Here is a detailed map of the Pacific Crest Trail.

Pacific Crest Trail Map

PCT trip 22 August 5th through the 17th. 171 miles.

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Our sections get farther and farther away. We have walked every step of the PCT consecutively north from Campo, Ca. It now means it really takes a whole day to get to the trailhead. In this case we had to drop off a car at Tuolumne Meadows, spend a night in the backpacker’s campground, and get a ride to Onion Valley near Independence to reenter the trail. There was a search on up in the Yosemite area for a lost hiker. The rangers didn’t have time to talk. Our driver was Rachel Ginsburg of Oakland. She was my “blind date” early this year when I picked her up at the San Diego for a ride to a PCT segment here in San Diego. I have a lot to do to make up for her help on this long section. Getting back to our latest section means walking over Kearsarge Pass, just west of Independence which itself is over 11000 feet. It wasn’t easy getting out last year and a bit harder getting in. I am in good shape but none of us could be prepared for the altitude. Ray Ellis got up there first after one of my water bottles sprung a leak and I fell back. I rearranged my pack and Rachel accompanied me for an hour. Paul Freiman went up before me but I caught up to him in a little while. He started feeling unwell quickly; something that would bother him for most of the trip. This is a dramatic spot, one of the great views of the Sierras. Once we joined up at the pass we descended past a section which had been recently rerouted and improved.

Our first night was spent at the northern junction above Charlotte Lake. I shoehorned my tent into a tight space and realized I should have placed us at the bigger junction. At my first dinner I found out I had forgotten my salmon. Fortunately between jerky and protein bars I was fine.

Our first true mountain pass the next morning was Glen Pass. At the time it seemed incredibly challenging but as the hike progressed it was remembered a merely as a good warm up. Most passes are bleak rocky ascents into a treeless world. Some like Selden Pass have a beautiful run up. Still they are an alien place. After Glen Pass we passed through Rae Lakes a fine area and crossed our first creek ford. In this case a lake outlet. We were reminded how difficult it must be for early or wet season hikers to cross these things. It is dangerous, time consuming and scary. For me it was sobering.

On day two we ran into a hiker looking for the local Forest Ranger. A diabetic man on Taboose Pass had collapsed and needed help. He said that two doctors were with him, which should be no surprise because of the talent, experience, and quality of the people out hiking. We saw a helicopter fly over later and found out the next day he was in the hospital and doing fine. Saw 103 people on the first full day and 28 women.

I bent one of my hiking poles going up Pinchot Pass which was a bitch with a dozen switchbacks up a nearly vertical rock slide of talus; like walking through steep gravel pit. Many are what I have deemed “Landslide Trails.” Steep rocky trails in a gravel pit. One earthquake and the pass would be blocked. Water is scarcer this year and we make sure to get plenty when we need it. We did Pinchot and Mather in one day. It was too big a chunk. We ran into a very clean hiker: shaved, sparkling, a real scout who said “one pass a day for me.” He was a bit smug. We passed one cool suspension bridge over I believe South Forks Woods Creek. Only one person at a time passes while it swings back and forth. I keep saying to myself “keep looking straight ahead”, spooky. I had blown out two of my three Platypus water bottles. Ray gave me a Nalgene bottle that I used for the rest of the trip. I have to buy new bottles for each trip or risk having none.

The Muir trail section of the PCT is a roller coaster, a pass, a deep valley, steep climbs and descents, a pass and so on. Most of them are beautiful but difficult. Descending in to Deer Meadow we saw patches of dead trees. This was sad because the flora in the Sierras is in such good shape. I thought it was the Bark Beetle but turned out it was fire damage. It appeared a lightening attack had centered itself there.

