Caleb is up at 330, packs up his bed, and eats with the group. I grab the ibuprofen before they leave for Cloudburst Summit to avoid some road-walking and an endangered frog area that suffered burn damage. I get the tent partially down and sit while I wait for the meds to take effect. Caleb makes me breakfast and we pull over to eat at some point.

We go around a turn, the car beeps loudly, and the low tire pressure light comes on. Caleb gets out and we both hear the air escaping, like there’s a rattlesnake inside, from the front passenger tire. We put all the trunk gear in the backseat and pull out the donut. All cars should come with a full-sized spare as I feel that the car handles differently.

The lift gate (trunk door) is usually automatic but is now malfunctioning too. It will take us another hour to get down the hill but we average 96 mpg while doing so. We are able to park at Discount Tire in Pasadena for an hour until they open at 8. The guy says they can repair the tire for free, but ours needs to be replaced because its guts are coming out.

They can’t get a tire until 2, so Caleb calls another place that won’t have one in until 4p. He asks for help, and the guy on the phone directs us to America’s Tire, just a mile away. There is a line but cars are moving quickly. I make sure we have at least one option before adding our name to the waitlist. About $200 later and we’re ready for the road again by 930.

Caleb is prepared to drive further into Los Angeles for cheap lodging, while all I want is to be back on the trail, so we compromise and head north. We stop at a car wash and, after a YouTube video, are able to get the rear gate working again. When we get to Santa Clarita, I realize we are only 155 miles from Warner Springs, but we have put a thousand miles on the car.

We can’t check into the hotel yet, so we drive to Sen Noodle House for a long lunch outside. I wasn’t going to get food but I’m so glad I did. Once in our room, we will shower and Caleb will nap away the afternoon while I write. I find a copy of the Bhagavad Gita in a drawer, but I get back to writing as Caleb reads his Kindle.