It was Day Fifteen of my PCT Thru Hike, and I finished off the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park section of the trail, by hiking north from Nance Canyon to Highway 74 in the town of Anza.
From PCT mile 140.2 to 151.9 Total: 11.7 miles 4/14
I woke up that morning in the dark, as this was my final day before arriving at my car in the trailhead parking lot. There was far too much snow just beyond the highway, for me at least, in the San Jacinto Mountains. I decided that I was going to flip completely past the high mountains of SoCal, and restart the trail in Acton later on. After a brief break to resupply at my house in San Diego, of course. It was nice living near the trail, but I had to admit that it made it too easy to take zero days. Oh well.
I was fully packed by dawn, and I started hiking under cloudy skies. They should serve to keep me cool, I thought, as I climbed up and out of Nance Canyon.
As I hiked, I was pleased to check out a lovely desert sunrise. Sunbeams were shining in under the clouds, lit like beams through the hazy mist. As I climbed higher, I looked back to the southwest where I had hiked yesterday, and saw Combs Peak in the distance, the place where I woke up in driving mist the night before. There were still clouds up there, and they were still blowing across the sky above me.
The trail had been heading northeast, but now it swing north around the eastern edge of the town of Anza. After another mile, it headed northwest. A look at the map showed that it carefully hugged the boundaries of Anza-Borrego State Park, avoiding private property and the Cahuilla Indian Reservation. There were nice views along the way, and even some Trail Magic at Angel Mary’s Oasis!
After I checked out the Magic (I had plenty of water and snacks) and signed the trail register, I continued on, uphill and over Table Mountain. The elevation got high enough that I was just entering cloud-level, and a cold mist blew by. I kept my goretex jacket and pants on the entire time. Then the trail continued north, descending into Alkali Wash, and (in typical PCT style) ascending back out of it. Sometimes I think that “Up and Down” should be the official motto of the PCT.
As the morning wore on, the clouds burned off for the day. The trail headed up along the Pacific Crest itself, on a skinny ridge with the desert basin to the right and the watershed draining into the Pacific Ocean on the left. I really enjoy it when the trail does that. It isn’t easy to stay directly on the crest all the time. And the views were always better up on top, of course. Good times.
There was one more up and down to go, over the west ridge of Lookout Mountain. The PCT left the state park and entered into the domain of the San Bernardino National Forest, which it would largely stay within for at least one hundred miles. But not me, not today. As I crested the ridge, I could see my car in the trailhead parking lot down below next to the highway. I began cruising fast along the trail, like a horse nearing its stable.
I caught up to three other thru hikers at the highway. I offered them a ride down the road to the Paradise Valley Cafe, which caters to PCT Hikers. They accept resupply packages and even give rides to hikers. They also have a restaurant which sells very tasty burgers and breakfast to the ever-hungry crowd.
I thought about going inside for a burger myself, but my own comfy home was only a two-hour drive away. There were showers there, and my own bed, and tasty food made by my lovely wife Vicki. Not being with her was the toughest part of this thru hike, so far. It gets lonely on the trail, especially at night. But that wasn’t my problem now. I had successfully hiked 152 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail. It wasn’t very much, not when compared to the full 2650 miles from Mexico to Canada, but it was a start. And after a short break at home I would be re-starting the hike again.
For a topographic map of the hike see my CalTopo Page
For LOTS more photos of the trek see my Flickr Page
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