Big Bear Lake

Moosie and I arrived at Hwy 18 and hitched a ride down to Big Bear Adventure Hostel. We didn't quite make it by the weekend as we have been keeping the mileage down to make sure our bodies and joints get acclimated to the abuse that we've been putting on them, but as of this post we've been making great miles and feeling strong. After a fantastic meal at a restaurant called the Himalayan (authentic Nepalese food), we are about to go resupply at a supermarket and head back out on the trail. It was nice to sleep in a bed for a night but we're meeting Steiner and Emily on the evening of June 2nd and it's time to make some miles.

Since the last post, we've been through a little bit. We eventually climbed out of the desert and into the San Jacinto Wilderness, which gave us our first snow and ice, along with a few rattlesnakes (you can see more in our pictures). Though we packed crampons and ice axes, there were no sections that really required their usage. We lost the trail at both Little Tahquitz Meadow and Fuller Ridge but in both cases, a topographical map and altimeter were all we needed to bushwhack our way back to the trail. There's just so many use trails that footprints go all over the place and in certain sections, the trail actually lies on steeper parts of the slope so it's smarter to stay on a flatter section and make your way down.

After passing San Jacinto, we had a fun time descending 16.2 miles on the slowest switchbacks of all time into Snow Creek Canyon, then crossed the San Gorgonio Wash and the I-10. Then we climbed out into the San Gorgonio Wilderness, which I really had no idea was so incredibly beautiful. Passing a wind farm along the way was certainly surreal, and we headed into the Whitewater Preserve to meet Dave, Val and Leila for some trail magic of beers and steak fajitas, as well as a breakfast at a diner courtesy of Leila the next morning. After a slow start, we headed up Mission Creek and had a very Appalachian Trail-ish experience of constantly following a creek up and fording/crossing it multiple times. Really fun and beautiful.

After the very long ascent in and out of the canyons of the San Gorgonio Wilderness, we've made our way to Big Bear Lake and will tackle the Bernardinos and the Angeles Crest next. VERY excited to have Steiner and Emily come out and join our trail family. Kevin Lee (Pete's son and my boss) is also coming out for a weekend at the beginning of June for 2-3 days to hike some miles with us and that's going to be fun - he's had a lot of experience in this neck of the woods due to his ultra-marathoning days out here. Hopefully he doesn't leave us in the dust and just decide to meet us in Canada.

More pictures are up at the usual location.

New photos start with this one (please note that I hike with that face 99% of the time).

Much love and thanks to those who have dropped me an email or a text. It means a lot to have messages waiting for me.

Our next spot that we can receive a USPS shipment at is:

Shian Sung or Nicole Donnelly
c/o The Saufley's
11861 Darling Road
Agua Dulce, CA 91390

We will be there Sunday, June 6th. Please remember to ship USPS Priority Mail and that it will take 3-5 BUSINESS days to get there, depending on where you are shipping from.

Anyways, things are going GREAT and we've had a lot of fun so far. It's just getting started!

-Barrel Roll

PS One fun thing is that I got my jury duty notice. I sent a long letter back explaining why I can't serve this very moment. Hopefully the California government understands my predicament and will let me postpone til later this year : )