Paul Freiman decided to fall back and hike at a more comfortable pace to reduce his discomfort from the altitude. His plan was to exit earlier and meet us at the end. I got pretty sick of my protein bars by this time. We always find a food we can’t stand on a trip. I could never get enough beef jerky but later replaced my food bars with Snickers at Vermillion Valley Resort , heaven! We are averaging 11 hour days. Brief stops for water and a short lunch. Before Muir Pass we had the largest campsite, Big Pete Meadow. An early stop, good wash from the creek and lots of really nice people to talk to. There are lot’s of sharp interesting people on the trail. It is a self selected group of educated, aware, motivated people. One lady, a newbie, with a big dream who had struggled in that day over Bishop Pass asked “will Muir Pass be hard?” I told her I hadn’t been there but they were all hard. Very few minorities except for the Asian’s mostly of American extraction. Are white people in general the most likely to enjoy outdoor pursuits? Is this a cultural thing? Ran into to two African Americans both youths with scout groups. I have seen lots of people with fishing poles but only one person with fish.

We had a late camp one night at high altitude above the Palisades Lake near a feeder creek. It was near freezing in the morning. It is never easy to get out of the sleeping bag when there is a chill. Saw a naked man on a rock fresh from a bath, female co hiker looking on. We descended the Golden Staircase which is blasted out of the rock in a narrow canyon. The handbook says that it was the last section of the Muir trail to be finished and I can see why. We expected summer rains on this trip but it never happened. We had blue skies almost every day. Saw two other people with ULA Catalyst packs. Like me they had changed from the ultra light packs that just don’t carry enough weight. It is a lot more comfortable too.

I like the Sierras but don’t always see the beauty others find. Muir Pass was really a long hard slog but quite a pay off with the view. The Muir hut is one cool thing. Bigger than I imagined. Must have been a heck of a project. Saw Marmots and their babies.

We crossed a lot of rivers on this trip. Most of them were quite low. I can’t imagine trying to cross them in a normal season of snow and rain. It must be quite difficult for early season hikers. I had to take off my shoes once and those rocks hurt bare feet. Only reason I could imagine taking ugly Crocks. I have never had camp shoes.

It got a bit frosty on a couple of mornings. I have 20 degree down bag and I was toasty except for the coldest night. I felt the chill a little.

Ran into a guy who had named himself Wilderness Destroyer the day before when the Rangers asked him to move his tent farther away from the river and trail. He cussed a lot about the situation. Claims he dared the Rangers to give him a ticket. Don’t believe him. I think he is a coward and had the conversation in his tiny head. Ran into a nerd hiker who had just “bushwhacked cross-country.” I got the feeling he felt real winners had what it took to go cross-country. I’d like to try it sometime but not by myself.

Ran into our first Pack Train. There are hikers up here with small packs doing about 10 miles a day that are supported in every way by pack trains. Tents, food, fuel and anything else except the basics is carried for them. I wouldn’t do this plan but it still sounds like a sweet deal. Horses have a pretty good deal up here too. They can poop on the trail. Forgot the riders name but he had 8 horses and mules packed to the gills.

Near Selden Pass I tripped and fell flat on my face. Banged up my legs and right knee. It would be so easy to get hurt up here. I was carrying my poles while walking on a flat rocky trail and promised myself it wouldn’t happen again. Quite a scare but I was fine. You have to pay attention all the time. You can’t spend too much time sightseeing when you are walking. Selden had the best approach to a pass. Two wonderfully pretty lakes and the perfect forest. It reminded me a bit of some of the trees in the San Bernardino’s that all the same height with no messy forest floor; like a Christmas tree farm. This bit of Eden was enhanced by another beautiful pigtailed hiker who wanted to talk. I think these young women see me as a father figure. I can go with that. They all remind me of my daughter anyway.

My friend and former co hiker Bill Redman is a few days ahead of us on the trail. He has become my PR agent telling several groups we were behind him and describing us. Three groups of hikers recognized me from his description. I feel like a celebrity. I wear a bandana over my face when I hike to protect myself from the sun. I think that is what Bill has told them to look for. One lady who didn’t know me said “you look gangster” and another guy said “I thought I was going to be robbed.” I cover up completely when I hike. I wear long sleeves, long pants, gloves, big hat, sun block and the bandana. The sun is the devil to the skin. We are getting plenty of Vitamin D just being out there. Young hikers look awfully good but the older hikers with a lifetime of sun worship look like a wrinkled leather bags. Not a pretty picture.

