Zero days are glorious and after 11 days of hiking with no rest this one was well deserved. The term zero days just mean no hiking but unfortunately it doesn’t mean you don’t have a list of town chores to complete. There’s laundry, gear maintenance, resupplying for the next leg, calling family, loading up on calories and other random tasks. Because of all this there really isn’t a lot of rest time.
Idyllwild is a really cool small mountain town that is very hiker friendly. The people are amazing and everything you need is easily walkable. The only down side to town days and zero days is they get real expensive real fast. Even more so when your paying in Canadian Dollars or arrive in any town near Coachella on a weekend.
Day 13
My left calf is still bothering me despite all the stretching and self massage I could manage. If it was cheaper to stay in town I would have definitely considered another zero.
I made arrangements with a local trail angle named Grumpy to give me a ride to the trail head at 0930 am this morning. This gave me plenty of time to have a good breakfast and ensure i had everything packed and didn’t need to rush.
I was at the Devil Slide trail head at 10am and started the 2.5 mile 2000 ft climb back to the PCT. Name aside the trail is actually really nice with reasonable switch backs going all the way up. I reached the PCT at saddle junction and was on my way. There definitely was less snow and slush than when I descended from here just the other day.
I had made the decision to not climb Mount San Jacinto due to a number of reasons: didn’t want to do the 2000 feet additional accent, it’s not part of the Official PCT, i had already done it in 2018, and I only have 5 days of food to get me to Big Bear which is about 90 ish miles away on trail. In 2018 I spent the night at the summit and had crystal clear views with an amazing sunset. Today everything seems hazy so I’m confident my old memories of the peak would be better than any new ones I would make today.
Fortunately there is a lot of water on this part of the trail due to the recent snow and ongoing meting but for some reason I decided to carry much more than I needed. I do really need to get better at determining how much water I actually need so I can lighten the load from time to time.
Eventually I reached near the area where in 2018 I made the decision to call of that adventure. It’s wild being here again it feels familiar but doesn’t look at all how I remember it. Memory is a funny thing.
I met up with a group of hikers who have dubbed themselves the Coyote pack. They named themselves es thus because apparently coyotes often go off on their own and rejoin. Which is fitting for how a trail family works. I made camp with them tonight and they are an interesting group including a paramedic from France. Were at a designated camp site that has a fire ring so someone started a campfire Which is an unusual occurrence on the PCT. It’s cold tonight – low of 4 degrees here at 8000 ft and two of them are cowboy camping. Hopefully the fire keeps them warm.
Tomorrow is 20 miles all down hill. I’m sure my legs will protest the entire time!
Today is a good day because it’s a town day. But first I must embrace the suck that are the mountains before me.
I was packed and hiking at 0600 thankful that I had slept at lower elevation and that my newly acquired ground sheet keeps my tent a little cleaner. The wind died down last night and it was a cool morning excellent for the hike ahead. I had only 1.25 liters of water to make it to the Tahquitz creek located at mile 172.
I didn’t hike this part of the trail in 2018 as I had limped off somewhere before this point. The first 2 miles were all uphill and I managed to make relatively quick work. From here the trail continued up along the side of the various mountains. I understand now why these trails can be treacherous. I’m not sure I would hike them if there were snow and ice. I was moving quite slowly for several miles as I fatigued but was not wanting to rest due to lack of water and the strong desire to get to town. As difficult as the trail was it was incredibly beautiful with amazing views of the sounding mountains and valleys bellow.
Somewhere around 8000 ft, thanks to the storm that passed here two days ago, the trail started to become snow covered. Fortunately this part of the trail was more in land and not sketch. I arrived at Tahquitz creek and was rewarded with nice cold glorious water and enjoyed a snack. There were several other hikers here all discussing if they were going to summit Mount San Jacinto or not. Of the group only 1 was planning to do so. Personally I have yet to decide if I will or not.
