention as he thought they were for fishing. We struggled to get here but we were determined to feel that cold creek on our feet.

It turns out that water that cleans dirty toes also works on your body and clothes, but I skip giving my hair a rinse as the sun is now behind the hill, and I’m starting to get chilly. We’re standing in our underwear, hanging our wet clothes, when Gert and Rachel join us for a dinner of carbs – noodles, pasta, rice, and quinoa – around the table. We wear our jackets to eat and bother with our tents. It’s too hot, even on a cold morning, after ten minutes on the trail to wear more than sun protection.

Gert is 53 and a First Lieutenant of the Royal Dutch Army, so very prepared to be here. Rachel teaches soccer to an age range of kids, so she’s got the leg strength and mental fortitude to attempt this too. Gert is one of 28 people with a certain sticker and he gifts one to Rachel to add to her bear can after surviving a second day. We are serenaded into the night by a mom singing John Denver to her toddler until he cries for her to stop.

Rachel is already much faster at setting up her tent. Ravi took a risk by ordering his on eBay and having it shipped to the Green Store, a stop on the shuttle route to camp. We completed another 16 miles and our bodies are feeling it. We agreed to a shorter day tomorrow, so we will sleep in or sleep out (depending on where you’re from).