Hello a Everyone,

Well, I made it across the border into California today and I am camped a few miles north of the border. I am camped about a quarter of a mile from the California Ag Inspection Station. Not knowing the area, and as usual, I ended up here because it was getting late (4:30) and it didn’t look like there were any better spots to camp. There were no real sheltered or secluded spots and I just picked the spot with the most and biggest bushes to hide me from the road and to shelter me from the wind, if it were to pick up.

The spot is not completely level and I may find myself scrunched into the side and bottom of the tent in the morning. I have gotten to the point that I am not quite as picky since I have slept in such different places. When I am tired, like today, all I want to do is eat and crawl into my comfy tent and sleeping bag and read my book. If there is a lot of road noise It doesn’t bother me anymore as I have just adjusted to it as background noise to actually help me sleep.

Today the day started well with a beautiful sunrise at 6:30. I had a very quite spot last night and slept fairly well. It still takes me about two hours to get ready and hit the road. The first three miles or so of the Old 395 were very nice, even though it has no asphalt shoulder. It parallels the freeway 395 and therefore has little to no traffic. It was level and a pleasure to walk until I came to the start of a very steep hill and a sign that warned of limited visibility for the next three miles. And the big surprise was that the road turned to gravel! There was no other option since the freeway 395 is posted no bikes or pedestrians.

So I quickly found out why there was limited visibility. Very steep uphills! I am guessing 25% or more grades, and then steep downhills. Not just a few, but a lots of them! The road was narrow and the hills were so steep that you could not see a car coming over the hill. It was about four miles of this steep, roller coaster, gravel road. I only passed three cars on that whole stretch, and I have no idea what any of them would take that instead of the freeway right next to it?

That four miles has to be on my list of top ten tough stretches in all my treks. As usual, it was in the eighties, and humid. Almost every day it’s been very dry. By the time the road was asphalt again I had walked ten miles and had hit the “Wall.” Pulling the Wheelie uphill on the rough gravel was a challenge. At one point my walking program showed me walking a pace of about one mile per hour. Once the road became asphalt it was level for the next mile, and by then I was so tired that even a slight uphill became a challenge. I realized that I never stopped to take a break the whole morning, which is something I usually try to do after a few hours.

I was out of water in both my drinking bottles and the gallon bottles and wasn’t sure if there was anywhere to fill up. I got to Border Town, which is a tiny town with no services, and found a very small casino with a restaurant and store on the very outskirts of town. It is actually the only place I saw all day and there isn’t another until Hallelujah, which is another four miles from my camp tonight.

I was starved and the sound of something, anything, cook, sounded good. I ordered a Mexican plate with lots of carbs, rice and beans. I usually don’t eat the chips, but they were all gone, along with four glasses of water. The waitress was nice enough to fill up my gallon bottle of water without me asking her. I also got a cold drink and loaded my water bottles with electrolyte powder and ice. I had taken my time to eat, and both the food and rest completely changed how I felt. I made the mistake of not resting and not keeping up my energy level by eating. I couldn’t wait to get out of that casino atmosphere and back on the road. I have to say that people in these small hole-in-the-wall casinos are not the same as people you meet in the country or small towns.

Old 395 ends at the casino and I had to start walking on the main 395, which has more traffic but a wide shoulder. I happened to walk by a broken down car with three people standing outside of it. As I walked by they all started to asking me questions about the Wheelie and my trek. It was funny that even though they were stranded by the side of the road, they seemed excited talking to me and I got compliments from them and a high five from the man. That’s part of what I enjoy about trekking.

Hallelujah Junction has a gas station and mini market and about four miles from here. I will stop and hopefully will be able to load up on drinks and fill up my second gallon water bottle. I am a little concerned because the lady at the casino didn’t think there is another store until Susanville, which is posted as 64 miles away. I don’t like carrying the weight but I don’t want yo take the chance of running out. I am hoping she is wrong, or at least there are some houses as I wouldn’t hesitate to knock on a door to ask for water.

If I have cell service tomorrow I will hopefully update my blog. Please keep sending me your positive thoughts and prayers. Please excuse the typos, grammar, spelling, etc.

Ted

EDIT: I forgot to mention, today I trekked 14.61 miles.