Chapter 5: PCT Week 3: “The Seasons of San Jac”

Chapter 5: Week 3: “The Seasons of San Jac”
Days 15-21: 3/20-3/26/22
Total Trail Miles: 80.30
Total GPS Recorded Miles: 85.53
Cumulative Trail Miles: 232.10
From: Idyllwild to Somewhere near the San Gorgonio Wilderness

 

Day 15 // March 20, 2022 // Trail Miles: 8.00 / GPS Recorded Miles: 10.10 / Cumulative Trail Miles: 159.80

~Destination // San Jacintos and Campsite at MM 159.80~

Back into the wild from Idyllwild. We started up the climb into the San Jacintos (aka San Jac) after being dropped off by a sweet woman and her two dogs. Old, mossy trees lined the trail along the route. The sky was sea blue. We were anxious to get to and through the Jacintos after the reputation they’d earned for being dangerous with snow. Along the way we stopped in a small boulder field and heard footsteps coming from behind us. Two hikers, Prism and Shroom Boots sauntered on up. We all introduced ourselves and they continued on while we grabbed a last swig of water before climbing more.

Water was scarce in the area. On our map there was a spur trail straight downhill for a mile that led to an old pipe spring and water basin. It hurt, but we needed water, so made the trek down and back up, adding another hour onto our day. Deuces, Razor, Chief, and a few others decided to camp at the bottom near the water source, while we opted to climb back out and make a few more miles to a sheltered campsite. The water source had been a bit eerie, and we had mixed emotions about camping there overnight.

Optimist also wanted to camp in the same area as us, so we communicated the meet-up point and mile marker before taking off up trail. He lagged just a bit behind us packing his things and sorting out his water. The trail skirted ridges with fantastic views straight out of a movie. While the miles didn’t come easy just yet, the views were the reward. Our campsite came sooner than we’d expected, just around a bend after 2 miles or so from the water split.

Oaks stood twenty feet above us and provided shelter from the wind. Loose sand covered the ground and made for a wonderful campsite to conclude our day. Optimist hiked up twenty minutes later while we were still setting up camp, and so did one other hiker. Stringing the Tibetan Prayer Flags up that we’d acquired in Idyllwild, the two of us chatted with Optimist a bit before crawling into our tent for a well-earned dinner and rest. While we knew it was bad practice to eat in our vestibules, there are nights where all you want is the comfort of your own tent, so we went with comfort that night.

 

San Jac

San Jac

 

Day 16 // March 21, 2022 // Trail Miles: 9.40 / GPS Recorded Miles: 9.80 / Cumulative Trail Miles: 169.20

~Destination // Campsite Before Apache Ridge at MM 169.20~

Our goal was to set ourselves up for the Apache ridge traverse, the same one that claimed “Microsoft’s” life in 2020. We’d either do it later in the day once the temperature cooled, or hike just before and attempt it in the morning. We hiked along ridges and through barren manzanita fields long since dead, but signs of new growth popped up among the dead wood. On and off we hiked with Deuces, Razor, Chief, and Optimist Prime until we reached a flat space just before the Apache Peak ledge.

It was still early in the evening, but we all felt the same about making camp there and traversing the ridge next day. It was a dry camp, but several patches of snow spread about were just enough to be melted down for out water bottles. For almost an hour Basecamp and I sat off to the side melting snow and decanting the water into bottles, trying our best to leave the grass and twigs that had been hidden in the snow, behind in our pots.

We pitched our free-standing Nemo Dagger 3P tent between sage brush, no other protection. There may have been one other free-standing tent pitched that evening, but the rest were trekking pole-supported tents. Prism and Shroom Boots also showed up and pitched above us.

The sunset was breathtaking, but that night the wind raged. The sidewall of our tent slapped and punched Basecamp relentlessly. Our tent stakes popped out of the ground one by one. Sand began to blow inside through the tiny air vents. At one point I reluctantly crawled outside to find large rocks to bury our tent stakes under. When I looked around with my headlamp, the tents that had once been pitched now looked like human-size tent burritos. Many of the pole-supported tents just couldn’t hold up to the wind, so instead of trying to re-pitch their tents over and over in vain, hikers simply rolled themselves up in their tents. In that moment I was glad we were carrying the extra weight of our bombshell tent.

