Day 13. The Power of a Carrot

Focus on the Discipline not result

My tea from last night had a great quote on the paper thing on the tea bag.




I love it! This is totally my mind set. I just didn't know how to verbalized it so simply.

I Hiked out of Mike's and had breakfast on top of the ridge where there was some pretty good campsites. A little further and I took this video.

Yeah this video is sideways. oh well. It was the first and last good view after leaving Mikes. It was rough and shitty views for many many hours/miles



Paradise Cafe is the Goal today and they close at 7. You can see by the sign how hard this day is going to be. I feel good and ready to go.


So I'm armed with my Carrot to chase after and mind in a good place. I don't see how I could fail. So I'm off...

I Left Trail Angel Mike's with about 6 liters of water. I was going to be pushing hard today. I knew I was going to need more. I checked the water report and saw there was a good water source about 9 miles away which was called Tule Spring. I hammered out the first 9 miles and drank 4 liters. I got to the Spring and it looked like a fire hydrant in the middle of no where so weird. I also ran into Chris from Durango, CO also getting water. I filtered 6 liters I planed to carry about 7.25 and I sat down in my chair in the shade and cameled up. Drank as much water and electrolytes as my stomach could hold. It was awesome and a little painful at the same time.

There is another water source on the report coming up called the Guzzler. But I have heard of this one before and it was referred to as dead lizard water. Yeah I wasn't going to get water here if I could avoid it which I could so I wanted to take pictures of it though and show you guys the murky water that's inside. Gross haha.





There is a bucket that you would use to dip water out. This was 2 miles past the Tule spring and right off the trail. Tule was .25 miles off trail but so worth it. Today is so hot it's stupid. I can't imagine why anyone would want to be out here right now hiking. Except us crazy ass thru hikers. Nothing good to look at just a hot nasty desert full of lizards and a few snakes. I trudge on and on and on. I really don't like this hot mid day hiking. I'm on top of the world and super pumped in the morning though. I need to get up earlier and take siestas during the heat of the day and hike when it cools down and night hike a little. I'm always go go go in the worst time of day.



There was a surprise water cache that I didn't see on the water report. I wasn't about to take anymore water I had enough to reach my destination. It was cool to check the register and see who is ahead of me. I didn't take any more photos past here I had about 8 more hot miles. I'm doing the math in my head to figure out fast I had to go and how many breaks I could take to make it to the cafe before it closed. I just need to focus on one foot in front of the other and keep doing that for a few hours and I will more than likely get to Paradise on time.

I was so miserable and getting really pissed off at my umbrella, and wind. It was perfect under the umbrella. Then an unexpected wind gust would come up and flip my umbrella inside out. DAM THIS PIECE OF SHIT AND SCREW YOU WIND! I am sure if anyone could hear or see me they would have had a pretty good laugh. lol I am just sick of this desert already. I pasted by a couple girls laying under a huge rock to get out of the sun it was Creature and Jack. They introduced me to there friend Jeff. Jeff was the rattle snake that was also under the rock seeking shade. Yeah... I just need to keep walking they are crazy lol.

So to get to the cafe I have to walk 3 miles an hour and I can take one 15 min break in order to make it by 6 - 6:30 to give myself a window of an 30min to hour to get there before it closed. I had 8 miles to go... It was to gusty at times for the umbrella, but not breezy enough to cool me off. I'm freaking out man. I just kept thinking about how good the food is going to be at Paradise when I get there. I just need to get to paradise I kept thinking. I wanted to stop and camp and just go for breakfast. But no I thought. I promised myself I was going to get dinner there. I am not going to break my promise. I'm going to accomplish my goal. Within a mile from the Paradise cafe trail. I meet Glen who informs me that the trail is another mile to the cafe... I could almost cry at this point every part of my body hates me. I hate me. I can't think of nothing else but sitting down taking that first sip off the beer that was just placed in front of me...

selfie


Look at these other very happy hikers with there huge plates of food.


Yeah the best beer ever right there. Promise fulfilled and fantasy come true. I have just proved to myself that I can do anything I put my mind to. Placing your goal in your mind is the most important thing you can do. When that is all you can think of you will stop at nothing to achieve it. Focus on what is going to get you there.

My words can't really even come close as to how difficult this was for me today. My mind was off in so many places I wanted to give up so many times the pain that was off and on was ridiculous at times. That DAM umbrella in the wind was almost to much at times lol


Yeah buddy all is worth it in the end. Garden burger with all the fixins plus guac. and sweet potatoe waffle fries. I truely am in Paradise.


Glen on my left and Mark on my right. I met mark at a water source a few days ago and keep running into him in towns and water sources. Those two places are where there is usually groups of hikers.

Someone asked the waitress where we should camp. none of us wanted to walk the mile back to the PCT to camp. She told us that we could all sleep on the patio and she would leave the bathroom door unlocked. This is the first night without my tent. Ended up being about 10 of us sleeping under there. It was pretty cool.

I look forward to a zero in Idyllwild tomorrow.

Even though I am crying about how much the desert sucks and what not. I truly do love every minute of it! This is an incredible experience. I can see and feel myself already becoming more than I was before I started...


- Posted from my iPhone