Zero in Modesto, CA

I had originally questioned the decision to drive all the way to Modesto for a hotel, but it ended up being a good decision. The hotel was nice, they had a hot tub for my sore legs, and, as an added bonus, they had guest laundry facilities on site. No going to the laundromat!

Additionally, I needed some equipment replaced, in addition to new hiking poles, and the closest REI to Sonora Pass was in Stockton,  not far from Modesto. That ended up being the first task for the day.

I hate talking to the REI retail people and the sales people at this particilar REI were entirely too friendly. At one point I quite obviously ducked behind a display to not talk to someone and he followed me around to ask, "Do you need help with anything?" There was the other issue with the fact that I was getting replacements for gear that I knew I worked for me in my hike and the sales people were giving their opinion on what would work best for me. I simultaneously love and hate REI.

After escaping REI, we grabbed lunch at a local quick service food joint. When I looked at the menu, I was suprised to see an option for a meal we had been talking about on the trail this week: grilled cheese with ham, tomato soup, and salad. I made sure to order that and send a pic to my trail buddies.

Food fantasies becoming realities.


I spent the rest of the day working on my gear,  trying to catch up on over a week of blog entries,  and muscle recovery. It doesn't sound like much, but it took a long time.

As an added bonus for my food resupply, I recieved an awesome box of hiker goodies from trail angels Erik and Will. Thanks, angels!

Hiker goodies!

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