Every time I unload my pack it looks like I getting ready for a yard sale. What a mess of bags and detritus. The contents are organized and essential but it doesn’t look like it.
My legs are really starting to ache at night. This was an eleven day trip but I could see a through hiker could never heal with one zero day. This is the hardest consistent physical effort I have ever done and that is saying a lot.

We got to Mono Creek and peeled off to Edison Lake for a ferry to Vermillion Valley Resort. The lake is very low. I heard it was 30 feet below normal. It is pretty surreal. You walk about a mile across mud flats to a place deep enough for the pick up. Three low life young people drinking beer arrived with the Ferry. 15 hikers filled up the ferry which is a euphemism. It is a flat pontoon boat. The pilot put his empty bottle of Stone Ale at his feet and lost control of it as it rolled about and he did foot ballet to keep it there. Most of us looked at each other in stunned silence. I suppose it is difficult to find good help in the middle of nowhere but this was the low end. The “Resort” was a scream. Like a trailer park after an earthquake. The food was great and the young losers that picked us up turned out to nice enough just lost early in life. We suspected the owner who was in town getting supplies lost control when he left the property; when the cats away the mice play. You do get a free tent cabin to sleep in the first night. The chef, waitress and store manager were fine people. After I went to sleep Ray sat at the campfire and watched a bear attack the camp looking for chow. They fired some sort of cherry bomb gun at it with mixed success. We had time to meet some cool people at VVR. One lady, an American living in Oman, we get our help as she comes into the dry Southland.

Going north on the trail means 90 percent of the hikers pass you quickly going the other way so having time to meet people is special. We ran into Paul Freiman getting on the “ferry” when we left. He is doing better. After getting back on the trail had a very stiff climb which ended with 53 switchbacks on the other side of the mountain. Hiking the Muir/PCT trail is a roller coaster. I pitied the people going up that side even though we had done the same in other places. Not long after we stopped for water and creature the size of a fox run by with a small squirrel in its mouth. It must have been his dinner. Saw several deer.

Silver Pass was a gentle climb and pretty one too. There is a notch at the top that turns out to be the pass. Bill Redman’s PR got me recognized by two hiking ladies my age near the top. This trail is becoming very dusty. One particular day I found I had a fine layer of dust on everything.

We had a scare the day before Reds Meadow. In the morning we were climbing up out of Tully Hole and I said to Ray “it is pretty hazy today.” Later it got worse and I smelled smoke. At Lake Virginia the sky was completely socked in. The first trail gossip we heard turned out to be correct. He said that a Ranger told him it was from the fires near Santa Barbara. For a few hours though we were trying to figure out how we would escape a Sierra Fire. This was a big day for us, 18.5 miles into Reds Meadow. The last 10 miles is pretty pleasant walking. It was good to have a hot meal and a free hot springs shower. The old building has no lights and I had to leave the door open a crack to wash up but it was wonderful. I met owner of the restaurant, store and stables: Bob Tanner. He has run the place for the last 47 years. He has had three strokes and moves at a snails pace with a cane but his mind is great. He doesn’t think that Ansel Adams deserved a forest. He says that he and his buddies did more for the Sierras’ by blocking the Trans Sierra Highway that was going to be built from the Owens Valley to Fresno in the 1960’s, very interesting guy.

Leaving Red’s the next day we walked past the Devil’s Postpile. Having seen it as a child in the nineteen sixties it does, as one older hiker said to me, “look smaller now.” It still is a remarkable geologic site. After Agnew Meadow there is a steep climb into higher altitude but virtually treeless. There is a lot of water here. This mountain must be a big sponge. The view of the Minarets and Shadow Lake is breathtaking. The skies were still hazy from the fire. I will find a picture of the view we had and post it here. My photo wouldn’t have done it justice. As I mentioned before I quickly get my fill of the beauty of nature after hiking for days but this transcended it. The Muir Trail which splits from the PCT after Red’s rejoins it in this section.

