Bushcamp to Bridgeport
15.9 miles
Mile 1016.9
Woke up around 4:30am to Spikes packing up. She wanted to get a head start while I caught up.
I nearly shat myself when a bird crashed into my tent! After a bit of journaling I packed up and hit the trail by 6am.
The sun was out and the trail was easy to start my day out. I was hauling ass trying to catch Spikes before a trail junction in 9 miles. We had discussed taking a side trail that would get us to the highway quicker, but it would cut off 8 miles of trail. When she proposed it in the morning I was all about it, but after further reflection I decided I couldn’t miss Sonora Pass, so had to play catch-up to tell her before she reached the junction.
When I reached the snow covered mountain I’d need to climb I saw Spikes high on its side making her way slowly up its steep snowy switchbacks. I knew I’d never catch her in time in the snow, so I opted to take a more direct route straight up the neighboring mountain which had no snow.
I climbed as quickly as I could up the loose gravel, making small switchbacks as I went. I continued to gain on Spikes, ultimately reaching the top before her.
A few minutes later Spikes crested the mountain, surprised to find me lounging on a rock. She agreed that we should jam on rather than bail out on the side trail, so on we went.
We spent the next few hours hiking above 11,000 ft on terrain much different than we’d experienced for the previous 300 miles. The clouds came in, but luckily the weather held up.
We ran into a section hiker named Thor making his way to Toulumne Meadows. He had hiked the PCT in 2016, and was fun to chat with. We also ran into a day hiker with his dog. It was surprising to see so many people, but I guess that’s what happens when it’s Saturday and you’re near a trailhead.
Shortly after we reached a sharp snow covered descent that would take us to the Sonora Pass Picnic Area. It would have sucked to hike down, so we slid down on our butts. This time I was wearing pants…so no more ass scrapes!
Ten minutes later we were at the road, we’d made it!
It took about thirty minutes of standing in the snow before scoring a hitch.
The dude who picked us up was named John. He and his fiancé were heading to a trailhead to begin a multi day backpacking trip. They we super cool, but couldn’t take us the whole way to town.
From the trailhead they took us to we waited another half hour before scoring the best hitch yet. The couple who picked us up immediately offered us cups of Trader Joe’s popcorn and Fresh Pressed Juice, they also gave us toothbrushes, toothpaste and floss…so that was kind of weird, but perhaps they were hinting at something.
Anyways, they dropped us off right out front our motel, The Ruby Inn, and gave us a bag full of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies along with four more bottles of pressed juice!
We thanked them before checking into our room. It was a nice place, and we were happy to have it as everything else in Bridgeport was booked up due to Memorial Day Weekend.
After showering, I took our clothes to the laundry mat to be cleaned. While there I met a super cool local dude named Adam. He gave me the lowdown on where to eat.
Back at the motel, Spikes and I cruised over to a joint called Rhinos for dinner. We both ordered burgers, along with chicken wings, fried macaroni and a pitcher of Sierra Nevadas Pale Ale.
The food wasn’t that great…but I was hungry enough to finish most of it. On our way back we passed an old courthouse that I felt obligated to photograph.
Back in the room sleep came quick. As always, it felt amazing to be clean and in a bed.
P.s. Thanks Paul for the generous support! Let me know where my dad and you want to meet us on your bikes!
Cheers!