[pct-l] Info " Hot" off the Trail

[chwillet at indiana.edu (Christopher Willett)]

I think that this should come out in the open from a first hand source.  
I arrived at the old Jack Fair place, now run by Richard Skaggs, around 
3:30 in the afternoon on June 2, having done about 23 miles at that point. 
The trail in is not all that great and it was very hot.  I was planning to 
get some water and cook and eat my dinner in the shade, before taking off 
for the aquaduct walk around 5:30.  There were around two dozen thru
hikers there.  I dropped my pack in the "bunk house", which was a tool 
shed with no bunks that I could see.  I went inside, where another hiker 
pointed me to the water.  I had been sitting down, sipping water for 
about 2 minutes when Mr. Skaggs walked up.  I thanked him for providing 
this bit of shelter, to which he responded that I had to pay him $10 or 
paint the fence.  I was a little suprised and responded that I only wanted 
some water and about 2 hours to rest and eat dinner in the shade.  In that 
case, he said, I only had to paint the fence for 40 minutes.  He said he
was building a haven for hikers and I either had to help, or pay for some
one else to do the work.  When it became rather clear that I wasn't going
to paint a fence for 40 minutes in the heat of the Mojave afternoon, he 
called me outside to look at something interesting.  The object of
interest was a large box of rose bush root stock. He wanted me to move
them to a big barrel and water them down.  I complied with his wishes,
filled up with water from the hose, and left.  The only sign up at the
place just says "Water", by the way.  None of the other hikes warned me
about what was going on, although in the process of moving the bushes, 
I did noticed three or four hikers painting his fence (a nice picket
fence, which, although it encloses his front yard, I am sure will be 
part of his haven).

I was a little angry when I left.  Afterall, I just wanted a little water
and shade.  I didn't think it was too much to ask, but apparently it was.
I pushed on for a while and camped after a nice, hot 32 mile day.
After talking with other hikers, it appears that Mr Skaggs has different 
standards for different people.  Most women were not asked to paint the 
fence, but rather asked to eat a burrito with him or something like that. 
According to Yogi, he doesn't ask his workmen to labor during the day: 
They come out after the sun goes down.  I know water is scarce in the 
area, but I don't think a self-described millionaire with a Ferrari in his
yard is going to be bankrupted by giving out a few gallons of water over
the summer.

My anger soon faded as I really enjoyed the aquaduct walk.  I truly did. 
The day cooled off, the late light gave the land an almost holy look, 
and all I could hear was the blowing of the wind. No one around for miles.
As I thought back to the kindness of Jeff and Donna in Agua Dulce, the
anger was gone, and replaced by a pity for Mr Skaggs.

For those hiking in the future, skip the old Jack Fair place.  Let him 
rest in peace.  There is a store about a mile from the highway crossing 
and you can get water out of the aquaduct, about a mile from the 
old Fair place.

Chris


----------------------
Christopher Willett
Department of Mathematics
Indiana University
831 East Third Street
Bloomington, IN. 47405-7106
(812)-855-6737
chwillet@indiana.edu
php.indiana.edu/~chwillet