Days 17 and 18 ended up being unplanned zero days at the campground in Idyllwild. We learned on Sunday that there was going to be freezing rain on Monday, so we chose to play it safe and wait out the weather in town. These days were rather boring and spent eating and sleeping.
Day 19 was the day we finally headed back onto the mountain and summited the peak of San Jacinto. We hitched a ride out of a foggy and cold Idyllwild up to Humber Park, where the Devil’s Slide trail begins and heads up to Saddle Junction, where we had left the trail. As Humber Park itself is about 1500 feet above Idyllwild, we were above the clouds and in the sun when we started hiking. After the 1500′ ascent in 2.5 miles on Devil’s Slide, we climbed another 900′ on the PCT to the junction with the San Jacinto peak trail. From there, there were occasional patches of snow but nothing too bad until the junction with the Round Valley trail, after which the trail became steep and completely covered in snow. We pushed the last few miles through the snow and wind, summiting around 2 pm. The view was incredible, with a sea of clouds below us to the west and south, and incredible views of San Gorgonio and the Coachella valley to the north and east. At 10,834 feet, the peak of San Jacinto stands nearly 2 miles above Palm Springs below. After admiring the view and getting some pictures, we headed back down to the PCT, practicing (rather poorly) some glissading on the way down. We hiked another 2.5 miles to the strawberry camp and called it a day. The day was just under 13 miles including the side trail and peak trail, and it took us 10 hours to do. The snow on the way up and down was no joke, even with microspikes. Tomorrow we would be hiking Fuller Ridge, some of which was said to be snow covered and tough to navigate.
Day 20 was a 13.9 mile day from mile 183.3 to 197.2. I had a little bit of a sore throat the previous day and had coughed a bit on the way up but had thought it was due to elevation. The morning of day 20, though, it was immediately obvious upon waking up that I had a nasty cold. This made the climb early in the morning very difficult. We then reached the beginning of the Fuller Ridge trail. The first couple miles were mostly snow free and pretty lovely hiking. Once the trail passed over to the north face, however, it became covered in snow, with several sets of footprints to choose from. Ultimately I made it through in decent time, as the section was much flatter and therefore easier than the previous day’s climb to the peak. We then began the long descent from San Jacinto, having finally passed over it. We camped about halfway down the 8000′ descent, and enjoyed a stunning sunset.
Day 21 was to be a 16.2 mile day to the Mesa Wind Farm at mile 213.4. At mile 209.5 though, the trail passes under I-10, so we planned to get lunch at In-n-out and resupply in Cabazon. The descent to the desert wasn’t too bad, but there was a roughly two mile stretch across open desert, with sand that sank below each step like walking on a beach. It was brutal, a brief bit of torture under a blazing sun, with little wind and 90+ degree heat. After finally reaching the interstate, Joren, Benjamin and I got a ride to the In-n-out in Cabazon, where we stuffed our faces. After grabbing enough extra snacks to make it to Big Bear Lake, Thomas, Joker and I got a ride back to trail. I hung out under the highway until about 5 p.m., when it was starting to cool. The remaining 4 miles were a moderate climb to the Mesa Wind Farm, but even this amount of climbing was very difficult with my cold, as I stopped to hack and cough every few hundred feet. The staff at Mesa are very hiker-friendly and provide water and camping, as well as bathrooms and some goodies for sale during office hours. Unfortunately, I didn’t sleep great, as the windmills right above were noisy and my cough persisted through the night.
I awoke on day 22 feeling awful. I debated hiking back to the highway to take a day off, but decided to at least attempt the climb out of the wind farm before retreating to town. I was absolutely exhausted within a half mile, struggling to make any real progress without needing to stop to catch my breath. After a few miles it was clear that I wasn’t going to be hiking very far. It took me 4 hours to hike 6.7 miles to the Whitewater River, a hike that on a typical day would have taken me about 2.5 hours. The sun and heat were both unbearable, regardless of my illness — no clouds, little wind, and again 90+ degrees heat well before noon. At the river, I enjoyed some shade, managed to eat a bit, and rinsed out some clothes before taking a dip myself. I took a long siesta in the shade before deciding shortly after 5 to hike a few more miles. I made it another 3.5 miles before solo camping on a ridge at mile 223.5, with views of San Jacinto, the Coachella valley, and a brilliant sunset behind San Gorgonio.
