PCT Day 27 & 28 – Zero in Wrightwood to PCT mile 383.9
May 1 & 2, 2026
Total PCT miles: 14.6
Non PCT miles: 0.8
Total: 15.4 miles / 24.78 km
Total elevation gain: 4419 ft
Total elevation loss: 4213 ft
Steps: 38501
May 1st – Zero Day in Wrightwood.
Nothing better than a free hot dog!
You would think that with a nice comfortable bed for the first time in a week and a nice hot shower one would sleep like the dead. But I did not. Apparently it’s not unusual for thru-hikers to sleep poorly in their first night in town. Today was town chore day in Wrightwood but first a giant breakfast at the Grizzly Cafe. Wrightwood is an extreamly hiker friendly town. Several shops offer discounts to PCT hikers and the Wrightwood Market even gives PCT hikers a free hot dog (it was delicious). The hardware store has a lot of items a hiker may need and normally gives free pins to hikers but they didn’t have any.
I got a new tyvek ground sheet to protect my tent and air mattress and 4 key ring holders to better secure the inner and outer of my tent. I’m hoping this makes it easier to set up and put away. I hit the grocery store and Market to do my resupply for the next 5 days. The only single complaint I have about the town is that the grocery store is excessively expensive. I should have done as much of my resupply as possible from the market which is basically a gas station.
I returned to our chalet and did remaining chores – laundry, gear maintenance Etc and caught up with people back home.
Dinner was an absolute feast of home made pizza with crust cooked from scratch by Sage. The pizzas just kept coming and they were absolutely delicious. Afterwards we soaked in the hot tub before going to bed well past Hiker Midnight (2100 hrs).
May 2, 2025
We were up at 0700 to pack all our bags and get ready for the day. A last home cooked town meal of bacon, eggs, toast and avocado really hit the spot and would provide the fuel we needed to summit Mt Baden Powell. The owner of the property stopped by. She is known as Pajama Mama to hikers because of the onesies she provides so hikers can do their laundry. She coordinates a lot of accommodations for many hikers at various properties she owns at a very reasonable price.
It was time to leave but I really wish I could have stayed another day and just relaxed. But the miles sadly wont hike themselves. We were dropped of at the trail head by Sierra and were on the trail at 10:30. Huge thank you goes out to Sierra a Gwen for all they did for us over the last two day!
The first few miles were easy but then came Baden Powell. This is one of the last bigger obstacles before the Sierra. The challenge is made even larger by the fact that I have a full resupply making my bag extra heavy. There were a lot of day hikers going down as I hiked up. A few stoped to chat and I was happy to take the breaks to catch my breath.
As I ascended the views got more and more impressive. To the north nothing but flat desert. To the south hills and mountains. There were a few “sketchy” spots due to recent snowfall but nothing too tricky. I reached the summit around 1500 with the crew and we took a short break. There were still 6 miles and significant elevation to go and daylight was not on our side.
These miles were long and tiring and mostly up around 8000 plus feet. There were a few more snow patches that required careful navigation or if you were Sage some trail blazing. We got to little jimmy creek around 1830 filtered water and arrived at camp shortly after.
We are at Little Jimmy Campground that has picnic tables, pit toilets and bear boxes. It’s a large area with more PCT hikers than I’ve seen together my entire trip. Maybe the trail isn’t actually a complete ghost town.
We set up our camp and had a beautiful view while enjoying our well deserved dinner. The weather is expected to get much colder over the next few days. So hopefully we can get lower in elevation.
Hwy 2 is closed past Vincent Gap due to severe washouts. Normally in bad snow years PCT hikers can skip Baden Powel by walking the road.
I had a surprisingly not great sleep considering how absolutely exhausted I was last night. Maybe it’s because it was the first night since I injured my ankle that I haven’t taken ibuprofen before going to bed. I also made the decision to not take any before hitting the trail today so I could better determine how my ankle is doing. I’m happy to report I have no concerning pain. Lots of other types of pain but nothing that screams injury.
Today was a relatively quick and short hiking day with hope of getting into Wrightwood before 1300 hrs so I could make the best out of my time in town. The trail continued the ascent from yesterday peaking at about 8400 ft but fortunately it was morning and much cooler than yesterday.
The trail passed along an area that was burned 2 years ago. Alot of work has been done to reopen it to hikers. That along with some significant flooding that hit on Christmas 2025 that causes washouts did some significant damage. This includes damage to Hwy 2 the major road that services Wrightwood.
