3rd Leg-Warner Springs to Paradise Valley Cafe, 43 Miles

Freshly resupplied with food for our next stretch we made our way over the next few days towards a staple of the Pacific Crest Trail: The Paradise Valley Cafe. But it was not easy.
It was another difficult stretch as we encountered our calmest, but also hottest weather. This week we passed through the driest landscapes, had the furthest water carries, and the greatest changes in elevation of our trip thus far.

Day 10-Warner Springs to Agua Caliente Creek, 7 Miles

Waking up in a campground just outside of Warner Springs, we made our way to the post office for our next resupply. Warner Springs is a very small town, no more than a ranch, post office, gas station and a few dozen residences. In safer times, there is a hotel and restaurant in partnership with the ranch as well.

This small town is in remarkable contrast to the meadows we passed through on our entry and exit into town, which are vast pastures suited to the historic ranch that this town is known for.

We witnessed a notable feature to this area with glider plane rides. These planes have no engine and are towed into the sky by another aircraft before being allowed to fly freely. With no engine, they ride completely silently and are often only used in areas with rising pockets of hot air, or thermals. A skilled pilot can fly for hours without an engine catching these pockets of air.

Leaving the meadowlands, we made our way into a biome that seemed to collage all the traits we have seen thus far over the past 100 miles, as chapparal coalesced with sand flats and oak trees.

These miles were also notable for the first stream crossings of our journey. With temperatures under the desert sun easily exceeding 80 degrees, the cool water of the false named Agua Caliente Creek were a welcomed feature.

Day 11-Agua Caliente to Comb’s Peak, 16 Miles

After more than a week of sleeping without a roof over my head, things slowly become habit as we wake up, take up camp and walk about 8-10 hours every day to around sunset, make camp again and fix dinner. We settle into our tents, I practice a bit of guitar most nights, journal the day’s events and sleep.

On this day, I felt like we stepped into a desert proper. Further, a desert in a drought exacerbated by climate change. Though the air temperature in late march only reaches the mid 70’s, complete exposure to the desert sun upon these ridgelines desiccates all that cannot find the all too scarce water.
Lack of humidity means that heat cannot be retained by atmospheric water, such that as soon as the sun sets, temperatures drop rapidly. Often dropping more than 25 degrees in the hour past sundown.

We again reached 5,000 ft of elevation today, and found that few living things could endure the intense heat, even so early in Spring. A feature I found incredibly odd is that once above 5k, there was a complete disappearance of all cactus. If anyone knows why, I would love to know!

I consider myself fortunate that we decided to start at the end of the cold season rather than the typical thru hiker beginning in mid april, or the beginning of the hot season.

Though these trail miles are certainly very difficult, I am happy to see how well we are adapting to them. Already, 16 miles with a 30 lb pack gaining 3,000 ft of elevation on a hot day was doable, when we could not have expected it to be so a week ago.

Day 12-Comb’s Peak to Anza Borrego Desert State Park, 15 Miles

This week, we gained over 7,500 ft of elevation in the high desert. Even just after the short wet seasons of Southern California, water is very rare. Even more so this year, as the area is supposed to receive 15” of rain, but has only received 5”. This week It is common for our water sources to be 10+ miles away from each other, as well as manmade. Most of the time, we would refill our water bottles through large water tanks maintained by kind people along the trail. This is greatly appreciated, as if they did not do this, water carries would be far more difficult.

In normal conditions, it is recommended for hikers to drink a gallon of water each day. In the desert, one can need as much as double that, despite its scarcity. Water is one of the heaviest things hikers carry, with each liter one water weighing over 2 lbs. If I am carrying a gallon of water, approx. 4 liters, I am carrying over 8 lbs or about a quarter of the total weight in my backpack. These water tanks make it easier for us to travel lighter with less water and less weight so long as they are maintained. I am very grateful for the “trail angels” who maintain these resources for us, often from their own pocket.

Day 13-Anza Borrego to Paradise Valley Cafe, 7 miles

(Vegan) Cheeseburger in Paradise

Today, we finally reached a famous trail stop, and one noted for its bottomless refills and delicious burgers. Truly a hiker oasis in the desert.

After 9 Days of hard hiking, we stopped in the town of Idyllwild for our first showers, laundry and beds in over a week. Idyllwild is a beautiful little town supported by tourism and surrounded by one of the highest peaks in Southern California: Mt. San Jacinto. Over our next stretch, we will make effort to summit this 10k mountain, and some very difficult trail. This will be our first extensive PCT experience with snow, and we have gotten our crampons and ice axes to prepare for what lies ahead.

After a lovely day of rest and resupply in town, we are excited for what lies ahead once we get back on trail.

Total Miles: 152