We camped at Badger Lake off trail after we met the Badger Lake Chamber of Commerce. This was a family that was camping there and insisted we meet them later. We went to the lake and kept hearing them say “over here, over here” and then never saw them again. Except for a few fisherman it was empty. My feet were in good shape. Haven’t had a blister in all these miles but my legs started to ache at night in the tent. Thank goodness for ibuprofen. Did I mention catch and release fishing is silly. You should eat them unless they are too small. Not that I am fishing. What a lousy hobby if you can’t eat the result.

We came down into Thousand Island Lakes the next morning and I missed a turn and wasted an hour touring the shoreline. When we finally got out of there I tried not to turn back and look at it. I was afraid I’d turn into dressing.

Our last pass was Donahue and it looked like a piece of cake on paper but it is a pile of rocks on both sides. It is a real leg beater. I got really tired going up to the summit. I didn’t want to slow down because some clouds were coming in and I didn’t want to get stuck up there in a storm. I waited for Ray and said “let’s get the hell off this pass before something happens.” He said “I don’t care if it rains.” I replied “who cares about rain.” Descending from Donahue is rougher than ascending. Both sides are very rocky but the north side is bone shaking and knee jarring. Just when you can’t take it anymore it smoothes out to flat Lyell Canyon the best way to finish this section. We spent the night at the trail for Vogelsang High Sierra Camp. I thought I saw a Bigfoot but it turned out to be a teenager. The last day was very chilly till the sun came into the canyon and then an easy short walk to Tuolumne Meadows. We ran into Paul Freiman early just as he said and to our surprise Bill Redman who was hanging around for a permit to go. We had a tough but fulfilling hike. As soon as I was done I started thinking about the next segment north to Lake Tahoe. Often I can’t wait for a hike to end but then….

I was reading about poetry in a history of Japan. The poet-scholar Tsurayuki said “In a world full of things man strives to find words to express the impression left on his heart by sight and sound.” The impression I have is that the Sierras are dramatic, stark, beautiful and inhospitable right below the surface. We only have a small window in which we can pass fairly safely. The biggest impression for me was the achievement of finishing this section. Personal accomplishment moves me more than nature. I could never be a poet.

Pacific Crest Trail trip 21 – August 18th through August 25th, 2006. 87 Miles.

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Pacific Crest Trail Hike 21

Aug 18, 2006 - 197 Photos

This was the longest trip yet. We spent seven days on the trail and took a ton of food. As always it took a bit of work dropping off a vehicle at the end and getting back to Kennedy Meadows. We hired Gary from Ridgecrest to take us to Kennedy. It took about 10 hours to pull it off and then we walked 11 miles. The weather was nice for the whole trip. I don't think it got much above 80 degrees. We passed and saw Beck and Monache Meadows. There was a controlled burn in this area that made the view a little murky. There never was a real clear day because of other fires. We are all carrying about 40lbs with food and bear canisters. It is the law up here and three extra pounds. I immediately felt the extra weight. I decided to bring my Mariposa Pack and it is overloaded. I took a chance with a light pack that turned out well. There is a lot of water up here. I think the farthest distance between water sources is seven miles and that is a miracle after 700 miles in Southern California. This is still cow country. We saw a big black object near the South Kern. Our eyes are old enough that for a while we thought it was a bear. Only a bovine. At the South Kern River we ran into a Sierra Club group that had bagged Olancha Peak. A guy came up to us in the dark and recommended we camp on the other side of the river. He thought we were part of his group and frankly he was a little nosy. After he found out we weren't with him he kept giving us advice. He turned me off. We were at 8000 or so feet and the stars were awesome. We got frost the next morning and our water bladders were frozen. It was a reminder to sleep with your water bottles. You can't filter water either with frozen tubes. Our first leg took us a long way up Cow Canyon. We filtered along the way: 14 hard miles today. We did see a lot of skunk cabbage. It was a bit hard to follow the trail in places because the whole area is so recently wet that every bush and plant is growing like a weed. There are still some wildflowers at higher altitudes which is a pleasure. We crossed Gomez Meadow on a causeway (a word I like to use) that keeps your feet out of the swampy meadow. A sheepherder carved a man smoking a pipe on a tree here about 100 years ago. I like ancient graffiti. We took a long to time to go the eight miles to pass the turn off for Olancha Peak and then down into Death Canyon. Our camp location that night was sensibly set by Bill before a 2000 foot climb that next day. I have developed a rash again on my lower back from the heavy pack. I think it is from the pack. I put duct tape on it and wrapped my fleece around my waist to stop its progress. The big climb on the 20th gave us a great view of Owens Valley to the east and the White Mountains. Perhaps we shall investigate them some day. We ran into Dave Drew recently retired from the Alaska DOT doing a section. Most of the hiking today followed a ridge that had several places to go off trail for water. I watched them all closely so we could get water at the last possible one, Dutch Meadow, to reduce water weight and then I missed it. We had to walk to Corpsman Creek to get water and we were thrilled when we saw it. We passed Trail Pass Trail. We needed a good camping spot and we found it at the edge of Poison Meadow which had a beautiful view east and west here.

