LALA Land

Oh, LA.

It is interesting being in such a different city than we are used to in the first place, let alone after being in the wild for a month. While we jump in and out of towns throughout the trail, they are small, hiker friendly, and quick-stop towns. This town is just the opposite.

There's a sense of celebrity when you're a thru-hiker. As you walk through towns and along the trail with big packs, beards, and dirty faces, people know who you are and what you're doing. The trail is such a wealth of information, half the time people come across you and even know your names! I guess it's somewhat easy to spot two guys in matching packs, wearing spandex shorts and cowboy hats, moving twice the speed as most. But hey, it's nice to be known in general!

We love our girlfriends very much, and are enjoying the rest and relaxation that comes with the comfort of being actually IN our relationships once again, and with those who tie our current life to our previous life. In fact, we purposefully chose an amount of days to stay here because we know all too well that we would be walking the fine line of getting too comfortable or not spending enough time with those we care about.

While neither of us want to leave tomorrow, we have been and will continue to be enjoying the time we have -- but are also excited for the parts to come in our trail life. Once we get out of the desert, it's time to get back into our other lives as mountain men. Only this time, the mountains are truly mountains.

Sierra Nevadas, here we come.

--Ian