Julian to Idyllwild

PCT Day 12

The last I posted was in Julian.  Our stop in Julian was a good decision.  Not only for the great pie, but also for the rest.  When we hit the trail the next morning we felt rejuvenated and ready to tackle the next section of heat and desert.  Out of Julian we got a hitch in a BMW.  Sweet!  It was some guy who was headed down to Mexico for a week.   He does this about once a month.  Hmm, I should have asked him what he did before he retired.  After he dropped us off at Scissors Crossing we headed up hill!  We carried 6 liters of water each to get to the next water 25 miles away.  We decided this would be better than taking a detour to get water at the 3rd gate.

At the 3rd gate we took a long break in the heat of the day.  As it turns out this was everyone else's idea too.  It was like a game of hide and seek amongst the bushes.  There were about 30 or so hikers hidden throughout the area.  There were a lot of bushes, but with the sun directly overhead it was difficult to find a shady spot.  People would come and go out of the bushes depending on when they decided was the best time for them to hike.  We put up our sunshade (see tiffany's blog for a picture) and stayed for about 4 hours.  It is nice to break in a big day.  We ended up leaving about 4:30 and headed to Barrel Springs.  We hiked 24 miles this day, and by the time we rolled into Barrel Springs it was dark.  I enjoyed the cool of hiking in the dark, but always wonder in the back of my mind what I cannot see in the dark bushes.

We got a nice sandy spot to sleep at Barrel Springs and slept in knowing that our walk out to Warner Springs was about 8 miles and we didn't want to get there before the PO opened.  The Warner Springs PO is a 1.2 mile detour.  We took the cutoff trail down which was overgrown and not too shaded.  Walking through Warner Springs is like walking through a ghost town.  The town of WS used to be made up mostly of the WS Ranch Resort which closed a couple years ago.  When we picked up our package at the PO box we were surprised by its condition.  It looked like the PO had played a game of toss the box with it; and it wasn't caught each time.  The side was split and the top was squished in.  As long as all of our food was in there, that was okay with me.  We were just going to squish it into our bags anyway.  We took our box and hiked back to the trail and to the WS community center.

At the WS community center we took our heat of the day break.  The WS community center provides food, laundry, and showers for hikers.  They also had a mini store of supplies if you needed any.  For a small donation Tiffany and I both got a burger, chips, and a soda.  I am not usually a soda drinker, but the sugary soda tasted so good!  I even went back for a second soda later on.  There were about 25 or so other hikers taking their heat of the day break at the community center as well.  It was fun to catch up with other hikers and swap stories and helpful trail tips and data.

After eating, resting, and repacking our bags with our resupply box we headed out of the community center for the second half of the day of hiking.   That night we hiked up to a spot near mile 115 on Agua Caliente creek.  Again we were lucky enough to have a sandy camping spot!

Out of mile 115 we had another 25 mile day.  It feels great to have another 25 mile day behind us, but our bodies are not yet used to this and at the end of the day we are exhausted and our feet hurt.  Again we came into camp in the dark.  Our spot was on a sandy beach, but it was a very small sandy beach.  The site was so small that instead of having our gear down the middle, we had to squish together on one side of the tent and pack our gear on the other side sloping down the bank.  The upside of our long day and poor camping spot, we set ourselves up for a trip to the Paradise Café.

The Paradise Café is a popular stop for hikers on the trail.  They have great food and a water hose for hikers to fill up their water bottles.  We hiked the 1 mile from the trail to the Café with Heavy Weight.  Heavy Weight is a hiker that is carrying a huge bag (70lbs) and only resupplying once every 15 days.  Crazy!  They have something called the Jose Burger.  One of those burgers that has beef, bacon, avocado, jalapenos, etc.  So good! We added a chocolate and coffee milk shake for desert.  The Jose Burger and the milkshake appeared to be popular with the other hikers who stopped for a lunch break.  Fat and happy we got a ride back to the trail from the owner.  Thank you Neil!

Out of the Paradise Café we hiked further than we thought we would for lack of "good" camping spots.  We were a bit tired, but in the end the camping at Live Oaks Springs was worth it.  We had a great water supply.  We camped with Gumby & Chatterbox, Operator, and Autobahn.  There were two other hikers that joined us later, but I didn't catch their names.  These other two are resupplying through hiker boxes and by foraging.  I am not sure I could do that.  Or at least not sure I could do that and keep friends.  I am happier when I am not hungry :-)  That night all hikers at Live Oak Springs got a spectacular orange moon rising.  I slept great that night.

