Day 3 9-1-10: Lake Elsinore, CA

We reached our first destination on Wednesday. It felt good to get one leg of the trip behind us. Although it was a shorter day, with fewer miles, it still had its challenges. It was hotter today, the road was steep, and we were tired from yesterday. But it was not all bad. We had walked less than a mile from camp this morning when we saw the Candy Store. Although it was a 1/2 hour before it opened, we decided to wait since we were hungry and thirsty. We sat in the shade, waiting for it to open, when in drove the owner Sheila Sanford. She walked up and introduced herself and asked what we were doing. When we mentioned that Alan was from London, she said her mother was also from London and her father was from Oklahoma. She said that made her a "Royal Redneck". It wasn't long until we were sitting inside enjoying some wonderful Sausage and Gravy biscuits, as only a "Royal Redneck" could fix. Along with that, we enjoyed a nice cold Pepsi Cola and a pocket full of Tootsie Pops.

We set off from the Candy Store and came upon a Ranger Station to inquire about a short cut I had heard about. It knocked about 3 miles off our trip. When we reached Lake Elsinore, we asked about camp sites and was steered to Lake Elsinore West Marina and RV resort. We decided to stay there. After introducing ourselves to the people in the office and explaining to them what we were doing, they were nice enough to give us our campsites for free. Thanks to Kevin and Heidi for their generosity. They have a beautiful marina and campsite.

We had no more than set up our tents (mine is the brown one in the pic) on the beach, and up drove Mike K with our walking cart, a watermelon, other fruit, energy bars, etc. (maybe we haven't convinced him we know which way is East? Anyhow, he seems determined to make sure we make it thru his state safely.)


Mike drove Alan up the street for some hamburgers, and I stayed behind. While they were gone a family was having trouble loading their boat on the trailer, so I offered assistance. By the time Mike and Alan returned,the boat situation was fixed. When the food was spread on the table, I noticed there was only 1 soda. Inquired about it, and Mike and Alan had decided I needed more water and less soda. Now get this......one of them is young enuf to be my son, the other my grandson......what's wrong with that picture?

No sooner than Mike's driven out of sight, I went looking for a soda. The woman I helped with the boat came over to thank me and asked if there was anything she could do for me. I noticed there was a cooler in the back of her truck, so asked if she had any sodas. She didn't, but said wait just a minute and she would get me some. Wasn't long until she came back with 4 20oz. Cokes.

One final thing about Lake Elsinore.......they have a minor league baseball team, the Storm, that plays just across the lake. Anytime the home team hits a home run, fireworks are shot off over the lake. That was fun to watch.

Questions for Students

Dear Students,

I am experiencing some things that I don't understand, so maybe you can tell me what's going on.

1) At the end of my day walking, my green shirt is almost completely white with white streaks all over it . Do you know what might be causing this and are there any precautions I need to take?

2)I know I need to wear my hat to keep the sun off my face, but it is hotter for me with my hat on than when it is off. Do you know why?

3) My lips are parched, my mouth is dry and my legs are cramping. Can you tell me why and what I can do to prevent this.

Thank you for your help!

Day 2: 19 miles uphill, with a full pack..........

on a twisty, dangerous, racetrack that they call Ortega Highway, all on a breakfast of a 20 oz Coke, a bag of Chips, and a piece of pound cake. And for what? A dinner of a bag of beef jerky, a can of pineapple, and a bottle of warm water ....What's wrong with this picture? I am going to have to go back and revisit my plan.

We wanted to reach a certain campground today. Since we had sent our cart ahead , we had to carry all our supplies in our backpacks. The campground was 19 miles from where we left, and most of those miles were uphill. It was like walking on a racetrack, cars flying by, but we made it.

But is wasn't all bad. Julie's friend Jennifer and her daughters Amanda and Autumn stopped by this morning to wish us well as we headed off. Before we had walked a mile, a guard in a booth outside a gated community ran out and gave us 2 bottles of water. We stopped after 3 hours of walking for lunch and met Larry Beesley, a park attendant at Casper Park, then shortly after the All Girls Highway Crew. We saw deer, a hawk, and some beautiful countryside. And we found pennies, nickels, and quarters!

Mr. and Mrs. Bouquet, Alan had a really great day. It was hard on him, but he hung in there and you would be really proud of him. It is hard for me not to like a guy who order a Coke with his breakfast.

Being able to complete 19 miles uphill, makes me feel more confident about our plans for the rest of the trip.

The All Girls Highway Crew

We were walking along and all the sudden a fence gate opened and out walked girl after girl. They introduced themselves as the "All Girls Highway Crew" (supposedly the only one in the USA). After telling us a little bit about themselves, they inquired about our trip and were surprised that we were walking all the way to North Carolina.

Then they wanted to take pictures with us and of course we had to get a picture of this famous Crew. They were very excited about our trip and promised they would follow our blogs.

Now, I know you probably see a guy in the picture. He walked in at the end and wasn't able to get a word in edgewise.

Thank you CA All Girl Highway Crew for your support!