My relationship with the desert is akin to that of sisters. Great when the two of you get on but volatile when you disagree. In essence, she is one moody madam. I can’t tell whether the desert was protesting us leaving or planning her ultimate test, making us use all the skills we’ve developed so far. A heatwave, unreliable water sources and no shade resulted in our biggest challenge to date.
Day 43
At 5am all was calm on trail. Birdsong filled the cool air as we moved through the dawning light. We followed an easy path through the pine forest, then out onto an exposed grey boulder section dotted with purple lupines and small yellow flowers. The greenery soon vanished as we climbed down into the sandy desert basin.
See that sandy basin, that’s where we’re heading
Even at 10am it was scorching, the day promising to deliver on the forecasted heatwave. To add to matters, the windmills which are normally in full motion stood sedentary. No shade, no water, no wind.
Finally we arrived at the roadside and here Mike, a trail angel, had ensured about 200 gallons of water were available for hikers. We happened to catch him filling up the cache so we helped lug the heavy containers from his truck bed and returned the empty ones. Mike had kindly brought along sodas and home baked goods which we enjoyed before he drove away.
While we were thankful for the water, shade was nonexistent and I quickly found myself feeling the effects of the blazing heat. Using tarps we crafted a shelter which we laid under. Initially it helped cool us down, but as the sun reached its peak the surrounding air was simply too hot. By this stage the wind had picked up but instead of the cool relief I hoped for, warm air smothered us.
It’s a little make shift, but it’ll do!
Just as nausea set in, trail angel Sprinter arrived in his van with trail magic. He offered ice creams, banana and watermelon. He soon realised we were all silently dying and kindly offered up his van for us to sit in where he blasted the air con.
In the back of the van, doors open, air con on. Not today heat stroke
That evening we had to dry camp, so Dan and I had dinner at the cache before packing out six litres of water each. We headed out once the sun had began casting long shadows, but even then the heat seemed to continue. Dan commented on how the hostility of the desert is lost at dusk. The trail takes on a softness as the valley glows a faint pink.
A deserts silhouette
It was dark by the time we rolled into camp. Awaiting us was Sweet Roll, Paige and Dizzy. We cowboy camped in a clearing of Joshua trees. As I was setting up camp I could see white eyes reflected back at me: kangaroo rats with characteristically long tails. No surprise that come morning we found nibbles in our rubbish bags. Once settled we looked up, there lay a sky full of stars framed by the tips of the Joshua trees surrounding us.
Day 44
4:45am and we were moving, powering up a steep climb barely making any progress on the treadmill-like sandy surface. Six slow miles later we reached a water cache just in time to see trail angel Mike again, attending to the second water cache and handing out breakfast burritos. We helped him unload the water and put back the empties before digging into the trail magic.
Mike is an amazing man. Without him there would be a 35 mile stretch without water. Considering Papa Bear at CLEEF campground recommended drinking at least 1L of water for every 4 miles hiked, and 2 extra litres for dry camping, you would be looking at an 11L water carry to cover that section. In a heatwave you would probably want even more than that! When asked why he does it he replied “because the wife tells me to do so”.
We continued on up the hill which was luckily still in shadows from the barely risen sun. Dan struggled with this section, experiencing a pain behind his knee. Two ibuprofens and some tiger balm later we made it to the top, and from here we could see the Sierra mountains for the first time. Another step closer to the end of the desert.
The view from the top, looking back down at where we climbed from
We continued down, there was little wind but at least there were trees proving shade. Frequently the valley would vibrate with the sound of passing jets overhead. This had been a common occurrence for the last two days and still made me squirm with excitement whenever I saw a jet fly over.
I found the walking enjoyable for the most part, that was until the last 2 miles of trail which took us to an exposed dirt road and followed it upwards. We reached this section during the hottest part of the day, reaching over 40°C (104°F). What felt like 10 miles later and 1 mental breakdown we arrived at camp for lunch having walked 20 miles.
