I arrived at Boulder Oaks Campground on March 27 to find about thirty backpackers grouped into three sites. I assumed they were thru hikers like me and asked if I could share their camp. They said sure and told me they were going to have a big campfire later. I was unsure about that as I figured it meant they would be up late partying. So I chose a site a couple sites away and invited another thru hiker to join me. Later I found out the group was not thru hikers but section hikers from a meet up group in San Diego. They were hiking from Mt. Laguna to Lake Morena, just an overnight. They had just gotten the fire started when I walked by heading to the outhouse. As I came out , a trail angel pulled up with several coolers of beer so I decided to join in the fun. There were just a few people standing around and someone shouted Free beer. Next thing you know it was like the walking dead coming out of the other campsites. We all had a good time and shared some stories. There were four of us thru hikers there by then. It was fun and I said good night about 8;00 and went to bed.

March 28

This morning I passed the place where I had had my colossal face plant in 2018 that earned me my trail name. I thought I would recognize the exact spot and even the rock that I tripped over, but when I thought I found the spot there was no rock to be found. “Maybe someone kicked it off the trail,” I said to myself. I continued on, thankful for my health and strength to be doing this.

A while later I arrived at Kitchen Creek Road. I sat on the same big rock where I had waited for the paramedics to pick me up three years ago and felt happy and thankful for the chance to be out here again. a minute later a car pulled up and parked. A man got out, set up a couple of camp chairs, walked over and asked me if I was a thru hiker. I said yes and he told me he was a trail angel and invited me to come sit down and have a snack. The back of his SUV was completely filled with snacks of every sort (croissants, fruit, cookies, chips) and the cooler was filled with all kinds of ice cold drinks. He excitedly told me that this was his first time being at Trail Angel and I was his first recipient. I happily told him that he was the first Trail Angel I had met on this hike so far. I was delighted to receive his wonderful trail magic, and stayed for over an hour even though I felt I needed to be on my way. His name was Monarch in the Mountains and we became friends immediately. He even let me charge my phone in his car. Surprisingly, no other hikers came through while I was there (probably too early). When I was ready to leave he discovered his battery was dead from charging my phone. (He had turned the car’s ignition to “accessory.” But good things happen on the trail and almost immediately he found someone to give him a jump. The car started, we exchanged contact info, and I headed back down the trail.

I camped that night at mile 37 with Joseph and a woman who’s name I have sadly forgotten. She and I had been leapfrogging each other for a couple of hours but I never saw her again after that.