Frolicking Fool

Day 1: Last night a pack of coyotes sauntered through our campsite not far from the tents, welcoming us to the desert with their characteristic yipping and howling. I woke up at 5am, not quite rested but full of energy. The first night on the ground is always tough. At 6am our camp hosts served us breakfast and coffee as the sun rose over the mountains.

I made it up to the monument at the southern terminus at 7 am and had my permit checked, received my PCT bag tag and got my picture taken. Then I started hiking north, toward Canada. The rush of endorphins hit and a smile crossed my face that would linger the rest of the day.

The first section of trail was mellow and I moved fast. It helped that my pack, fully loaded, only weighed 20lbs. This is a huge reduction from my first day on the AT two years ago – bring less, do more. A hiker I met on the shuttle caught up to me and we talked as the first miles went by. Our conversation was interrupted by that alarming sound that only one animal makes. A rattlesnake, the first of the trail. There will be countless more. No matter how many times I run into them it’s always startling. I do respect them though because at least they warn you. Usually.

By 1pm we had made it 15 miles to Hauser Creek. Nice cold water with lots of shade, a welcome sight in the desert. It would have been a great campsite but it was too early in the day to stop. I stayed for an hour to eat my lunch, rehydrate and air out my feet. I walked 5 more miles and made it to Lake Morena which had a shop that sold malts and real food. A group of hikers congregated there and we enjoyed our malts and pizza over conversations about previous and future adventures. A campsite nearby offered a spot for PCT hikers. Full and lethargic, a group of us decided to stay there the night. Even on day one it’s hard to pass up running water, real bathrooms and showers. I settled in for the night, pre-trail jitters long gone. It feels good to be back on trail.

Day 2: I rolled out of my tent at 6am, feeling those usual aches and pains. The thought enters my mind that I won’t be pain free until well after we make it to Canada. A small price to pay for the experience. You’ll never feel as fresh as the first day but you will get stronger and it will get easier. We left camp around 7:30 am and moved at a good pace. There was another campsite with amenities 20 miles ahead and we realized that was becoming our goal.

The flies have been gnarly. A constant swarm attacking at all times, biting your exposed skin. I couldn’t keep track of the number I was smashing or bitten by. The little discomforts of a thru hike, the price of admission.

We made it to Kitchen Creek around 11 am after 10 miles and stopped for lunch. There was a pool deep enough to submerge in so we did, nice cold mountain water. A nice contrast to the desert heat.

We pushed on another 10 miles through the heat of the day. When we arrived at the campsite we came across a cooler of drinks and a box of snacks with a sign indicating it was trail magic for PCT thru hikers. We sat down and indulged in some cokes and apple slices. Shortly after, the trail angels who provided these gifts showed up. It was a couple that loved hikers and they asked us about our journey. Then we ate food at a restaurant adjacent to the campground, burgers and beer for the developing hiker hunger. We camped in a site with several other thru hikers and began to meet everyone we’d be seeing on trail day to day. We were even able to take showers with quarters given to us by those trail angels. Two days in and we’re getting spoiled.

Day 3: Hiking felt great in the morning before the heat built up. From a viewpoint just off the trail, we got our first sight of Mt. San Jacinto. This mountain would be our first big climb at an elevation of 10,813. The conversation surrounding this mountain and the snow on top had been circulating among hikers on trail. From where we stood we could clearly see snow on top of the mountain.

We decided to go into the town of Julian a little earlier than most hikers, at mile 60 versus mile 77. At Sunrise Trailhead, we ran into a hiker and his family. They generously gave us a ride into town. Now we were a group of three. We stayed the night at the American Legion where they had free cots for hikers. Beers and food at the local brewery, to get those calories in.

Day 4: We spent most of the day in Julian checking out the town. It’s not a big town but it had what we needed. The gear shop was stocked full of all the good ultralight companies and I bought some sun gloves to protect my hands from the constant sun. Then we went to Mom’s Pies where they give PCT hikers a free slice of pie, scoop of ice cream and a drink. A hiker’s dad gave us a ride back to the trailhead and we hiked a mile and set up camp. We wanted to get an early start tomorrow for the long exposed stretch.

Day 5: We were up at 5am and out of camp by 6:15am. This stretch of trail lived up to what everyone had been saying in town. Little to no shade. We just kept moving as efficiently as we could, stopping for shade when the opportunity arose. 17 miles later we arrived at a highway underpass. Trail angels had cached a bunch of water jugs for hikers. Without this we would have had a 30 mile stretch without water. After relaxing in the shade for an hour we decided to push on to the next water source for the night. This would make it a 31 mile day. We made it to the water source, another cache of bottles provided by trail angels, around 9:30pm, exhausted but happy. We found a spot to camp and I took off my shoes. My ankles have been hurting but now I looked at them and they were swollen and discolored. Hopefully they’d be better in the morning. I cooked and ate dinner quickly. We decided to cowboy camp (sleep under the stars without a tent). Partially because of how tired we were but mainly to look at the stars. I thought of the kindness of people we had benefited from over the day, the trip and life in general as I dozed off looking up at the countless stars.

Day 6: We got off to a slow start after our long day. My ankles were throbbing and the swelling didn’t seem to have gone down. I could barely rotate them but I could walk so I’d be fine for now. All three of us were feeling banged up so we crawled up the trail. We reached the 100 mile mark and that was a morale boost. We continued our slow cruise into Warner springs. There had been talk of some famous hotdogs at a gas station in town and we were at the mercy of our stomachs. As we started down the side trial to town, a group of hikers heading back out informed us that all the hotdogs were gone. Heartbreak. We decided to check out the store anyways which was good because we found out there would be more hotdogs in the morning. We camped right outside of town for the night. A nice creek ran by our site and I was able to soak my aching ankles in the cold water. Some hikers we hadn’t met arrived in camp and we got to know them and played Yahtzee.

