Week 3: Idyllwild to Big Bear!
Day 15
Hiked 10.5 miles, went up 2,000 feet in elevation!
We had coffee one last time at Higher Ground coffee in Idyllwild. Today it was full of locals! After caffeination, we ran our necessary errands to the post office and the grocery store.
We tried calling a Trail Angel who posted her phone number in the PCT log in the post office for a ride but we couldn't reach her. We decided to hitch near the campground. The nicest Idyllwild shuttle driver picked is up and took us to Black Mountain Road. At one point he told us a story about how after the heavy rain they got this year, many of the rocks had fallen onto the road. He said some clever local put a handwritten sign on the rocks that said "free to a good home." His story made us laugh and reminded me of the witty small town folks I was so lucky to have grown up surrounded by in Durango.
We hiked 7 miles up the road and saw two very out of the ordinary things! The first was a cowboy taking two wild mustangs to Canada via the PCT. He looked just like a younger version of the Marlboro Man. No sunglasses, wearing jeans and boots! The second was a downtown Portland, Oregon parking permit from April 1 just sitting on the road. Small world!
We hiked on to where the road meets the PCT (we had chosen to do the alternate route and not snowy and icy Fuller Ridge). We hiked about 3 miles until we heard a familiar voice say "I just saw your message." I looked to the left and it was Snowshoe! We had successfully met back up with our friends who did hike Fuller Ridge, what a miracle! Snowshoe had micro spikes for his shoes but said he still took a bad spill up there. He was glad it was over. He said it felt like a 20 mile day even though they only went 7 or so miles.
We then met up with Patriot and Magnum (formerly Jared and Kerri) near the creek. We all set up our tents and ate dinner together, then headed off to our respective camps for bed around 7pm.
Day 16
We hiked 16 miles today.
Last night was super windy, so gusty that I thought my shoes were going to blow away. The alarm went off at 5am and we opted for another 30 minutes of sleep to see if the wind would die down. No fun taking the tent down in gusty winds! Will said his sleep from 5-5:30am was the best sleep he got. I couldn't fall back asleep with the noisy gusts of wind slapping at our tent.
We were the first fresh footsteps in the morning. Felt good. Then we leapfrogged with Patriot and Magnum a lot of the day. We also saw the hiker we camped with at Scissors Crossing.
We were going downhill the whole time - descending down One Horse Ridge. Ironically we got passed by the cowboy with the TWO horses (mustangs).
Will macguyvered some water near mile 200, sacrificing one water bottle to make a small scooper. As we got closer to the highway (I-10), we realized that we'd have to hitch a ride to make our meetup with my friend heading to Coachella (Jyoti) work out. I focused on exactly what we needed in my mind: "we need a car to show up on this desolate road." Sure enough, a white truck pulled up as we approached the road. Trail Angel Lucy cheerfully greeted us and took us to the Cabazon post office. Then she took us to In n Out Burger, where Jyoti picked us up an hour later.
We got to Jyoti's air bnb and we're blown away by what Jyoti kept calling our "McMansion." There was our very own private pool and hot tub and a large, open kitchen. Will and I weren't sure if there would be enough room for us to tag along, but there was!
Day 17 + 18
We rested at the McMansion Air bnb in La Quinta while our SF Bay Area friends hit the Coachella shows. Meeting up with old friends made me reminisce about living in the Bay Area and all of our wonderful times together. I lived there from 2008-2013 while I was attending grad school at the University of San Francisco (with Lins, one of my friends at the Coachella McMansion!). My time in the SF Bay was so much fun. I'm so grateful that I had such a tight group of friends there. It was such a treat to catch up with them. And I love how easy it is for Will to have fun with my friends too!
I didn't know what kind of feelings might pop up being around my friends for the weekend. As a doer who has often felt somewhat defined by what I do, it felt strange to not be working right now. I was honest with them about how the hike is very hard and how I often feel like I'm not very good at it. My need to be good at what I'm investing my time in is a very strong current within me. To embark upon the unknown that is so out of my comfort zone is challenging me and, at the same time, I'm certain that it's planting seeds of personal growth within me.
Day 19
We made our way back to the Cabazon area today with the hopes of getting a room at the fancy Morongo Casino. All of the rooms were booked so we went to a little town called Banning and stayed at the Quality Inn (formerly known as the Super 8 motel, the same hotel where Will stayed 10 years ago)!
We walked to a nearby seafood restaurant for dinner and Will watched the Mets game in the hotel room while I dozed off.
Day 20
We hiked almost 10 miles today.
We took a taxi to the Banning post office and then the trailhead near Cabazon. Our cab driver said he heard that the winds were going to get up to 50 MPH that day. Eeeeeek...?!
We hiked up near the wind turbines and boy oh boy, today was a productive day for them! The turbines make a strange buzzing sound I'd never heard before.
There was a nice water and shade spot by the wind turbines at Mesa wind farm. It was a perfect spot for a break.
Almost immediately after getting back on the trail we saw our first big rattlesnake curled up near a bush right next to the trail. I spotted it fairly far away and we went around him. It spooked me and made me extra vigilant for the next couple of hours but it felt good to know that we were just fine after seeing it. Of course Will was quicker to want to pass it than I was...!
The trail went between many canyons today and the scenery was different from what we've been seeing. The wind was pretty scary and there were times we were getting whipped around and thought we might lose our footing. Sometimes the wind can catch the weight of your backpack in an unexpected way. Will suggested I angle my pack toward the mountain, which did help keep me more steady.
Day 21
12 miles
Today was unexpectedly great. I didn't expect it because we got less than a few hours of sleep. Major high winds last night. I thought the tent might just rip open whenever the wind picked up. I reassured myself in the night that we had one of the best tents that money can buy (she's a tough gal named Big Agnes from Steamboat Springs, CO)!
Today was so delightful because the trail meandered across Mission Creek all day long. We stopped to soak our feet in the cold, refreshing water twice today - what an incredible treat!
My ankles and heels were much better today. We did see one large snake today but not a rattlesnake. When he slithered away it looked as if he was over 5 feet long. A bit alarming I'll admit. It's times like this that being the first hiker in our twosome makes me a jumpy.
I tried a new mantra today as I walked since my ankles felt so good. When I stepped down I would say "thank you" in my head. The beat of my stepping aligned with the two words perfectly. I called them my "thank you steps." Sometimes the thanks was for my legs or Will, the beautiful scenery, or the bright colorful flowers. It became my walking meditation and helped quite a bit!
