Trailhacker and I took a Memorial Day weekend backpack trip on the PCT from Spitler Trail across teh San Jacintos to near Cabazon in the desert.
Trailhacker on the PCT. Some marvelous trail work there.
View from the fire lookout on Taquitz Peak. Stormy clouds are moving in.
Our crazy shelter. Trailhacker slept under the rock and I slept under the tarp. Somehow the tarp didn't blow away.
In the morning there was ice everywhere. The creeks were very icy and difficult to cross.
Trailhacker demonstrates the size of some of the ice chunks falling from the trees. The ice fog was sticking to the trees and then falling off in the hurricane winds.
Trailhacker finds and even bigger chunk of ice.
Just beyond Fuller Ridge Camp we could see way down in the desert the tiny dirt lot where I parked my truck.
The long descent took us through some pretty scenery.
Interesting rock formations, trees, burn zones, wildflowers. It was a lovely trail.
Looks like the Ponderosa on Bonanza.
Wildflowers in the desert.
The rain clouds seemed to be moving into the desert. It was still windy and cold. We worried about finding a sheltered place to sleep for the night.
Desert mountains far below us.
Rainbow over Snow Creek canyon where we were headed.
The clouds were beautiful in the desert.
The shadows are lengthening as the sun is going down. It is taking a very long time for the switchbacks to take us down. In fact, it took 15 miles to get down to the desert floor.
We can see the water fountain below us on the trail. But the trail made us take a huge switchback around the mountain several miles. It was very frustrating.
I set up the tarp and hoped it would stay up in the wind.
When you are backpacking you get the best views in the whole world out your window.
The morning dawned clear and beautiful. San Jacinto no longer has a cloud on top of it. This is the fountain.
We hiked across the desert to my truck.
Under the freeway someone had left coolers full of soda and fruit. We enjoyed a nice snack and hiked the remaining couple of miles to my truck and went home. Despite the bad weather, it was a good trip. So beautiful.