On the 21st after Cottonwood Pass we passed Chicken Spring Lake. This beautiful lake with surrounding dramatic rocks called cirques marked the beginning of uniquely Sierran views. We had a big up after this and walked through a nasty section of rocks and sand. It slows you down and beats up your feet. There were some great views of mountains to the west. We passed a young couple. The women was pregnant and seemed to be far along. It couldn't be too long until a hiker baby was born. Another hiker, Bill, was starting his JMT trek from Cottonwood Pass. He was way overloaded and later we shared our water so he could survive to the next source. This day was the shortest. We slowly descended into Rock Creek, one beautiful place. We were alone when we arrived but soon there were 20 other hikers in the campground, a Sierra Club group, some older Boy Scouts with dads and a few strays. Bill, Ray and I were able to wash off very well in the river and even do some laundry. This has to be one of the more idyllic places we have ever been. One guy in the Sierra group figured out Bill's age and accomplishments and went on and on about how amazing he was. It made his day or week. It was nice to have some company to talk to. Saw our first Ranger who wanted to see our permits and bear canister. I showed her everything she needed while washing Ray's hair. She looked at the permit and said, "Where's Manning?" I explained it was the Canadian border. We attained Guyot Peak by 9:00AM the morning of the 22nd on the way to Crabtree Meadow. 3800 foot gain today which is the biggest of the hike. At 1:00PM today we met the John Muir Trail. The PCT and JMT join each other for 176 miles. It came after Crabtree Meadow which has a terrific view of the mountains to the east including Whitney. We had a big tiring climb up to the Bighorn Plateau that we were sure was badly routed. I renamed it "What's the Point" but it turned out to be the best way. Most of all our hiking has been at ten or eleven thousand feet, often above the tree line. The plateau has a 360 view of every mountain range within 50 miles. I saw my first Marmot. Our camp was at the crossing of Tyndale Creek which appears to run through blocks of rock stacked like Legos. I found a personal pool protected from the rushing water. It was wonderful. I almost got clean. We put our food in a Bear Box for the first time, a bear canister in a bear box, funny.

