Pacific Crest Trail

4/17/15- 7/6/15

From the Mexican Border into the Yosemite Valley

4/27/15
About a week ago I turned into an owl. Ellie had fallen asleep next to me and I was laying looking out of the tent with the rain fly and door open. The whole of the constellations of the northern sky were visible above, and only the black silhouettes of the surrounding mountains and the closest desert scrub plants to the tent could be seen on the horizon. From my perspective I suddenly took flight and was soaring above the canyon floor below. I could feel the wind, and see the manzanitas and chaparral below. Suddenly I sensed the movement of a lizard and swooped down grasping it firmly in my talons. Then I was suddenly back in my tent.
This all came about because a couple hours earlier, we were night hiking with our headlamps when two eyes were glowing back at me from up the trail. At first I thought it was a fox, but then it quickly took off in the night air. I then knew it must have been an owl. Fortunately, it landed a couple hundred yards further up the trail and let us get within about 5 feet of it. We stared transfixed at this tiny owl for about twenty seconds until it took off again, this time not to be seen again. For as brief of an encounter as it was, it definitely left an impression. That is how it is everyday out on the trail There is always a new plant, rock, natural formation, or feature that inspires the deepest of awe. The japanese call it "yugen"- that wordless state of wonder that makes you feel completely connected with all of creation.
We're doing great on the trail, and hope everyone reading this is doing great wherever you may be.

Addendum:
I am shaking and near to tears as I write this. We came straight from the trail to the library where we used up our hour of computer time to update our blog. It wasn't until we checked in to a room and turned on the news after being in a desert without cell reception for 3 days the we found out was going on. Watching my city plunge into the chaos that comes about from years of living in fear, subjugation, and poverty is almost too much to bear. There is no justifying the violence being perpetrated by a small group of individuals, but anyone who lives in Baltimore knows that the powder keg of racial tension has been about to blow. Ellie and I have both taught in the city school-to-prison pipeline and know firsthand how the kids feel. If only their energy could be channeled in a different way, real changes could start happening. Love and understanding must prevail. We pray that this situation can end in the most peaceful way possible.

At the border 4/17/15 around 6:30 PM

Looking north from the border.

PCT Southern Terminus and the border wall between the US and Mexico

Fire damage can unfortunately be seen most everywhere.

Yucca in bloom. The stalks are usually about 8 feet tall.

The flowers create these green seed pods that eventually dry out and open to release the seeds. All the while the mother plant is dying- creating the stalk is the last act of it's life.

Hiking down to Lake Morena

Campsite on ledge above Kitchen Creek

Mid-day siestas can end up looking like a photo shoot with our umbrellas in the bushes for extra shade.

Woodpeckers make holes and hammer acorns into the trees for storage. These suckers are really in there! We weren't able to even budge one.

Trees on Mt Laguna

Anza-Borrega Dessert

Storm Canyon feeding into the Anza-Borrega

Boulder field campsite. While it was about 90 degrees all day, clouds and heavy winds moved in that night and it was around freezing with an even colder windchill.

Century plant

We're so lucky to see these cactus blooms everywhere everyday.

It's steep in the San Jacinto Mountains

The Blue Agave shoots are even taller than the Yucca.

Great campsite in a ravine on Granite Mountain

Barrel Cactus

Right in the middle of this photo is a coyote. Ellie spotted it wandering from bush to bush in the distance during a lunch break.

These are actually relatively clean!

Camp at the end of a 23 mile day. We started on Granite Mountain which you can see in the distance on the left,

Pastureland leading into Warner Springs

Eagle Rock

This is as high as Ellie goes.

Coyote Melon Blossom

We were walking in the clouds all day coming out of Warner Springs, but it was good that some much needed rain fell in Southern California.

The Manzanita bushes are in bloom.

Hikers lining up to get Chicken, Rice, Potatoes, and Tortillas at Mike Herrara's

Mike's oldest brother Rudy. The "ornery" one!

