The PCT Volume 12: "Ah, Dad, Do We Have To?"

[skully]

It may be our only chance to catch up. You guys get around.

[mungeclimber]

But the girls want to check out the Wii that their aunt Kaaren got them for Christmas. The proposed compromise is to go home, set up the Wii, then play the PCT application. Nah.

Wii?

really?

[Brad Young]

After a family Christmas with Vicki's family in Tracy, and mine in San Jose, we headed down on the night of the 26th for a bivy up on Sawmill Mountain, where we'd finished our last hike. We arrived at 9:30 to cold temps, but all we had to do was unpack the car and get in our sleeping bags. The next morning we woke up to really cold temps (22 degrees), but a beautiful location. I quickly made coffee, hot chocolate and oatmeal, the sun came out, and we got ready to hike:










Tricia found sheets of ice on a nearby puddle:






We drove back one mile to start our hike. Katie got to drive this part. The temperature when we started hiking was a balmy 34 degrees:








We hiked on the north and then the south side of the ridge. The day was clear and the views spectacular:










This is Tricia's self portrait:






We enjoyed a lunch with a view:






We gained elevation this day to just over 5,700 feet. We then dropped down off the ridge toward the Antelope Valley and the Tehachapis. Above 4,500 feet we started to get into some snow, which we hiked in for several miles:









The drop down from the ridge to the valley is controversial. The Tejon Ranch (the largest privately owned spread of land in the state) resisted efforts to place the PCT over its land until 1993 (it's the only logical place for the trail to go). Even then, the trail was kept as close to the ranch's border as possible. As a result, there is some severe up and down hiking from the top of the ridge to the bottom of the valley, and then over the next set of hills into the Antelope Valley proper:









After 14.2 really fun miles (including passing our 500th continuous mile of hiking from the Mexican border), Vicki picked us up on Pine Canyon road and we were off to Joshua Tree for three days of climbing with friends:

[Brad Young]

We had a nice time in Josh, climbing with about a dozen friends. But the middle day was unclimbable; scattered showers and gale force winds. And I mean gale force. We've got a Sierra Designs six person, family car camping tent. After all day in the winds, by evening the stress must have gotten to it. A main pole snapped! And I don't mean a wimpy little fiberglass pole, this was a half inch diameter metal pole. We had to bail to town, where we stayed with friends:







We climbed on the 30th, then drove to Lancaster. Since the temps were predicted to be (and were) ten degrees lower than they had been four days earlier, we opted to stay in that town and drive out twenty miles to the trail on New Year's eve. By the time we got going the temps had increased to 31 degrees:







A small pond near the start of the hike provided entertainment. Katie threw a rock to make the ice break. but it didn't break; instead it hit the pond and bounced! We kept throwing rocks and laughing, forgetting that our dogs are called retrievers for a reason:







Then over to Pine Canyon Road and into more of the Tejon Ranch stay-near-our-fence-hike-up-and-down nonsense. But the views were again, spectacular:











Then, down onto the flats and another half-mile to Highway 138:









Then a brief break at the highway with Vicki and then the not-as-pleasant hike across Antelope Valley started (this is on surface roads and on the banks of aqueducts):







Yes, this is the PCT, on the bank of the California aqueduct:









Tricia and Katie enjoy listening to country music. A popular song now is "Big Green Tractor:"





The "trail" then turns off from the California Aqueduct onto the Los Angeles Aqueduct (these cross by way of a pipe, which, later, becomes the trail):





More icy water, even in the early afternoon:







Then we met up with Vicki and hit the road. Part of the promise I made to my older daughter was that - in return for a good attitude on the whole trip - I'd get her home in time to spend New Year's eve with friends (and we did):





And that's the PCT part of my 50th birthday celebration: five days of hiking, just over 52 miles, now 521 continuous miles from the Mexican border, still having fun.

[skully]

Roger that, Brad. The having fun part, that is. That Mojave wind is mighty, huh?
Shame about the ranchy detours.

[Brad Young]

About a year and a half ago the Tejon Ranch signed a deal with the state of California. Among other things, in return for permits to build a 2,000+ home new town near the grapevine on I-5, the ranch is setting aside some land as rural, permanently. It is also allowing the PCT to be re-routed farther into the ranch before turning toward the Tehachapis (and that way keeping the trail on the true pacific crest in that area). With budgets and all, the Pacific Crest Trail Association will probably have to do the trail building (mostly with volunteers - they can muster large numbers). It'll be years though.

[mungeclimber]

nice.

tho a bit cold for my blood.

Happy Bday!