May 12 Change of Plans

Francis, Ooops and I left as planned at 4am but a mile in to our walk I realized my GPS had dropped out of my pocket. The guys went on and I headed back to Hiker Town to look for my GPS. By the time I found it, it was 8am and the temperatures were getting hot fast so I decided to put ice on my knee and see if it would help. I waited until late afternoon and left when it was cooling off. Waldo had the same idea so we left together at 5pm.



Me with Waldo

This turned out to be the best decision. There was a nice breeze and a clear sky. Unfortunately there was no moon out, but the stars were beautiful and I had my headlight. Waldo is a fast Walker so soon I was hiking alone. Initially my knee was stiff and hurting so I took it slow and planned to go until midnight - about 15 miles. It was a beautiful night, so quiet and cool - almost cold. Had it been daytime the temperature would have been in the 90's. I seldom needed my headlamp. You could see the surrounding lights from the nearby towns in the distance. Because I was walking on the aqueduct it was easy to walk in sandals and I gave my feet a break from being in the hiking shoes. My knee also enjoyed the easy going and actually felt better as the night progressed. I ended up hiking 18 miles by 1230 and found a nice place to pitch my tent.
This turned out to be one of my favorite hikes so far. Sometimes what seems to be a bad break actually turns out to be a lucky break after all.

Heart