I wake up at 6. It was cold last night. I had to get out of my tent to go to the bathroom at midnight. Not the best sleep. I can hear Jeff making coffee nearby. Time to get going. I pack up. The guys wait for me to stuff the last things in my pack. It’s nice having the company. We head out into the gloomy morning. 

The clouds keep the trail cool. I’m thankful because we have a steep climb out of the campsite. Up and up, through the brush for a mile and a half. Jeff takes off and I pause to let Jonathan pass. Phew! Quite the warmup this morning. 
We get to the trail crossing on a saddle between two peaks. The views are beautiful. The sun starts to sift through the clouds.    

 I’m really proud of us for hiking all the way up to the trail closure! Mile 162. That’s as far as you can go (without getting fined). A lot of hikers skipped this section and hitched a ride into Idyllwild. It’s funny because we’re heading back down to the road very close to Paradise Cafe so I understand the thinking on skipping. There’s a saying on the trail ‘HYOH’ meaning, hike your own hike.

We head down some steep switchbacks. I take less pictures than I want as we talk about coffee and the effects caffeine have on people. I haven’t had any caffeine this whole trip! I don’t think I really need it.

The switchbacks plunge down into a cozy wooded area. We pass some day hikers. The plants are green and lush next to the stream. We come to a road. The paper map detour says… Turn right. We walk down a dirt road by a small quiet neighborhood. 

Every single house has an angry dog charging down a fence to bark at us. Bark! Bark! Bark! The neighborhood erupts with sound. Hope we’re not disturbing anyone! 

The road leads to a dead end. Well this isn’t right. We look at all out maps and apps. Guess we need to go further down the road, and then turn right. We walk back past all the dogs making a racket. Sorry! 

Walking on pavement has a different feel to it. My steps are bouncier and I want to go faster. I think I’m still used to driving on roads and not walking on them. I instinctively want wheels.

We eventually find the dirt road we’re looking for. It goes strait down a big hill towards the highway for a few miles. The going is rough. The road is filled with loose fist sized rocks. My joints groan, possibly from walking on the pavement earlier. We eventually come to another dirt road. The highway is just a bit further. I can hear the cars race by. 

We turn down the 2nd dirt road but it starts to parallel the highway. We want to cross the highway. We bushwhack across to a barbed wire fence. Jonathan hops over it and Jeff and I take turns crawling through the wires. 

It’s a rush having the cars zoom by. I forgot how fast they move! It’s kind of scary. 

We cross the highway and walk under a telephone wire for several miles. The earth is really soft and sandy. Large pine trees watch over the grassy fields. This section is actually really pretty if you ignore the car sounds. 

  
The telephone wire path eventually stops next to the freeway. 

Now it’s only a 6mile freeway walk into Idyllwild. 
Great. 

We walk along the grassy shoulder and stop at a small bridge. This is sketchy. We wait for a gap in the traffic and power walk across. Phew! I don’t think I like road walking very much. It definitely makes me appreciate the trails more. 

   
 We get to a small camp store by Hemmit Lake and take a break. I buy a cold drink and some gummy cherries. We sit in the sun resting our feet. It’s very relaxing. 

A car pulls up.

“Need a ride into town?”

“Wow! Yes please!” We scramble to get our stuff.

The driver hiked the pct last year! His trail name is Shades. He drives us into town up a windy road. Im super glad I’m not walking this, parts of the road have blind turns and no shoulder. He drops us off at the Idyllwild outfitter. Thank you so much Shades! 

I wait outside as Jeff gets new gear. It’s nice to have cellphone service! 

Once all new gear is acquired we walk to the campsite and set up camp. It’s only 3 dollars for pct hikers! And they have showers! The hot water feels so nice. 
We gather our clothes and head to the local Laundromat. Our clothes altogether make up one load. I’m washing everything I have so I hangout in my rain gear. Josh and Jonathan are in their thermals. A few more hikers join us in their underwear. I wonder what the locals must think. 

  
Once all the chores are finished we head strait to the local Mexican restaurant. So good! We clean our plates and head back to camp. The air drops several degrees and clouds linger on the horizon. The forecast says it’s going to snow. I hope it doesn’t get too cold tonight.

Camped at mile — of the pct

Miles hiked today: about 18?