On June 22, I continued on a long downhill section and did an easy 24.5 miles into the tiny town of Castella. It was an easy and fast walk and I listened to the traffic on I-5 for miles before I got to the bottom of the hill.
The last few miles into town were along the road and I really don’t like walking on roads anymore. The surface is so much harder than the ground that it makes my feet and legs hurt a lot.
I made it to the store and got my package. While having a cool drink and rearranging my food I debated about hiking more that day. 25 miles was a good distance and I had a few hours of daylight left, but I had put in a lot of miles in the previous week and I was feeling it.
Finally, I decided to take it easy and camp at Castle Crags state park, just across the street. They have a campsite reserved for PCT hikers but no one else was there. The campsite next to me was occupied by an older couple who I chatted with for a while. They invited me to join them for dinner which was very nice. I was treated to salad and sautéed mushrooms, along with a great conversation. The people I’ve met along the trail, both hikers and nonhikers, have made all the difference in this journey.
No pictures from today. Nothing of note to look at except trees.