sharing shade

Day 2 ~ Lake Morena Campground to campsite (near Long Canyon Creek) ~ miles 19.6 to 35.2
Another good day on the trail!  We felt pretty good upon waking this morning.  Feet a little tender, bodies a little stiff, but definitely to be expected.  We broke camp in about an hour, which we were pretty  pleased with considering that we really haven't done this in a while.  We started hiking at 7am.
Our hike today was mostly uphill, and through some long stretches with no shade.  We had some cloud cover and an occasional refreshing breeze, but despite that, the desert sun was still brutal.  Despite the heat, we continue to be amazed by the desert landscape.
By midday, we were ready for a lunch break and planned on stopping at the next piece of shade.  Well the next spot we came upon was occupied by 2 hikers (Mountain Goat and Wesley) who so kindly offered share their tiny bit of shade with us.  Another hiker, Otto, soon joined us.  So 5 hikers huddled in the dirt in a 5'x4' area of shade...pretty comical.  But of course, after our break, about a quarter of a mile down the trail was an oasis of sorts, with soft green grass and large trees and all the shade a hiker's heart could desire...we just had to laugh. 
We both have some minor blisters that we are handling pretty well right now.  I think with the heat and dust, blisters are inevitable.  Every hiker we have talked to is dealing with blisters as well...makes us feel a little better, at least we're not in it alone!
Tomorrow morning we'll head into Mount Laguna, where we'll buy more groceries.  We are hoping that the store is able to keep up their inventory with the large volume of hikers coming through.  Hopefully we'll get a shower as well.  The dust out here is absolutely unreal...it penetrates and cover everything.  Not to mention, we're smelling pretty ripe.
Happy trails! (Hopefully photos to follow once we have computer access)