Thursday, April 30, 2026. Overcast and mid-40s going up to 77.
Up at 7:00. Our ride is at 9:00, so no rush.
A past hiker named Sam picked us up and took us to the trail at 8:45. Very nice. We got on the trail at 9:15.
Long 14-mile uphill in the desert today to reach water. I’m carrying 3.5 liters.
The first 2 hours were overcast, which was awesome. Then the sun came out, and it became a struggle.
Took a 15-minute break at 4.5 miles.
Took a 15-minute break at 7.63 at 12:35.
The sun was harsh as most of the clouds went away around 11:30. Nice breeze though.
Day 7 Desert View
Took a break at 2:10 and 10.8 miles. Hot and uphill.
OMG. Made it to the water cache and shade at 3:50 and 14.2 miles. I’m beat, and my feet hurt. Not as bad as I expected given I’m in new shoes, but still.
Shady break at water cache
I napped for 30 minutes in the shade. We stayed for an hour before hiking 2.25 more miles to camp. Carried 3.5 liters of water as the next water is in 10 miles.
Back on the trail at 5:10. Made it to camp at 6:15 and 16.66 miles. I’m really beat. There are 5 others including Kellie and Mash. Nice campsite with an awesome view.
Day 7 CampDay 7 Camp
Made dinner and crawled into bed at 7:00. Very tired physically. Feet sore but no more than with other shoes.
We reached Scissors Crossing at 9:30 and 5.2 miles. There was a nice water cache and chairs waiting for us under the bridge.
Water cache at Scissors CrossingScissors Crossing underpass
We sat down for about 25 minutes when a day hiker named Bob asked us, Fibi, and Olivia if we wanted a ride into Julian. Very nice of him.
We got dropped off in front of one of the markets in Julian at 10:15. I immediately found the owner of the lost tent. She was extremely happy!
Julian Grocery with fellow hikers
It’s a rough couple of days in Julian as there was a water main break a few days ago. Water is back on today, but no restaurants are open until tomorrow. Ouch.
We hung out in front of Jacks Grocery for a bit. Got a drink and snack. The hotel texted that my room was ready now. Awesome.
Brad and I walked the 2 blocks to the hotel and checked in. They also do laundry for $25, which is a nice bonus. We unpacked, showered, and dropped off our laundry at the front desk. I fixed the day 1 blog and uploaded day 5 blog. Generally relaxed for a bit.
Walked to the outfitter in town and got new shoes, socks, and gloves. I’m a little worried about the shoes. They are Altra Olympus trail shoes, which are a great shoe, but a zero-drop design. We added a heel lift insert to compensate for the fact that I am not used to a zero-drop shoe. Fingers crossed!
Walked to the market and picked up resupply for 2 days plus a deli sandwich and frozen burrito. No other food options with all the restaurants closed.
Boxed up my dead shoes, had the hotel print a UPS label, and asked the outfitter to add the package to their next outgoing UPS pickup. Everyone was very helpful.
I talked to my family and had a nice video chat with Pit Crew after an early dinner in the room. There is karaoke at the American Legion a few blocks away starting at 6:30. A lot of hikers are heading over there for the evening.
Spent 2 hours socializing and watching karaoke. It was a blast. Brad and I got talked into doing two songs: Don’t Stop Believin’ and later on Piano Man. We were the oldest in the room by a good 20 years. Token old guys 🙂
Brad and Orange Man at KaraokeKaraoke gang in Julian
Tuesday April 28, 2026. Light clouds and 36 going up to 70. Minimal wind.
Up at 6:15. It got very cold last night. The cold woke me up several times. We both had a thin layer of ice in our tent rain flies due to condensation freezing.
Packed and on trail at 7:15.
Stopped at 4.95 miles at 9:10 to get water and take a break . Nice water pipe with high pressure in the desert. Lots of hikers here watering up.
Water pipe in the desertHikers watering up
Back on trail at 9:35. Only carrying out 2 liters of water as there is water in 6 miles. It’s getting hot due to the constant sun.
This is the terrain today. Mostly heads down to avoid cactus encroaching on the trail.
Day 5 views
Got to the big water stop in the hot, shadeless desert at mile 11.1 at 12:35. Lots of hikers here resting and getting water. Most are going all the way to Julian today, but we are only going 5 more miles today and Neroing in Julian tomorrow.
Hikers seeking shade near JulianWater break near Julian
Lots of people headed into Julian. It’s either a cot at the American Legion if they don’t fill up or a pricey hotel room with a bath and AC. Guess what I made a reservation for 🙂
Hung out for 45 minutes, ate, filled up 3 liters of water, and headed out at 1:20. We have 4.5 miles to camp where there likely won’t be any shade.