 

Camp before Apache

Camp before Apache

 

Day 17 // March 22, 2022 // Trail Miles: 8.50 / GPS Recorded Miles: 8.53 / Cumulative Trail Miles: 177.70

~Destination // Snowy Campsite at MM 177.70~

It was a rough night, and you could see it on everyone’s face. Basecamp was particularly exhausted, but we had to hit the ridge before it became too hot and started to melt the snow under our feet. We camped on dirt, but just around the corner, the ridge was caked in white. Racoon, Razor, Deuces, and Optimist headed out with us, the latter two in front while Basecamp and I pulled in the rear. It was easy to see how this 200-foot stretch of trail could be deadly. If you slipped there was nothing below to catch you, not even a tree or rock. We carefully made it across with our spikes and ice axes after 10 minutes, hoping the entire way across that no one slipped.

The rest of the day was spent weaving in and out of snow, dirt, whale-flopping over countless downed trees, and trying to find the trail through half-formed boot packs. At lunch under a shaded canopy, Deuces and Racoon decided to hang back either for a longer break, or to camp. Optimist and Razor tagged along with us, but Razor soon stopped at a campsite with several other hikers. The day had been taxing and she was feeling it.

Down to just the three of us, Basecamp led the way while Optimist and I followed. The snow was up to our knees for miles. Some sections had been plowed through by other hikers while some sections looked untouched. In the middle of the San Jac woods we heard a sound. The sound was laughter, and it came from right behind us. We could hear echoes of voices, and then see people. Four male hikers came bulldozing through the snow like it was nothing. Of the four, the hiker in front was by far the tallest, and largest with a heavy pack. Every other step he sank up to his thighs in snow.

When they approached us, the second hiker in line proclaimed with a laughing English accent, “Mate! It’s so funny! He’s too heavy and keeps falling in.”

The speaker was “Cuppa”. The guy in front was “Jedi”, a 6-foot German hiker who had to be pushing 200 pounds. He was fit, but his weight kept lobbing him into the snow. One of the other two hikers behind them was named “Build-A-Bear.” Letting them pass us, we tailed them for maybe a quarter mile before they stopped and met a fifth figure who’d emerged from the woods. It was a female with a pipe in her hand; their trail angel who’d hiked in to meet them. She offered Basecamp a smoke of her pipe, which Basecamp politely declined, and started talking to the four hikers.

At that point we decided not to stay and camp with them there, though I’m positive it would have been a fun night. The three of us continued for a few more miles, but the day was growing thin, and we wanted to make camp before the sun set. As fate would have it, there was a 20×20 foot plot of dirt in the middle of a snowy tundra. In the dirt someone had written “lucky you” we suspected for anyone lucky enough to find such a gem. Everything was quiet around our camp, sounds muffled by the soft snow everywhere else. The sky was clear, and stars glistened like tiny pearls just out of reach in the night.

 

Apache Ridge

Apache Ridge

 

Day 18 // March 23, 2022 // Trail Miles: 12.80 / GPS Recorded Miles: 13.58 / Cumulative Trail Miles: 190.50

~Destination // Fuller Ridge Campground~

Waking up early, we started our day towards the Fuller Ridge Campground. He was difficult to wake up and pack in the cold before the sun rose, but we’d practiced it plenty in Colorado and would have to do it daily in the Sierras. Luckily, the snow started out consolidated for several miles, but the more the sun peeked over the horizon, the more we began to sink.

Surprisingly, Optimist left camp before us and we didn’t see him for hours. Initially we thought he’d hiked ahead and made good time until he showed up behind us. Apparently, he’d taken a wrong turn, gotten lost, and added an extra mile to his morning stroll! Tumbleweed and Cougar Zero had packed up and set out just before Optimist met back up with us. I’m unsure how we caught the two of them, but it was nice to see more familiar faces.

