Category: PCT South California

Hiked 20 miles, At mile 94.4

Cowboy camped in the desert and woke Easter morn to a full moon setting over a mountain.

At the road before Scissors Crossing there was a trail angel named Lindsey. She had brought the famous Julian Apple Pies. What a 2nd breakfast! At 0.8 miles further on was the water cache. Here a trail angel had left Coors Light so I had a beer for my 3rd breakfast.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is a pipe gate. You see them a lot on the PCT. They only open a tiny bit. Enough to let a skinny human through and keep a cow from coming through even if the gate is left open.

 

 

 

I am in my sleeping bag as I type and at over 4000 ft on top of a mountain, my hands are getting cold. So I’ll just place rest of the photos below and let you figure them out.

 

 

 

 

Hiked 18.5 miles, at mile 74.5

Other hikers had selected earlier tent sites with good views. Though beautiful tent sites, they were exposed to an increasingly brisk wind. One after another, I bypassed these exposed sites and hiked on in search of a site that was more sheltered from the wind. I had entered the real desert with cactus and spiny things all around. I soon learned to be careful when laying down my pack. My sitting pad had already picked up some barbs which brushed onto my finger. To avoid these cactus hazards, the best option was to stick to official tent sites. It was 6 pm so I had decided that wind or not, I would not bypass the next tent site. That site at mile 73.1 turned out to be level, roomy, well sheltered from the wind, and clear of cactus growth. It was perfect, but at this time of day, I would have accepted much less. Very excited about my good find, I walked off the trail for a quick glance at the site. I was met by a rattlesnake. Maybe, this site wasn’t so perfect after all. I hiked on.

Yesterday I met Three-Cats, Double Check, and Wolf Legs. They had just finished lunch and were packing. Double Check said, “You get the Fritos?” Today, I have started thinking about Fritos. It is all I can think about. I’ve descended a great deal from the mountains and I am now in the desert. Something about the desert that makes me crave Fritos.

I’m hearing about thru hikers that got off the trail, cashed it in, gave up the ghost. One was rescued off Mt San Jacinto when a slip on the ice caused an ankle injury. A brother of someone I was hiking with for a while quit the trail only 20 miles in. He had blisters. He had never really hiked before.

I just figured out why the heat was bothering me so much. I had been drinking so much water, but not replacing electrolytes. The Frito craving gave me the clue. I thought a bit and recalled that I had an electrolyte powder for diarrhea in my medkit. I took a long break in the shade and ate salty tuna fish and drank my electrolyte and rested.

Morning photos at Oroflamme Canyon. Moon setting, Sunrise, and Camper Meditating.

Flowers and Cactii

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The Trail

Mountain

Hiked 18.2 miles today, At mile 55.9

I don’t know what I’ve come to, but after 4 days I’m already sleeping under a rock. I’m camping above Oriflamme Canyon and the usual tent spots are taken. I found a small open patch near the edge of a high dropoff. I tried, but couldn’t get my tarp to stay up in the wind, so I moved back under a boulder a little larger than a Ford F350. There, I snuggled up to the side of the rock where there was just a little less wind.

Today, I took advantage of the cooler hours in the early morn and early evening and I felt much better. 

There was great scenery everywhere. I looked out across miles of desert that lay thousands of feet below. I could spot the Salton Sea to the east and a snow-capped mountain to the North. Here are a few photo highlights.

I reached higher elevation and at Mt Laguna and saw the first pine trees of this hike. I loved relaxing in the shade of these tall trees.

Here is the trail

 

 

 

The trail was sometimes near the edge of a drop-off.

 

Here are some Mountain views. 

This is my bed for the night.

Here is the view from my camp spot.

 

At mile 37.6. Hiked 17.6 miles today.

It is hot! I think my main job is going to be to keep from getting overheated. It is kind of hard when there is no shade and you are climbing with a pack loaded down with water. Today everyone was trying to make it to Long Canyon Creek. It was a long climb in the direct sun. From now on, I’m starting very early to avoid the worst of the heat. Also thinking about taking breaks in order to avoid the hottest part of the day.

I’m finally meeting a lot of thru-hikers. There is Adam from Wales, Quoi from Montreal, Jack, Dirty Duck, Moglie, Nightcrawler, Solo, Ryan, and G just to name a few. Ryan, G, and I are sharing a campsite. I hiked with Solo for a short while. He is my age and taking it slow due to a bad hip and knee.

Here is how I’m dressed. Salomon Trailrunners with gaiters to keep sand out of the boots and big hat to keep the sun from baking my head. Take close a look at the sign I am posed next to. No worries about explosive ordinances because in this heat, I had no plans to detour off-trail unless the destination happened to be a big leafy shade tree. There were none. 🙂 

The Trail

Here are some views coming out of Lake Morena. 

Hiked 15.6 miles today, at mile 20.

I saw two shooting stars sleeping under the stars in the mountain desert.  Here is a cool photo of my first camp on the PCT taken in the dark early morn.

I’ll never get management out of my blood. Today I am reminding myself that I am in this for the long haul. I need to remember to give my body a chance to adapt. I need to establish the right routines early. For example, don’t skip flossing. It’s a small thing, but I’ll be out here for 6 months. On short hikes, I could get away with a little sunburn and a sore knee or back. Here, over a period of 6 months, the smallest thing can become chronic and make me uncomfortable for weeks or lead me to quit. I’m also getting trail organized which is different from hike preparation. I have the right things with me, but I need to keep up with them and have them where I want and when I want. It’s not a small thing. You wouldn’t believe how much time can be spent digging to the bottom of a pack to find something like sunscreen.

After 10 miles of hiking these good intentions to focus on the long-haul went out the window. My emotional ego-centered self took over. With other hikers either waiting out the heat or slowly climbing Hauser Mountain, I had to show what a 57-year-old trail veteran could do. I zoomed up the 1000 plus vertical feet in the exposed afternoon sun. I passed younger hikers that had ducked under rocks for shade. By the time I reached the top, I felt sick. After laying in the shade, I finally managed to recover. Yep, I overdid it!

The trail

Rock formations were everywhere.

 

 

 

 

 

Manzanita (Little Apples) I love the color of the bark.

Prickly Pear Cactus

Snake. First of 2 that I saw today.

View of Lake Morena