KMS – Ridgecrest – Day 123 – Wed Oct 25th

Day 123 – Wed Oct 25th
Tent site near top pf Chimney Peak by 1st Dirt road – Spanish needle creek
1965 – 1985.3
Approx. 3041 ft ascent 5151 ft descent
20.4 Miles

We were wise to stop before the summit of Chimney peak as it was much windier up there.
The blister between my toes was also on the cusp of developing into something more serious.

We woke up to more of an overcast day rain and there’s definitely more clouds in this sky compared to the previous days and there is a cool breeze.

There is an abundance of bird life + we disturbed lots of little birds that had roosted in some of the spiky bushes near where we hung our bear line last night.
Today we watch birds hopping from bush to bush and the bird song is almost familiar to what you might hear back in the rolling hills of Oxfordshire.

We soon make mincemeat of the rest the climb to Chimney peak and it isn’t long before we’re descending down the other side. This time we are walking through an abundance of pine trees.
My knee was aching again last night even though I had my puffy jacket bunched up into a ball between my knees to help cushion my knobbley knees.
On every step I can feel it and today + decided to switch back to an old pair of Super feet insoles. To see if that helps correct any issue that might be causing this pain.

On the bright side the desert is it known to be “flatter“ and more forgiving underfoot with a better grade of trail. Time will only tell + hopefully this means my knee will last the next 700 miles but it’s definitely a concern!

I’ve opted to take some Paracetamol and Vitamin I (Ibuprofen) today as the Voltarol gels don’t seem to be working. I just want my body to be working as I aerobically fitter than ever + just need the old knee to carry me on.

Sarah’s Metatarsal pads also seem to be working really well and she’s definitely complaining less about the pain in her feet, which is a great sign!

We had seen on Far Out that close to Chimney Creek there were a lot of bugs. Therefore, we opted to keep our rain pants and head nets on. Although we were definitely a little premature.

The rumors were correct and similar to in North Cal we were swarmed by lots of annoying little bugs. They seem to float around your head bobbing and weaving before aiming straight for your eyes.
Fortunately they didn’t seem to bite, but were very annoying + wearing a head net only makes you hotter!

We stopped at Chimney Creek and sat in the shade We’ve only covered 8.5 miles today and our plan is to do around 25, so we’ve still got a lot of ground to cover still.

Sarah seems to be in a very annoying mood singing irritating songs, but at least she is happy and puts a smile on my face.
Maybe it has something to do with the amount of sugar that we’ve just consumed. She’s a little bit like a hyperactive child bouncing off the walls!

We hike out of Chimney Creek and it goes up a 1000 ft over 5 miles.
The sun is shining but the wind is gusty and it’s real challenge for our sun umbrellas.
This area seems to be a popular hangout for Coyotes as we see scat littered all over the rocks on the trail. I guess the use these rocks as Pedi stools to present their poop or something.
There is also evidence that Coyotes definitely like eating Manzanita berries to help provide vitamins in their diet. I won’t go into any more details…

We spend the 3.5 miles walking along undulating protected corridor of trees protected from the gusty high winds blowing through the mountains.

We hike up a valley towards an obvious pass + at the top of the pass it is extremely windy and you certainly wouldn’t want to stay up here.
The view up here is spectacular although the wind is so strong it nearly knocks you off your feet. Possibly the windiest place on the trail so far, in close competition with Dicks pass when approaching South Lake Tahoe.

From here we think we look back to the valley plateau that hosts towns like Lone Pine, Independence and Bishop.

We U-bend round the mountain and start walking back in the opposite direction, on the other side of the ravine. The trail is lined with oak trees reminiscent of back home. There leaves golden orange and brown.
Sarah comments “Why can’t just walk straight across to ravine” I guess the PCT is getting its moneys worth.

The trail then winds its way down the mountain dropping almost 5,000 ft. The conditions under foot are rockier, and more unstable.
As we hike lizards dart left and right in front of our feet. We wonder what rocks and logs harbor a snake basking in the afternoons sunshine.
We definitely need to concentrate treading carefully on every step.

Over the last couple of days, we started to see different types of Cacti now we’re finding sheltered pockets Prickly Pears. They are green and look like large ear lobes + don’t seem to have prickles like some of the other species we have seen on the trail.

It looks like we’ve missed the flowering season, although some still look healthy. Others have wilted and almost have the texture of dried fish skin that you might find drying and a fish rack in a third world country.

With the sun in our eyes we hiked down a series of switchbacks over huge grassy green spurs of mountain.
With the sun shining and the plants at all showing different stages of their autumn display it’s beautiful!

Sarah was a little way behind me so I waited for her to catch up. When she arrives he commented that she sensed something had been watching her for the last couple of switchbacks.

As we go further down towards Spanish Needle Creek we walk through groves of large Oak trees.
It was obvious a creek was running through this area due to the dark green mass of Oak trees concentrated around the water source.
The trial is littered with acorns some even falling from the trees like small green bombs making us jump!
As the wind blew strong through the branches there was even a need for a hard hat as they fell one after another. Sarah even getting boshed on the head…

Just before it got dark we decided to play it safe and pull in at Spanish Needle Creek.

The reasons were there’s was a reliable water source and the weather looked ominous. Another climb at the end of the day when we’re still nursing injuries also wasn’t a great idea.

We found a number of tent sites tucked away just beyond the creek.
The one we chose was higher up which means less of a risk of condensation. It was also surrounded by trees which gave us some protection in case it started to rain.

I also realised my head torch had accidentally been turned on during some point in the afternoon.
If we carried on it would have only lasted for about 20 minutes before dying. So maybe my Spidey sense was working and it was a good call.

Again we padded out a dehydrated meal with extra pasta. On tonight’s menu was a Beef Lasagna which was pretty good + Sarah thoroughly enjoyed it!

We have approx. 17 miles to do tomorrow before we can get to the highway at Walker Pass.
From here we can possibly get a hitch to Ridgecrest.

We have nearly exhausted our food supplies and have rationed accordingly. Hopefully our remaining supplies should last at least an extra night in case we have to pitch up somewhere near the highway for another night.

The bus to Ridgecrest only goes Monday’s, Wednesday’s and Friday’s so arriving tomorrow may present difficulties and force a hitch.
We have 2 big climbs tomorrow so we’ll see how it goes.
As we sit in our tent tonight acorns fall out of the trees bouncing off the top of our tent. Let’s hope they don’t keep us awake!
Far Out also reports that Bears have been spotted in this area. We are not surprised due to the abundance of acorns and water.