The next day we went over Forrester Pass after passing through a land of mystery and beauty. It was a something out of Tolkien. We passed creeks, ponds, grass, views of Whitney and patches of snow, some of which was watermelon snow, pink from algae. It reminded me of a Chinese contemplative garden. Now we have seen what they try to recreate in an urban setting. We met a very attractive lady, a Veterinarian from Canada, on the way up, obviously a veteran hiker. We took her picture and Bill and I were smitten. The trail over Forester Pass is a remarkable achievement. In places it seems to be carved out of the rock. Huge boulders everywhere. A nineteen year old died in 1930 when it was built and there is a plaque commemorating his death. We all felt very strong going up to the highest point on the PCT. There were at least eight hikers coming up the other way when we arrived. This turned into a flood of people we passed in the next few hours. Most of them loaded to the gills. I was worried that we had too much weight but almost everyone else had to be carrying ten to twenty pounds more. I felt sorry for them. I passed through a strip of snow covering the trail and the guys decided to walk around it on the talus. Bill said "you seem to be doing well" and then I fell on my butt. Soft landing and I was fine. Pride goeth
before the snow fall. There are lots of lakes here and many have a beaten path to them. I am sure the angling is good because we can see the fish hitting the surface. We descended into Vidette Meadows in a lovely treed area with Bubb's Creek nearby. We passed a lot of small streams and near the end of the meadow there were about six in a row which must be a record. We took a long break near the end of the day for a meal, washing and rest before climbing steeply out of the canyon. We saw a batch of lightly loaded hikers on the way up. There was a large pack train near the bottom and we deduced that they had been dropped off near the top to get the hiking experience. This climb was hard. We arrived about 7:00PM for our final camp near the junction of Kearsarge Pass and Charlotte Lake trails. We started the walk over Kearsarge early the next morning. It was Ray's 61st birthday. There are several lakes near and below the trail on both sides. Several feeder streams cross the trail. We never had to take off our shoes to ford a stream on this trip. The way out of a Sierra hike is a familiar one now with a sharp climb to a place in a rock wall and then down. There was good stream of hikers passing us on the way down. The first had a fishing pole and a Labrador. A Lab seems like the perfect trail dog and happy to be hiking. It is a long way down to the parking lot. We arrived about 11:00AM. I saw 154 hikers on this trip. The Sierras are pristine. People seem to be taking careful care in their travels. This was tough hiking. The views are becoming more beautiful and dramatic. It don't think, with snow pack, that we will be able to continue our journey for at least 10 or 11 months but we hope to get in some kind of trip in the meantime.

Pacific Crest Trail Hike 20

Walker Pass to Kennedy Meadows – June 5th – 8th, 2006 51.6 miles.

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On June 5th we left Walker Pass Trailhead after 2:00PM. These hikes are getting more difficult to get to. We had Dollar rent-a-car pick us up in Kennedy Meadows and drop us off. It was 91 degrees. A few minutes into the walk a fighter jet flew west through the canyon below us. It was very quiet. At first Ray thought it was a big rig. In five miles we got a big view of Inyokern, China Lake and Ridgecrest and plenty of budding Pinyon Trees. We still haven't eaten from them yet. There is a memorial plaque here to Jim Jenkins who helped the PCT a lot before he left this world early at the age of 28. Lots of footsteps from the through hikers here. This is the season. I have mixed feelings about the through hikers. I want to see them and talk to them but we have the trail to ourselves, at least so far, for most of the year. We met 10 hikers in 50 miles. I can't imagine why I think this might be important. It was a joy to see all 10 of them.

We got in 8 miles that first day and climbed several thousand feet to the Owens and Jenkins Mountains saddle. Its big shadow is projected on the Mojave Desert at dusk. Met the Mad Scientists, Amy and Mike. She is a botanist; he is a wildlife expert. They have done California before and this time they are using the trip to gather information for their graduate thesis on determining what kind of wildlife exists based on the vegetation in an area. They both attend UC Davis. Great couple. We slept well and had good views east and west.

The next day we got our water at the seasonal creek before Joshua Springs spur trail (the water source at Joshua Springs has traces of uranium in it, and though not serious is worth missing) before going down Spanish Needle Creek. We saw Nolina Plants (Parry's Nolina) which are related to the Yucca but with an incredible lantern of small yellow blossoms that are firm like a leaf. At a Spanish Needle Creek tributary we had lunch in cool shade and filled up on water for our steepest climb of the trip. Along the way, we spooked two families of Mountain Quail with cute tiny chicks running around. The moms aren't as nervous around us when they have kids and spend their time rounding them up. It is funny to watch. Fortunately out first two
afternoons were cloudy and cool. Trainman had just gone through this section with his hiking partner a few days before and had a tougher time of it, I suppose because of the heat. The saddle above Spanish Needle near Lamont Peak provided a nice view and break. Soon we got another great view of the Mojave. The trail is in good shape here. We arrived tired after a 20 mile day. We bumped into Tadpole at a creek before Chimney Creek Camp and were barely civil. We apologized later. We walked up Canebrake road to the camp and met Moondancer and his son Prickly Pear at the campground. This kid is precocious and quite a climber. Talking to Moondancer later, he says, "Are your Dana Law?" Turns out he had called me several months
earlier about information on a previous section. He is a professor at Boise State University. Birds of a feather hike together! Thirty million people in California but if you have a niche interest you will probably meet someone who shares it. Three other hikers came into camp, two young men and a lady. Her name was Twisted Sister. You gotta love trail names. The three left early the next morning and we didn't see them again. A good camp and pleasant dinner, though my alcohol stove is getting sooty. I think my fuel has been contaminated.