Steep climb out of Nance Canyon

Ellie's favorite color

Camp overlooking the small community of Anza. We were awoken by 50-60 mph winds, but the tent performed admirably.

Dinner time.

One of the many snakes we see day to day

Steep canyon walls heading into Idyllwild.

5/8/15

This dispatch is coming to you from the Best Western at Cajon Pass at mile 340 of the PCT. We took a day off because of a late season snow storm that dumped 10"+ in the high mountains ahead of us. Luckily we shouldn't have to deal with much of the snow because it will melt off in the next couple of days before we get there.
It's just another example of the various extremes we've been going through the past couple of weeks. We've experienced the extreme heat of the 110 degree palm springs desert, and frost in our tent from lows in the upper 20's in the mountains in the morning. There's the extremes of scenery- mountains made bare by wildfire, and 100 foot tall cedars and pines on the next ridge over; what seems like every species of desert plants in colorful bloom; the relentless sun, and the even more relentless El Nino winds. Yet there is a tranquility that balances everything out and reminds us daily of how lucky we are to be here.

Going up the Devils Slide Trail out of Idyllwild

Looking out over Idyllwild

The beautiful layered bark of the Ponderosa Pine

Holes in the boulders and some lingering snow on San Jacinto

Looking down into the Palm Springs Desert

Interesting rock formations on Fuller Ridge

Perched hummingbird

Sunset view of San Jacinto from our camp off Fuller Ridge

Moonrise over San Jacinto bathed in alpenglow

San Jacinto from the baking desert floor. It was 110 degrees down here and you can still see snow on the peak. There is a 9,000 foot elevation difference.

Tenting in Ziggy and the Bears front yard with view of San Jacinto

The Brontosaurus from Pee Wees Big Adventure in Cabazon!

Ziggy and the Bear are retirees who open their backyard to hikers to get out of the intense heat in Cabazon.

House rules

The Mesa Wind Farm

Entering the San Gorgono Wilderness

Bullfrog spotted while night hiking

San Gorgono Wilderness

Entering Mission Creek Canyon

San Gorgono Mountain from the San Bernardinos

Back of pick-up truck hitch into Big Bear City

Big Bear Lake

The white sphere is a Solar Observatory.

It's a boy!

Retiree Nicole who is solo hiking while her husband is on an extended rafting expedition in Alaska!

Proper conflict resolution is key on the PCT

Deep Creek Gorge

Rainbow Bridge over Deep Creek

The Silverwood Lake Dam.

The sign every hiker wants to see!

Trail Angel and 2103 thru-hiker, Legend

The chi-chis, I mean, Cajon Pass Best Western

6/5/15

Wow, how long it's been! This is the first computer that I've had a chance to sit in front of since our last update from Cajon Pass. We're now at mile 750 in a small, desert town called Lone Pine. On the PCT we're just about to enter Sequoia and King's Canyon National Parks and then Yosemite. This is the best stuff coming up and it feels like a reward for making it through the deserts, wildfire-exposed mountains, and intense sun of Southern California! There are a lot of pictures here so I don't know what'll crash first- your computer, or your brain...

Tunnel under RR Tracks in Cajon Pass

Train after train rolls by every 45 minutes

Snow on some of the highest elevations from the previous days storms

We met Jimbo while coming into Wrightwood. He was gardening and invited us to sit and talk.

We had to leave when he turned into a koala!

Wrightwood Inn

Bristlecone Pines. Some in the White Mountain range are 4,000+ years old

Snow on Mt Baden-Powell

Summit of Baden-Powell

Baden-Powell

Century Plants

High camp on Mt Williamson

This is what happens to form the 8-10 foot tall stalks that flower and seed on the agaves.

Poodle Dog Bush- worse than poison oak and all over some of the fire-burned areas. Luckily we made it through all of those sections without getting a rash!

California City clouded over in the valley below.

It was a lot less windy down by the horse corrals at the North Fork Ranger Station

I was wearing pants all day and I STILL got this dirty.

