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 

Idyllwild is IdyllAWESOME!

We decided to "zero" ( to take a day off or put in 0 miles) in Idyllwild because A. We were really tired and beat up and B. Sweet Betty the trail angel lives there and she said it was a great place.  It was an awesome trail town where food, rest, and foot fixin' took place.

Knief decided to have a snack

This is the reason that there are no all-you-can-eat buffets in Idyllwild.  Hikers on the way to restaurants look very much like zombies from The Walking Dead, hobbled and slow moving with unsaciatable appetites.

Just as the boy in the painting was, Blue Skies was overcome with sadness that the sign posted stated that there were no free refills if a cup is shared

Rumor has it that this guy is the cook and if you finish his " food challenge" then he will drive you around town in his '82 Trans AM..... and YOU get to pick the 8-Track!

Life as a Dude

As an honorary member of the Pile of Dudes while Possum is away we have enjoyed desert miles.

We hiked out of Mt Laguna on a very windy day. I ran into a Forest Service Agent that said the gusts were at 70mph.

 We got to drink from this delicious water source...mmm

In a 32 mile dry stretch some amazing trail angels left this beautiful cache of water.

The heat drives hikers to take a long brake in the shade during the early afternoon. We found this Great rest spot named after a trail legend "Billy Goat's cave" 

(Blue Skies checking out the shade.)

This morning we got to enjoy Eagle Rock

2 more days and Possum will be back! Can't wait!!!

Wet welcome

When planning for the PCT most of our research informed us that southern California is dry, very dry. We were expecting very few days of rain this season especially due to the drought conditions this year....

Well, the first night of the kickoff located 20 miles from the border we had high wind gusts and lots of rain! We got more wet than we did on any night we had on the AT. This was a great reminder that nature defies all expectations!

Possum is shaking out out tarp this morning.

Just get to the pint

We are busy getting everything ready to leave in 9 days but we had to take a break to enjoy our last Pint Night at River Sports before we head out! It was a great gathering of people out to enjoy the beautiful weather, local business, and tasty brews.

While we were there Possum had to pick up some Seam Grip. I don't know if you have seen My Big Fat Greek Wedding but if you have, think of the father and his Windex and you have Possum and his Seam Grip! It is his tool of choice and the cure for what ails him...I think he is crazy!