Everyday is a New Phenomenon

Mile 0-266 is officially in the books.  It has not been the easiest endeavor or the most joyous daily journey. However it has been grand in it’s own way each and everyday. My husband keeps referring to it daily as eating a bowl of “Lucky Charms”, meaning sometimes there are more marshmallows than others.

Finding the charms:

Sometimes these charms can be hard to find when they are covered by seeds of doubt. As well as fear planted by hear say on the trail. Especially this year with all the worries with the unusual weather systems that California has had.

Some days you can walk for miles in complete wonder of Gods artwork. Other days you are meandering through, wondering whether you have completely lost your mind as you walk through yet another ice cold water crossing to begin to dry out to come to another crossing. 

Then later in the day after being exhausted thinking you’re close to camp to have to traverse through snow slowing you down . The bright side at the end of the day is you meet up with other hikers, some you’ve met days before, some from the morning enjoying dinner together. That in itself can be the charm of the day.

Already there have been days when the miles just come easy and you feel as if you could walk all day, swept away by the ongoing views. Views  which in times can look almost unreal from the distance as if they are just a backdrop. Than there are the days when you ascend all day still not summiting by lunchtime and you feel as if your calves are literally on fire. These days tend to last forever.

One of the days that stand out the most so far would be a day when our morale was at its all time low. It’s easy when posting on social media and talking with friends to keep all the positives on the frontline. We had decided to take our first zero in Idyllwild.  Like many other hikers to play it safe with the snow this year we got off trail at the Paradise Valley Cafe mile 151.8. Side note this by far has been probably one of the best lunches we have had on trail to date!

Getting off at PVC allowed us to pick up our ice axes for safety measures while up on the mountain, as well as giving us our first real zero since we started the trail. While in town the rumors amongst the hikers were going amidst about how dangerous San Jacinto still was. Hikers that haven’t been up there we’re going by hear say which was causing anxiety to grow amongst us. The rule is hike your own hike out here.

At one point we were in a store talking with a couple we had been traveling with off and on discussing our plans when another hiker joined in. This person sounded as if she had been up there with her story and it sounded incredibly frightening. After a bit I asked when she went up. I knew it had just opened several days ago so she would have been amongst one of the first to navigate. She revealed she hadn’t been but was going by what she heard. This happens often.

After taking a zero and returning to Trail with the mindset of summiting Mt. San Jacinto after just being opened earlier in the week. We were filled with excitement riding on a high. The first day was hard as we quickly found ourselves above the clouds ascending over 2000 feet with our packs weighed down due to heavy water carry and food supply for at least four days.

Our spirit was still high even towards the end of the night when we faced our first couple of blow downs having to scramble through the trees with our packs. Being up in the clouds we were damp and cold as night fell upon us the wind picked up. As we set up our tent others were in theirs that have been waiting out the weather for the last two days. At that point a little bit of worry set in.

The next day as we prepared for the day, we had to hike down over a mile to camel up for the day. I would be lying if I didn’t say I was feeling so negative about wasting miles on chores knowing that we had a long day in front of us. That being said we moved on. Before we even realized it we were halfway across an area climbing over a tree on an steep vertical incline on top of snow. As we paused and looked down we realized there was absolutely nothing that was going to stop us if we slipped.

After making it across the sketchy area we had to take time to really sit and evaluate this part of the trail. There were several options where we could either continue and go by people’s opinions of what they thought in the far out. We also consider the conversations in town which tend to grow and be often times exaggerated like the childhood game of “telephone”.

After much consideration and out of honesty at that moment a time of feeling defeated we knew the right choice for us was to take the PCT alternative route down the mountain. With feelings of loss and disappointment in ourselves we took the five mile hike down to the main road to catch a ride to Black mountain, which the majority of the hikers at that present moment had been going to automatically with intentions of going back later after the snow melts down.

We began to feel at peace as we took in the views once again. Hiking up Black Mountain road we were given our first true taste of the great Alpine Forest. Absolutely stunning I felt as if I had walked through the closet with Lucy and her siblings , “ The Lion , The Witch, and The Wardrobe.” Our spirits were quickly restored as we fell in love again with our trail.

In the 266 miles there has been multiple days like this where you’re in constant awestruck and times when you’re wondering why. What am I thinking wandering out here in the hot exposed sun or traversing through creeks, and snow with freezing wet feet. Sure enough as soon you hit a low point a high point is sure to reveal itself. Everyday brings about a new remarkable experience not to be forgotten or overlooked. This really is a privilege to be out here on trail. 

On a side note: 

We have no regrets making the decision to take the PCT alternate and perhaps if the opportunity arises when the conditions are right we will return. We both are grateful we had the opportunity to at-least go and see for ourselves. What we did see was absolutely amazing.