Rocks formations before Acton

Horseshoes at the KOA

Tunnel under the Interstate

Little did we know it lead to a magical place called "Vasquez Rocks"

There were water carved canyons of all different shades of sandstones

I think this looks like a gorilla face

You can see the people in front of, and the guy on this formation to get a sense of the scale.

All of your favorites were shot here, like Wild Wild West starring Will Smith! And look, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back!

Sign coming into Agua Dulce

Best pizza on the trail so far, and who can beat a free fountain soda for a thru-hiker?!

l to r: Geisha, Rebel Biscuit, Dollywood, KC, and Daniel

Yes, that an airplane fuselage that someone is living in outside of Agua Dulce.

"The Oasis" is a few chairs, a water cache, coolers full of various trail magic, and the random inflatable parrot or palm tree. This happened to be one of the last days it was going to be up after 14 years because of complaints from some members of the hiking community.

Hanging out at the Anderson's house, the "Casa de Luna" The Andersons are the ones who stocked and maintained the Oasis water cache. Their house also referred to as "Hippie Daycare"

Terry laying out the rules for dinner and wielding the yardstick she whacks you with if you break any of the rules in line.

Cattle to the trough

Her husband Joe makes pancakes in the morning on two griddles in the kitchen. Imagine cooking pancakes for around 40 ravished hikers...

Rock Inn Lake Hughes

That's 4 people, and 5 packs in the back of a ford ranger with a toolbox installed. Ellie got to ride up front with the lady

Hikertown is a hostel right before Mojave in the Antelope Valley

The owner has built a little wild west style town all over his property and hikers stay in all the different buildings.

There are a few roosters, a bunch of hens, and these little guys.

The maildrops hikers have sent themselves for re-supply. There was another wall full of packages.

Our abode.

Aye, aye.

There was a rooster that the others were ganging up on, so he preferred hanging out with the hikers in the garage/lounge

The LA Aquaduct bringing water all the way from the sierras to the ocean

Joshua Trees!

Ah, the contrast of the rockies in the Coors billboard, and the Mojave desert.

Yanko is from socal who we bump into every couple weeks.

Cold and misty coming out of Mojave

A carpet of wildflowers growing in a burn area.

Only the most scenic lunchspots for us

Climbing mountains made of sand really works the calves.

Joshua Tree sunset over the Mojave Desert.

Abandoned hippie bus in a ravine

There is so much sap in some places it looks like dripping wax

Mickey (l) and Bob! They were about 2 miles in from the road handing out paydays and heath bars.

Check the sign- Mortuary open. This strip mall funeral home is next to an Ace Hardware.

Great little place in Lake Isabella. The owners wife made 3 pizzas, potato salad, and 4 pies for dinner!

This guy didn't want to move. Good thing he's not poisonous

Kennedy Meadows is 700 miles in an important landmark on a hike marking the end of the desert.

Incorrect spelling aside, this seems like a pretty cool place to live

Hanging out on the General Stores side porch

The store runs on a generator because there is no electricity to the town of Inyo

Heading into the Sierras from Kennedy Meadows

Swallow nests under the Kern River Bridge. They were flying in and out feeding their chirping babies during our whole break.

Mount Whitney in the distance

Twisted trunk at 10,550 feet elevation.

Horseshoe Meadows

Taking a nice log nap at the campground near the meadows

The mountain bluebird

John on the left gave us a ride from Horseshoe Meadows down into Lone Pine. He runs ultra marathons and does nature photography. His brother-in-law Loren has been hiking and camping with him for 30 years. Also, I think we're going to change the name of the blog to "Picturesofelliewitholdmen.blogspot.com

Moon setting into the Sierras behind our motel

Sunrise Alpenglow on Mt Whitney in the clouds

Mural on building in Lone Pine

Looks like a Lone Pine twist on the Twin Peaks RR Diner.

