May 30 665-693 

Hot hot hot.  At the 20 mile mark we are wiped.  We routinely surpass 25 miles, so we were a little confused by this, but by the end of the day we have notched  6250 feet of elevation gain and 5200 feet of loss. Absurd.  We feel proud to have pushed to 28 miles.

  In the morning we find the trail littered with an army of tiny footprints that go on for miles.  Rats?  

Miles pass as we endure constant climbing and descending through fairly non-descript scenery.  Today is a day to put headphones in and zone out.  We do see one of the more impressive great western juniper specimens we have ever seen. 

  Mid day we pass a trailhead and a man stops us and asks if we would like a cup of ice cream.  “Sir, yes we would. More than you would know.”  He gives us a scoop of homemade key lime pie ice cream. 

The end of the day takes us through a 15 mile shadeless stretch, which we luckily time so it is after the most intense heat of the day.  We straddle the edge of a ridge, and have to hike until 830pm to find a flat spot to camp.  The hillsides are entirely covered in flowering shrubs which are gorgeous and fragrant.