KMS – Ridgecrest – Day 126 – Sat Oct 28th

Day 126 – Sat Oct 28th
Unmarked tent site near walker pass campground – Bird Spring Pass
2003 -2023.1
Approx. 3376 ft ascent 3136 ft descent
20.1 Miles

It was the right call not to stay at Walker Pass campground and our DIY camp spot served as well.
Even forgetting the glass, camping near trailheads and roads is never sensible.

We aimed to get up at 04:00, but after late night and all the running around that we’ve done over the last couple of days we were both shattered.
Instead we woke up at 06:00 and were out on the trail by 07:30, which was still pretty good!

It seems take a long time to get up on these colder mornings. It was a very fresh start and the sky was clear with ice forming on the inside of our tent.
The day started with the reasonable climb before we ascended to the top of an undulating ridge where we spent most of the morning.

If we had walked on last night the next available camp spot on Far Out was highlighted at over 7 miles away. Most likely we wouldn’t have found anything particularly in the dark.
As we climbed we walk past a number of campsites that weren’t marked on Far Out that hikers had made this season. Typical….

Although we found at the top of the ridge the ground seemed to be more exposed and was covered by a layer of frost. So maybe we had called it right after all.

For 2 miles we had to follow a dirt track used by ATV’s (All Terrain Vehicles).
Comments in Far Out were not complimentary. Not only was it not safe to walk due to the amount of traffic. The trail was also hard to walk on and very uneven with huge rocks and ruts in the middle of the road.

Luckily we could hear the sand buggies and Motor cross bikes coming in advance so we opted to stand away from the road in the spikey bushes as they approached.

We were both glad to see the back of the dirt track and as soon as it finished we sat down on a log and made ourselves some lunch.

We spent the afternoon watching buggies is a Motor cross bikes navigating their way round of course that ran across the mountains.
To be fair it looked pretty cool although we didn’t appreciate the noise pollution. Particularly as one of the buggies was playing some loud Latino style music!

Before the day was done we had one more climb. We reached the top and popped out into the setting sunshine with an hour or so before it began to set.

As we walked down towards Bird Spring Pass the afternoon warmth of the sun was lovely on our face. Although it wasn’t long before it dropped below the mountains on the far horizon.

We watched a large flock of jet black birds flying around the mountains given us one last display before the sun finally set in the evening sky.

Although we had made sure we carried extra water just in case the cache was dry. Arriving at BSP with 2 litres remaining. This was a little conservative but we didn’t want to walk 20 miles to find there was no water here.

Bird Spring Pass had a decent size water cache which was a huge relief.

Tomorrow we have a 15-mile hike before the next water cache but that should be much easier then today.

We managed to nestle ourselves in amongst the Joshua trees with a reasonable level of shelter from the wind.

Again like last night we found a large amount just shattered glass littered in the sand. We can only assume that some local rednecks come up here shooting bottles and hopefully not hikers!
We made extra sure that the camp spot was clear of glass before setting up the tent.
As we set up camp we watch the moon pop up above the mountains right on cue. Burning full and bright in the sky.
This all happens within the space of a few minutes and we both comment how it was like a popup book. How quickly the moon rises into the night sky.

Sarah made another excellent fireplace for our stove that cut out the wind completely and we rustled up a couple of Knore pasta sides with some Links Hot Dog Sausages. WSe cut into slices it was a lovely warming meal and we sat huddled together looking at the moon.

Again we had a full moon and it was so bright again tonight the almost didn’t need a head torch as the ground was clearly illuminated.

In the distance we watched the lights from a city sparkle in the night sky almost like some giant living organism. Wondering what life would be like on a Saturday night in the city and all the people that lived there.

We huddled in our tent and I rustled up some hot chocolates. Sarah lying next to me snuggled up in her sleeping bag almost asleep whilst the water boiled.

Let’s hope tonight doesn’t get too windy on the pass as tomorrow we need to make up some miles.