A shorter day today, an easy 22 miles. On the way we crossed into Goat Rocks Wilderness, the place everyone raves about. Nothing spectacular to be seen yet, although the temperature is a lot nicer here. Just a calm hike in the forest.
I had dinner with Squirrel Daddy and Boots in the evening. I love those two so much. It feels just like back at the start, when I met them. Squirrel Daddy told me more about the Florida Trail and it turns out it’s more than a swampy, bug-ridden test of endurance. Squirrel Daddy especially seemed really happy to hang out again. If these two could be there until the end, that would be the best.
Boots had a hilarious story from the desert. At the Joshua Inn, where he and Squirrel Daddy stayed for a night, they, and a whole bunch of other hikers, got very drunk. Eventually everyone went to sleep in their tents. In the morning, Squirrel Daddy saw Boots emerge from his tent, as on a normal day. Boots however, had had quite the night after going to sleep. At some point, he started sleepwalking (or drunk-walking) barefoot on the highway in his sleep clothes for 2.7 miles. Eventually he was aware enough that he needed to get back to the inn, so he started banging on people’s doors. Those inside, not too eager on a drunk barefoot guy on their property, called out that they would call the cops, so Boots went on. Eventually, he got to a gas station where he approached a guy on how to get back. As he turned around however, there was a cop car behind him. The cop started interrogating him and luckily, he decided to drive him back to the Joshua Inn, where Boots went back to sleep, his sleeping companions around him none the wiser.
Tomorrow should be quite the day as we head into Goat Rocks proper and walk the Knife’s Edge ridge.