sykes hot springs | early morning soak

i woke up on friday morning and decided to go backpacking for a quick overnighter in big sur. i had been wanting to go to sykes hot springs for a while now and hadn't said yesyesyes! to creating and following through on making it happen. so i packed up my gear, portioned out some food and took off (after having an omelette and hash browns at my favorite breakfast spot with a wonderful friend). two hours and a $5 parking permit later, i started my trek into the ventana wilderness.


i didn't see any other women traveling solo, so when i saw a woman unloading her gear from a gnarly red truck i thought, "awesome. maybe i can walk over to her and say hello. we'll be friends!" but while i floundered around to think of how to befriend her, three guys came over to her side. :\  o well. i wasn't particularly interested in gaining four companions.


anyway, after about 4.5 hours of hiking 10 miles, i finally reached a secluded spot across the creek to set up shop. i quickly set up my tent and headed downstream in search of the hot springs. when i got there, i was presented with three options: 1) little brother - smallest pool occupied by a dad/son duo, 2) big brother - large, deepest, and warmest but occupied by three young'ens who were already quite drunk and loud with one of them behaving like a large ham, or 3) sandbag - occupied with nude couple who were quietly enjoying the space and enjoying each other. hmm. the choices were all so appealing, i couldn't decide. wasn't entirely feeling like sitting soo close with the dad, so that was out. and between nude couple or the threesome who brought the spring break party with them into the wilderness, i opted for the nude couple. but when i asked the dude if they minded if i joined them, he quickly motioned (with his eyes) that there might be space down in big brother. haha, gotcha. so i joined in the big brother tub and was immediately offered me shots. to their surprise, i kindly declined. they warned me that they were going to be loud, but i didn't realize how much dissonance i'd feel. the ham couldn't stop behaving like a ham, the other guy (who looked like a freaking abercrombie model) could not engage in a conversation for more than 1/2 a second, and the girl was so out of it. i felt very  out of place. then after three more guys piled in, i decided to leave and come back early in the morning when no one was around.


so i did just that. 
with everyone still slumbering, i hopped into sandbag in my natural glory and soaked it all in. sigh...

the wilderness. part i.

solo backpacking trip into the ventana wilderness.
28 hours, ~22 miles, ~4000' elevation gain, ~30lb pack
bookended by a 125 mile drive to/from arroyo seco.

i'm glad i went on this trip, even though i was riddled in fear many times. in fact, i feel like i'm still shaken up by how much fear i experienced, mostly all thoughts of "what if's" and crazy scenarios that i played out in my head while being alone in the back country. (thinking about 127 hours was not helpful.)

with that said, i made a list of things i would do differently next time:
1. bring a friend. (defeats the "solo" aspect of the trip...but i think it'd be worth it any day!)
2. carry a compass
3. don't bring a 1.5lb book! you'll ultimately want to burn the pages to make the load lighter.
4. figure out how to gauge mileage accurately.
5. refill on water sooner.
6. i don't like the hassle of eating/i don't like eating when i'm super tired. figure out yummier
& easier eats to pack in the calories that doesn't require much work.
7. when they say it's "less traveled" they mean it; don't expect or hope to see anyone.
8. get some trekking poles & sunglasses
9. should've brought my chacos. should've learned that there would be over a dozen river crossings!
10. 50mm is just okay; next time, bring a wide angle even if it's heavier. it'll be worth it.
11. learn what to do when you approach a snake.
12. don't forget the dorky ankle brace.
13. stay open to the journey, not just at arriving at the destination. (but if focusing on the destination helps get you through, freakin do what it takes!)

a few more:
14. figure out a tasty & easy protein source. (realized i relied almost solely on carbs. oops)
15. knowing the gist of the trip was okay, but i think it would've made for a better experience if i did more research ahead of time.

i think the only thing that would've dramatically changed the trip for me would've been #1, having a friend on the journey.