Katie and I went out for a training hike on the PCT this morning at 8:50am. We headed south on the PCT from Hwy 74 (Palms to Pines). About 15 minutes into our hike, we ran into Paul Smith my first thru hiker sighting!!! He had his ULA pack off and was heading into the bushes.

I’d put some PCT Class of 2008 bandanas in my backpack hoping I’d start running into PCT hikers. To get Paul’s attention I said, “Are you a thru hiker? And will you be going to ADZ?” Because he answered no to going to ADZ I handed him his orange bandana.

Paul said it had taken him 9 or 10 days to get to where we found him just shy of Hwy 74. He mentioned he’d hiked 18 miles the day before. He talked about the nasty wind he’d encountered many days on the trail since he started. After his tent stakes blew out and his tent collapsed, he set up the tent again putting large rocks on the stakes. At 4am after the tent blew down again, he packed up and started hiking. Oh, he also mentioned how the elevation gain up to Mt Laguna had kicked his butt.

He talked about Pete Fish’s trail crew working south of Table Mountain, maybe by Sandy Jeep Road. Later, I did notice what great shape the trail was in from Hwy 74 to Table Mountain’s shoulder (a distance of 4.8 miles).

The flowers were out in full bloom. The were lots of blue and purple flowers I don’t normally see. I’m not great with flower names but I think the blue was Baby Blue Eyes and the purple – Penstemon. Still in bloom were many other wildflowers too. The air was cool at 4900 feet. A nice change from the desert floor. By 11:15, after a snack break at Table Mountain’s shoulder, Katie and I turned around and headed back to the PCT trailhead parking lot enjoying the perfect hiking temperature now in the low 70′s full sun and a little breeze.

In previous years, just south of the PCT gate at Hwy 74 (by a hundred yards or so), I’d noticed a water cache. This year, there was no water.

Also, the small sign directing hikers to the Paradise Cafe was not up. This small side trail to the cafe is located on the left 100 yards before reaching Hwy 74.

I checked out the PCT trailhead monument north of Hwy 74. There was an igloo marked for PCT hikers and filled with about 5 empty water bottles. No register. Paul Smith had said he’d noticed 5 other hikers were ahead of him who noticed had signed the register back by the last water source (sandy jeep road?).

Paul Smith – PCT Class of 2008
Began his hike March 29th.

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Cindy has been down here in the desert working for me first for two days and now Sandi. This morning I picked Cindy up at Sandi’s and we did the Bump & Grind at 6am. It was great walking and talking again with Cindy. Cindy and I (and Tina and I) used to meet rather regularly and do hikes near our house in Tarzana. I miss those hikes up Killer Hill in the Santa Monica Mountains.

Cindy seated atop Bump and Grind at around 6:45am.

I took another photo of baby hummingbird on my return from the hike. She looks like she is growing but her head is still not reaching upward for food. Her beak seems to be larger though and she is still breathing. What is going on with the unhatched egg though? In trying to move away from the nest after taking this photo, I jammed my foot right into a cactus. Ouch!

I just took a peak at the nest and Mama is perched directly on top of the baby and egg. She is NOT feeding her live baby!!! Come on, this is driving me and Ray crazy. Feed your baby Mama! Make us happy before we leave for LA today.

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This morning I received the following email………
The subject to the email was:
A Humble Suggestion.

And we all know I am VERY humble.

Anyway, you might want to let your loving readers know you’re not going to be posting on your blog as much, now that you are in intensive pre-hike mode. We miss your stories and photographs, but will understand.

Shame on me. I’ve been so into finally taking action on the planning and training for my upcoming backpack trip, I’ve totally neglected this blog and all of you. I remember how frustrated I was when I was daily following my favorite Adventure Journalist’s blog and she’d let days go by without a word, and then later, when she stopped maintaining her blog all together because she got a “real” job.

I apologize for not having given you a head’s up on what I have been doing. I was wrong to not have taken the time to briefly let you know that I wasn’t able (as the title of my blog says) to “daily” making entries. I will continue to write in my blog until I leave on the backpack trip, even if all I write is….”I’m here, but swamped.”

