April 16-18. Days -2 to 0. To within striking distance of the trailhead.

We load the car with my packed backpack, some boxes of food, and the dog and head south over the Golden Gate Bridge. Near Monterey we switch over from Hwy 101 to 1, stop for a run around on the beach in Carmel, then wind on down the Big Sur coast. We haven't been here for a number of years, and even though we know in our hearts how beautiful and incredible this coastline is, it is a whole different matter to see it again in person. Libby remarks what a huge coast it is. I say it makes me proud and inspired to see so much coastal land open to public access and in a mostly natural state. Abbey thinks each beach looks better than the last for running around on. We all agree with each other.

We arrive to our campsite in Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park and go about setting up the tent. We work well together, divying tasks without verbal communication. I take great joy in sharing this simple task with Libby, and wonder to myself why it is I'm heading off to spend so much time away from her. Later during dinner at Nepenthe, a restaurant perched on a south facing bluff several hundred feet above the ocean, with a view forever, she says how excited she is for me, and says that in some ways she feels like she'll be experiencing the trail with me as she sends my resupply boxes and does other support functions. In some ways I am just one part of a team making this hike happen, and in this I feel less lonely about my departure.

In the morning we make coffee and take a walk around the campground, watching Stellar's Jays and Spotted Towhees go about their business and getting reacquainted with the grand sycamore trees growing along the banks of the Big Sur River. Later we pack up with equal efficiency and continue south, past the thin ribbon waterfall pouring right into the beach at Pfeiffer Burns State Park, past the snorting elephant seals at Point Piedras Blancas, past the Zebras at Hearst Castle, and eventually back to 101 which before long leads us to hours of mind-numbing traffic. 

Eventually we make it to my sister's place east of San Diego for late dinner and catching up with her and my niece. We spend the next day relaxing and taking care of a few final errands before I start the hike.