From here it was mostly downhill to Saddel Junction where I will take the trail down into town. On my decent I started to get some pain in my left calf like a strong cramp that continued to get worse until I had some difficultly walking. I slowly passed the parking lot and started walking into town. Fortunately the first vehicle that passed me stopped and gave me a ride to my hotel. They were a lovely couple from San Diego on vacation here in Idyllwild.
I checked into my hotel at around 1500. Later than I had hoped but early enough for me to enjoy a relaxing afternoon. Blaze, a physical therapist who follows the PCT hiker crowd was in town so I bought some compression sleeves for my calves from her hoping it would help prevent future issues.
In the evening I enjoyed a whole pizza to myself. I had gone back to my room when I realized I had lost my power bank. I found it a several hiker I knew at the restaurant and chatted for a while. Tomorrow I’ll do town chores, laundry and resupply before starting back on the trail Friday before the Coachella madness hits the area.
If you look closely you can see the trail. Mayor Max!
It was exceptionally cold out this morning. It must have rained a little more last night because my tent was wet. This combine with the cold weather made packing everything up painful but the Paradise Valley Caffe (PVC) and breakfast were calling my name so off I went. Slowly the sun started to crest over the mountains finally providing some warmth. The high temperature today is only 10 or so degrees but I’ll take it over a heat wave.
I arrive at PVC just as they opened at 0800 an shuffled in with a few other hikers. They caffe allows hikers to camp on their patio or in the back. One hiker I met had done just that and reported it was really loud due to cars most of the night. PVC is known for having the best burger on trail but unfortunately their lunch menus doesn’t start until 1100 so I settled for breakfast food. I will say their portions are very hiker friendly.
In the hiker box I found a giant piece of tyvek. I had been debating getting something to use as a ground sheet for my tent as I’ve already put a hole in it and to help keep it cleaner. Two other hikers wanted some as well so we cut it into pieces to share.
Rocket man!
Just as i was leaving PVC I ran into Rocket Man. He said he had enough and he was getting off trail. I wished him well and off I went.
The hike today involved a significant amount of elevation change with difficult water access. There are three points along the trail where you can get water. But all involves a one mile hike downhill. I carried 4 liters out of PVC and with the cool weather I’m hoping I’ll be fine till a spring located on trail another 11 miles from where I’ve camped.
Here along the ridge on the left everything is green and to the right everything is brown and you can see into Coachella valley. At some point I passed the spot where I sprained my ankle in 2018 and eventually passed the spot where I hobbled off the ridge to hitch hike into town. So now I’m on parts of the PCT I’ve never seen. There were beautiful views of Mount San Jacinto and the valley bellow.
It snowed up here over the last two days but almost all has melted. I passed some trees that were raining ice that has built up during the storms. I decided to gather a bunch just in case I’m wrong in my water calculation!
I still have 11 miles to go until I reach the turn off for Idyllwild. I had hoped to make it further. But the next few miles involve significant elevation gain to 9000 feet. It will be warmer where I am and I’ll have fresh legs tomorrow for the climb. I really hope to make it into town at a reasonable time.
Everything hurts when your thruhiking. Every part of your body aches even parts you’ve never felt pain in before. What changes is what hurts the most and is thus taking your immediate attention. Is it your back, your left leg, your right pinky finger. The key is recognizing a) is this a concerning pain and if so should I or can I do something about it.
It’s important to take care of the small issues before they become significant issues even when the small issues are easy to ignore. That small rock in your shoe will become a blister, that small hole in your gear will eventually make it unusable. But if you deal with the small thing early a later crisis will be potentially averted. That said you’re often so exhausted and caught up in trying to make miles that it’s easier to ignore. In some ways thru hiking teaches the importance of sweating the small stuff when it’s important.
I woke up early and did my best to pack away my wet gear without getting anything else wet. There was a chance of more rain today that thankfully did not occur as it’s going to be cool during the day and near freezing tonight with significant wind.
I was feeling sluggish this morning and didn’t think I would make paradise valley cafee before they closed at 1500 hrs so I changed plans. Part of the reason for the change was as I was walking along the trail minding my own business I was startled by a growling sound. I tired to find the source of this sound and it took me longer than it should have to realize my stomach was in fact the source. I was starving!
