February 13, 2010
Drove along Hwy 1…Just incredible views. Part of the drive you are about 600 feet straight up from the ocean. Dad you would love this drive. We headed to Big Sur. We arrived at the ranger station to ask some questions about the hiking and camping and ended up getting so confused by the elderly gentleman volunteer at the desk. I think we might have added to his confusion by asking questions about where to park the trailer and inquiring about some overnight backcountry hikes at the same time…We just kind of scratched our heads and started walking back to the van thinking…. I have no idea where I am or where I am going. Bill saw a gentleman walking across the parking lot with all his hiking gear and decided to ask him as he looked like he knew exactly where he was going. He was very friendly and even offered to bring us back to the ranger station and point out some hikes on the map for us as he was very familiar with all the trails and had been hiking in the area for years.
Once we got back to the ranger station and started talking about the kind of hike we wanted to do. …he quickly asked us “how long do you think it would take you to get ready? You are welcome to join us.” I couldn’t believe our luck. I quickly said “10 minutes for us to get ready.” Although I was thinking this was our day to stop and do laundry and get groceries. I knew we didn’t have much food and for sure didn’t have any clean clothes. We ran to our trailer and pulled out our packs and luckily some of the dry foods we had thrown in our camping bin from home and away we went to meet up with our new friends. They quickly introduced themselves as Bill and Bill…Can you believe this? I am now with 3 Bills and 1 Doug. (one Bill is usually all I can handle.) Bill quickly told us there was a 2 mile hike up the highway and then we would get on the trail for a total of 9 miles (3200 feet up) to the top of Timber Top to camp out for the night.
The hike was so much fun. Bill and Bill had so much to share with us. They do an overnight hike together once a month. They could name every bird, tree, plant life and had great tips on how to lighten your pack etc…One Bill was a marine and had everything you could think of in his pack and the other Bill had made them both down jackets and sleeping bags which really had my Bill thinking this could be his next project (or you mom r). My pack started feeling a little heavy and I am sure I could improve that. I did forget our headlamps and toothbrushes in the rush, but did remember my vanilla flavored lip gloss, so my breath wasn’t too awful..hehe.

We met up with a young couple part way up the trail who were just day hiking and the girl asked if she could try my pack as she had never carried a pack before. I was feeling like a girly, girl with my 4 guy pals until I met her. She was definately a girly, girl she was born and raised in Manhattan. She put my pack on and couldn’t believe I was going to carry this pack up hill 9 miles which kind of made me feel good.
We arrived at camp about 4:30 after 5 hours of hiking and the view was amazing. I realized half way up the trail that I hadn’t had my morning coffee either, but no way was I going to complain to any of the guys about this. We started setting up camp and one of the Bills yells “Deb would you like a coffee we are just making some.” Seems almost too good to be true. They even had individual packets of starbucks coffee. I think that is the best cup of coffee I have ever had. We had a nice dinner together and enjoyed a fire as it cooled off quite quickly after sunset. We really enjoyed the conversation and time with new friends. I could really feel the special friendship that the 2 Bills shared and enjoyed watching them interact with each other. We also enjoyed our time with Doug around the fire.
Had a pretty good night sleep and when I woke up in the morning one of the Bills delivered me a hot starbucks coffee right to the tent. I didn’t expect room service! We sat and just enjoyed the views and our time together . The hike back seemed to go by so quickly. I guess going all downhill and chatting along the way really helped. Marine Bill even had me be brave and eat some wild flowers.
We got back to our rig and were really happy we hadn’t been towed away or ticketed. We decided to go out for a big lunch together. We met at a great hamburger joint and had no problem cleaning up our plates. Biggest hamburger I have ever eaten! The guys lead us into a nice campground as we were worried about not being able to find a spot with it being Presidents Day here. One of the Bills said we could stay at his place if need be. We did find a spot and said our good-byes. It is funny really how hard it can be to say good-bye to friends you have just met, but I really felt we made a connection on this trip and really hated to see it end. Who knows maybe we will be back this way in May or June and can meet up again with our new friends. I guess I have a soft spot for Bill’s….
Thank you for the offer of your aquarium guess passes Bill, but we didn’t want to bother you on your day off to deliver the tickets to us and I felt you had both already given us so much….don’t know too many people who would share their starbucks or last snicker bars…and most of all their time and stories!! Thank you! Love D&B.