What I have valued most in keeping this blog is enjoying how many of you follow along with me in my life. It means a lot to me. I feel your love, your interest and that I am important to you. Well, YOU are important to me too. I want to show how important you are to me by continuing to write until I leave on my trip.

Now, reflecting on what my thinking was that I hadn’t explained my lack of blog entries, I see that it was all about me and how I’d look if I simply wrote a simple sentence saying something like, “Sorry, I’m into planning and training my hike and won’t be posting as often.” I was afraid I’d look selfish and self centered! Ha. Well, what I feared, I created.

Selfish self centered….that is the root of our trouble. p.62

I’m back and I’m never too swamped to say thank you to my loving readers.

p.s. Photo of me yesterday crossing the “raging” (tee hee) Whitewater River while on a hike with the Hiking Group. Not to make an excuse but…taking on being the facilitator takes a lot of time (especially the way I take on the commitment). To encourage continued participation and interest for those who haven’t signed up yet, I write hike day information emails, take photos during the hike, post the photos later, write an after hike writeup. Here is yesterday’s writeup:

Hi Hikers,

What a great hike today. Thanks to Ginger, Jaqueline and Joe for making this hike so nice.

I wish more of you could have been there. Temperatures never rose over 84 degrees. The wind kept us from being too hot. Flowers galore!

Our hike began from the parking lot at the Wildlife conservancy (The old Whitewater Trout Farm). Robert, the manager, was there to welcome us. I’ve talked to him a couple of times and he now knows me and our hiking group. You see, the facility isn’t open for another 2 months or so. But they let us park inside their close gated parking area.

As you will notice from the photos I’ve uploaded to the MHCC Hikers album, we crossed the Whitewater River a number of times. What troopers everyone was. No complaints – just laughter.

We hiked along the south side of the river bed for about 1.5 miles. We then crossed the river for the third time and climbed another mile to the ridge.

After a short break we headed back down the flower filled canyon switchbacks. It was on the way down that Ginger spotted an orange and black beetle on flowers. When we looked closer, we noticed there were orange and black beetles on ALL the flowers in this one area. It’s mating season and they were into it big time. I do intend to go back when it isn’t windy to get some good macro shots of these beetles.

There was more talking on the return hike and I enjoyed getting to know Joe and Jaqueline. Ginger is a regular MHCC hiker and I always love when she is on a hike.

Jaqueline led the way through the trail less river bed.

Then Jaqueline ran across a rattlesnake making its exit into some bushes off the side of the trail. I think Jaqueline said that she only saw the last foot of this huge rattlesnake before it was out of sight. Once I realized what she was excitedly pointing out, I gently put the tip of my trekking pole on the rattle that was barely visible under the brush. Mr. Snake was a big one. Mr. Snake let us hear his distinct rattle letting us know he did not want to be disturbed. We respected his wishes and hiked the last ½ mile back to our cars.

This hike was a little sampling of what life on the trail is like for the through hiker. Everyone said they had a great time and enjoyed the hike.

I know these hikes require a big time commitment, but the flowers won’t be out the way they are now for long.

So save the date……..Next Saturday, March 29th there will be another PCT hike….

We will repeat the shuttle hike we did two weeks ago when we hiked 7 miles through the back Mary Poppins-type flower filled hills. We will change up the ending of this hike though and go a different way.

Hike: Moderate

Time commitment: 6 hours.

Meet at Pavilions, near the WAMU bank parking.

Meeting time: 7:30 am!! (It’s getting hotter.)

Bring at least a quart to quart and a half of water.

Look forward to seeing you,

Linda Jeffers

p.p.s. Maybe you know this already, but in the top right hand corner of my blog there are 3 small photos. These photos change as I update my flickr.com online photo site with photos. I have a folder on flickr for the Mission Hills Hikes and Hikers inside my Dayhiking folder. Here is a direct link to my Dayhiking folder: http://www.flickr.com/photos/gottagolinda/collections/72157603498143009/

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My sponsor Debbie sent this out to all her gals.

