Days 16-17, mile 384 (14% of the trail)

McDonald's was a success. I packed out two apple pies. We hiked out a few miles and camped in a grassy gulch that looked like the foothills of the Himalaya. In the morning, we set off for Wrightwood, with nearly 6,000' of ascent. The hike was uneventful and not that bad. The last portion of the hike descended into Wrightwood, where I hung out with some former coworkers (hi Jim and Alicia!). For lodging I ended up splitting a room with two other hikers. Within an hour the sink stopper broke, we found the toilet didn't really flush, and the shower trickled. My climbing buddy Ron visited from LA and he filled me in on his sufferfest Cactus 2 Clouds 2 Cactus hike. The next day, Brian and I found a much nicer place via CouchSurfing. The host was an electronics guru with a chill dog. In the morning we started toward Little Jimmy campground, 26 miles away, the first stop on our trip to Agua Dulce (next town on the PCT).

I got to the campground at 7 pm, where the host invited me to the campfire. There's this ancient feeling of safety sitting next to a fire in the woods. It feels like you're protected. Some young people today describe cities as feeling safer. Campfireish. The host was leaving soon for the Israel National Trail, which runs north-south for 600 miles. I poured some water I heated on the outdoor wood stove into a Nalgene, and held it for warmth in my sleeping bag.