23rd May 2025

Our body clocks apparently didn’t listen to our pleas for a long lie in. Once awake, we packed up and set off for breakfast. We got a ride to the cafe and at a large round table ordered plates of eggs, pancakes and hash browns. We were joined by others and were soon introduced to Oh Shit, a variation of the card game Trumps.

Back at Hiker Town we rested in the shade and caught up with those coming in. We now found ourselves within a large bubble of hikers, about half of which we had met at some point or another. As we caught up we discovered that some people we had met and enjoyed the company of had left trail. Injury being the main culprit.

Under the gazebo people began preparing for the pending LA Aqueduct night hike. This is an iconic stretch of the PCT where there is little water or shade and the trail is actually flat. Most hikers opt to tackle this section under the cover of darkness and over the years has gained a reputation for becoming a bit of a party. Rangerhad brought neon body paint and herself and me began a face painting station. A couple of girls began a braiding station and a few others started painting legs and arms. By 7:30pm, we were geared up, embellished in paint and ready to tackle the Mojave Desert.

We set off and before long reached the open aqueduct, a cool breeze coming off the water. As we rounded the corner the water filtered into a large pipe, half buried in the sand. We walked on the copper coloured pipe careful not to slip on the rounded edge. The sandy land emitting an orange glow from the setting sun. Soon we were surrounded by Joshua Trees: a symbol of the desert. The sky morphed into a purple haze cut through by electric pinks and yellows.

By the time we had finished the exposed pipe section the sun had faded, leaving behind a night sky illuminated by neighbouring cities. In the distance the flashing red lights indicated our destination for the night: the wind farm.

The walking was easy on a sandy dirt road. As the road was wide we could walk side by side, a luxury we don’t normally get on the narrow trail. To pass the time we played Contact, an easy game to play while walking. Throughout the night we saw multiple groups of hikers, one of which had been very prepared, ordering 200 glow sticks which they tied to every limb. They then marched in unison to Taylor Swift looking like some kind of hallucination of a glow in the dark train as they powered through. As predicted: it was essentially one big moving party.