We'll end with a picture of the guard tower from the Manzanar Internment Camp where Japanese individuals and families were imprisoned during WWII out of fear that they'd be spies or terrorist inside of the US. Here's a quote from Martin Niemöller, a Lutheran minister imprisoned by the Nazis for his oppostionist views:

"First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me."

This camp was right next to a town called Independence. We only hope that love and reason can overtake all the hatred and fear in this world.

6/12/15

Well we walked for five days and ended up back in Lone Pine. Kinda sounds like the beginning of a Graham Parsons song, but we got off the trail at Kearsarge Pass at mile 788 and got a lift into Independence. Unfortunately, we had to hitch back into Lone Pine because all of the 5 motels in Independence were booked due to no hikers leaving because of the weather the past few days.

Sequoia and King's Canyon National Park have been too much for words. It's nice to be able to update the blog because I've been taking more pictures the past few days because every turn you take you end up seeing something even more epic and beautiful than before. We also summited Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the lower 48 states, a few days ago. We can't wait to keep heading north through Kings Canyon and into Yosemite!

Since the PCT joins the John Muir Trail through the Sierras, it's only fitting to include a couple of quotes from Muir himself:

"When we contemplate the whole globe as one great dewdrop, striped and dotted with continents and islands, flying through space with other stars all singing and shining together as one, the whole universe appears as an infinite storm of beauty. "
- Travels in Alaska by John Muir

"Between every two pine trees there is a door leading to a new way of life."
Muir's marginal note in volume I of Prose Works by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Cool volcanic tufa rock formations in the Golden Trout Wilderness

Dippin' Dots hail

Chicken Spring Lake

Mountain top meadows abound and are at an elevation of 10,000'

Looming weather

Crabtree Meadows

Timberline Lake on the way up to Whitney

Whitney Basin

Hitchcock Mountain glowing in the sunrise with Guitar Lake reflecting the clear skies

Marmots are all over the high meadows in the sierras. They're like beavers with bushy tails and very curious and unafraid of hikers.

Mt Whitney, but that's a false summit there on the left. The real summit is a few hundred feet higher

Ice on Hitchcock Lake

The last couple of miles of the ascent up Whitney

View on the way up

Final push

The lakes are frozen solid on the north side.

The green blotch in the middle is the town of Lone Pine at an elevation of 3727 feet- 10,778 feet lower than the summit

The White and Piute Mountains across Owens Valley

The hut was built by the CCC as an emergency shelter.

The elevation is now officially listed at 14,505'

A raven soaring around the peak

King's Canyon National Park is behind me

Coming back down. Mt Muir is right in front of Ellie

Guitar Lake

Another Marmot

If you look closely you can see a marmot peeking out from near the orangish rock.

Pheasant in the trail

Whitney in the distance the day after we climbed it. It's the one just to the right of middle with the sides covered in snow

Heading up into the Foxtail Pines

Bighorn Plateau is above 12,000' elevation

Forester Pass is the small notch to the left of the middle of the photo. It's the highest point on the PCT. (Mt Whitney is a side trip off the PCT, so not officially the highest on the PCT)

Icy lake near Forester Pass

It switched between hail and snow most of the night.

Waiting out the storm

By morning the precipitation had stopped, but clouds still lingered.

The south was clear, but the north where we were going was still socked in with clouds

Going up Forester Pass. You can see the trail winding up on the left if you look carefully

The view of King's Canyon from the top of Forester. Normally it's a little more spectacular than this, but it still was beautiful in the fast, swirling clouds.

The north side of the pass was still covered in snow. Basically you slosh and posthole (when your leg goes down into 2'-3' deep snow) your way 600' down until you're out of the snow and back on the trail

Center Peak

King's Canyon

Getting back to the treeline around 12,000 feet

Bubbs Creek. It's amazing not to have to carry more than a liter of water at a time. In the desert, we'd sometimes have to carry up to 6 liters each- that's about 14 pounds!

