Day 36

24 Miles

Today we hiked the aqueduct. Up at 2:30, on trail at 3:15, we watched the sunrise and the moon set. With Joshua trees all around it was a nice walk. The moon was nearly full so I put away my headlamp within the first mile or two. Leapfrogged a bit with another group, but didn’t see them again until lunch. We ate under a bridge while shooing away a squirrel that had no fear of humans. Hikers need to stop feeding the animals. Really glad we started as early as we did. The mid day weather was super hot, but the wind was probably the worst part. Felt like we were marching against it and not making progress. We arrived at our campsite/water source around 2 and quickly grabbed more water and found some shade. Everything after that was much slower. My legs are beat and these knees are yelling at me. Got 17 to do tomorrow so we can nero into Tehachapi the next day. I’m looking forward to town so I’m hoping the miles fly by in the morning. We have to carry water for the 17, camp, and the following 8 miles the next morning to get to the highway. Gonna be a heavy pack for the morning climb out of this canyon.