From Live Oak Springs we climbed!  It was a hot day and I sweAtes and sweated!  While climbing was tiring the views were rewarding.  We were climbing into the mountains and walking closer to the ridgeline with great views.  During our long rest stop we talked to a couple from Palm Springs who were on a training hike.  They were getting ready to hike the El Camino (sp) trail in Spain.  It is so fun talking to all the people you run into.  Good luck to them on the trail!

As much as I have enjoyed the beauty of the desert the high altitude pine forest make me feel at home.  We had a great camp spot on a ridge top that night.  We were all by ourselves and when the sun went down we could see the city lights of Palm Springs down below.  Crazy to appear so close to a city, but feel so far away.

The next morning was a short hike out on the Devils Slide trail to the TH.  We picked up Autobahn at the stream crossing and made our way out.  We were lucky enough to get a hitch into town from a fellow San Diego hiker. 

Now we are in Idyllwild!  As much as I love the trail, a shower to wash the sticky layers of sweat and mud off feels so good.   My shirt gets so encrusted with sweat that it is stiff when it dries.  My socks have a thin layer of mud caked to the bottom from a mixture of sweat and fine silt.  Needless to say Tiffany and I decided that running all our clothes through the washing machine twice was well worth the extra $2.50.

We are staying in town for two nights so we will have a complete zero day today!  We are camping at the state park in town with a multitude of other through hikers.  Yesterday we sat around the picnic table drinking beer and swapping stories with Sasquatch, Maximus, and Stumbling Beef.  Maximus would really like to give Tiffany a trail name, but she is waiting for a story that she can tell with her name.  So for now, she is still Tiffany.  Last night the whole lot of us plus a few others gathered for pizza and more beer at a great hiker friendly pizza place that offers a 10% discount to PCT hikers.

We are both buying new shoes here in town.   The ones I started with already had quite a few miles on them, but the desert grit can really grind down the tread and it was time for a new pair.  I am hoping these will take me to Kennedy Meadows where I will have another pair waiting for me.  I have already thrown away the pants that I started hiking with.  I wanted them because they were very light cotton, but my "steel" thighs proved too tough on the fabric.  I was able to duct tape one hole, but after the second and third I figured there was no point.  So I will be hiking in shorts until I pick up my new pants in Big Bear (thanks Mom & Dad for sending those!).

In general I am really enjoying the simplicity of life on the trail.  Everyone is so nice and there are a lot of very generous people willing to help out the hiker community.  Someone asked me if I was craving anything or missing anything.  Not really.  What I want most when I get into town is a shower and a super cold chocolate milk. 

Hopefully in the next stop I will be able to download pictures from my camera.  I only have a few from my phone that I can upload to the blog, but I have ton on my camera that I will hopefully be able to share soon.

We hit the trail again tomorrow morning.  Until next time Happy Trails!

Trail Statistics
Mile: 180
Days: 12
Candy Bars: 6
Bags of Chips: 3
Jars of Peanut Butter: 1 (Shared)
Showers: 3 (2with soap)
Shoes: 2

Idyllwild to Big Bear

Out of Idyllwild we had new shoes, a days rest, and a full resupply of food, Tiffany and I were ready to hit the trail again. We got a ride to the Devils Slide TH from another trail angel. He specifically said he did not accept donations. He considers every ride a pebble in his pocket. He only hopes we carry out the ripple effect when we are done with the trail.

We hiked back up to the PCT with Gumby and Mark from Maine. The conversation was great and made the climb out of Idyllwild go by fast. At the PCT junction we said farewell to those two who were continuing over the pass.  We continued on with another hiker, Packman up the ridge line. I think I already mentioned that he was carrying a ridiculously heavy bag.

We continued to climb up and up until we got up and over Fuller Ridge. After Fuller ridge it is down and down and down. People had talked about how bad this decent was. At first we laughed about this. It didn't seem so bad. Then we started the bad part. The trail becomes sandy and rocky and very degraded in areas. As the sun disappeared over the ridge we started looking for camping spots. We found one at mile 197, but after trying to keep our tent up against the ferocious winds we gave up, packed our bags and pushed on. The continuous downhill on our bodies and already being tired from the morning climbing was trying. Once it got dark our slowing pace became even slower. We passed a mile 200 marker in the dark. Disappointing though because we thought we had already made it that far. One thing to note about our decent was the change in temperature. We started in the high alpine forest and descended toward the desert floor. At the top the wind was chilly, toward the bottom the winds was a rush of hot air.

