Jammin' with Jameson

15 miles. Woke up super early and was the first one out of camp because I finally only slept in 5 minutes longer than everyone else instead of 20 minutes. All we had to do for the day was 9 miles to get to the legendary McDonalds at Cajon Pass and then 6 more miles to the water cache where Swell’s dad was picking us up. Once we got to Cajon Pass, our worst fears were confirmed… McDonald’s was closed for construction! People were planning to do a full 24 hours eating only food bought at McDonalds and no longer could take on this classic PCT challenge. Instead we settled for lots of junk food at the gas station.. and I mean lots of it. We created a gang of hikers (we need a name for that) munching down on the grass outside the station. I love nothing more than seeing a happy group of hikers done with one hiking goal of the day and reveling in the beauty of a wonderful selection of shitty food. Glowstick, Swell, and I hiked the remaining miles while Flo went ahead. We were rewarded with a lovely water cache and hitch into a luxurious nearo at Swell’s parents desert house. I had never seen this side of California and we assured Flo he was seeing a quite unique perspective of our country. Her dad and brother repair cars so they had a garage shop stacked to the brim with parts and over 30 cars in the lot. We headed to Wrightwood for a 4 day resupply and I was able to snag Tyvek from the mountain hardware store! Goodbye shitty holey Polycro. After hitching Clip Clop, Maddie, and another guy, we headed back to the house to relax. We separated our food and gear to prepare for the next days slack pack and had a bomb dinner. After popping our blisters with a burnt needle, which felt like the hikers version of doing ratchet drugs in a bathroom, we celebrated Swell’s birthday for the 3rd time.