The next morning I felt a lot better but I didn’t set any particular goal. After an easy few miles down from the ridge, I reached Mission Creek, which the trail follows up San Gorgonio canyon as the creek cuts down from the mountains to the desert. The trail also frequently crosses the creek, requiring many fords. Unfortunately, due to the high amounts of snow and rain this year, the creek had washed out multiple sections of trail, making it tough to follow at times. However, because the trail generally follows the creek up into the mountains, it was easy to continue making progress by simply following the riverbed upstream. With cool, wet feet, I wandered the beautiful wilderness in generally the right direction, sometimes choosing to stick to the riverbed when the trail would briefly ascend from it. I had last seen another person around 7 PM the previous night, and it was after 1 PM before I saw someone else heading up the creek. I believe the solitude, sense of exploration, frequent water and shade, and slightly improved health are the answer to the following, which I specifically stopped to write in my notes: “Day 23 12:26 pm: I am having my best day so far and I’m not sure why.” Despite still hacking and coughing on any even moderately steep climbs, I felt great, and hiked through the heat of the day, enjoying frequent long, lazy breaks in the shade. I ended up making it 16.4 miles to 239.9, the Mission Trail Camp. The day involved over a mile of elevation gain, which any other day would classify as “shitty” in my book — but today was different. The transition from the desert at 3000′ to the high elevation pine forest above 8000′ was remarkable to experience in a single day.
Day 24 had a much more balanced elevation profile than the previous day, but had one caveat: from where I was camped, there was no water source for 16.3 miles until the Arrastre Trail Camp. This meant having to schlep 5.5 liters of water (11 lbs) from the first step in the morning. The day would be spent moving closer to Big Bear Lake, with the trail maintaining elevation above 7500′ all day. This meant that the cloudless day was absolutely perfect weather, likely about 75 in the sun and maybe 65 in the shade. I turned on an audiobook early and cruised, the miles passing quickly and easily behind Brandon Sanderson’s tale. After just over 12 miles, I saw the most wondrous sign a thru-hiker can see: “Free Meal for PCT Hikers Today!” I followed the dirt trail away from the PCT and down to the pullout at Onyx Summit, where a group of trail angels provided burgers, snacks, and drinks. This was a godsend, truly trail magic for me, as I had been very absent-minded when last resupplying and was stuck with basically all sweet food. A salty cheeseburger, chips, and Del Taco burritos to pack out for dinner made my day. I eventually waddled back to the trail and quickly made the last 4 miles to my original plan, the Arrastre camp at mile 256.2.
Today is day 25, and I am relaxing in a comfortable hotel room in Big Bear Lake. It was an easy 10 mile hike to the highway today, where another hiker was just getting into a car as I walked up, and I was offered a ride as well. After getting my own room for two nights (the rate was good and I wanted my own space for a bit), I showered, walked to the laundromat and did laundry, then enjoyed a massive wet carne asada burrito next door. I was reunited with the group I had been hiking with since the start, having fallen behind on day 22. Hopefully going to grab drinks later with them. Tomorrow will be a zero day during which I plan to do very little, as I’m hopeful that getting some rest will finally end this cold. Once we leave Big Bear, we’ll head generally west about 100 miles to Wrightwood, which will be our longest resupply stretch yet. I’m hoping to start hiking some 20+ mile days, assuming my cold gets better.
Mellow Travels 
Glad you’re feeling better after the bout with a cold. That makes for pretty tough days when you’d rather just hibernate. Smooth travels ahead! Any big plans for Saturday and the big three oh? Love, Grandpa
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No big plans for the birthday, will likely just be hiking!
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Enjoy!
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Hi Jake, thinking of you and your journey and wishing you Happy Birthday and much happiness in all that you do. Love, Grandpa. (I know I’m a day early but I want to beat the rush!)
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