I woke up early, packed my stuff and started hiking into town, trying to flee from the evil sun that was eager to hit the desert. After only 40 minutes, it got unbearably hot, so I was happy to accept the lift by Nate who was driving into town for work.
I checked into The Hostel California (THC, heh…) and was met by a very welcoming, warm host called Brendon. Dreading hostels a bit (because of previous hostel experiences and their lack of cleanliness), I was positively surprised – I got a bed in a cozy, clean room and took a long nap.
It was obvious that other climbers and hikers made up the clientel – there were tons of guidebooks, crashpads and autographed photos from famous climbers on the walls.
A remodelled garage serves as a lounge and I spent some time sitting there with snacks and a cool tonic, looking at guidebooks and old photobooks. There is so much climbing history to learn and so much to do in the Eastern Sierra, it is overwhelming and I‘ve started making a list of new places I want to visit in the future.
The rest of the day was not spectacular – I had a mission to buy new underwear and hiked through Bishops under the brutal sun – the local K-mart carried only underwear in 3X and larger sizes. I did not want to look in the kids section so I ended up buying a super functional but pricey piece at Eastside Sports. Hiking and climbing is quite hard on the clothes!
Finn Goes West - Hiking & Climbing in the South-Western USA 