Several switchbacks up to the San Jacinto summit trail waited for us. It took effort, but the climb paid off with a gradual downhill through snow-covered forest to the split. We’d taken off our spikes by this point and were starting to regret it. Just up ahead we saw Cougar and Tumbleweed standing by a trail sign. The summit trail. It sounded like Cougar was going to make a summit attempt. We didn’t stick around though. It was a great spot to put our spikes back on, grab a snack, and wish him/them luck.

At some point in the day we ran into Deuces, Razor, Shroom Boots, Prism, Daydreamer (a new hiker), Racoon, Cougar, Tumbleweed, and Kira (another new hiker). We didn’t plan it this way, but the lot of us hiked in procession across Fuller Ridge and to the Fuller Ridge Campground. It took us combating hours of thigh-deep postholes to finally arrive at camp just at dusk. By the time we made it, I was calorie deficient, and a bit loopy. I recall making dinner at a large picnic table with everyone and sharing our most embarrassing moment at the suggestion of Dan. Dan was another new face, and a hiker without poles, spikes, or an ice axe. We were astounded and shocked he’d entered San Jacinto without them. Basecamp and I both went to sleep without effort that night.

 

Cougar, Optimist, and Tumbleweed

Cougar, Optimist, and Tumbleweed

 

Day 19 // March 24, 2022 // Trail Miles: 19.00 / GPS Recorded Miles: 19.26 / Cumulative Trail Miles: 209.50

~Destination // Cabazon, CA~

We were some of the last to wake up and leave camp that morning. The campsite had a small, muddy puddle and a bit of snow, but no other water source. There was snow on trail for another mile and then it all went dry. We grabbed a bladder of it and then prepared ourselves for the dry stretch to come. It was an 18-mile stretch downhill in completely exposed, arid desert without water. We hadn’t known it at the time, but the high temperature that day was going to 105F. There was a heat advisory in effect.

The forest quickly opened up into a massive expanse of open desert and flora. Cacti, wildflowers, and sagebrush replaced pines. Sand replaced snow. The sun beat down on us for the entire 18-mile downhill until we reached salvation; a water tank at the bottom of the descent where hikers crowded in the tank’s shade for a few moments of cool rest from the sun. The water wasn’t potable, but it was cold, and made good enough after filtering. Just a few more miles to the underpass and where Mama Bear’s trail magic was fabled to be. Those few miles were on loose sand that gave way just as much as the slushy snow we’d left behind us. Movement was difficult and the heat was debilitating.

We’d had a trail angel reach out to us and offer a stay with her overnight. She lived in Cabazon, a bit of a drive from the underpass, but she’d also agreed to pick us up there. When we stumbled into the shade of the underpass we say a bounty of water, snacks, and other goodies left behind by the one and only Mama Bear. We didn’t see our ride yet, so sat down with a cold Gatorade. It was blissful.

Decades, the same man we saw hiking into San Jac while we were hitching into Idyllwild, was right there with us, barely surviving the intense heat. When our trail angel walked down to us and yelled for us to get in the air-conditioned car, we didn’t hesitate. She also offered Decades a ride and place to stay for the night. Truly she was a godsend.

She ended up driving back to the underpass several times to get other hikers and brought them all to where we were, the In-N-Out Burger. Optimist, Decades, Chief, and a few others filled the chairs of the clean restaurant. When it was all said and done, she’d invited Deuces, Optimist, Chief, and the three of us to stay with her. She took us to resupply, offered us beds and showers, a pool, and even a hot tub after pizza for dinner. We didn’t think we could have possibly been more satisfied.

 

Blooming cactus on the way down to Cabazon

Blooming cactus on the way down to Cabazon

 

Day 20 // March 24, 2022 // Trail Miles: 9.00 / GPS Recorded Miles: 9.72 / Cumulative Trail Miles: 218.50

~Destination // Whitewater Preserve Campground~

Our angel dropped all of us off in different carloads, right at the underpass. Following a few issues with the local USPS, Chief, Basecamp, and I thanked her several times for all of her kindness and generosity. Chief had gone to the post office with us to pick up headphones he’d ordered, but the mailing address he’d listed didn’t get the package there. General delivery can be confusing if you’ve never used it.