Get your Kleenex out.

http://www.stservicemovie.com/

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12/31/07

Twenty two years ago my Mom passed away. How can that be? Twenty two years have passed and I still remember her as if no time has passed. So many thoughts, memories and feelings come up as I take this time today to post Mom’s photo in honor of the anniversary of her passing.

I’m so different than I was the first 41 years she knew me. I was always a problem for Mom. I wasn’t an easy child. Toxic insecurity and over sensitivity manifested rage; frustrating and confusing my parents. How I wish she could have known this Linda today rather than the Linda I used to be. If only I could have seen how much I must have hurt her with my punishing silence and withdrawal.

Later when I was about 39 or 40 I remember we tried to spend a bit of time together. I was so uncomfortable. I didn’t know how to be or what to do the few times we planned dates to be together. Truthfully, I didn’t know how to be with anyone, not even myself.

Years later as part of living amends to my Mom and Dad, on Sunday, October 08, 1995, my sponsor asked me to list what I admired about my Mom and Dad.

Here is that list:

DAD

Incredible businessman
Great desire to be responsible parent financially and wanting us to thrive for the best.
Loving parent
Generous parent
Bright – witty – interesting
Good looking
Direct
Responsible with making us be responsible kids
Loved his work/life
Informed re: world happenings
Fun
Loved travel
Gentleman

MOM – (After I wrote this list for Mom 12 years ago I was surprised. You see my Dad had always been my hero. My Mom was just, well, just my Mom. I had not fully seen my Mom’s incredible qualities until I put a pen to paper for this assignment.
Also right now I am surprised looking at this list again today noticing how many similar traits Mom and I share – minus of course being a Linguist, Historian and Knowledgeable about everything! I’d always thought we were so different.)

Beautiful
Intelligent
Artistic
Linguist
Historian
Gardener
Well read
Knowledgeable about everything
Self sufficient in entertaining herself
Loved travel
Kind, patient
Loving parent
Responsible
Gracious
Selfless

Mom, you are in my thoughts always. I know you feel my love, respect and gratitude today. And, I feel your love too.

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On 6.16.07 I bought the book Moving On by Sarah Ban Breathnach because some 17 years ago I experienced such awareness and change while reading and following suggested actions in her book – Simple Abundance. I valued Simple Abundance so much, I gifted it to my sponsees (this, of course, was before I stopped recognizing Xmas with gifts).

I only started reading this book Moving On I’d bought back in June. This is what Sarah writes on her intro page to this book: “As a passionate reader, I’m hard on books and other writers. Since I spend most of my waking hours in the company of words, I need books (my own included) to knock my socks off. Ravish my resistance with the first paragraph, or seduce me slowly through the introduction; as long as the feeling is intimate and immediate, I’m yours. I long to be bowled over by an author’s insight, to wonder how I lived before her book explained it all to me or how the author knew me so well.”

I started reading Moving On, not at the beginning, but in the middle of the book. I was trying to get a sense of whether I wanted to take it with me on an upcoming vacation as a daily meditation book. Well, from the first reading Sarah knocked my socks off. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about how right on she is AND how succinctly and flawlessly she says what I think and feel. She tells the story of my life in a few selected pages I’ve included from her book below. While reading these pages, just substitute her buying and keeping her NY apartment for me buying and keeping my Dixie Cyn house and my ranch. Not bad choices, just wrong choices. Sarah says, “The apartment represented something far more than shelter: To my eye it was what success looked like.” Bingo.

I’m living my choice now living here in Rancho Mirage. Sarah writes, “Unfortunately, there’s no sure way of knowing the tab until we’ve lived the choice; we can’t see in advance whether the choice was a wise or wrong one. But at least it was ours to make. We also can’t really know where a choice will take us, although we might sense its directions.” I’ve been contemplating how long I think I’ll be happy living down here in the desert. But I see that’s silly. Right now, I am happy. When I’m not, I trust I’ll know it and have the willingness to “Move ON” to another place.

