Along the way, the PCT traverses some of the most scenic land in the US, including 25 national forests, 7 national parks, and 34 wilderness areas. The trail can be divided into 5 regions:

Southern California – Mile 0 to 702: The first section is primarily marked by desert extremes. Highs occasionally rise above 100 degrees with lows potentially below freezing. Highlights include climbing over 9000 ft in the San Jacinto Mountains, crossing part of the Mojave Desert, and traversing the Tehachapi Mountains.

Central California – Mile 702 to 1197: The Sierra Nevada Mountains. Some of the highest and most beautiful country in the lower 48. The trail climbs over 13,000 ft at Forester Pass and gets close enough to Mt. Whitney (14,505 ft) for a day hike to the summit. This section traverses Sequoia, Kings Canyon, and Yosemite National Parks.

Northern California – Mile 1197 to 1699: In this section, the high peaks of the Sierra Nevada give way to lower mountains of the Southern Cascades. Highlights in this section include Lassen Volcanic National Park, Burney Falls, the Trinity Alps Wilderness and the Marble Mountain Wilderness.

Oregon – Mile 1699 to 2155: This section is dominated by the numerous volcanoes making up the Cascade range. Mt. Hood, Mt. Jefferson, the Three Sisters along with Crater Lake National Park are all impressive formations along this section of trail. Forests in this section get thicker and shadier thanks to the increased rain fall.

Washington – Mile 2155 to 2660: The final section of trail is marked by thick forests and steep, craggy mountains. This section can be one of the toughest even for well seasoned hikers. Mt. Rainier National Park, North Cascades National Park, the Goat Rocks Wilderness, and the Glacier Peak Wilderness are many of the highlights along the way.

Monday, May 11, 2015

Idyllwild to Big Bear Lake

That what I'm climbing today!
This is what I like to hike in.  Trees.  This is the Devils Slide trail.  Part of the PCT was closed dude to a fire two years ago. We had go skip a small section.
Look a mountain!!!
I didn't expect any snow to be up here. I mean, shit, I'm in SoCal!  This was about 7500 ft.
 This is about 8500 ft.
I skiped this slow trickle of a spring.
                Just over 9,000 ft!!!
     A port-o-john on a mountain!!!
    A little chilly up here but great hiking.
I don't remember what I was pointing at but I bet it was awesome!
This creek was so cold and delicious!!!  Last water source for 16.1 miles.  I hate carrying water.  
           Mountains to the west!
             The trail to the north.
And the stupid desert to the east!!!
One huge wind farm.  This desolation was the next section.
San Juacinto was amazing!  Loved it!!
The next morning we hiked above a cloud for a while. 
Working out way to the north side of San Juacinto and then going downhill for 15 miles.
I don't like the desert sections.
Panoramic shot of San Juacinto.
Went down into the valley and up those dry hills.
                     Water!!!!
          And oranges!!! 
Going down Juacinto destroyed my knees.  Down hill hurts.
Letting the dogs breath a bit.
That's what I walked down.  There still snow up there.
At Ziggy and the Bears for a break.  Trail Angels are the best people ever!!!
Well hell!!  Uranium!!!!  I think I'll pass.
These guys run the wind farm and they gave us nachos!!! And uranium free water.
          The wind farm.
   Coming down a hill and that's a dried up river bed.
                The stupid desert.
A dried up cow carcass in the middle of nowhere.
Water!!!! It was like bath water.  Nice for a soak.
This guy came out of nowhere and didn't leave...
It just sat there waiting for someone.  
Nice little river.  I love water so very much.
Negotiating the ford.
We were at 8700 ft and the temp was dropping fast!
This fire was amazing.  
And I woke up to snow!!!!!
I slept in every piece of clothing I had.   Getting out of the bag was a real challenge.
No one expected this!!
    I was first out of my tent and out of camp.
Wasn't thrilled to be cold in SoCal.
It ended up being amazing!!! Favorite day on the trail so far!!! Beautiful trail!!!

         Love it!!!! 
   There was no snow on the other side of the mountain.
           Snow on a cactus!
The trail passed a private zoo.  The animals are used for movies.  I could only see two sad grizzly bears.
        And a freakin tiger!!!!
Heading to Big Bear Lake for some hot food and warm whiskey!!!
They had snowplow out as a precaution.
Screen shot of the weather around here. Winter weather advisory in SoCal!! 
Fed and clean in a nice warm hostel.
                Toga! Toga! Toga!































































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1 comment:

  1. JannaMay 14, 2015 at 4:32 PM

    These are awesome photos John! :) Glad you're having a great hike so far! The snakes would totally freak me out though. Gaaah! :)

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