These are only about 3 inches tall and were growing at a really high altitude of about 12,000 feet

Vidette Meadows

Coming up Kearsarge Pass from Bullfrog Lake

The Kearsarge Lakes with the Kearsarge Spires towering thousands of feet behind them

Glacial Lake on the other side of Kearsarge

Coming down into Independence from the Onion Valley Campground, we watched a thunderstorm move across the Owens Valley desert. You can clearly see where it's raining, and where it's not. It just felt nice to be in a truck after walking through hail and rain for a few hours!

7/8/15

Here's another large cache of pictures from the last few weeks. We have decided to get off of the trail and head back to Baltimore for a while. We've walked a little over 1,000 miles and have had an amazing time and we thought a fitting end for our journey would be to finish the John Muir Trail by heading into Yosemite Valley. Before we finished up in Yosemite, we ended up renting a car for a few days to do a little road trip. The main objective was to get some boxes we had sent to South Lake Tahoe, but a side agenda was to head to Reno and cheap, cheap casino hotel rooms to allow a sinus infection Ellie had some time to heal. We're now officially done, but doing one more mini road trip from Mammoth Lakes down to Vegas! We'll be stopping at a few natural attractions along the way as we explore the Nevada desert on the way to LV.

This following poem is one I read in a small book of Native American poems I picked up in Bishop and I think it's one of the most fitting ways to put our trip in perspective.

Eagle Poem

BY JOY HARJO

To pray you open your whole self

To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon

To one whole voice that is you.

And know there is more

That you can’t see, can’t hear;

Can’t know except in moments

Steadily growing, and in languages

That aren’t always sound but other

Circles of motion.

Like eagle that Sunday morning

Over Salt River. Circled in blue sky

In wind, swept our hearts clean

With sacred wings.

We see you, see ourselves and know

That we must take the utmost care

And kindness in all things.

Breathe in, knowing we are made of

All this, and breathe, knowing

We are truly blessed because we

Were born, and die soon within a

True circle of motion,

Like eagle rounding out the morning

Inside us.

We pray that it will be done

In beauty.

View of the Sierras and Mount Williamson from our room at the Independence Inn

Old masonic hall turned into a coffee shop

Elotes!

Dusy Basin

Coming over Glen Pass

"The Painted Lady"

This is a Pika. It's as big as a mouse, but it's really a small rabbit. Unfortunately, it will probably go extinct soon because of rising temperatures. It keeps going higher and higher up the mountains to try to stay cool, but it's almost to the highest elevations, then they'll start dying from the heat when they can't go any higher.

Rae Lakes

Peak reflected in Upper Rae lake

This bridge was way wobblier than it looks!

Our first campfire of the trail!

On top of Pinchot Pass

Mule deer strolling

One of our favorite camps of the whole trail- the Upper Basin of the King's River. There was no one around for miles

Glacial carving

Mather Pass

Twisted Cedar

Buck growing his antlers

The deer come so close to camp and are totally not phased by people

Some of the last snow we'd see on the trail coming down Bishop Pass

Pack trains supply the ranger outposts in the middle of the park.

The place that Slim Pickens officially called his "second home"- the Town House Motel in Bishop.

Joseph's Bi-Rite cares about the local wildlife.

Ascending Muir Pass

Muir Hut from below

Wanda Lake, named after one of Muir's daughters

We sat here for a very long break.

Playing uke on Evolution Lake

Trout anyone?

Campsite over looking Evolution Lake

Silver Pass basin

Peak and Half-moon. These jagged types of peaks are called nunataks and are what stuck out above the glaciers, so while everything else got rounded off and smooth these stayed sharp and irregular.

The BEST marmot! We were only a few feet from him and he splayed himself out on the rock. Maybe he thinks he's hiding...

Then he scooted away when we tried to get even closer

Remnants of the huge forest fire 12 years ago outside of Red's Meadows

Piute influence on the design of the school.

No doubt a fine establishment an hour from Reno

Our room at the El Dorado had a view of the Bowling Hall of Fame and Arena

The coolest motel sign we've seen

You're not in the woods anymore, Ellie

We know who's in charge at this Reno thrift store. I think this door must open to heaven.

