July 14, 2008 Pacific Crest Trail

Destination: PCT-Tahoe Rim Trail Split
Miles: 17

Adrian:
I'm still a little suspicious about the Maker's reactivating deet, but if Billy says so, it must be. Seems to me it would be much better served in small glasses, but then again, I'm sleeping in a tent and he's out there with a headnet and sleeping bag. Anyway, half the whiskey is gone but Billy has not been eaten alive, so all is good (except that half the Maker's is gone).

Steve and Billy have many years of hiking and backpacking experience and it shows. Sure there are pains like blisters and sore muscles for these guys, but they are both holding out fine. These guys are so much fun to hike with it's laughs almost the whole way. Coupled with the fact they have to work real hard to keep up with us, all is very well.

We found a wonderful camp high on a ridge with White Pines for wind blockage and smoky horizons for scenery. Again, the smoke is not as bad as in SLT, but it does get worse at night. We are near the split of the Tahoe Rim and PCT. We've been sharing our tread for the last few days with Tahoe Rim trail, and it looks like a dry and hot trail...at least at this time in the year.

Walk good...

Kirsten:
Whiskey's not for drinking anymore. Billy - who slept without a tent among a million swarming mosquitoes - revealed a new use for whiskey. I'm not sure if this discovery was made as a last ditch effort last night to ward away the mosquitoes or if it had been tested before. That doesn't really matter. What does is whiskey's apparent ability to "reactivate" Deet, a powerful mosquito repellant that among other things melts plastic. So with this nugget of information at hand, what would you do to escape the mosquitoes in an effort to get a few hours of sleep? Why splash some on your face, of course. This morning when we woke up and found an empty flask of whiskey next to Billy's bag I assumed he drank it in a desperate attempt to get a little shut-eye. It turns out he just put some on his face to "reactivate" the Deet. He is adamant this method works. The rest of the whiskey disappeared when the open flask accidentally tipped over during the night. I haven't decided if I should believe this story.