Day 7: First thing in the morning we headed back to the gas station to get the famous hot dogs we missed out on. They lived up to the hype and were worth the wait. Delayed gratification or maybe justification for our growing obsession with town food. We decided on slow easy day, relaxing in the shade at a picnic area and submerging our sore legs in a creek. As we left our spot on the creek and headed up the trail we saw better swimming holes, although they were harder to reach. Ours had smaller pools but was easier to access. A life lesson is somewhere in there. Patience? Be grateful for what you have? Both. We stopped early for the day at a campsite with a view. After brainstorming our timeline to Idyllwild, the next town, we realized it was in our best interest to slow down. If we kept our pace we’d end up there right in the middle of Memorial Day weekend. If we slowed up a bit we could get there Tuesday, after the crowd of tourists were gone. There was need to rush and it would give us time to heal wounds and enjoy the space and company. The day ended with a nice sunset.

Day 8: We started the day with the intention of only going about 16 miles. Arriving at our first water source early in the day, we began to look at the sources ahead. Although we had agreed there was no need to do big days for a while and it was in our best interest to slow our pace, we couldn’t help ourselves. The way water sources lined up we decided to do a 26 mile day to avoid dry camping. The first source was a water collection tank provided by a trail angel named Mike. His house was nearby and we had been told he welcomed hikers whether he was there or not. Down at the house we charged electronics and checked out the random art pieces he had strewn across the property. After an hour of relaxing and building up motivation, we continued on and pushed through the heat of the afternoon 18 more miles. Another trail angel named Mary had a property that abutted the trail where she provided water and allowed hikers to camp. We had lost one of our group along the way but we were running out of daylight and knew he’d catch up tonight or in the morning. We filled our water but all the flat spots were taken so we pushed on another mile for a total of 27. Again, setting up camp after sunset and fully exhausted we settled in for the night. It would be a long night as the wind ripped continuously shaking our tents vigorously.

Day 9: We had a short 5 mile day to Paradise Valley Cafe for a mid morning breakfast. The group reconvened as our missing member showed up. We only had to go across the street for our place to stay so we enjoyed some beers and the company of fellow hikers. A new trail angel, Richard offered the basic amenities across the street from PVC. A place to chill, a spot camp, showers and laundry if you were patient. We continued to get to know the hikers in our bubble throughout the afternoon and into the evening.

Day 10: All the hikers woke up to saturated tents from the condensation overnight. One by one, we dragged our shelters into the sun so they could dry out. Then everyone patiently waited for Paradise Valley Cafe to open. Right at 8am all the hikers migrated across the street and descended upon the cafe. As everyone ordered food, the waitress came out and told us someone had paid for all the hikers meals. A loud cheer erupted and everyone looked around trying to guess which of the few normal customers it must have been. We never found out. After breakfast and several cups of coffee we got a ride back up to the trail and took off. Feeling good, all three of us wanted to move fast. So we basically ran up the trail for 17 miles. Once we got to camp it was a mile round trip to the water source. We had again lost a member along the way but experience told us he’d be fine. The temperature was dropping as the sun set so we hurried down to the water and back. Sometimes those bonus miles are the hardest ones. As we arrived back at our site our third hiker arrived. Always good to reconvene. We made dinner and then crawled into our tents. Once again we were camped in an exposed area on the mountain. The wind was blowing but we were protected by some rocks and bushes. Late into the night the wind shifted. I had put earplugs in to block the sound so I could sleep but I was awoken to a smack in the face. Startled, I sat up and realized my tent had collapsed on me. The wind had shifted and was blowing at the perfect angle to rip out one of my stakes from the ground. I got out of my tent, replaced the stake with a rock and then climbed back in. Earplugs in, time to sleep… for a little. Sometime later, I was awoken to the same thing happening from the other side. Repeat the previous steps and tried to get back to sleep. The wind was shaking my tent so hard I was concerned it would be shredded by the morning. One more stake ripped out before morning. It was a long night.

Day 11: I woke up tired from the crazy night. We expected a chill day into town. It was not. There were lots of large pine trees blown down across the trail requiring reroutes or climbing over. Situations where you do not want to fall. This feeling was compounded by the reality that a hiker had passed away here in 2020 after slipping on snow and falling off the trail. It was snow free for us but the drop from the side of the trail was steep and dangerous. Falling was not an option. Although rugged, the trail traverses a beautiful section and stopping to enjoy the view made it worth all the work.

A side trail led into town after bringing us through our first patches of snow. It was an opportunity to test out my micro spikes that I had picked up back at PVC. A fire tower provided some panoramic views of the area. Then a steep trail down to town reminded me how tired and sore I was. Arriving in town around midafternoon, I met up with one of our group at the brewery. We decided to camp at the state park in town for the night.

Day 12: Zero day in Idyllwild to resupply, reconnect with hikers and rest. A cool little mountain town with very nice locals. We stayed at Silver Pines Lodge for the night, deciding to splurge a bit. With a group of 12 thru hikers, we went to a nice Italian restaurant and had what felt like a family meal. Real beds, showers and food had us feeling good about climbing Mt. San Jacinto tomorrow.