2nd Leg-Mt. Laguna to Warner Springs

In contrast to our first leg, this section was really an early test on our willpower. As a day hiker informed us, around a quarter of those attemping to thru hike the PCT will quit before reaching Warner Springs. I can now see why. Over the last week, we have been caught in 3 hail storms, experienced winds in excess of 45 mph, and had two days cut short by rain.
On top of this, my new temporary replacement sleeping pad is not nearly so comfortable as my previous one. High winds constantly shook the walls of our tents for several nights. This led to me not getting a full night of sleep for 3 days.

However, it is a give and take. The lowest lows also yielded to the high points so far, including my favorite section on the trail I have seen.

Day 6-Mt Laguna to Oriflamme Canyon, The First of the Windy Days 14 Miles

After our rest day, we picked up our first resupply after the botched one in San Diego. Moving through the desert is truly amazing, as I could not have foreseen all of the diversity of ecosystems we would experience.

Every change in about 1,000 ft brings you into a different ecosystem, from a pine forest to a desert basin. I came into this believing that because I was on foot, the ecosystems would change at a far slower pace than by car. But on the contrary, because we are actively interacting with our surroundings as we pass through them, we are more aware of what lies around us.

The desert defies expectations. Where I would expect flat dry land, I find verdant rolling mountains. Where I expect cactus, I find wildflowers (and also cactus).

The views of the Laguna Mountains and Salton Sea in the distance are the most profound since I have been in Utah. The mountains often have this haze around them, making them almost look like mirages in the distance.

We started late today, around 1 PM due to the post office holding our resupply opening at noon. Despite this, we made it 14 miles to our first campsite. The wind here is on the scale of a tropical storm in my home state, often exceeding 35 mph. Our first site was a bust, unfortunately, despite it being the most beautiful site we have found yet. On a calmer day, this exposed site would have been ideal to camp under the stars, but no such luck.

The wind was so strong at the site that it immediately took hold of a stuff sack for my tent, and the ground was so hard that it broke one of my stakes. Do not worry, we have extra stakes, and I can make do without the stuff sack. 
Exhausted after a hard day, we set out again in the dark under the light of our headlamps, and found a suitable spot. I made dinner, and quickly fell asleep. But I only could have been so lucky as to stay asleep…

Day 7-Oriflamme Canyon to Cigarette Hills, 13.5 Miles

If only I had been so lucky. The winds did not cease at any point in the night, constantly battering our tents. Being in a wind tunnel shook our tents such that I could get more than 3 hours of sleep, despite our full day of hiking. This would become a trend.

Our morning set the tone for the day as we woke up inside of a rain cloud. I rose to find all of my gear wet. We set off without sleep, descending the ridgeline of the Laguna Mountains until we will eventually reach the desert floor tomorrow at 2,300 ft. Today’s events included getting hailed on twice, and sheer descents of around 2,000 ft.

Despite these difficulties and those that lie ahead for the next two days, I am very grateful to be out here. As I am learning, the events of a single day do not define the events of your life, or even tomorrow. This is especially true out here on the trail as we must take what we are given by the environmental conditions.
Despite our run of bad luck today with weather, we ended today on a high note as the heaviest rains did not come until after we had set camp, leaving us dry and warm.

Day 8-Cigarette Hills to The San Felipe Wilderness 11 Miles

Though a calmer night than our previous, I am having difficulty as side sleeper with my replacement foam pad. Luckily, in about a week, a new one will come in our mail resupply! Inflateable pads can be very finicky, but for their weight can be both the warmest and best pads for side sleepers.

After setting out today, we descended and from the high ridgeline of the Laguna Mountains on the Desert floor into the San Felipe Wilderness Study Area. This was our starkest environmental change yet as sagebrush yielded to juniper trees, agave and about 15 different species of cactus.

We began to encounter many charismatic species of desert plants such as the California barrel cactus and a personal favorite: the ocotillo. Ocotillo, also known as coachwhip or the vine cactus, among other things. Oddly, it is not a cactus species at all, though it’s spines would like to tell you different. Native Americans and early settlers were known to propagate these as living fences.

After leaving the desert floor, we ascended into a canyon where every mile was marked by a new cactus or wildflower. Exhausted by the past days events, we set out camp early. And tomorrow is where the fun really starts…

Today marks a week of hiking since our journey began, not counting our rest day. As I recall all of the high and low points thus far, it makes me smile to be able to do something like this.

Day 9 In the San Felipe Wilderness, A Low Point 8 Miles

We reached the greatest challenge of our trip today as we had to go 8 miles to our next water resupply as winds reached 45 mph, after 3 days of very poor sleep. After breaking camp, we walked along a the edges of the canyon, slowly ascending to 4,000 ft. Meanwhile, the winds were so strong that they pushed us with force into their prevailing direction.

At one point, the wind pushed me right into a friendly local cactus, and the ‘hug’ they gave me left me thinking about it for several hours afterward. Fortunately, our water resupply was also a very large, sheltered campsite. We settled in for an early night.
Thanks to Mary’s parents, I slept soundly tonight from the nyquil they gave us prior to departing Florida. This sound night of sleep led from the lowest point of our trip thus far after another cold rainstorm to our highest.

Day 10 San Felipe Wilderness to Warner Springs 18.5 Miles

This was our highest mileage day thus far, thanks to perfect weather and largely flat terrain. We reached my favorite landscape of the entire journey thus far, and it felt as if something out of a dream.

We entered this vast meadow covered in wildflowers of various colors dotting the rolling foothills of the landscape. This pastoral setting gave me a sense of peace I have certainly not felt since this pandemic has begun, and taught me a lesson from this week.

Take things as they come and take it a day at a time. In these anxious times, this simple lesson is something for me to internalize for the challenges that lie ahead.

This was a long stretch without resupply, as we found that we were going faster than our expected pace, and we could skip one of our resupply points. Our next one will be sooner, so I anticipate the next post being in less time than this one.

In this stretch, we also passed mile 100, our first significant milestone, but many lie ahead!

Total Miles: 109