On June 7th, we had big climb but over many miles. We saw a lone Sequoia far south of its usual habitat. Passed Fox Mill Springs and entered into the 14 mile burned section. Did some magic tricks for Prickly Pear on the trail. He has money in his ears! Crossed the highest point on the trip, over 8000 feet. Not much to look at because of the burn but got a beautiful view of the Dome Lands National Park. It looks like a climber's paradise. Also a great view again of the snow-capped Sierras. Bill could pick out Mount Langley which hides Mount Whitney nearby. We had a long descent into Woodpecker Meadow crossing many diorite rivers of rock down to Rockhouse
Basin. Long two-hour lunch with hot food under a giant burned out tree. Good stream here. I washed just about everything. We arrived at the first true river in 700 miles, the Kern. Even though Whitewater River was big last year because of the record rains, The Kern is a true river. For some reason I thought we had to cross the thing but that was not the case. Ray said, "I am not crossing any rivers!" and I felt the same. We won't have that luxury further up the Sierras. We camped with Sonny and Tadpole at Pine Creek before it runs into the Kern River. They had seen a big bear on the trail that day. Tadpole is as nice as she can be, and Sonny is the same with the addition that he is a total gear head and loves learning about every aspect of hiking. I wish when I was that age I asked as many questions. He was picking up a ULA pack in Kennedy Meadows that we didn't get to see. I gave him my pack of salmon I wouldn't have been able to eat, and he filtered my water at the creek. We had some thunder and a bit of rain that made us put our rainflys on but they came off for a night of a nearly-full moon and bright stars. It cooled off and chilled our water for the last day's segment.

June 8th: We walked about seven miles into Kennedy Meadows, a pretty area. The Kennedy Store looks just as a mountain store should. We had drinks and snacks with Tadpole and Sonny. We ran into the famous Lawn Ornament (famous to me for her trail name). The trail ahead is the most challenging because we will have to make much longer sections during a limited time of the year. We will go again for as long as we can in August. Hiking is outdoor therapy.

Listen to the Podcast of the most recent segment here.

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Pacific Crest Trail Hike 19 – Highway 58 Tehachapi Pass to Highway 178 at Walker Pass. 84 miles May 7th to May 12th 2006

This remarkably diverse section goes through mountains and deserts. After the traditional musical cars we slept in windy wash next to Highway 58 the night of May 7th and it was noisy, dirty and difficult to sleep. The walk up from Tehachapi Pass is steep and I got dehydrated and bonked at the end of about 18 miles; don’t know why. I thought I drank enough water. Saw 3 plastic PCT signs knocked over. Lots of Pinyon Pines which I found out always exist below the pine forests in dryer areas. Too bad pine nuts are out of season. Begin to see some wildflowers beginning with lupine. We scared off a large animal at Golden Oak Spring which is running well. We couldn’t see what it was because of the trees but it was big. Lots of cow pies in this section. This windy mix of public and private land means windmills for about 25 miles. Our first camp was at a very nice saddle. I slept for 9 hours! The body is a walking biology lab and some days the chemistry is out of balance.

On May 9th we left the camp under west facing windmills and walked to Robin Bird Spring. Keystone Kid and Balls from Portland joined us. They started the PCT early and skipped Section C because of the snow. Very nice young men and Balls is my son’s age. We saw a lot of cow pies in this area but no cows until we saw a giant black steer that ran away from us. Bill has cached water at two places for this trip but we had to depend on this and the last spring for the first 36 miles of the trip. Ray lost a walking stick; a nice one that had been made by a friend. We made a very nice camp above Cottonwood Creek and its tributary. Very quiet no wind. Balls and the Keystone kid passed by as we prepared our dinner. We never saw them again.

