Hiker Heaven!

I am spending the day at Hiker Heaven in Agua Dulce. It's the personal residence of the Jeff and Donna Saufley. They host thru-hikers in amazing style. They provide a shower with soap, shampoo and a clean towel. While you are showering, they will wash your clothes. What will you wear while your clothes are being washed? They have tubs of loaner clothing to wear during your stay. What if you want to go to town about a mile away? They have bicycles you can borrow for trips to the grocery store or a restaurant. Above is a pic of me and the bike I used to get to the Mexican restaurant and buy some ICE CREAM at the store. They have the capacity for 50 hikers at a time, but there are only about 25 here now. There are shade awnings setup with cots inside for hikers who choose to spend the night. They have a few rooms they reserve for couples and they also provide shuttle rides to REI and a Walmart in a neighboring town for hikers who need gear or other supplies. They also receive resupply boxes and below is a shelving unit in their garage filled with hiker boxes.

Oh, and did I mention the solid wifi and internet cafe with five laptops? I'm typing this post on one right now! There are books to read, guitars to play, a full post office with a postal scale, postage, and priority boxes for shipping. There are lots of chairs for relaxing and interesting people to talk to. As I was riding the bike back to their house, Rock Ocean, the trail angel who gave me a ride in Big Bear showed up!

As much as I love this place, I plan on leaving tomorrow morning and getting back on the trail. The desert section from Agua Dulce to Highway 58 is often the hottest part of the trail, but the weather over the next few days is going to be cooler than normal, so I am blessed!

Most of the people I am hiking with went on the shuttle ride to REI. I didn't need any gear so I plan to spend the rest of the afternoon relaxing and enjoying a day of rest. How appropriate that it is Sunday!

Thanks again to everyone who is reading, commenting, and praying for me. It has been an amazing journey so far and it has only been 455 miles!

Butter Fingers has a new pair of shoes! I bet I can hike really fast now!