Nothing like cruising Reno in a Chevy Spark

So cool!

Roadcrews are different in California

The Panum Crater near Mono Lake is a volcano that erupted about 600 years ago and left this rim and plug as evidence.

Tufa rock formations along the shore of Mono Lake. It's actually an inland salt water sea.

The Devil's Postpile National Monument

It was formed when a field of lava cooled at a uniform rate and made hexagonal columns.

Glaciers came and sheered off the sides to expose the formation

On top it looks like a tiled floor. The parallel lines are where rocks scrapped across the surface.

A friendly group of boy scouts taking up the whole top, but at least you get a sense of the scale.

Columns from the side

Lupine is one of the most common wildflowers

The minarets

Rosalie Lake

You can see the pollen on the rocks and see how the lake has been slowly draining and evaporating during the summer

It rained during the night and our tent left a hexagon just like the devil's postpile

Rosalie Lake in the morning

Garnet Lake

Thousand Island Lake

The snow up there is actually the last remaining glacier in Yosemite.

Tuolumne Meadows

Lembert Dome

The Dude Light and Copper, along with a few other hikers, gave each other "stick and poke" tattoos on the 4th of July. They say "trail provides." Hopefully it provides some anti-bacterial lotion so they don't get infected!

Lembert Dome in Tuolumne Meadows

Cathedral Peak

Heading down into Yosemite Valley

first view of half dome

Ellie checking out Liberty Cap

Nevada Falls plunging down into the valley

Half Dome and Liberty Cap

The front of Nevada Falls

Our pic at the end of the John Muir Trail. We saw a small sign, and passed it thinking there must be something grander for the beginning/end of the JMT. Apparently, that was the official end, but we were good with taking this picture on the Happy Isles Bridge.

"Why the crappy sign, John?"

Half Dome in the morning light

People pay over a hundred dollars a night in Yosemite Valley to act like they're in the show MASH

Stellar Jays like this one are very persistent about trying to get your camp scraps.

Yosemite Falls

El Capitan stands over 3000 feet above the valley floor. That's 3 times the height of the empire state building.

Half Dome from a distance.

Tenaya Lake is the largest in Yosemite

The road out of Yosemite over Tioga Pass

7/20/15

Our road trip from Yosemite to Las Vegas turned out to be as equally amazing as being on the trail because of three special places we visited- the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, Death Valley National Park, and the Valley of Fire State Park.

Even though we didn't finish the PCT, this trip will definitely be one we'll never forget, especially because we got engaged!

The edge of the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest- 11,000 elevation

The trees in this grove are up to 4,000 years old

They grow in acidic soil other pines and plants can't grow in.

The tight growth rings make them extremely strong and fire and big-proof.

Older parts of the tree die off and new needles only need thin strips of bark to provide them with enough water.

Looking out from the grove to the Sierra Nevadas across the Owens Valley

Standing dead tree. It may not fall over for another thousand years, then it will lay there for another thousand or so.

Female cone. The spikes are why they're called bristlecones.

Male cone

Stormy Sierra mountains

Driving into Death Valley National Park

We got to chase this rainbow for an hour before it finally went away

It seemed a privilege to see one in a place that only gets 2" of rain a year.

Fittingly this spot is called Rainbow Canyon

Double rainbow!

On the valley floor you could see evidence of the storm that just passed.

Everything became even more colorful during the sunset.

Sunrise at the Furnace Creek Campground. We drove until dark before we stopped in and set up our tent. At 9 pm it had just dropped below 100 degrees

Desert breezin'

Some trees around the campground. We pretty much so had the place to ourselves because believe it or not, summertime is not the prime season to go to Death Valley- the hottest place in the US.

Palm trees in the campground

Our rental elantra goes faster than our hiking boots.

We were surprised to see cattle egret was on the entrance station to the campground

The Badwater Basin is the lowest point in the US. So on this trip we were able to go to the highest (Mt Whitney) and lowest elevations in the country.