Today was a tough day. I got up early and hit the trail with Mismatch and Spatula a little before 5. Despite eating a couple of pop tarts and close to half a pound of Gorp, I was starving and quickly committed to the restaurant plan. We cruised the 8 miles to the Highway 2 intersection and then ditched our packs for the 1.8 mile road walk. Highway 2 gets very little traffic and we didn't expect to get picked up. We were right, but the 1.8 miles went quickly without the packs and we arrived at the diner at 8:45, just before they opened. We were all starving. I went with the Two Timer which included two pancakes, two eggs, and two sausages. I could have easily put away two orders. I hardly ever feel full these days.
We were fortunate to get a ride back to the trail head from another patron at the restaurant. Once on the trail, we put in another 8 miles to Fountainhead Spring at mile 411.1. At the spring, we caught up with Nips, Wildflower, Histo, and Snausage who had slept in and skipped the restaurant excursion. We'd all been hoping to take a break there but found very little shade so we decided to proceed a little farther before stopping for siestas.
We spent much of today walking through a huge area that burned in a fire called the Station Fire. There is a nasty plant called the poodle dog bush that grows in burn areas. The oil from the bush can cause terrible itching and burning when it comes in contact with skin, similar to poison oak. Some people are more susceptible to reactions than others. I don't think I'm very prone to skin problems and have never been overly careful about avoiding poodle dog in the past. However, parts of the trail were completely overgrown with it today and it certainly warranted a little additional caution. In fact, a lengthy stretch of trail was completed closed, and we were forced to follow another detour along a dirt road.
We are currently camped outside a fire station along the detour. We're definitely feeling a little homeless away from the trail, but it's been a really fun night. I was exhausted when I arrived and could barely motivate to make dinner but am feeling much better now and just impressed the boys with my dwindling pull-up skills (my daily set of push-ups isn't cutting the mustard!) My ankle is a little sore tonight but I think we're all feeling something. Misery certainly loves company. I'm definitely going to zero in Agua Dulce on Saturday, as are many others.
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