Last night was my worst night yet as far as symptoms go. I was up all night running to the bathroom. I could feel the Prednisone coursing though my body, making me feel edgy and wide awake. I was in a dorm room with 7 other people and was convinced that they were listening to my night of shame. It was awful.
By 3:00 am it was clear that I was not hiking out on Monday with my friends like I had hoped. The Prednisone was making me cray-cray and didn’t really seem to be working. I needed to talk to my doctor again. It was time to throw in the towel and go home for a while until I got my symptoms under control. Sigh.
After researching my options, I found that I could take an airport shuttle from one of the local casinos to Reno and from there fly home to Seattle. So, I booked a flight for the following day. And I booked a single room at the hostel for tonight so I could have a bathroom all to myself.
I was pretty bummed about going home but it wasn’t all bad. Daniel was due to return from his vacation on Tuesday so I would get to see him in a couple of days! Yay! And, tonight my friends would be arriving in South Lake Tahoe. Two different groups of hiking friends that didn’t really know eachother were going to be converging at the hostel. It’s always fun to bring friends that don’t know eachother together.
It was, indeed, an epic night. We met at Basecamp Pizza Company so the newly arrived hikers could get their free pizzas. While we were eating, we ran into two other hikers that I hadn’t met before but we’d been hearing about for months: Sea Biscuit and Giggles. This is a different Sea Biscuit than the one I’ve hiked with off and on for the past few months. We always joked that if we ever met the other Sea Biscuit we’d have a battle of the Sea Biscuits to determine which Sea Biscuit reigned supreme. We had friends who knew the other Sea Biscuit but we kept narrowly missing her, apparently, in the first several months of the hike.
But no longer! The meeting of the two Sea Biscuits at Basecamp Pizza Company was HILARIOUS! They were equally excited to meet eachother and quickly agreed that a throw down was in order BECAUSE THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE! We decided to have a foosball competition back at the hostel later that evening to determine who got to keep the name in an epic battle of the Sea Biscuits. And whoever won the match got to choose the loser’s name.
It was the most exciting, epic, and totally insane foosball game that I’ve ever seen. The foosball table was a little janky and the ball kept getting stuck. The floor wasn’t especially level and we had the players switch sides halfway through the game to even things out a little. In the end, the other (girl) Sea Biscuit narrowly won by only one point. She decreed that (boy) Sea Biscuit should now be called “Ocean Cookies” (get it? Sea = Ocean and Biscuit = Cookies). But I’m pretty sure we’re going to just keep calling him Sea Biscuit anyway. It’s really not that big of a deal if more than one hiker has the same name – I think there are at least 4 or 5 hikers with the name “Giggles”. It was more of an excuse to have a fun foosball game.
I bid goodnight to my friends, not knowing when I’d get to see them again. Hopefully I can get some new medication from my doctor and get back on the trail again soon.
Here are some pictures from the Battle of the Sea Biscuits and other shenanigans
Monarch, Hitch and Me
Alladin and Me!
The Hiker Formerly Known as Sea Biscuit and Me
I like to eat my salad with tongs.
Monarch, Hitch, Sea Biscuit, Spider Mama and Tetris
Tater and her boyfriend who flew out to visit
Baby Apoc! We miss you Apocalypse!
I don’t remember this guy’s name but he was really nice
The Meeting of the Sea Biscuits!!
The Battle of the Sea Biscuits
The Battle Rages On
Sea Biscuit (Girl) Stares Down the Opposition
Sea Biscuit (Boy) Gracefully Cedes Defeat
Sea Biscuit and Giggles Pronounce Judgment
Hitch!
Spider Mama and Me
It’s Time for Hair Wraps!
Hitch Knows What’s What
The Hair Wrap Viewing Party
PCT 2017 Stats
PCT Day 101
Sunday July 23 – Day 101
No miles hiked today
For more on my experience hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, visit my Pacific Crest Trail Blog page.
Hope all goes well with recovery. On the up side your foot gets a break too. Look forward to hearing from you later.
Hi! A friend referred me to your blog. I had ulcerative colitis, too, and cannot imagine the stress and pain of backpacking during a flareup! Take care of yourself–my flareups made me really fatigued, and I had a bunch of other secondary symptoms. To ease your butt chafing, you might try using a little travel bidet instead of wiping. They’re cheap at Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Brondell-GS-70-GoSpa-Travel-Bidet/dp/B008CSDKSQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501821280&sr=8-1&keywords=brondell+gs-70+gospa+travel+bidet) and lightweight. I always take mine in my pack. I hope you’re headed into remission and can continue your hike! Feel free to email me about the UC if you’d like.
Thanks Elisa! I’m doing much better now thanks. I’m considering the bidet but right now I’m using wet wipes and those are working great for me. I’m back on the trail and on lots of medication … here’s hoping my condition continues to stay in remission !