Blisters galore

I arrived in Mt Laguna this afternoon. I have hiked 42 PCT miles so far, plus a few off the trail to get ro campgrounds and grocery stores.

My blisters were far worse than i thought when I stopped in Hauser Creek. By the time I hiked the 5 miles to Lake Morena on Saturday, I was hurting. I decided tostay  the rest of the day and then re-evaluate in the morning. In the morning I was disapointed to find that my feet were still very tender and my blisters still actively filling. I decided that even though my legs and heart were ready to keep going, my feet were not and the smart thing to do was to stay put and heal.

Sitting still for an entire day was tough. In city life I can easily spend a day in my pajamas reading books and watching movies. In trail life I want to be moving. There is so much beauty. I have seen more types of lizards than ever before, incredible wild flowers, hummingbirds, blooming agave, amazing views. I managed to sit still on Sunday. 

On Monday I left Lake Morena and hiked 6 miles to Boulder Oaks campground where I met up with some of the guys I had hung out with at the lake. I spent 4 hours resting my feet and than got restless and pushed on another 7 miles to another campground, Cibbits. I found some friends there, put up my tent, ate some food quickly and fell asleep quickly. I had thought of staying up for the lunar eclipse, but was tired from my 13+ mile day in heat with bad blisters. I had the best sleep in weeks!

When I got up into the higher hills today I felt at home. I walked around a corner and could smell the pine trees and was in heaven. I stopped to focus on the smell of the pine trees before walking on. I have been enjoying the wonders of new plants and animals, it was amazing how comforting a familiar smell was.

Today was a shorter day, but still with hurting feet. I was happy to arrive in Mt Laguna without too many more blisters. I plan to rest here a day to heal more. Fortunately I have extra days built into my schedule for healing wounds and I know that once my skin on my feet heal, I will be able to hike longer miles I will be ahead of schedule.

"The wilderness holds answers more questions then we have yet learned to ask". - Nancy Wynne Newhall