I received my trail name today as I was walking along a forest service road that is now the PCT. The sun was to my back casting a long shadow in front of me. I was carrying my trekking poles when I saw what appeared to me to be a rattle snake just in front of me to my right. I simultaneously jumped and yelped! Mid air I realized it was just my shadow and as soon as I hit the ground said “oh that was just my shadow” and continued walking along like nothing had happened. A few moments later Ness and I were almost in tears laughing. Hence forth on the PCT I will be known as Shadow because I’m afraid of my own shadow.
I passed a small monument to two hikers that died on the PCT in 1983.
Attempting a winter thru-hike Jodi and Gerald fell off a cliff face near Wrightwood after losing the trail and slipping on the icy slope. The website halfway to anywhere lists 16 confirmed thru-hiker deaths on the PCT.
Creepy murder shed in the burn area where you get water
A few miles later into the day Ness and I reached the first water source since McDonalds (if you don’t include the cache). It was 100 meters steep downhill at a pipe near what looks like a murder shead. Sage and another hiker met up with us there and we continued the last stretch into town.
I couldn’t find the easier way down so stuck to inferno ridge
The trail continues up and around Big Pines Ski Resort where there is a lot of logging work being done to remove dead trees. However the trail here is non existent for a while and finding the way is a bit tricky.
We reached Hwy 2 (an open portion) shortly before 12 and started the process of trying to hitch to town. However because of the closure there wasn’t much traffic other than construction vehicles. Fortunately the second car stopped and picked us up and drove us to our accommodations. Thank you Ashley for picking up 3 dirty hikers in your Lexus!
Our accommodations for the next two nights is amazing. It’s a cute mountain cottage near all the places a hiker wants to be. Tonight we feasted on spaghetti meatballs prepared by Ness’s Aunt and Sierra!
It was an incredible treat and delicious meal! It was fun and certainly a highlight of the trail so far to be seated around a table with new friends sharing this delicious meal.
Woke up with a significant amount of condensation on my tent which surprised me. It probably shouldn’t have but it did none the less. The first few miles to the water cache was relatively easy. Thank god for this well stocked and reliable water cache. The water carry from McDonalds would have been way to much. Our little group stopped here for breakfast and to fill up for the next stretch. After the cache it is more than 15 miles to the next water source and 6000 ft ish of elevation gain. I made the decision to carry 6 liters of water and am I ever glad I did.
Shortly after the cache there was a trail register. These are neat because you can see who is ahead of you and by how much.
The sun was out in force the entire day with no clouds and very little wind. It was only in the low 20s Celsius but it felt much much hotter. I deployed my sun umbrella but it did little to help with the heat.The uphill climb was gradual but relentless with little shade to be found. What made it even worse was that it basically was the same view of the same canyon all day long. At some point we passed the 350 mile mark which means we are now 1/2 way done the desert section of the PCT!!!!!
Out group split into two both with plans to camp at different locations. Myself and Ness had a more ambitious goal to put us closer to Wrightwood where our next resupply and zero day is.
We found the tiniest bit of shade for lunch and carried on. Shortly before 1600 my body decided it had enough. I felt dizzy and nauseated. Was it the heat, the elevation, the 800 mg of caffeine I had drank today from these most delicious electrolyte powders I found in a hiker box I’m not sure I’ll ever know. But I did something I rarely do and stopped, told Ness and took a break. We formulated a new plan and decided to camp nearby about 3 miles short of our goal. It’s not a nice camp spot and it’s very rocky. I lost my ground sheet so I’m using rain gear underneath my air mattress to protect it.
After some rest, lots of water (thank god I packed out 6 liters) and some food I am feeling better. 10 miles to walk tomorrow to we get to the access point for Wrightwood!
This was basically the view all dayLittle lizard dude sitting on top of a post
PCT Day 24 – Silverwood Lake Campground to PCT mile 343.6
April 28, 2025
Total PCT miles: 14.8
Non PCT miles: 1.7
Total: 16.5 miles / 26.6 km
Total elevation gain: 2257 ft
Total elevation loss: 2677 ft
Steps: 37507
Woke up this morning to a significant amount of condensation on my tent. Probably cause = camping near a lake with cold temperatures. One of the great things about this campsite was access to flush toilets and nice hot water. There were showers but you needed may dollars of quarters to make them work and I had only two. The full 5G cell service was also nice. It was great to wake up with people to talk with after being alone the last few nights.
