53.4-77.1

april 24

23.7 miles

I have heard it takes 10,000 hours to truly master a skill. I have now carried a pack over mountains for over 10,000 hours. I sometimes wonder if that time would have been better spent elsewhere- learning a language, becoming proficient at a musical instrument, self- development. I have definitely sacrificed career advancements, relationships, and time with friends and family to live as a modern day sisyphus- doomed to eternally roll my boulder uphill. Has it all been worth it? I think so, but luckily I am too tired to think about it too much.

We continued on a long series of ridge walks, slowly descending from the Laguna mountains. The wind is a constant, but it sucks away some of the heat and requires us to carry less water so I am thankful for it.

We carry 3 liters each from a wonderful water source. At every water stop we are seeing TONS of honey bees. It is cool to see populations thriving in the wild. We wonder if they are native or swarms from local keepers that have spread far and wide.

We switchback and meander endlessly downhill until we reach the desert floor. Many cactuses are in bloom, and the flowers are so vivid that they look surreal.

The wind is punishing down in the valley. We notice that a few miles ahead the trail crosses underneath a highway, and make our plan to sleep underneath it like two hungry little trolls. Tomorrow we will go to town to resupply.