5/16 – Day 39 – Bird Spring Pass
Today I hiked from Landers Meadow (mile 608) to Bird Spring Pass (mile 631).
I woke up before the alarm, probably about 5:30, was on the trail by 6:30. I hiked with Yeti; he is a tall young man, 24, living in Philadelphia; he is a Veterinarian Nurse. After the hike he plans to study to become a Veterinarian. He knows a lot about animals. We hiked fast for the first 7 or so miles through nice wooded country. I saw deer, which has been surprisingly rare for the first six weeks of the hike. The weather was pleasantly overcast. The first water cache was back out in the high desert. The next 14 miles was completely in the desert. The clouds built all day as did the wind.
We reached Bird Spring Pass, with its water cache, by 5 pm. It was cold. We all (Yeti, Early Bird, Crumbs, Spitfire, and I) sat there wondering if we should move on. Eventually I decided to go down a little ways to camp and try to get out of the wind. No one followed me. The others camped at the pass. With a little more time, I cooked a great spaghetti and had vanilla pudding with raspberries. Real good. Set the alarm for before 5 am. We are expecting real water issues for the next 60 miles. No water for the 20 tomorrow. I’m trying to get to sleep early; winds very gusty here. It may rain or snow. Good night.