Starting at 5:00 in the Laguna Mountains the day held pleasant promise. The 20 miles to Scissors Crossing would go quickly, it seemed. But the warmth of the pre-dawn breeze filled me with vague dread. At 6 am, however, I encountered my first trail magic. 
PCT neck gaiters and a sweet greeting. The hours after that were spent alone; and the temperature, wind and sun exposure increased continuously. My lips burned, my chapstick melted , my solar umbrella blew inside out. And its handle dug into my collar bone. Taking the wise advice of Inge, I recited bible verses; I also drank all my water.
With only 1.75 miles left to Scissors Crossing I could see nothing but desert …and then David appeared walking toward me with a cold Gatorade!!! I was so relieved I cried as I hugged him.
We got to the trailer by about 1:30 pm and I left, refreshed and refueled at about 4:00pm to climb back into the mountains. In that evening leg of the journey I could relax and marvel at the unique beauty of the desert.
I walked by headlamp for about an hour but seemed to encounter more snakes at night after 2 baby rattlers and the silver guy below I decided to call it a night. Another day of over 30 miles and no aches or pains !
This guy was pure shiny silver with no markings at all. Perhaps harmless but I gave him a wide berth
