Nancy Canyon to Highway 74, mile 140 to 152

25 FEBRUARY 2016, 03:58 AM
I woke up at 4 am thinking that I can hear my alarm. I wasn’t. It was too early. I must be dreaming about my alarm. At the end it didn’t go off at all. I forgot to enable it.

6 am – I am on the trail. There is a display of cacti and flowering shrubs in bloom this morning. See images below

10 am – there is a water cache at mile 145.4. There are 2 picnic tables, chairs and books to trade. This is a great spot for a break. Thank you trail angle.

12 pm – I meet 4 hikers on the trail. The first people I see in a couple of days. They told me there is a note on my truck that it will be towed away if not moved in 72 hours. I am rushing to get there. Just 2 miles to go. It is a big change from the relaxed pace I did before the news of my truck.

12:15 – a snake showed up on the side of the trail. It is too close to the trail for me to pass by. I extended my hiking pole and touched it, but it didn’t respond. So I picked it up with the tip of the hiking pole and through it away. That must have wake it up, because I saw it sliding out of sight quickly.

12:45 – I can see my truck from the trail as I am getting closer. There is no tow truck anywhere. I must be in luck. There is that threatening note from the CHP, but no fine. Just move the vehicle or else.

PCT Lost Valley Spring to Nancy Canyon, mile 120 to 140

24 FEBRUARY 2016, 04:08 AM
My new strategy is to try to write my notes early in the morning before “wake-up”. This is because I am to wasted in the evening after dinner and just want to go to bed. But in the morning I lay wake for a couple of hours waiting for my alarm to go off. Do here I am at 3:00 am writing.

The plane for today is to get water at mile 127 and then at 137 which should be reliable. Camp at Nancy Canyon, mile 140. This leaves 12 miles for tomorrow to get to my truck.

6 am – left camp at first light. It is very windy today and at 5000 ft of elevation somewhat cold. The high point of this section which runs along the Bucksnort Mountain is 5600 ft

The highlight for today is for what I didn’t see. I didn’t see a single person.

Made it to camp at Nancy Canyon. Looks like it is going to be a warm night. This by the way end up being wrong.

Barrel Springs to Lost Valley Springs

23 FEBRUARY 2016, 04:33 AM
8 am – Valley de San Jose. I am passing through an incredible area with rolling green hills covered with green lush grass. Here and there cows are grazing.

10 am – Aqua Dolce. The trail is flowing the stream towards Warner Stream area. Big trees all around.

11 am – I am sitting at a picnic table near the fire station on highway 79 having my early lunch. There are big trees for shade, but the wind is blowing hard

2 pm – Aqua Caliente. The PCT follows the stream which is now flowing nicely. There is lush vegetation on both sides of the strem and big trees for shade. It is a nice change from the mostly dry environment closer to Warner Springs.

4 p.m. – I am wasted. It has been all up hill this afternoon and I have been carrying 4 liters of water for the last 5 miles. I decided to find a place for the night, but it is quite windy and the wind is cold. I past over 2 spots that would have been perfect except for the fact that they where completely exposed to the wind and found a spot in a small valley under some short trees, PCT mile 120.5. It is quite protected here.

Scissors Crossing to Barrel Springs, mile 77 to 101

22 FEBRUARY 2016, 05:02 AM

At night I heard a bunch of coyote making a big noise and then quickly quite down. They must have caught something. It was too far from me to tell.

I woke up early and stayed on the trail before first light. The trail climbed quickly to gain the ridge of the San Filipe Mountain range. At first it past through a terrific display of cacti, and I just assumed that the desert is going to be all like that. But that was the only place with such concentration. There was one century plant in bloom, just one in the entire desert. I guess it like the solitude to.

12 pm – I made it to the 3rd Gate Water Cache. I now know where they got the picture for the pctwater.com site. There are hundreds of 1 gallon water bottles here

5 pm – after the water cache the trail climbs again on the ridge of the San Filipe Mountain range and eventually drops down to Barrel Springs. There is just a slew flow of water into a trough, but this is the first surface water I see the entire day.

I saw just one person today. A woman hiker who said she is just day hiking.

Santa Rosa Summit to Scissors crossing

My truck at Santa Rosa Summit, highway 79

My bike at Scissors Crossing

21 FEBRUARY 2016, 04:10 AM
8 am – finally on the bike heading to the starting point of my hike.

12 noon – stopped at the picnic table near the fire station on highway 79 for lunch. It is beautiful here with big trees all around.

2 pm – San Fillip highway. I fixed a double flat in my front tire which took almost a full hour. One motorist stopped to ask if I needed help. Very nice.

4 pm – Scissors Crossing. Made it. It is too late to start hiking. I will stay here for the night. I locked up my bike to one of the foundation post of the bridge.

MTB Wide Range Cassette on Road Bike II

It took 2 weeks for all the parts to arrive, even with Amazon Prime. The cassette and derailleur arrive within a couple of days, but the 1.85 mm spacer took 2 weeks.

Replacing the cassette and derailleur was surprisingly easy. The gear cable took a bit of research. The gear cable on my bike runs under the chain stay, so the only logical place for the Shiftmate device is right on the derailleur. Actually, I use a very short piece of cable between them.

Note the 40 cog sprocket wheel which is slightly gray.

One thing I am worried with this setup is dirt getting in the Shiftmate and interfering with its function. So I made a small box out of kydex using the Shiftmate itself as a template. I use tape to hold the box in place.

Forming the sides of the box.

Conclusion

With 4 rides and over 100 miles on the new cassette I must say that I am impressed. Having 2 extra lower gears to switch into on steep hills has made riding so much more enjoyable. It is not that I am going faster, but I am certainly able to keep going longer. Also, the shifting have been smooth and predictable. I can shift any time up or down without any issues.