A shorter day today, what a luxury! I’d been feeling the backlash from our nighthiking escapades through the burn zone, so a day with less hiking was more than welcome. We had some fun side quests planned today.
First up was Old Station! The smattering of buildings had a diner with milkshakes and burgers. Sometimes that’s all you need. A small crowd of hikers was there. Usual suspects Tommyhawk, Remedy, Gnome and Sips (Remedy’s boyfriend) and Fizzy and Louisa (whose trailname is Fat Bitch apparently, no wonder she introduced herself with her real name).
Next were the lava tubes, underground tubes formed by volcanic activity that you could walk through. They were nice, although I mainly remember the blissfully cool temperature, offering a short respite from the sunny onslaught above ground.
We didn’t make it to the campsite before sundown, so out came the headlamps! In the last few miles we walked in the dark among free-roaming cows and found a scorpion and a nighthawk on trail. I know we shouldn’t make nighthiking a habit, but seeing the wildlife we miss out on during the day is so freaking cool. The fauna changes completely.
We cowboy camped on a slab of concrete next to a communication tower. It’s something different!
