Pacific Crest Trail

We have been told that the trail starts to get real after Mt. Whitney. There are navigational challenges, a number of river fords, near complete snow coverage, and of course Forester Pass, the highest point on the PCT. Today, we were about to get a taste of what hiking in the Sierra durinf the largest snow year on record is all about.

I awoke to my second alarm at 1:02 and pulled on my hiking clothes over my thermals. The stars hung low in the sky and the snow covered mountains reflected the half moon’s glow as I crawled from my tent. As I climbed the rock ledge to Vipr’s tent, I looked over and saw lights moving in Burnout’s tent.

Today started with our first true river crossing. We were all excited, but not looking forward to the prospect of wet feet first thing in the morning.

The sound of snow hitting my rain fly woke me in the middle of the coldest night on trail. I was wearing my thermals, jacket, hat, hood and two pairs of sleep socks while wrapped up in my quilt. I was warm enough, but not my usual toasty.

We awoke to the Silver glow of moonlight as we crawled out of our tents and started down trail. The horizon was a light gray and the moon hung heavy in the sky. We passed twisted trees and bolders smoothed by the winds as we slide through the night.

We started out with a 4 mike morning climb from our camp at 8,620 feet along Cow Creek up to 10,500 feet. The trail hugged seasonal streams and passed through piles of white bolders and tall pine trees as we slowly climbed. Some of the group members were feeling the elevation more than others so we were a little slower and more spread out than normal.

We groaned as we picked up our packs and put them not on our backs but on our thighs and then swung them onto our backs with a thud and sharp exhalation.

Bedazzled, Vipr, and I awoke at Chimney Creek Campground at 4:00 and packed up quickly. We were on a mission to get to Kennedy Meadows and put the cabosh on the desert section of the Pacific Crest Trail.

After our game of Farkel last night, I was returning to my tent with Vipr and Shades when we came upon a girl puking out the door of her tent. Vipr gave her some electrolyte powder and encouraged her to mix it with water and drink little sips every 3-4 minutes. The girl, who was from Canada, said she would drink it in the morning because she didn’t want to throw it up…

There was some last minute debate among the group about whether to hike today or try to hitch to Lake Isabella. Valdy wanted to hitch, Burnout wanted to hike, as did Bedazzled and myself, and Fun Dip and Vipr were indifferent. There was a vote and going to town won, but somehow everyone packed up and started hiking.

The sky was awash with color as we rose sleepily from our slumber. Standing around our tents, we looked out on a kaleidoscope of colors slowly rising over the mountains heralding the arrival of the sun. We moved stiffly from yesterday’s effort, but were set on leaving camp quickly before the temperature creeped any higher.

We woke up in the rocky and pine covered foothills of the Sierra believing we had left the desert behind. There were pine needles to cushion our feet and shade overhead as we walked down the trail in the predawn light. We relished in the easy miles as we crossed flat ground and descended over the hills towards the first water 7 miles away.

After a tough day yesterday, we hoisted our slightly lighter packs and headed down the trail. I got a great sleep on Burnout’s old Neoair sleeping pad. He replaced it because it had a micro hole and would deflate over night, but it stayed inflated all night for me. I am also now using my Big Agnes Copper Spur UL1 tent, which my mom brought to me. It’s sturdy and free standing so it should be good for the up coming Sierra section of the trail.

We woke up at 4:30. It was hard to get out of bed, especially after a nero and two zero days in Mojave and Tehachapi. I don’t normally write about town days because I am aware that being back in civilization isn’t as exciting for you, the reader, as it is for me, but I’ll give you a recap.

We woke up in our cowboy camp near the wind farm, which was surprisingly unwindy last night. There were only seven miles left until the trail would cross Tehachapi Willow Springs Road, our hitch spot to get into town, and it was all down hill!

We woke up to the sound of wind turbines and a rising sun burning on the horizon. The Joshua Trees stood silently as we packed up our camp and climbed out of the ravine back to the trail.

We woke up in a cloud again, but this time we also had howling wind to welcome us back to the land of the living. On top of that, I set up my tent near a dead tree and heard it creeking all night. I was worried it would fall on me. Luckily, it didn’t. When I did sleep, I was woken a number of times when the high winds caused the side of the tent to slam into my head. Fun times.

I awoke to the sensation of water hitting my face and my eyes snapped open. We were in a cloud and it was starting to rain. I sat up and reached into my pack, pulled out my tent, and started to pitch it. I laid it out, staked in the front and back, and threw my sleeping bag in it to keep it from getting soaked.

I woke up well rested in the Manzanita forest of Casa de Luna. For all the talk of it being a party place, the owner Terry set clear rules that the forest is for sleeping and in front of the house is for those looking to party.

Today marks my 1 month trailversary, and it was also my longest day of hiking as well at 25 miles! I am so grateful for this experience where everyday is full of surprises, challenges, and happiness.

At Bedazzled’s suggestion, we started hiking even earlier today waking up at 4:30 and hitting the trail by 5:00. As we have dropped in elevation over the past few days, the temperature has risen, and we are already hitting the high 80s. This is more like the desert we have been expecting, but that certainly doesn’t mean we are happy campers. The heat was a shock from the cooler temperatures up in the mountains.

I woke up at 5:00 in our stealth campsite at the top of the mountain and saw the sky coming alive with color. There was burnt orange on the horizon transitioning to a beautiful blue in the sky above.

We left our campsite a mile before Cooper Canyon Trail Camp and began walking uphill to start our day. Soon we were in a mixed forest with stately trees towering overhead. The PCT out of the Buckhorn Flat Campground is beautiful, especially in early morning light.

Today, we got to summit Mount Baden Powell, named after the founder of Boy Scouting . It will be the second named mountain I have summited, though both it and Mt. San Jacinto are technically on spur trails and not the PCT itself.