Chief took off while we took some time and adjusted our packs and mentally prepare for the day ahead. He’s a fast hiker, all of 19 years old, and we figured we wouldn’t see him again for the rest of the day. On a massive climb up through the hills we came across two new hikers, “Achilles” and Anna (from Ireland), and then across Decades and Chief taking a nap in the shade of a manzanita. We were shocked. The heat must have gotten them too. We spent some time with Decades chatting and hiking to the Whitewater Preserve- a gemstone in the desert.

When we made it there, our eyes grew wide. Lush grass blanketed the ground. Ponds and water spigots were everywhere. Cars and a parking lot were off to the side. Surrounding the Preserve were brown hills with patches of grass and shrubs, but this place was an oasis in the desert. Under a covered awning with picnic tables, we dumped off our packs and sighed with relief that we were done hiking for the day. While it had only been a 9-mile day, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to spend time at the Preserve.  Also, there was a German hiker named Stefan, who was perplexed at the heat levels in the area. I was right there with him. It was terrible. He also mentioned that he was a beer connoisseur, so of course we got along just fine. A well-known hiker named “Grizzly Gramps” was there eating a dehydrated meal. He was a kind, old soul. The icing on the cake was when Achilles and Anna rolled up. Achilles had a huge bag of pork skins in his hand. It was quite the site, especially with his accent!

Our tent fit perfectly on a patch of soft, green grass cradled by an oak.

 

Whitewater Preserve

Whitewater Preserve

 

Day 21 // March 25, 2022 // Trail Miles: 13.60 / GPS Recorded Miles: 14.54 / Cumulative Trail Miles: 232.10

~Destination // Campsite at MM 232.10~

Next morning, we ran back into Decades who we hiked on and off with. He imparted knowledge most of the day while we exchanged stories. The forecast looked good though rain was predicted soon.  We climbed desert ridges with fervor, however, because the town of Big Bear was calling us. It was an uneventful day with rocky climbs and sandy descents, but the company of Decades made the time fly. By the time we were ready to make camp and set ourselves up for entering the San Gorgonio Wilderness next day, we could find little real estate to break camp. There was another group near us as well, trying to do the same thing, make camp. It was Shroom, Prism, and another hiker. We decided to keep going further up trail in the hopes that some of the dried-out riverbeds we were passing would offer up something. Something did come up, but not for another 45 minutes.

It just so happened that Achilles and Anna were camped on a lip above a flowing riverbed and there was enough room for two more tents. We claimed our plot, pitched, and ran our plan by everyone else there. We wanted to wake up early and knock out some of the climbs to come while it was still cool (not a new plan at all, but still a plan). Everyone pondered our proposed 5AM departure with wise nods and agreed. We would set out the next day in the dark of morning, but little did we know how poorly marked the trail would be.

 

Hanging out with Decades

Hanging out with Decades

 

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San Jac

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Comments 4

  • David Odell : Mar 21st

    Enjoying your journal. Good luck to both of you on the rest of your PCT hike. David Odell AT71 PCT72 CDT77

    Reply
    • Wesley Black : Mar 21st

      Thanks David! You triple-crowned in the 1970’s?

      Reply
  • Eli : Apr 3rd

    What I think is these people are optimistic about their starts on the PCT but unrealistic to a fault.Has anybody looked at the snow accumulation in the Sierra this year? Really!
    Please don’t be foolish and put our Search and Rescue organizations in peril.
    Think always Think!
    First impression is your Finest Hour,Hopefully not your Final Hour

    Reply
    • Marie Black : Apr 3rd

      My husband (who wrote this blog) and I did this trail last year and finished it. This is his blog for our journey. I agree that people have to be aware this year. We live in CO and do mountaineering so it’s unnerving if people don’t know what they are getting in to in high alpine terrain. We are hoping that people are wise about the conditions and make smart choices.

      Reply

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