Agua Dulce - Mile 450ish

Heading into the 300' tunnel under the interstate at dawn on our way to Agua Dulce.  Seems ok to me?!  

The Vasquez Rocks at sunrise.  This place was beautiful and we could see why a lot of movie scenes had been filmed here.  We even heard that an old Star Trek episode had been shot here and we believe it because we could feel the aura of Captain James T. Kirk as we hiked through!

399 miles + 1

Mount Baden Powell 9400 ft high - mile 378

This mountain was named after the founder of the Boy Scouts and we saw A LOT of VERY well prepared Boy Scouts on this weekend throughout the San Gabriel Mountains.  With the Boy Scout motto of "always be prepared" and the presence of their GINORMOUS packs we began to doubt our abilities as thru-hikers.  If they are "always prepared" then  we must be woefully underprepared with our lightweight gear and general lack of just-in-case gear items.  Thank goodness that our amigo Johnny Rocket is a former Scout because we feel much safer with him around......... even if his pack's base weight is only around 7 1/2 lbs.  He has to get some kind of patch for that!

Johnny Rocket joining us and Blue Skies on top of Mount Baden Powell for breakfast after a steep sunrise climb.

Not a bad view to look at while brushing your teeth

Of course the conversation ended up being about what each of us had for breakfast and if anybody had any extras that they didn't want to carry....... it doesn't hurt to ask!  

We met a great group of people from the Sierra Club on our way down and they showered us with cookies and chocolates!  Almost Awesome even got a chocolate rose that tragically fell to the road as she unwrapped it but in true thru-hiker form... It still made its way into our mouths.

Gaiter Time!

Almost Awesome got her new gaiters from River Sports!  She had one zipper bust after 2,500 miles and the other one busted the day before she got in town to get the new ones. Thanks River Sports for being on top of things and helping keep debris out of her shoes for maybe another 2,500 miles.  You all rock!  Can you guess which one is new?

Cajon Pass to Mt. Baldy- Mile 350

This was a REALLY hot day where we had to go 22 miles without a water source AND and a huge elevation gain of about 3000' or 30,000'. We lost count.  We followed cougar tracks for quite a while and were serenaded by a quintet of rattlesnakes in the brush.  They weren't in harmony but they were quite creepy!

This was the trail under I-15.  This could actually make a nice shelter.

We came from the interstate in the distance and the valley is the San Andreas fault-line.

The end of the day on Mt. Baldy.  We went from desert and 105 F and ended in a pine forest as it got in the 50's.  

And as it got dark we could see that we had a view of the outskirts of LA.  If Possum were REALLY rich then this would be the view from his veranda as he brushed his teeth at night.  Imaginations run rampant when your constantly hungry and sleeping on the ground.

Thanks LA for the smog......which actually makes the sunrises quite colorful!

McComa

This picture was obviously taken BEFORE our visit.  That's right, Mickey D's was only .4 miles off trail!  We made it in for lunch and after about 2000 calories (which is tough for vegetarians but doable) we slipped into coma-like states.  We came to our senses about 4 hours later ( what happened in that 4 hours we're not sure) as some friends rolled in and committed the same wonderful mistake that we did. 

Water cache not credit! Cha-Ching!

Wonderful trail angels will leave water caches throughout the desert when there are long, dry sections to help the hikers if we are running a little low and some angels will even leave a little more than water!  We got sodas at this cache and the caffeine INSTANTLY rocketed us into some great evening hiking!

This is where we made our camp after the sugar and caffeine wore off.  

Deep Creek and the HOT, hot springs - miles 310ish

We followed Deep Creek today and it was really exposed but thankfully it topped out in the high 80's.  It was gorgeous to walk on the rim of the canyon while looking down a few hundred feet to Deep Creek with its pools and waterfalls.

Our first rattlesnake sighting.  Of course it didn't rattle, it just startled the bejeezus out of us.

