Twig Adventures

October 22nd, 2018Fuller Ridge mm 189 to mm 179.5, then Devils Slide and Ernie Maxwell Trail to Idyllwild due to fire closure.Distance: 9.5 miles plus 6 miles to town0610 – 1300 I had to go into town today since the trail was still closed for 11 miles from a 2013 fire. There were many side trails from the north end. To get back on the trail south of the closure, there was a detour on dirt roads. Thus a continuous footpath into and out of town could be achieved. Unfortunately, another fire closed the dirt road route this year. Now the only way to get back to the trail was by traveling along 2 narrow,  busy highways that had no[…]

October 21st, 2018Whitewater Preserve mm 218.5 to Fuller Ridge mm 189Distance: 29.5 miles plus .5 mile from preserve.0630 – 1820 First, if my memory serves me right, I wanted to point out that I finished the Te Araroa in 108 days and today was my 108th day on the PCT. It would have been cool if I finished both trails in the same time but I will be done within a week. Not bad for a trail that was nearly 800 miles longer. Secondly, today was like clearing a huge hurdle, perhaps the last big challenge. I was a bit intimidated by the massive climb and lack of water to end the day, but it wasn’t so bad. The trail[…]

October 20th, 2018Mm 253 to Whitewater Preserve mm 218.5Distance: 34.5 miles plus .5 mile to preserve.0630 – 1800 I set my new record for distance hiked in one day, but only by half a mile. I’d done several 34 and 34.5 mile days but today I finally got to 35. I pushed hard to make it to a conservation preserve and it was totally worth it…more about that later. It was cold, as usual, in the morning. I could feel that the ground was frozen in places. Mt Gorgonio caught the morning sun and showed off its snow cap beautifully. I got nice views looking back at the Angeles forest / mountains and forward to the desert valleys I would[…]

October 19th, 2018Mm 278.5 to mm 253Distance: 25.5 miles0630 – 1900 For once, I resisted the pull of town today. I went into Big Bear, got my business done, and got back on the trail to get the miles in. After 3 days, I was just 1 mile shy of my 30 mile a day average. I had just 9 more days to keep up this pace. Besides my flight home, I was also motivated by an upcoming trip to Spain. I needed to leave for that shortly after I got back. It felt weird to be planning for anything beyond the PCT. There was life after the trail…though I was leery of it. I was torn in half by[…]

October 18th, 2018Deep Creek bridge mm 310 to mm 278.5Distance: 31.5 miles0630 – 1830 Today was all about going uphill…but gradually. I gained more than 7000′ over 29 miles, going from about 3000′ in elevation up to just shy of 8000′. Consequently, I didn’t do as many miles as hoped for but that’s ok. I think this was the longest continuous stretch going uphill so far. I continued up the canyon and shortly came to some hot springs. I found Kuba packing up there. I tried some of the pools but they were way too tepid for my taste. I need my hot springs to be “mother of dragons” hot. Perhaps in the middle of the day they were fine[…]

October 17th, 2018Cajon Pass Interstate 15 mm 342 to Deep Creek bridge mm 310Distance: 32 miles0800 – 1830 Overnight, I bought a one-way ticket from Phoenix to Miami for the 31st… now I had a deadline. If I averaged 30 miles a day, I would make it to the border by the 28th…just 12 more days, including this one. It probably wasn’t realistic to do this, since I also had to factor in town stops. I was feeling very optimistic, I guess. The hotel had a good continental breakfast, so I was able to stuff myself before resuming the trail. I was glad to get away from all the hub-bub of that busy interstate. The noise quickly disappeared as the[…]

October 16th, 2018Grassy Hollow Visitor Center mm 370 to Cajon Pass Interstate 15 mm 342Distance: 28 miles plus a couple miles walking around town0620 – 1600 I stayed warm overnight but it was very cold outside. I even took a benadryl so that I would sleep through the night. The wind continued to rage. I left on all my layers starting out in the morning, including my tights. I was contemplating going into the town of Wrightwood, since I needed groceries and batteries for my Spot device. One mile from camp was a highway where I could hitch. But I got there at 7 am and there was no traffic. I couldn’t bear to stand around in the wind and[…]

October 15th, 2018Three Points trailhead mm 403 to Grassy Hollow Visitor Center mm 370Distance: 33 miles plus 1 extra mile on mandatory alternate0610 – 1855 The wind rose up fierce overnight and I had a hard time sleeping. My tent was pretty protected but I still had to get up to search for rocks to cover the stakes. Even then, the fabric was vibrating violently and bashing me in the head. I was awake at 3 am and couldn’t get back to sleep. So I started my routine at 4 am. During that time, my front stake pulled out twice and the tent swallowed me. Then I thought my tent stuff bag blew away and I spent some time looking[…]

October 14th, 2018North Fork Station mm 436 to Three Points trailhead mm 403Distance: 33 miles0640 – 1800 Everything was soaked in the morning and I packed a very wet tent. But the sky was clear and I was treated to a unique scene. There were clouds in the valleys, making it look like the ocean had come in to swallow everything but the mountain peaks. I was now atop a series of islands. It was a stunning sight to behold. I climbed and descended a lot today…8100′ up and 6500′ down. It was tiring but at least it stayed relatively cool all day. For lunch, I came to a trailhead with a water spigot…the first water since camp 17 miles[…]

October 13th, 2018Agua Dulce mm 454.5 to North Fork Station mm 436Distance: 18.51145 – 1830 This 100th day was a great one! The title will make more sense later. But first, there were a couple details I left out from yesterday. I didn’t describe my encounter with Cornelius. Readers will recall from previous blogs, I have a thing for catching chickens (and ducks, geese, peacocks, and… lots of birds). But especially roosters. Well, the Saufleys had a flock and so I asked Donna if I could catch one. Her reply was ‘good luck, you’ll have to get past Cornelius first.’ Ah, I thought, even better that they have a sassy rooster. To preface, she did warn me profusely about how[…]