Got in four excellent days on the trail, taking off from where we last ended. Then a very nice Thanksgiving with Vicki's sister in the LA area.
Day one was quite warm, hiking in and near the Agua Caliente Canyon near Warner Springs. Most of the hiking was through chaparral:
Lunch was nice - this is a very long canyon system. As a result it usually has flowing water; and it did on our trip. The girls couldn't resist playing in the water:
Near the end of the day Vicki picked us up:
Warner Springs has a glider port where rides are offered. We'd talked about letting the girls each take a flight (as a special treat). I rode with Tricia. Katie went alone with her pilot - and was allowed to fly the plane for over 5 minutes:
The second day we hiked through high chaparral and the remnants of burned forest, all at 4,000 to 5,000 feet elevation:
The third day started with a hike around the east side of Bucksnort Mountain. Who names these things anyway? More high chaparral:
Miss Madaleine naturally came with:
On the last day the weather turned a little. We had some sprinkles, but went for it in what amounted to slightly wet, but refreshingly cool conditions:
On the last day Vicki hiked out to meet us from Highway 74 ("the Palms to Pines Highway" from Idyllwild to Palm Springs). Here we started to get into mixed terrain, including areas of big oak trees and pines:
Tricia bashed her knee near the end (you can see the tears):
Four days and 42 more miles. We're now 154 trail miles from the Mexican border. And we're on the southern flank of Mount San Jacinto, which has been looming to the north for many hikes now:
Next April (weather allowing) we'll stay in Idyllwild, hike the whole length of San Jacinto and finish just over Interstate Highway 10. Can't wait.
