Date: 2023-04-01
From: Whitley Gap Shelter 

To: Blue Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 15.8
Weather: light rain

Today was a doozy for a couple of reasons. It was my longest distance traveled so far and the first couple of hours I was hiking in pouring rain with the occasional lightning storm.I woke up very early and the forecasted storm for the night seemed to have never materialized, so I figured I'd get an early start. I woke up at about 0330 and was on the trail by about 0545. Apparently the storm that was supposed to hit the night before decided to wait until about 0615 to start. By the time I had climbed out of the gap, the rain was so bad that my headlamp was next to useless. Like the first morning on the trail, the dark and low visibility also caused me to get turned around again, but fortunately I realized it much sooner this time. It also got so bad that at one point I just stopped and stood for about 5-10 minutes until the rain let up enough so that I could tell where I was going.There was a point about an hour or so later where I thought the storm might be over because the rain had let up significantly, but about 15 minutes later it started all over again. By this time, it was past sunrise though, so I could at least tell where I was going. It was finally about 9 or 10 when the storm passed and about an hour after that the sun came out. So, overall I hiked in the rain for around 3 to 4 hours. The rest of the hike, after I dried out, was very pleasant though socks stayed wet until I got to the shelter. All in all, it wasn't a terrible experience. The temperature was high enough that I never felt cold and there were only a few times where I really started getting concerned about the lightning. I'd prefer it didn't happen again, but if that's the worst I have to deal with then I'll be grateful for it.The conditions at the shelter, once I finally got there, were non-ideal in its own way. I'm glad I got there in time to get the last shelter space because there were frequent gusts of wind that had to be in the 30-40 mph range. It wasn't impossible to set up a tent, there were several people who did, but it did make it more difficult.There was also a boy scout group at the shelter area. I got to talking with them for a little bit and they were hiking around the area for a few days in order to prepare for a two week backpacking trip to somewhere in New Mexico I think. The scout leader told me, but I can't remember the name. I think it started with an F. It was a little amusing watching them try to start a fire so they could boil a pot of water with the high winds. They had some sort of gas tank that was attached to a tube which was then attached to the burner. They had to pressurize the canister using some sort of pump while they tried to light it. Meanwhile, the wind was making it very difficult and when they would finally get it lit, a gust of wind would blow the flame out and they'd have to do the whole thing over again. But, they eventually got it and a lot of them had a Backpackers staple dinner of instant Ramen.Breakfast: Peak Refuel Breakfast Skillet. This was the first one from this brand that I wasn't a fan of. Part of it might have been because I added less than the amount of water called for. All the other freeze dried meals that had eggs seemed to ask for too much water, so I figured this would be the same. But, I think it's probably more the fact that it's not possible to make good rehydrated eggs period.Snack: 2 handfuls of Second Nature Keto Crunch Snack Mix. Lunch: A tortilla with peanut butter and honey. Dinner: Peak Refuel Chicken Pesto Pasta. Another solid meal, though I did put too much water. It called for 5oz I think, but the lowest measurement my container labeled was 12oz, so I had to guess.