Finally around 9:30pm we found a relatively flat spot with only a light breeze somewhere between mile 202 and 203. Another 25 mile day we did not plan for.

On day 14 we finished the downhill. We think we were closer to mile 203 because we didn't have much downhill left. Once on the flat part we walked a gentle downhill to the lowest point on the PCT in California.  This is a desert valley that by 9:30 in the morning was already creeping towards roasting temperatures.

Crossing the valley we ran into an oddity I have never seen before, a flagger for the trail.  Serious? Yes, they were doing some work on overhead power lines and they had a flagger at a trail/road crossing out to control the flow of foot traffic on the trail. We walked up, and he said, your good to go and radioed to the crew we were passing through.

Despite the heat we were lucky enough to be passing by a well know trail angel house, Ziggy and The Bear.  ZiggyBear's is truly a hiker oasis in the desert. I won't go into too much details as Tiffany does a good job of explaining what is there in her blog.

As the sun was setting and the temperatures finally came below 100 we hiked out of Ziggy Bears.  The majority of the hiking was in the dark by headlamp.

Coming down into a narrow valley in the dark we heard this strange sound. At first it sounded like a cow in distress, then it sounded like, I don't know what. We couldn't find it with our lights. We had a moment of panic with lord knows what kind of wild thoughts running through our heads. We ran back up the valley side a couple switchbacks, got our breath and started to think of what to do. A minute later Lorax came around the bend. We had him listen to the sound. He also determined it was probably a cow in distress. With this extra bit of confidence it was only a cow, the three of us headed back down into the valley. We cautiously made our way as we didn't want to startle the cow or other possible creature if it was near the trail. Turns out there was a heard of cows over the other bank. Yay, we didn't have to go through them and with the adrenaline fueling us, we distanced ourselves from the evil cows fast!

As it turns out one of my battery terminals is corroding and my light is not so bright.  It was still light enough to find one of the flattest camp spots in Mission creek valley floor though. It is so nice not to be sliding into Tiffany or vice versa.

After getting water we started a day of climbing. We went over a couple ridges, then we followed the Mission creek drainage up and up crossing it multiple times.  We saw only a handful of hikers compared to what we were used to. Originally we only planned to go 15 miles, but the camp spot was not what we thought it was going to be so we hiked for another 4. After a day of climbing we were very tired and slept well at 7,000 ft. The only exception was a couple hikers that strolled into camp near middle of the night from night hiking.

Day 16 we were determined to have an easy day. We finished climbing to 8,000 ft, then the rest was gently rolling and downhill. I was glad for an easy 17 miles as I was not feeling so good. I am not sure if I was wiped from all the climbing the day before or caught a bug or both. At any rate it wasn't so debilitating I couldn't keep hiking. This stretch of trail seemed to be full of trail magic. First a cache of water and soda from Papa Smurf, then the couch and cooler of goodies provided by the big bear hostel. See Tiffany's post for a picture of the couch cache. At the couch cache we also ran into a trail angel Tiffany who we got a ride from later.

We successfully made a short day and got into camp at an early 4:30 and enjoyed resting. Yay!

We woke early to hopefully get to Big Bear by the afternoon. We had a lot of chores lined up. Aside from the regular resupply shopping I needed to get new socks and a new sun shirt as I managed to put holes through these already. I also needed to pick up my pants that got mailed to the hostel.

To get into Big Bear we got a ride from the trail angel Tiffany we met the day before.  Not only did she pick us up, she let us stay in her spare bedroom, shower, do laundry, drove us all around to do our chores and shop for resupply. Thank you Tiffany!

We had some hole in the wall Mexican food and a couple good beers and were in bed by hiker midnight (8pm).

We are once again full and ready to hit the trail again tomorrow.

A couple trail comments/ questions:  As Tiffany has posted, "we" have seen 9 snakes. Why is it that I, the person terrified of these nasty creatures, is always in front when we encounter these things? Note that Tiffany has been lucky enough to only see 5 out of these 9.

Do they make a long sleeve Hawaiian shirt?

And finally Tiffany says people might not get my "steel" thighs humor in the previous post. For those that didn't get it, it was a joke.

Trail Statistics
Mile: 268
Days: 18
Body: Strong Legs, Tired Feet
Candy Bars: 7
Bags of Chips: 3
Jars of Peanut Butter: 1 (Shared)
Showers: 5 (4 with soap)

Julian

Sadly, this morning I must report we are postponing our Olympic badminton dreams. We I have found it is too windy to play. Maybe we can pick the rackets back up in Northern California or Oregon.

