I nearly got mauled by a dog tonight. That's right...after hiking over 550 miles in the woods and I nearly fall victim to domesticated canine. Let me explain...
I left Hikertown at about 6 pm. It was later than I wanted to get out of there since the weather was so mild but I knew I'd be hiking at night either way, so I figured it wouldn't make much difference. Anyway, much of the day's (night's) route is notorious for being hot and boring. It follows the California Aqueduct for a while before changing directions when it crosses the Los Angeles Aqueduct. The sun went down while I was following the LA Aqueduct so it wasn't long before it was dark. The ambient light of the neighboring towns was enough for me to see where I was going without my headlamp. I walked for several miles when I noticed some headlights that were doing all kinds of weird things. It looked like the driver was trying to turn around but couldn't. Bear in mind this is a dirt road and is relatively remote. Instead of continuing on to Cottonwood Canyon like I originally wanted, I decided that I didn't want any part of whatever was going on up ahead. I stopped literally on top of the aqueduct (it is covered with a layer of concrete so it was flat) and laid out my mat and sleeping bag. Not more than five minutes later, some guy with a truck and trailer pulls up. I was certain he saw me because I was so close, but he didn't. He proceeds to start using a bunch of tools and then fires up some kind of generator when it dawns on me...this guy is stealing water out of the aqueduct--or I think is stealing...he could have been doing something worse. Regardless, something is definitely amiss because he's bangin' away on the pipeline. All of a sudden a dog, a BIG dog, starts barking and growling and is getting closer with each bark. Before I know it, I've got my hunting knife in my hand and he is stopped, about 25 feet away. Apparently even though I'm a stinky hiker, he could still smell me! Thankfully he doesn't come any closer, even though he knows I'm there. His owner (the alleged perp) finally stopped what he was doing and called him back to him, all the while completely oblivious to the fact that there is a person there witnessing everything. It's a tenuous situation--I don't really want the guy to know that I'm there and am witnessing his breaking of the law (maybe) because, again, 1. I'm in a remote place, and 2. he's got a big dog. I finally decide I should call the cops and tell them what's up. Luckily, the guy couldn't hear me over all his machinery. But the dog knew and still didn't like the fact that I was there. In the end, the guy left in about 10 minutes, the cops never showed, and I got little and terrible sleep. Kind of anticlimactic, huh?
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