Back in 2018 there was a hiker oasis in the area run by Mary I believe. It closed down due to criminal activity on her property. In its place multiple spots seem to have opened up. I set my eye on Little Bear Hostle as it promised hot dogs.
Little Bear Hostel
Little Bear Hostle is basically someone’s house that runs on the honor system. Cook yourself hotdogs, help yourself to drinks, snacks and ice cream and pay before you leave. There is also an outdoor shower and places to camp outside or set up your sleep pad in shelters. I’d really like the meet the individual that owns this place. Based on the things that were lying around I’m sure he’s quite interesting.
5 hot dogs and a few soft drinks later I was on my way. I debated spending the night but I’m doubtful I would have gotten much rest in a shelter with people making noise and if I’m going to sleep in my tent I might as well get closer to Paradise Valley for breakfast tomorrow. Also these kinda places become vortexes. Next thing you know you’ve been there for two days and spent a fortune! One of the hikers I met was currently on their second day there.
The hike today and the surrounding mountain views were beautiful. I called it an early day and stopped hiking at 1600hrs.
It’s going to be cold tonight. But I believe I am well prepared for it. This will be a good test to see if I need any equipment while I’m in Idyllwild.
Today was the first time I have had the esteemed pleasure of suffering through rain while on the PCT and boy did Mother Nature not disappoint.
Because I knew it was going to be cooler and cloudy I slept in today and started hiking at 0715 instead Of 0600-0630. I know I shouldn’t be so kind to myself. There isn’t much water on this stretch so I’m quite happy with the cooler temperature (high of 10 celcious). The forecast was calling for a 30% chance of rain totaling about 3mm. This is part of a much larger weather system bringing a non insignificant and much needed snow in the sierras.
It started out so nice outside
The morning went by quickly. I crossed paths with a hiker I’ve named rocket man. He’s a 67 year old Asian man who has one speed and swears a lot. He is doing a few hundred mile section hike so he typically only spends 1/2 the day walking.
Water tanks
My first stop of the days was at Mikes place. Here you can fill up on water. In some years the owner or a care taker is around and pizza can often appear. Unfortunately this is not one of those years. But fortunately as I was leaving a trail angle named One Way Mike showed up in his truck with an amazing assortment of drinks and food. He wasn’t prepared for the cold so he was wearing a garbage bag turned into wind breaker.
One Way Mike!
Soon the clouds rolled in and enveloped us and the rain began to fall. Because of the weather he wasn’t likely to stay long so I was really lucky to partake in this trail magic!!!
From mikes it’s pretty much downhill the rest of the day from 5500 ft to 3500ft. I need to be more careful on the downhill, evenmore so when the view of the trail is obscured by growth and you can’t see all the rocks. I was going along at a pretty good pace when with my right leg I stepped awkwardly on a rock twisting my ankle and I heard a pop. I stopped suddenly and my heart sank. Did I just do it again? Did I just sprain my ankle do I need to push my SOS button. Fortunately I seemingly had no pain and after a few moments of testing everything out to make sure I was okay I was able to continue on without any issues.
The rain continued on and off all afternoon quite annoyingly. I would get dry just in time for the rain to start again. Much more rain that I believe the forecast called for. But I did get to see two rainbows. So i guess that’s something.
I had reception in the late afternoon so I’ve called and booked a hotel in Idyllwild for my first zero. I should arrive early Wednesday and get to spend two well earned nights in a real bed! I was desperately trying to avoid arring in Idyllwild on the weekend because the prices are more than double the weekday prices and it appears I will have succeeded!
I should have stopped when the sun was out and I was dried off from the earlier rain and I passed nice camping spots. But alas I did not. I kept going and the rain started again and when I was finally done my camp site selection was less than ideal.
I managed to keep everything inside the tent dry as I set up for the night. If I can do 15 miles before 1500 hrs I’ll get to paradise valley caffee for what is known as the best burgers on trail. It will have to be an early morning to be successful.