So, for me to re-read at some point and time, and for anyone of you who might be interested, the following pages are what spoke to me this morning:

(Clicking on the page will enlarge it enough for you to read.)

What was your “apartment”?

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I was doing morning pages earlier. From this early morning brain drain writing came today’s blog entry. When I wrote that my birthday, December 24th, was only 4 days away, I started feeling those old sad feelings I’ve always had around my birthday. It came to me that I might want to examine on paper some of my age old beliefs from when I was young. I really want to see if my beliefs then are what they are today. So I did a belief system inventory. Here is what this belief system inventory turned up:

My beliefs about my birthday are:

• people won’t make a big deal no one will remember I won’t get what I want
• It will be trouble for others
• They won’t know how to make a party for me
• I’ll be disappointed
• I’ll feel alone
• Unimportant
• No one will notice it’s my birthday
• No one will care it’s my birthday
• It is MY day
• They won’t make my day a big deal
• They are too busy
• “let’s combine “it” with Xmas”
• Who cares
• I don’t really want anything
• what I really want is too expensive
• they won’t find what I want
• It’ll be too hard for them to find “it”
• they’ll get the wrong thing

I felt bad seeing all these beliefs. I see how needy and insecure I was.

How do I feel about my birthday these days? It’s just another day. Now every day is a big deal. I think my birthday, Xmas holidays etc, all of these times just make me sad because I remember my parents and miss them terribly.

A number of years ago I realized every November I started to get depressed. Come January that depression left. Once I realized this pattern I made the decision that I was no longer going to participate in the holidays like I used to. I treat the holidays just like any other day. Every day is a holiday. Every day is a birthday. No big deals anymore. Just one big deal. I’m alive and I’m very happy.

Happy Day!

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I’m so glad I didn’t miss Riddle’s trail art when I was hiking the PCT. Riddle would stop, take a break and create art out, like the 3 following photos, from whatever she found on the ground around her. Spotting each masterpiece was a highlight of the day.

This morning I stopped to photograph some local bump and grind trail art (certainly not up to Riddle’s compositions). I really am trying to pay attention to all I pass by.

Halfway back down the hill we’d just climbed I said, “Look Katie, there are initials on the trail”. She said that she’d she them the other morning. So, I had walked right by the initials without seeing them. Not good. But now I remember, it was at this point I was looking over at another hiker and talking about something. Yeah, that’s it, I was distracted!

I’m home after the hike, sitting at my desk in front of the computer, and I glance up and notice this egret perched atop the willow tree in front of the lake.

I ran out with my tripod and camera fitted with a max telephoto of 200 and clicked away from various distances and positions. I stayed out on the golf course for a half hour hoping the bird would take flight. That is San Jacinto peak behind the bird.

What I learned from watching this bird for a half and hour was how little time I spend being still, just looking. I enjoyed myself. I hope I remember how fun this was.

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I’ve had the book -52 Weeks of Conscious Contact by Melody Beattie – a long time. I just starting using her book as another daily spiritual reading. I’m on Week 1, Day 4: Inventory Focus.

Here is Day ~4~

Some problems are slow-burners. We live with them for a long time and get used to mucking about in them.

Other problems strike hard and fast, coming down on us like a hailstorm.

It can be difficult, when the storm hits, to remember that the journey is a benevolent and holy one, a process that is working with us to help us learn something new.

Inventory Focus: Are you going through a situation right now that feels torturous, like it’s happening for no reason other than to irritate or punish you? Can you believe, just a little, that what you’re going through right now is a valuable part of your life and that an overall benevolent process is taking place? Can you at least believe that this situation has the possibility of shaping you in valuable ways and bringing gifts to your life?

Gratefully, I am not going through a hard time right now. However a number of very special friends are going through hard times.

I’m thinking of you and hope you know how much I love you.

5pm sunset tonight.

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