Since some people have been asking here is an update on my mother’s attempt to hike the Pacific Crest Trail.

After a couple of weeks resting up from a twisted rib and taking a practice hike through the East Bay Hills she got a lift back up to the trail. Not at the exact point where she left off but a bit further north at a lower altitude. Her first day back on the trail it was hot. 95F/35C. The next day it was hotter. 100F/38C. On the third day when it was hotter still she sat down and put her feet in a cool running stream. At which point she decided she wasn’t suicidal and didn’t want to die of hyperthermia.

She got off the trail the next day a bit east of Belden and, ignoring all the things she told my sister and I as teenagers, stuck out her thumb. She got a lift a hundred miles to Sacramento. From there she caught Amtrak from Sacramento to the Bay Area, then walked the five miles from the train station to home. Once there she knocked on the door and scared the crap out of my dad.

The following weekend she and my dad drove to her resupply stop where there was a bunch of stuff waiting and gave it to people who were still trying to make the hike.

I think she would like to go back onto the trail however the area is still locked in heat and covered in smoke, if not actively on fire. Conditions are not likely it improve before the hiking window closes.

So, final score.

Pacific Crest Trail:1
Climate Change:1
Mom:0

However, I know my mom. Stay tuned for more wacky adventures.