This morning we got a ride into Julian from the trail crossing Highway 78. In town we be-lined it for Mom's to get some fresh pie and coffee. We then attempted a game of badminton at the library, but failed miserably. The slightest breeze will drastically change the direction the shuttlecock is headed. I am sure the failure was also in part due to our badminton skill set. After much deliberation, we decided that the wind was too big a factor. So it was here that we decided that the badminton rackets would go into the free hiker box.

We have checked in early to a room and will attempt to wash all the dirt off. Our bodies seem to be holding up well all things considered. The balls of my feet have a few small blisters, but nothing to hold me up from hiking. The biggest problem has been chafing from my backpack. Between the dry heat, dust, and sweat my back has been rubbed raw. I am hoping some of the open sores will scab over during our stop in Julian and I will develop rough skin in these areas.

On the trail we have run into about 30 or so other people attempting to through hike the PCT with us this year. A few are back for their second trip and others are returning to complete a through hike after section hiking portions of the trail. Most everyone is friendly and there is an underlying current of camaraderie. I expect this will increase as time goes on and we begin running into the same people again. In general it appears that we are about a day ahead of the group we started with. However, I expected after our stop in Julian we will see people from the starting group again.

Our days are planned around two things, water and heat. We try to plan our stops around water sources where we can camel up. We both usually try to leave a water stop with about 5 liters. Water stops tend to be about 15 miles apart and we are coming to a segment of the trail where we may be 20 miles between water stops. Fortunately for us we figure we can make it 25 miles at full water capacity. The hardest part about carying so much water is the weight.

The heat can really zap the energy out of us and we are much slower in it. We have started to avoid hiking between 1:00 and 3:00 and will try to stay out of the heat between noon and 4:00 if it works out with water and a place to stop. In this next stretch we may try some night hiking when it is much cooler.

All in all we are settling into the routine and enjoying the hike.

Happy Trails!

So far good planning on our part:
Long sleeves, long pants, and wide brim sun hats  proved to be a great idea. At first the people wearing shorts and t-shirts seemed more comfortable and cooler, but over the last 4 days we've also started to see sunburns.

What we didn't expect:
We had no doubt we would become filthy dirty, but we didn't realize how dirty, dirty could be. It only takes a day for the desert dirt and dust to find its way to every crevice. Even wearing long pants does not keep the dirt off my legs, up to my thighs! I washed my hands twice this morning and they were still dirty.

Trail Statistics
Mile: 78
Days: 5
Body Type: Tired hiker
Candy Bars: 2
Bags of Chips: 2
Jars of Peanut Butter: 1
Showers: 2 (one with soap)

San Diego

The morning of my departure from Portland my sister picked me up for brunch. As we were making our way through NE looking for a quaint place to eat I got a message from grandma. Something about a box I left. At first I thought she was referring to the box I left for Xena. Then it hit me. Oh no, I left the food box!  Tiffany might have been slightly disappointed if I didn't show up with our first five days of food. So Colleen pulled the U turn and we went back to grab it. Thank you grandma!
The worst part about backtracking was having to say goodbye to Xena for the second time. I think it's hardest with animals. You cannot explain to them why you are leaving and that you will be back. Instead they stare out the window as you leave and wonder how you could have forgot to put them in the car. After all, you took your backpack and trail shoes, which usually means they get to go.
Despite almost leaving the start food behind and, yes I hate to admit, an emotional goodbye to my dog Portland gave us a great send off. The weather was bright and sunny when we boarded our train. Thanks to Colleen and Echo for the ride and company to the train station.
The one piece of gear I was disappointed not to pull together before I left was a set of flashcards. However, Mom surprised me in her "open on train" card with a set to start with. Megan will have to sympathize with Tiffany as she got the presidential and state fact flash cards on the Colorado trail.
The train ride was fairly uneventful. We did have someone snore through the night and got the majority of our sleep on the floor of the observation car.
In San Diego we were lucky enough to have Tom pick us up from the train station at 1am in the morning. After some much needed sleep we were also lucky enough to have our friend Mollie fly in to spend a day around town and send us off. We were even able to sneak in a brewery!
A big thanks to Tom and Molly who have let us use their home as a starting base in San Diego, taken us to dinner to make sure we are well fed before we hit the trail, and who will be giving us our ride to the start.
Tomorrow we start walking!
Trail Statistics
Mile: 0
Days: 0
Body Type: Desk Jockey
Weight: 135
Candy Bars: 0
Bags of Chips: 0
Jars of Peanut Butter: 0
Showers: clean at start

Southbound Train

Today is launch day!  In a few hours Tiffany and I board the southbound train from Portland to arrive in San Diego 31 hours later.  This morning I sit at Grandma and Grandpa's computer wearing my hiking clothes.  I look at how clean they look and how silky my dri-fit shirt feels and I wonder how long this will last.  Soon I know that even washing them won't rid them of all the dirt mashed between the threads.