As we collapsed down, Paige looked at us with a telling smile saying “the road to Ridge Crest is only 8 miles away, we could have a shower and sleep in a bed tonight”. It would be a 28 mile day and I was shattered, but the damage was already done: she had planted the idea.
Due to a lack of water I hadn’t been able to wash my feet properly on trail. I’ve had an ongoing problem with blisters, but this was the worst my feet have felt. I took advantage at our lunch spot using our first reliable water source in days to scrub at the dried dirt and sand. With some of the grime removed I noted how bad they had become and wondered if it would be best to get to town to treat them properly.
Mad to think we covered our longest distance on trail in the midst of a heatwave
It was actually a pretty easy walk to the road, the promise of town comforts pulling us forward. As we drove towards Ridge Crest in trail angel Larry’s car we worked out we had covered 28 PCT miles but had walked over 29 miles. In town we hobbled over to Denny’s, feeling 50 years older as we limped across the road.
Day 45
Pain, I was in pain. My left foot throbbed and when I went to examine it I found tracking redness from the blister site, the skin tight, hot to touch and inflamed. The blister itself appeared clean and infection free. Diagnosis: cellulitis, a skin infection requiring antibiotics. After breakfast we managed to obtain antibiotics and picked them up while re-supplying in Walmart.
I’m embarrassed to share this, but this is the reality of trail: having to pre-soak our hiking gear ahead of washing them to get rid of all the dirt.
After resupplying, we joined Sweet Rolls in Panda Express. Here we demolished some orange chicken and noodles, breaking my vegetarianism for the protein cravings I was experiencing. Come evening we ordered pizza and underwent a pamper session with face masks while we waited for food to arrive.
Day 46
The redness in my foot looked a little more pink, a good sign that the antibiotics were working. It was still aching and throbbing which only got worse when dressing it, but I suspected it would be fine to walk on.
We enjoyed breakfast, shovelling in as much calories and protein as possible before Larry came to pick us up. Larry’s a retired doctor and jokes that he became a trail angel to annoy his late wife. The story goes that she loved the outdoors but hated camping, so now he spends her savings on smelly hikers. I get the impression though that he really enjoys doing it, picking us up with a grin and refusing all donations.
On the way back to trail we discussed the all consuming nature of the PCT and how we’ve dissociated from the world back home. The cognitive and physical workload of trail is simply too demanding to be there for friends and family. Even on town days with wifi I’m so busy planning the next section or resupplying or completing town chores. This feels very unnatural to me, especially as I’m normally the friend called upon when there’s a crisis. Before we went away we had a discussion with loved ones to let them know we wouldn’t be able to reply back to messages or take calls very often. On trail I am now very thankful for having the forethought to do this. The PCT is by far the most selfish thing I’ve done.
Heading back out into the desert for the last time
The start of the walk was a steep climb in loose sand which my calves heavily protested. At the peak, we broke for lunch. Mercifully there was sufficient cloud cover and a cooling breeze to help tolerate the back end of the heatwave. We enjoyed leftover pizza and bag of Caesar salad for lunch before continuing on to camp.
For the past two weeks Sweet Rolls, Paige, Dan and I have been walking and camping together. We plan to stay together as we enter the Sierra next week
Day 47
We intentionally didn’t set any alarms this morning with the notion that we all deserved a lie in. We stirred as people around us packed up and headed out, passing by us as we slept on. Finally we broke camp and began our first steps of the day.
The first six miles consisted of a long hill climb on uneven terrain. I huffed and puffed my way up, my calves screaming in protest at the effort. We were less than two days away from Kennedy Meadows and panic took over me. This was the weakest on trail I have felt, yet surely I should be feeling my strongest with almost 700 miles of trail covered. How was I going to survive the Sierras?
The landscape is changing yet again, less sand and more greenery
We made it up the hill and back down the other side reaching the water source for midday. Here we settled in the shade of tall pine trees, surrounded by purple lupines. The rest of the gang also expressed feeling exhausted and unfit. We discussed some causes, maybe we were just fatigued, the effort from the past 7 weeks catching up with us. Or maybe it was psychological, knowing we were two days from the end of the desert and our bodies were finally giving out in anticipation of a break. I also considered the effects of the antibiotics and the infection they were fighting and how that too could be contributing.
