Richard and Karin drove of us back into town this morning. We then got a hiker shuttle to the Devils Slide trailhead from the Idyllwild Inn. The Devils Slide trail was 2.5 miles and not part of the PCT but we had to get back up on the ridge at the point the PCT reopens after the fire closure. It was a cold day with snow on the ground from last night. No problem to hike in though. Once back on the PCT we took another detour. This one was by choice. It was a 5 mile detour up San Jacinto which is the highest mountain in Southern California and we were told not to miss it. I had a hard time dealing with the elevation. The summit of San Jacinto is at 10,834 feet. My breathing felt labored. One hiker turned around after not feeling well and went back to town. East coasters like us are not used to elevations so high and it takes the body time to adjust.
After the summit of San Jacinto, we had still 3 miles to hike before getting back on the PCT once and for all. Extremely tired we hiked another 4 miles with Goldilocks and Cheeseburger before finding a camp in the freezing cold temperatures.
Balance & Y-Knot at the start of the Devils Slide trail.
Thick fog and mist while climbing the Devils Slide trail.
Balance in the snow of the Devils Slide trail.
Goldilocks, Cheeseburger, and Y-Knot at the start of the San Jacinto trail.
Almost to the summit of San Jacinto. Our weather was nice for the summit but turned worst on the descent.
We made it. 10,834 feet above sea level and the highest point in Southern California. Just a 5 mile detour off the PCT so it couldn't be missed.
This summit probably gave you a view down into Palm Springs. Did you see Kyle down there waving to you? ;-)
ReplyDeleteSeriously, it's great that you got to the top of this.