I hiked with my new friends for a few miles until they stopped for breakfast and I continued on my way with plans to meet up at McDonalds at Cajon Pass. This McDonalds is a must stop on the PCT as it’s only 0.4 miles off trail!
The morning hike was easy enough but there were significant lengths that was slanted down to the right which was painful on my injured ankle. Going down into Cajon Pass was absolutely breath taking with incredibly views of the mountains range I’ll be climbing the next few days. It’s really quite amazing how quickly the landscape changes from large trees to shrubs to meadows and canyons.
The sight of the Golden Arches was an incredible thing to behold. The short walk off trail is on old Route 66 which I guess has been replaced by a very busy interstate next to very busy rail lines. There are a few plaques and signs that I didn’t read which likely tells some of the history about the area.
Entering McDonalds I found 5 other thru hikers enjoying their meals. 2 of which I had previous met. I didn’t eat as much as I anticipated likely due to the pizza last night. There is an unoffical PCT challenge here – basically resupply completely from the McDonald’s and see how many days you can go just eating from that resupply. I elected to not partake partially because I started feeling nauseated (later resolved-probably too much real food and sugar too fast).
Today is Mel’s birthday and I ordered flowers to be delivered to our place. Really wish I could have been home and not 3751 kms away as the bird flys. She called me at the McDonald’s after she got home and found the surprise!
About an hour after I arrived the 3 people I was hiking with showed up. In the end I spend about 3 hours sitting in the McDonald’s. Certainly a record for me. I left with Ness and plans to camp with Sage and Pinecone at a campsite 2.7 miles away.
The short trek to the campsite for the night passed under the highway which was quite creepy. The trail then passes along where the trains come by. These are really busy rail lines – we even needed to wait for 5 mins to cross the tracks before continuing on the PCT.
Set up camp all 4 of us with Durston tens (3 x domes and 1 x-mid.) and were later joined by a 5th hiker.
The next section involves a pretty significant water carry up 5000 ft of elevation. The next water source is 3 miles (a water cache) then 15 miles after that. Should be… fun?
Two packs are better than one.Flowers on the side of the road
PCT Day 23 – PCT Mile 313.4 to Silverwood Lake Campground
April 26, 2025
Total PCT miles: 15.4
Non PCT miles: 1
Total: 16.4 miles / 26.4 km
Total elevation gain: 2631
Total elevation loss: 2156
Steps: 39228
I thought I slept well last night but I must not have because I felt sluggish all day. Maybe the big miles the last two days are catching up with me or maybe I need to eat more. I packed up my tent and immediately had to cross Deep Creek. Because I thought I could see the bottom all the way and it didn’t look too deep I went bare foot to keep my shoes dry for the day. By about 1/2 way through I realized it was much deeper than I thought and eventually was waist deep in the cold water. Well I needed a shower anyways and I guess this kinda counts…
It was deeper than it looked.
The weather remained cool and partially cloudy. Optimal hiking weather! I crossed paths with a hiker from New Zealand several times through the day. We both remarked how empty the trail has felt. I really feel this year will be known for its social isolation.
The trail goes around Lake Silverwood which is manmade and used to generate power and likely a reservoir. Before going up to the lake you pass maintenance facilities and a giant spillway and some road walking. The walk around the lake was beautiful. Had it been warmer I definitely would have gone for a swim. There was a short walk through an area that had been recently burned which had its own strange beauty to it.
Based on comments I had read on Far Out (app used by thru hikers) I had decided to camp at the Silverwood Lake Campground because you can use Uber Eats at this location and pizza sounded like an amazing idea. My new friend from New Zealand and two of her hiking friends joined in the adventure. It was nice to be with people tonight after being pretty much alone for the last three nights.
On the way to the campsite we were harassed by 5 stray dogs. Apparently they have been causing a lot of issues for various hikers because the Far Out guide has lots of comments about them.
Thankfully the trail wasn’t very challenging today because all day I was feeling quite tired. I think I’m going to need to slow my pace a little or I’ll end up in the Sierras way too early. The next big challenge is Mount Baden Powell that has a significant amount of snow on its peak and there is no way to bypass it. It’s warming up over the next few days so hopefully the conditions change.
The company tonight was great and the pizza really hit the spot.
