Miles: 676.2 to 702.4 Miles: 26.2, plus .8 to the Kennedy Meadows General Store Day: 32 For our last day in the desert, we woke up on a ridge in a cloud. Our stuff was wet, but fortunately not too wet. No droplets on the sleeping bags, just dampness in abundance. And it was cold. […]
Miles: 621.9 to 651.4 Mileage: 29.5 (plus 2 for water) Day: 30 In order to hike with the least amount of water possible between sources, we decided to try to cover all 30 miles in one day. We knew it was possible, would certainly take all day and would be pretty painful. We got up […]
Miles: 596.6 to 621.9 Mileage: 25.3 (plus 2.2 to get water) Day: 29 I was really hoping the rain would stop at some point overnight. It didn’t. We stayed in our sleeping bags and hoped the rain would stop. It didn’t. We ignored the alarm, ignored the lightened sky, ignored the water on everything. If […]
Miles: 448.1 to 476.1 Mileage: 28 Day: 23 The cave was definitely a cool place to sleep, but I woke up suddenly when I noticed I’d been pooped on by a bird in the middle of the night. Not cool, bird. It was a cool morning as we hiked 6 miles to Agua Dulce, California, […]
Miles: 426.9 to 448.1 Mileage: 21.2 (plus .4 to the KOA) Day: 22 Let’s talk Poodle Dog Bush for a minute. With all the time I have to think, I have devoted much of it lately to what I would call the hype around PDB. In every guide book I’ve seen, there is a lot […]
Miles: 400 to 426.9 Mileage: 26.9 Day: 21 It all started off so well. We got up and started hiking before 7 a.m. The night had been dry, so the tent and sleeping bags were in fine shape. My feet felt great. And then the winds started. The terrain was varied, without big climbs to […]
Miles: PCT: 1.6; Cedar Springs Trail Junction plus road walk to Idyllwild: 19, minus a 2.5 mile hitch along highway 74. Mileage: 18.1 Day: 9 When the light returned around 5:45, the rain and wind we still working full time and we were still in our sleeping bags dreading the moment when we stepped back […]
Miles: 140.3 to 161 Mileage: 20.7 Day: 8 At 5:30 a.m. I woke to hear rain pattering on the tent. I do not enjoy packing up in the rain, but I figured, it’s the desert! How long can this last? And I was right. The pattering stopped in 15 or 20 minutes and we packed […]
Miles: 115 to 140.3 (plus 1 mile to get water) Mileage: 125.3 Day: 7 We camped in a rare forested area next to a flowing stream. Once we started hiking, that didn’t last long. The whole morning was a long, slow climb through boulder-pocked desert scrub. The first few hours were cloudy and cold above […]
Miles: 22.1 to 41.5 Mileage: 19.4 Day: 2 We woke just before sunrise, but took our time getting out of our sleeping bags, discussing our dreams. The night was so quiet. I don’t remember the last time I heard less. As soon as the sun came across the valley to our ridge, it was warm. […]