After several zero days, I decided to flip my thru hike beyond the snow-covered SoCal Mountains, starting in the town of Acton, hiking through Vasquez Rocks County Park, and onward, northbound through the town of Agua Dulce and beyond.
From PCT mile 444.3 to 459.6 Total: 15.3 miles 4/23
Vicki and I woke up in the car that morning and I put away the down quilt and air mattresses. Vicki would be driving back to San Diego, and I would begin my solo hiking day. Luckily, in a few days she would be flying out to attend her nephew’s wedding, so she’d be busy enough. Hopefully that would make it easier to be alone at night. I would have to make do with being bone-tired after long hiking days in the mountains. This was the plan. In two weeks she would pick me up at Walker Pass. Until then, it was time to hike! We gave each other one last hug, took the requisite photos, and I was off.
Technically, the first ten miles of my day would be within the northern end of PCT California Section D. Section E would begin once I reached the town of Agua Dulce. In fact, I hiked this ten mile stretch of trail only last year, in the Spring of 2022, using my eBike to make the loop. Beyond Agua Dulce, the following two hundred miles in Sections E and F would be brand new hiking territory for me, and I was very excited, indeed. Especially this year, when there might be abundant flowers along the way.
My pack was a bit heavy with food and water, but I didn’t care. I headed across Soledad Canyon Road and made my way to the ford across the Santa Clara River. Last year it was only a trickle, but this time there were multiple streamlets to negotiate. I crossed them on fallen trees, with dry boots, and that was a good omen. There weren’t many big streams north of this one. After that, I climbed up to the railroad tracks and checked out the old “Golden Spike” PCT Completion monument from 1993. It was in some seriously sad shape, to tell the truth.
After that, the trail climbed steadily up a canyon and over a high ridge. There were fine views looking down into Soledad Canyon, and the grasses were very green and thick. Last year there were California Poppies everywhere on these slopes, but this year the grasses hogged up all the water and grew taller than the poppies. The grasses were so long that I almost missed the trail after it crossed a dirt road near some power lines. I had to check my mapping app and retrace my steps down the road.
The trail meandered down into the upper end of Bobcat Canyon, then climbed up to yet another ridge. This time, I could see (and hear) the busy Highway 14 freeway on its way between LA and Palmdale. I got some cell signal and texted Vicki. She was probably already home by then.
The PCT descended into the Escondido Creek Valley via a narrow side canyon, and continued on the floor of the main valley until it arrived at the long tunnel under the freeway. Escondido Creek was flowing gently down the center of the tunnel, and walking beside it was easy. I like hiking through tunnels, so of course I took a too-long GoPro video of the dark and boring passage. Only watch it if you love tunnels, as nothing exciting happens in there.
After that, it was time to hike through Vasquez Rocks County Park. I really enjoyed this last time, and it was just as fun this year. But I have to admit that the climb out of the valley was hotter this time. Or maybe I was simply carrying more weight.
Most important on my list of things to do that day was pick up my Official Pacific Crest Trail Hang Tag from the ranger at the visitor center. There were difficulties back in March during the rains – the two PCT Employees (yes, employees, not volunteers) that were assigned to welcome hikers at the Southern Terminus didn’t always show up, for some reason, and I never got mine. I was seriously bummed out, as it has become a form of de facto ID for a proper PCT Thru Hiker. I went inside and there was the Ranger, waiting for me by the door. Since I’m older, he figured that I already knew about Leave No Trace and other important things (and he was right) so he handed over the Hang Tag after recording the name on my PCT Permit. Yay! I attached it to my pack right there in the lobby.
The trail follows the roads into the town of Agua Dulce, right down the main street. I stopped at Big Mouth Pizza and had a slice and a soda. Good stuff. I also met thru-hiker Monk, who I had seen back at the tunnel earlier. He didn’t have that trail name yet, but he certainly looked like a monk with his beard and nylon hoodie.
I continued hiking north, and entered Section E! New turf for me. It was a hot day, and I was drinking more water than I anticipated, so I stopped by the new hiker spot in town called Serenity’s Oasis. They charged very little to camp, and had a few needed items for resupply, along with power for charging electronics. All I wanted was some tap water. Tap water meant that I didn’t have to purify it, which was always an annoying chore.
Eventually, the hot uphill road walk ended, and I climbed up along some power lines on a dirt road. Parked up near the tower was John, a Trail Angel and trail runner, in his van distributing Trail Magic. Nice! I sat down in the shade of his van and sipped on a cold soda. No one else was there, so the two of us hung out for close to an hour talking about the trail and anything else that came to mind. There weren’t many hikers on the trail right now, and he was expecting a giant “bubble” of hikers in a month or so, after all that pesky snow finished melting. Apparently, thru hikers tended to treat their official start dates as “vague suggestions” rather than legal imperatives, so there would probably be more than fifty hikers per day starting out at the Southern Terminus very soon. I sure hoped that those errant PCT Employees would be on the ball by then!
I said goodbye and headed north once again. I only had three more miles to go, so resting for an hour in the shade was wonderful. The trail left the power lines and soon it was heading up a long, green, and grassy valley within the Angeles National Forest. In the Fall these hills were dry and brown and roasted after a hot dry Summer, but right now, in the Spring of 2023, they were beautiful and full of life. It was a joy to hike there and be a witness to such beauty. Yes, even hills covered in chaparral can be beautiful.
Just beyond the fifteen-mile mark I came upon my chosen campsite. The Far Out app shows most of the “official” LNT campsites, and this was one of them. It was on a flat saddle next to a dirt road that led to the Annan Ranch. It didn’t look like it got much traffic. I found a flat spot just off the road and set up the tent. I was a bit worried, as saddles can often get very windy, but at the moment everything seemed calm. Just the same, I staked out the tent solidly in case the breeze piped up in the night. Then I put everything inside.
It was still sunny, so I left the tent door open to keep myself cool as I lay down on my comfy air mattress and read a book on my Kindle. After a while I decided to sit up and cook a simple meal of ramen noodles. A simple meal for a simple man. It grew colder as the sun went down, and I got into my sleeping bag. I read my book some more. Eventually I got sleepy, turned off my headlamp, and hit the sack.
This was the way that every day should be. A hiker’s life is the life for me.
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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