PCT Day 21, Mile 310 to Cleghorn Picnic Area mile 328

Day 21
Mile 310 to Cleghorn Picnic Area mile 328, 17 miles
Cost: Camped, free

Today felt like I was on a holiday!

I was squeezed so tight into a camping space on the sand with Shaggy & Cuban B that I didn’t want to wake them at my usual 5am wake-up time (knowing they both didn’t usually start till at least 7am).

So I listened to the sound of the stream flowing beside us and the birds chirping in the trees.

It was 7:30am when I eventually started walking (after filling up with water from the stream and fighting off the little fish that were trying to swim into my cup). I knew I would be crossing the stream a few more times so I only left with 2 litres and filled up twice more each time I crossed the stream.

Fish in my water!

I camped just below this last night

It was a lovely walk out of the canyon but the definite highlight of the day was walking around a corner and seeing an enormous lake unfold before me. I think it’s called Silverwood Lake and it looked so inviting! As it was the weekend, there were speedboats and jet skis and banana boats and people fishing on the lake. … I was going to go for a swim at the first chance I got!

The trail I came along

Silverwood Lake

I saw 2 snakes along the narrow trail before there was a chance to hike down to a sandy cove by the water. Shaggy, Bangarang, Pam, Tour Guide & Don were all there when Cuban B and I arrived and quickly dropped our packs and ran into the water. I went in wearing my pink hiking shirt hoping it would somehow come out of the water smelling better! (I get a shower and the chance to wash my clothes usually at each town stop, roughly once a week). It was such a hot day and I was so grateful for the swim and then to hike on still dripping wet which kept me cool in the afternoon sun.

I arrived at Cleghorn camping ground beside the lake with Cuban B, Becca & Nomad and we ate our simple dinners on picnic tables surrounded by lots of locals out having BBQs and picnics. It was hard to sit there and smell the delicious smell of meat being cooked on the BBQs around us!

We set up camp feeling very fortunate to have toilet blocks and running water nearby.