The Desert

Today we planned to do no hiking, instead we took time to rest and resupply in town. We started the day off with bacon and eggs, cooked in our cabin which saved us all a lot of money and really hit the spot. I spent the rest of the morning exploring Idyllwild. It’s a beautiful Read more

Today marked 2 weeks on the trail, and also the end of a week long journey between two towns. It was to be a tough day, hiking fast. I wanted to get to Paradise Valley Cafe before they closed at 3pm. Mike DeBenedetti had made a big pot of coffee, and once I’d packed up Read more

This year, another Mike had opened another place 13 miles from the first one. This one is called DeBenedetti’s and it’s a perfect hiking distance for new trail legs. Before I headed out though, I made the most of the place I stayed last night. Even before I got out of my sleeping bag on Read more

Awoke to rain on my tent this morning. I packed everything up under my rain fly, glad that my tent can be packed up from the inside. I got on the trail at about 8:30 am, a little later than what I have been lately. As usual, I headed a mile or so up the Read more

After packing up this morning and hitting the trail around 7:50 am, I was met with more stunning travel over wide green meadows. The air was fresh and the sun warmed me as I walked. In about half an hour I reached my breakfast spot, Eagle Rock. The rock formation stands on the hillside, with Read more

I just had probably the best night sleep on the trail so far, I slept in a little bit to 6:30 am. A lot of people around camp had already left to beat the heat, but that’s fine, I’ve been enjoying my new morning routine. I packed up camp, fetched a bit more water from Read more

Today was set to be a proper day, with a heavy pack from resupply and 12 miles to the next water source. I tried once again leaving camp without breakfast, getting on the trail just before 8 am. I could already tell that it was going to be very hot. The trail meandered around the Read more

This morning I woke around 6:15 am, a little bit earlier than some of the others at the American Legion. I took the time to walk around town before things opened, and to plan how the day might proceed. First stop after packing up at the Legion was Julian Cafe and Bakery. This place has Read more

We woke up this morning and it was already getting warm. The sun was bright and we knew we were in for a hot day. We packed up camp and got on the trail by 7:30 am. Today was a town day and everyone was keen to get to the trailhead early. We traveled along Read more

Waking up this morning, the conditions had changed completely. The wind had died down to a breeze, and the sun was burning through the morning mist. Four of us got on the trail at about 8:30 am. The path was mostly smooth and wide following a level contour, we meandered in and out of the Read more