PCT, Day 10

I start around 6 AM. Ulli and Martin quickly disappear. It's about 3 degrees, and I walk for 1.5 hours with a merino longsleeve shirt on top of my hiking shirt. At 9:45, I reach Mike's place.

Mike has big water containers on his property and allows hikers to take water for some donation. Water is scarce and every hiker stops here to refill their water supply. When I arrive there Ulli and Martin are just leaving.
By the way, they got trail names at San Ysidro Creek: Ulli is now "Navigator" and Martin is "Double Dinner". 

I drink a lot of water and carry 4.5 liters. There is no water until Paradise Valley Cafe, 40 km from here. I leave at 10:15. It goes up, it's exposed and hot, then the trail descents down. The descent is hard. The path is often narrow with bushes growing in. I have two breaks. My feet hurt a lot from km 19 onwards. I have to make 27 today and 24 tomorrow. I can't do less because it will get me into trouble due to not having enough water. When I reach camp, it's late. Navigator and Double Dinner have been already there for 2 hrs. There's no water, just a trickle with a bad taste. I use it for brushing teeth, set up the tent, eat dinner, wash, set up bed, and lay down. My feet burn. This has been the hardest day for me. So far. Desert walking is challenging.