Aaahh, the Hot Springs!  This was an interesting spot that had 5 or 6 cascading pools similar to this one that were full of relaxing, spa-like, hot water that came from the hot spring.  We had heard that this place was a popular swimming hole and nudist spot that was pretty hopping on the weekend but since it was a Tuesday we thought we would give it a try.  We only saw a few other hikers and a few locals so it was nice.  We took a dip in the pools and they were fabulous to our aching bodies.  We got out and ate lunch.  As we were eating we noticed a white bearded man (think 1985 Kenny Rogers) with a white t-shirt and no pants.  It was very PG-13 because we only saw him from the back as he looked left, right,  left, and right as though he had lost something and then he just walked off.  Maybe he couldn't find his pants?  We were chatting with some hikers when again I noticed Ol' Kenny in a different location.  This time he had no pants and no shirt!  Again, we only saw the PG-13 view as he looked left, right, left, right and then walked off into the brush.  Now he had lost his pants AND his shirt.  If it wasn't nailed down this guy was losing it!  We chatted some more with some hikers and as we stood there talking Ol' Kenny (now NOT PG-13) stealthily joined our powwow except he really just stood there and said nothing.  I guess the conversation wasn't stimulating enough because he left after about 30 seconds and presumably resumed the search for his missing clothes.  And that, I guess, is a typical Tuesday at the hot springs in Deep Creek.

The foot bridge over Deep Creek.

A view of the Mojave River Reservoir.... It was a little low.

Camping - PCT style. Mile - 300ish

Camping and sleeping on the PCT has been great and different from what we experienced on the AT.  It is so dry and arid that "cowboy camping" (sleeping without a tent) has been our preferred lodging.  No need to put up and take down a tent and the nighttime views are breathtaking!  We carry a tarp just in case but we rarely use it.  

Almost Awesome washing her perpetually dirty feet and legs at Holcombe Creek.  It isn't that SHE is so dirty it is the fact that the dust and dirt is so fine that it finds it way into everything. EVERYONE has brown/black feet and legs.

Foot care is a daily routine.  We MIGHT forget to brush our teeth but never do we forget to care for our feet.

Almost Awesome is ready for Possum to come and snuggle up!

Pesto, couscous, and tuna with crushed red pepper flakes?  Why, that just sounds lovely!  We decided to start this hike by "going cold" which means having no stove with which to cook.  We usually only cooked our dinner but now we are just soaking our specially selected dinner items for about 30 minutes while we hike and then just stop, mix, and eat.  We weren't sure if we would like this but we are REALLY liking this way of eating.  Our imaginations are exploding with great dinner ideas AND we don't have to carry a stove and fuel which also means we don't have to find fuel (which can sometimes be tough to find).

That looks like a REALLY good bite!

Big Bear - Mile 268

The weather coming out of the valley was absolutely beautiful!  High 70's and LOTS of sunshine into Big Bear and when we left it was just the same.

Low desert, chaparral, then forest.  Over and over and over.  It really is cool to see the different micro-climates  every other day and we are finding the unique beauty in each of them.

Trail magic provided by the guys at Big Bear Hostel.  It was AMAZING!  Fresh fruit, sodas, pastries, and anything else a hiker could need or want!  Even a nice couch! L-R, Almost Awesome, Blue Skies, and Knief (who was in ecstasy that they had knock-off Mountain Dew).  Our friend Hyrobics is on the couch slipping into sugar coma.  Don't worry, she bounced back quickly.

Fellow hiker Girly-Girl shared her card dry erase card so that everyone could give their love to their moms while we were at Big Bear Hostel.  

Leaving Big Bear, we had to go around Big Bear Lake, which made Possum ever-so-slightly perspire. This could be his Backpacker Magazine calendar shot.

This was the landscape that was created by a fire in 2007.  It was sad and beautiful all at the same time.  Trees were scorched and dead but there was a lot of wild flowers and new plant life.

Gettin' low and hot - Mile 230

This was a pretty morning hike coming down out of high desert as we descended into the valley where Mission Creek flows.  Thank goodness we crossed the creek several times because it got hot.  REALLY HOT!  My little keychain thermometer was reading 110 degrees so we found a great spot to get in the shade and take a 3-4 hour siesta to get out of the heat.

The valley we are heading into and that is Mission Creek

Where you find water you find life....... And if you add a shade tree then you find napping hikers!  This is an oasis when your lips are dry and chapped and your feet are on fire

Mt. San Jacinto

We decided to take an alternate route out of Idyllwild that took us to the summit of Mt. San Jacinto and we are so glad that we did!  San Jacinto is the second tallest mountain in Southern California and even though it was REALLY cold and windy the views made it totally worth it.

It was cool to see how the mountains stopped the weather patterns because where the clouds are in this picture the land is full of pine trees and quite a bit of greenery.  The ridge keeps the clouds from bringing much moisture to the desert.

We had to go through a little snow on the way to the summit

Good times at 10,000'!

Johnny Rocket, Blue Skies, Solstice, and Shotgun Pancake joined us for picture time.

On our way day the following day we passed the 200 mile marker!  That only leaves us with STILL a lot of walking to do.

The view from the desert, the following day, of San Jacinto