May 10th brought beautiful healthy pine forests along Landers Creek with an abandoned miners sluice box at waters edge. Crossed Piute Mountain road and found a trail journal with an invite for the house down the road about half a mile and history of this area once a town site called Claraville. Saw Velvet Ants, Grey Rats with a white butt (Bill calls them Bobtail Rats) and something that looks like babies breath and smells just as great. Got to Kelso Valley road after a big downward slope that took us completely out of the forest to a desert floor where the only shade is Joshua Trees. When we came near the road miraculously Mary Barcik super trail angel drove by. I hailed her and she said, “finally some through hikers.” We aren’t through hikers but we were thrilled to see her too. She said Robin Bird Pass road was repaired thanks to the efforts of Warner Springs Monty and some PCT hikers haranguing the proper officials and she had cached water at this important spot. She took Ray and my home numbers to call our wives as there is no signal in any part of this area. The walking is pretty easy afterwards but becomes a hot bitch on the way up to Desert Divide. We passed it about 1.6 miles to a great camp overlooking the desert. Through hikers who come through this area later must really suffer from the heat. We camped at the top of a wide desert valley to the east. We heard the braying of wild mules left over from the days of the prospectors. Hope they don’t come up here and try to mate.

May 11th gave us an early start out of lower elevations. It got hot yesterday which is what killed us. I have come up with a definition of PCT hiking especially in this area. It is a forced march with breaks. We have to cover so many miles to accomplish our goal that we must good use of daylight. I don’t want to walk at night even though we encountered our first full moon in three years of segment hiking. We saw an old rusty bus in a ravine and then as we descended farther found the hoof prints of the mules we heard the night before and then a carpet of flowers on the way to Bird Spring Pass. They smell great but they make Ray sneeze. We saw a rattler at the pass and curiously a Jackrabbit rolling in the dust like a happy dog. He didn’t seem too worried about us. Mary has a big cache here. Bill had left 4 gallons for us and we drank or packed it all out of there. There is no spring at Bird Spring Pass. Four well equipped motorcyclists went by on Hondas while we enjoyed our lunch break. Skinner Mountain is the big jump after the pass and the highest point on the trip at 6900 feet. We ascended 1100 feet in 1.1 mile fully loaded with water. Bill started to get sick. We still can’t figure out why because he fully hydrated at the bottom. Maybe he drank too much but we don’t know for sure. We got back into the Pinyon Pines on the north side of Skinner. I finally realized that it isn’t just altitude that brings you back into the forests but the side of the mountain. It can be barren desert at altitude on one side and a lush forest on the other. Bill couldn’t eat or drink at our next break. His stomach had taken over his body.
There are some killer views of the snow capped Sierra from here; beautiful. This has been first really clear day on the trip. Bill slowed downed and finally stopped. I went ahead to scout a camp and got my first cell phone signal when I recorded a journal note on my phone. We finally camped in a craggily haunted forest after Yellow Jacket spring. Bill lay down and slowly recovered but wasn’t able to eat or drink until the next morning.

May 12th we passed a big white steer in burn area that was just a nervous as the first one. There are a lot of blow downs here and it is bleak because of the burn. Didn’t see the road to McIvers Spring but saw a seasonal stream crossing near there. It is mostly flat here before descending to Walker Pass. We have our best view yet of the Sierras. The forest reappeared and smelled great along with the wild flowers. We met two older men coming up from Walker Pass campground one of which was the father of a PCTA board member named Corsine-Dennis. That is only four hikers in 84 miles. It was a joy to be near the end. We have never walked farther. A great guy named James who worked at China Lake and had done some hiking took us all the way into Ridgecrest. I apologized for us smelling up the truck and he said it was payback for all the times he had done the same to others. A hard but wonderful section of the trail.

Podcast of our segment hikes

Click below to listen to our journal of the most recent segment.