May 29, 2012
Day 34Miles: 23
Total Miles: 541
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| View for much of 23 miles of hiking through Antellope Valley |
I cowboy camped by a stream after hiking through Antellope Valley - a western arm of the Mojave Desert. This was a very nice spot down in a canyon and out of the wind that roars through and powers the hundreds of wind turbines dotting the landscape. The trail through the valley was a flat fifteen or so miles following the California Aquaduct most of the way. I took a siesta under a bridge near the wind farm - the only shade in 15 miles (not counting the Joshua Trees: I chose to stay away from their dangerous spine covered trunks)
I took a siesta under the bridge to escape the heat and had a good conversation with Bannana Pants about his plans to paddle a home-made sea kayak from Seattle to Alaska and then hike the Brooks Range. This got me thinking and now this is on my "bucket list". Bannana Pants is here from Austria and has a back injury from an earlier lifting accident. He has made it over 500 miles with this injury and plans to make it to at least the top of Mt. Whitney at close to mile 800.
From that point on from under the bridge, the wind did not stop until I got to my camp in the canyon 8 miles later (eight windy, dusty, hot, uphill miles). Others were camped but were already settled in their bags for the night. I ate my fill of dehydrated chicken burritos and Mountain House blueberry cheescake. I have to say that Mountain House makes some great deserts, but the cheesecake and bananna cream pie are my least favorite - too much for one person and the consistency is not great. The Berry Cobler, however, is fantastic!
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| Joshua Trees line the route through much of the Mojave |
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| Antellope Valley with wind generators |
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