I am a little more anxious than I thought I would be.  This whole idea of backpacking is not new to me, but for some reason I am a little frightened by the thought.  The good thing is that when I think about living out of my one room, single walled, packable home I cannot help but become delighted by the thought and fantasize about how great it is going to be.  (Of course the sun is shining and there is a cool breeze in the air when I think about this little fantasy, no bugs or rain or hours of postholing!)

Let the journey begin!

Waited to sneak the weights in

Not to be out blogged by Tiffany I thought I would sneak in another post before we head out of Oregon.

Wine Tasting!

The intentions for training started out so great with a week up at the cabin with my Mom, and running the Grand Canyon with Dad and Andy, and few walks with Tiffany.  However, a recent trip to wine country complimented by some food days in Portland may have set the training back a few weeks.

In a couple days Tiffany and I will be taking a last look over all our drop boxes.  Probably over think about what we have in them, then close them up and hope Mom and Dad can make out how to read the spreadsheet!

The real reason for this post, to share my gear list for those with a mind inclined towards curiosity.  For the rest of you, you might want to skip the rest of the post as it is mostly just a geeked out gear list.

My total base weight at the start will be approximately 18 pounds (this excludes water and fuel and clothes worn on a hot day).  I am guessing that once I add water and fuel pack weight will average about 30 lbs.  Not too bad for caring a camp chair and a badminton racket!

Gear	Category	Weight (oz)
Backpack	Camp	63.1
Cup	Camp	2.2
Sleeping Bag	Camp	42.4
Sleeping Bag - Sack	Camp	2.5
Sleeping Bag - Silk Liner	Camp	4.3
Sleeping Pad	Camp	15.4
Spork	Camp	0.4
Bandanda	Clothes	1.2
Crocks	Clothes	10.9
Gaiters - Dirty Girls	Clothes	0.8
Pant - Cotton Hiking	Clothes	10.7
Pant - Shorts	Clothes	3
Pant - Spandex Shorts	Clothes	3.4
Poncho	Clothes	1.7
Shoes	Clothes	21.7
Smartwool Spandex	Clothes	4
Socks x 3 (1.7 oz each)	Clothes	5.2
Sun Hat	Clothes	4.8
Sunglasses	Clothes	1
Top - Monte Bell Insulation	Clothes	11.8
Top - Rain Jacket - Dri Ducks	Clothes	5.6
Top - Sunshirt	Clothes	6.2
Top - T Shirt	Clothes	3.5
Underwear	Clothes	6
Top - Long Sleeve	Clothes	5.9
Smartwool Beanie	Clothes	1.7
Wool Mitts	Clothes	2
Chapstick	Ditty Bag	0.2
Toothbrush	Ditty Bag	0.4
Zinc Oxide	Ditty Bag	0.4
Badminton Racket	Luxury	3.6
Camp Chair	Luxury	10.8
Shuttlecock x 2	Luxury	0.3
Bag - Sea to Summit Sill	Misc	0.7
Batteries	Misc	1.6
Book, Journal, Data Book	Misc	20.3
Headlamp	Misc	2.3
Lighter	Misc	0.6
Phone -	Misc	6
Pocket Knife	Misc	1.8
Trekking Poles	Misc	21.7
Bug Spray	Shared	10.9
Compass	Shared	1.2
Filter - Gravity Works System	Shared	12.1
First Aid Kit	Shared	9.4
Floss	Shared	0.1
Food Cosy	Shared	1.6
Glide	Shared	1.9
Hair Brush	Shared	0.8
Map	Shared	3
Phone - Charger	Shared	1.5
Phone - Spare Battery	Shared	1.2
Pot & Stoves	Shared	8.3
Sunscreen	Shared	4
TP	Shared	2
Tent	Shared	49.4
Tent - Ground Cover	Shared	10.6
Tent Gloves	Shared	0.3
Wind Screen	Shared	1.6

Happy Trails!!

K