Day 87, July 13: Mile 1250 to 1268 and into Quincy
Start: Middle Fork Feather River - Mile 1249.7
End: Bucks Lake Rd/Quincy - Mile 1267.9
Miles: 18.2
Ascent: 4787 | Descent: 2285
I started hiking, as usual, by 6am. I was faced with a big climb that I wanted to get done in the morning before it got too hot. The climb ended up not being that bad. I took a couple breaks but mostly just cruised up it. There were beautiful wildflowers on the way up and it was shaded for the most part. Eventually, I popped out on a ridgeline and got some service, and found the “Buck’s Lake PCT Book Box,” a plastic storage box someone had left out with books to take. I didn’t take one but I did sign my name in the trail register in it.
Around 14 miles into my day, I popped out on a road, where lo and behold- trail magic! A man who lives in Sacramento and whose wife is section hiking the trail had an EZ-Up set up with chairs, electronics charging, and a cooler full of frozen Nesquik chocolate milk. It was slushy and I slurped it down while sitting in the shade, thanked him kindly, and was on my way.
I finally made it to the road where I was planning to hitch into Quincy. As I was a few hundred feet away, I saw another hiker, Taco, getting in a truck. I ran up, calling to them to wait, and the guy started to pull away but stopped when he saw me in his rear view mirror. I asked if they were going into Quincy and he said yes but I’d have to squish. Squishing is not something I mind at all, so I threw my pack in the bed of his truck and hopped in the small back seat of the cab. It wasn’t too bad for my short legs.
We chatted on the way and soon made it to Quincy. Taco and I both wanted to go to the brewery so we walked inside and there was Squirrel and Stem! I ordered fish and chips, a side salad and an IPA. It was delicious, and it was nice to catch up with them.
I wanted to get a hotel sorted out, so I started to leave the restaurant, and there were Gus, Liz and Tikka outside! I caught up with Liz and Tikka for a bit and heard about their weeklong Covid-cation in Truckee. Liz was back to feeling fine but Tikka was still feeling eh without his sense of taste.
After hanging with them for a bit, I walked to one motel which didn’t have any availability, so I went to the one across the street. They did have rooms but said I would have to wait another two hours for them to finish cleaning. It was 5pm at this point, so I wasn’t happy about having to wait to shower, but I figured I could hang out, get dinner and come back and it would be ready.
I walked to a park nearby and talked to my sister on the phone for a bit. A man approached me and he turned out to be a trail angel named Pounder. He asked if I was the hiker he was supposed to pick up. I wasn’t, but we had a nice conversation.
Squirrel Daddy showed up in town in a hitch with another hiker, Twinkle Toes. We went to get more food and I got an Asian chicken salad which was meh. After dinner, I went back to my hotel and they told me still another 20 minutes until I could check in. It was 7:45pm at this point. Pretty unbelievable, and frustrating, as my normal bedtime is around 8:30pm.
Finally, they let me in my room at 8:30 and I took a much needed shower and passed out. Ahhh, to sleep in a bed with air conditioning! Worth the check-in nonsense.