Day 21, Above the Clouds

 Part 1, The Desert, Day 21

Above the Clouds

Miles 23.4

PCT Mile: 364.4

I hiked uphill all day today for over 23 miles and gained nearly 4,000 feet in elevation. It was epic. But let's start from the beginning.

More poor sleep ( I don't even care anymore) even in my comfy motel room. I was up at 6am, packed my gear and went to the lobby. There was free breakfast and it wasn't complete shit, so I joined the dozen or so hikers and sat down. The buzz talk this morning was about the big 27 mile waterless stretch to Wrightwood and the weather forecast. Thunderstorms and maybe snow for Thursday and Friday. One hiker couple proclaimed that they were skipping the tough climb and walking 12 miles on highway 2 to Wrightwood. Then another couple joined them. Then some hikers announced they were just going to hitchhike there. The domino's fell and almost all hikers in the room were not going to hike. (It's frowned upon in the PCT community when thru hikers skip miles for reasons other than official detour.) I couldn't listen to this nonsense, so I got up and threw my pack on and told the room I was hiking the trail. I left them and walked toward the foggy freeway.

Fear spreads easily amongst PCT Hikers,  and we're always told to fear weather, Animals, drought, everything. I just couldn't give in like the others though. It was a lonely feeling walking into the mountains alone and not knowing what the weather would bring, but I made my choice. Plus, I have blog readers to entertain! Off I went, with 6 liters of water. First I had to go under I15 through a dark tunnel.

It was a cold and foggy morning when I started hiking around 8am. 

The path wound up through the hills toward the mountains. I could not see much in the thick mist, but the noise of trains, the freeway, and power grids was loud.

After resting last night, I stretched this morning and started walking at an easier pace. My legs and feet felt better today, so I decided to not push it and just walk slower. 

No rattle, so I'm guessing a gopher?

Since it was cold out, I was not drinking much water, and when I came to Swarthout Canyon, I found this:

A water cache.

I was going 27 miles and dry camping, so I chose the prize that caught my eye.

I came across a trail register:

I signed it and was very pleased to see that 5 hikers were somewhere ahead of me. I wasn't alone after all!

From this point on, the path went uphill for over 16 miles. Really uphill..

Even though the fog and weather forecast made me anxious, I felt lucky to be hiking in the fog. This stretch would be difficult in the hot sun.

It was actually pretty exciting walking up into the unknown, not knowing when or if I'd break through the fog. I found this:

I eventually caught up to a hiker I knew and we hiked together for awhile. We even got high enough to break out of the fog and saw some fantastic views. 

There was a note on the trail saying that poodle dog brush, a plant that causes severe skin rash, was overgrown on the trail, and the note suggested walking up the ridge and taking a dirt road for 2 miles to bypass it. I hate leaving the trail, but took the detour. 

It went on for about an hour and I was beginning to get nervous that I'd lost the trail when I saw two hikers who told me how to get back on the trail. Crisis averted. From here on as the trail rose steeply, the landscape changed again back to pine forest, and this was in my opinion the most beautiful stretch so far.

It was the most physically demanding hiking I'd done, but my legs were holding up ok. My feet were in pain, however, so I stopped to break every couple of miles.

It was so great to be back in the forest. The smell of pine, the birds, I didn't mind the constant uphill hiking at all.

It was such a demanding, tiring day, but it was so worth it. All those hikers who skipped this really missed out. By the end of the day in the dying light, I was near 8,500 feet, and it was very cold.

I entered a new forest:

And I made my way to the campground on my map that promised picnic tables and privies! 

I could barely set my tent up it was so cold. It's freezing! I didn't even cook anything because I felt that my fingers were falling off. I bundled up to the max and dove into my tent.

I feel like I rushed this post a bit because it's so hard to write in this cold. A storm is coming tomorrow and I really hope it starts later in the day. I have 6 miles to hike in the morning to the highway where I'll try and hitch to Wrightwood to resupply and wait out the storm. I am nervous about tomorrow, and it's really windy outside on this ridge. Wish me luck that I get out before the storm!