The wind abated by morning and we quickly covered the 8 miles to the road we’d hitch into Tehachapi, CA where my next resupply box is waiting. Reaching the road, Tehachapi trail angels provided a listing of people willing to give rides or lodging. We were planning to stay at a cheap motel, but thought might as well call an angel to see if we could stay there. Luckily, Ted and Cheryl came to the rescue! Ted picked Hombre and me shortly after texting them, took us to the post office, and then dropped us off at his house before leaving to go shuttle more hikers. His wife of almost 50 years, Cheryl, had us load up her car, gave us a brief tour of the house (“bedrooms here, shower there, eat anything you want from the fridge”) before taking off to go to her quilting event. After meeting them both for a total of maybe 20-30 minutes, we were now alone in their house -- incredible! 

We showered, did laundry, and then Ted was back offering to take us into town to a local German bakery and to pick up odds and ends. The bakery was tasty town and then we headed to the grocery store where I bought a pint of ice cream to eat now and a quart of ice cream to share after dinner. 

Another hiker, Ragú, joined us. He’s an engineer by trade and he helped successfully fix my stove. 

Later that evening, Cheryl made a tasty dinner of sketti, cheesy bread, salad, and vegetables and then followed that up with fresh baked brownies to pair with the ice cream. Literal Ángel. We watched ‘Secondhand Lion” at the recommendation of Ted before hitting the hay. 

A great Nero day in Tehachapi!

Oh and good news -- Ted brought out a scale. I haven’t lost any weight since the last time I’ve weighed myself... and that was before I ate 2 full plates of sketti, 6 brownies, and another pint of ice cream. ;)

Miles: 8.6

Total Miles: 773