Day 10Big Bear City, California

After a hot day, I find an almost perfect campsite with water and little wind. I meet a Belgian hiker named Jeff, and we hike together for the day.

The 1st miles the next morning are difficult. A storm has damaged the trail along a section called “Mission Creek”, and I have to cross the river dozens of times, repeatedly looking for the best route. I find a bank card in a stream belonging to someone named David. My mission for the day is to return it to him. After asking and passing about 20 people, I finally catch up with him.

I push on to mile 256 to get closer to Big Bear. The night in the forest is perfectly calm, but freezing. The down around my feet freezes slightly and icicles form inside my bottle.