We continued on aiming to get over halfway up the final climb before Kennedy Meadows, finding a beautiful camp spot in a pine woods clearing. We set up our sleep system, opting to cowboy camp and settled down. We had a dessert party, whereby you dump all your remaining snacks into the centre for all to consume.
Final night in the desert
Day 48
During the night we watched as the pink sky faded and spotted with stars whose light intensified with the darkness. I woke sporadicly throughout the night glimpsing the sky at various stages of its cycle until finally dawn broke. In the gentle light we packed away camp and began our final day in the desert.
Early morning light
As we descended the hill the surrounding views changed, morphing into white mountains with yellow flowering bushes lining the path and large boulders spotted about. As we continued down I was shocked to see the green grass of a meadow. I haven’t seen green grass since leaving England!
As we came into the last three miles, thunder boomed, reverberating across the valley. I could see wisps of dark cloud descending into the mountains before us. It was a dramatic ending to the desert section – finishing in rain, just how we started it. As we strode into the general store the hikers sitting out front cheered us in and rang a bell; a tradition for all hikers who have just completed the desert.
The clouds coming for us
We sat out front of the General Store sipping cold drinks and huddled together out of the rain. Before long a shuttle took us to Grumpy Bears, our campsite for the night. We had a bit of a vision of how our completion of the desert section would play out and on arrival to Grumpy’s that was soon crushed. Many hikers had prolonged their stays to wait out the storm which had been brewing on and off for two days, which meant the bar was swamped. Further to this was the loud music being played at lunch time. The amount of people and the noise was simply too much and over stimulating. The menu was limited to burgers and pizza and horrendously overpriced.
Tired from the desert and disappointed in a place we had coveted for so long, we sat slumped at our table silently eating but not enjoying the food. It was all too much. The joy I had hoped to feel at the end of the desert refused to materialise. I also felt unable to conceptualise the reality of starting the Sierra. The desert had been too demanding of my attention to think beyond it. Now faced with picking up ice axes and bear canisters, I felt too overwhelmed.
Unhinged scenes at Grumpy’s
Day 49
In all my life I have never seen a pancake as large as the ones at Grumpy’s. The diameter is around two hands and it’s at least an inch thick. Our mistake was ordering one each as it took six people to finish two pancakes!
So big it hovers off the table
We would need the energy provided though, because today was the PCT Olympics: The Hiker Games. My team was Purple and we waved purple bandanas on sticks in support of our participants during each of the five hiker themed events. Our biggest success came in the last event whereby Kaleidoscope and I successfully picked off all the other team members during a game of Fox Tail Tag. Overall, the Blue team won the majority of the games which seemed fitting considering they were responsible for planning the games.
Photo doesn’t quite capture the sense of urgency during bear can bonanza
Throughout the day, in between events, we caught up with hikers coming into town and said good luck to those heading out to the Sierra. We enjoyed drinks and food at Grumpy’s and come the closing ceremony celebrated with margaritas and beers. To celebrate the day, we ate and drank on a bench outside until finally Grumpy cut the power and we retreated to bed.
Kaleidoscope and I loosing all dignity crawling over the finish line to snatch second place after falling in the three legged race
I felt that after yesterday’s shock at completing the desert I needed a day of silly shenanigans to get out of my own head. I would highly recommend organising something similar to future PCT hikers. Teamwork is vital ahead of the dangerous river crossings, mountain summits and descents in the Sierra, knowing those around you will be a huge benefit!
I have loved and hated the desert. I respect her for all she has taught me, but boy did it test me. While at the time I felt empty of emotions at completing the largest section of the PCT, I can reassure you that pride and a sense of accomplishment came later next week as we headed back out to trail to start the beautifully brutal High Sierra.