Hard afternoon hiking. Lots of steep downhill and several annoying steep climbs. Dry hot and dry. Nursing my 3 liters of water so that I have enough for dinner tonight and tomorrow morning’s 5-mile hike.
Stopped at 3:50 and 14.73 miles. Good campsite for 2 tents. We both took a break in the shade until after 4:00 before setting up camp.
Resting under umbrella near Julian
That’s me on the left.
Day 5 camp
Both shoes really falling apart ! I’ll contact the vendor from town tomorrow.
We have 1 poor bar of cell service. I can barely text and nothing else. Wrote today’s blog then made dinner at 6:00. Spam, ramen, and hot pepper flakes. I forgot how much I love that meal. Still a bit hungry though.
Got settled into my tent at 6:30 and watched videos I previously downloaded. Hope to get to sleep by 10:00.
April 27, 2026. Cloudy with fog and mist, and 35 going up to 45.
Up at 6:15. Feel pretty good. We got packed up, ate breakfast, and headed out at 7:30. Issues from yesterday seem to be under control.
Cold, windy, foggy with very minimal visibility for the first 3 miles. Then the fog finally drifted off, and we got some amazing views.
Desert view
Took a break at 9:30 and 5.5 miles for a snack. Found a sheltered spot out of the wind. Some nice views but not a very memorable hike. We did pass the 50-mile mark!
50 mile marker
We stopped at the Pioneer Mail Picnic area at mile 10.8 miles at 11:30. There was trail magic and about a dozen hikers in the parking lot. Awesome surprise.
Day 4 Trail MagicMileage sign at Pioneer Picnic Site
It’s still windy and cold, especially when the sun is not out. I filled up my 1-liter water bottle with Sprite from trail magic. What the hell. Back on trail at 12:25.
Chuck with desert view
Brad and I are both tired and hurting a bit. We found a couple of dispersed camp sites near a dirt road in 5.1 miles. Gonna camp there.
Reached camp site at 2:30 and 16.5 miles. It will work. Took some work to get tents pitched in the wind, but we did it. Had to rely on rocks instead of tent stakes.
Our plan for tomorrow is 15.4 miles. That sets us up with an easy 5-mile morning and a hitchhike into Julian on Wednesday.
Day 4 Camp
Chilled in tent due to cold. Had 1 bar of cell service so texted with Dana and Ed. Made dinner at about 5:30. Cold out so cooked and ate in tent. Watched a movie while working on blogs.
April 26, 2026. Rainy, windy with gusts to 35 mph, 34 going up to 38, feels like 24 degrees.
Up at 6:30. It’s cold, wet, very windy, and miserable. It won’t warm up much if any today. We have 12 miles to town with the first 9 uphill. I figure this will take at least 7 hours.
Last night was miserable. Rain on and off, freezing temperatures, and crazy wind. The wind buffeting the tent made it almost impossible to sleep. The rock trick worked to keep the tent up until about 5:00 a.m. when my tent collapsed again. Crawled out and got things fixed and slept for another hour. If you call that sleep.
Brad and I got moving at 7:30.
I don’t have much to say about today other than YUCK. It was very cold, extremely windy, overcast with rain on and off until about 1:00. Long steady uphill ending at 5900 feet. We have gained over 3000 feet in elevation in 3 days. Hence the cold and chance of snow tonight.
Boom!
Brad and I arrived at the Pine House Cafe in Mount Laguna at 2:15. Brian, Hell Yeah, Titus were here. We had an early dinner together before Brian and Hell Yeah headed out to do 8 more miles. Crazy youngsters. Awesome to have real food.
Lodge at Mount Laguna
Checked into the mediocre Tiny House Block hostel at 3:30. Titus is also staying here. I’ve been in worse, but not for $50. They are the only game in town. Got settled in, dried tent as best I could, walked 1/2 mile to get resupply before they close at 5:00, showered, started laundry, and started relaxing.
Hostel at Mount LagunaHostel at Mount Laguna
Got blogs updated and posted. Packed food bag. Generally got ready for hiking tomorrow. Once my electronics finish recharging I plan on a good night’s sleep out of the elements. The wind is still howling outside our room and it is 35 degrees with a real feel of 24 at 6:45 p.m.
My cold weather gloves tore in two places today. Not sure how that happened. I will replace them later this week in the next big town. The heel started to tear off my NEW hiking shoes. These things are 5 days old and only 2.25 days in the trail. I’ll be sending a nasty-gram and a photo to the manufacturer. Duct tape to the rescue until I can find a replacement layer in the week. Frustrating!
Overall, the trip has been good so far. I’m a little disappointed in how slow I’m hiking and that I can’t do more than 15 miles yet. But that is to be expected. I planned for the bad weather, but I was hoping to not have it for longer. Oh well.
One potential issue, however. Full disclosure time. That hike in the rain today on top of the heat the past 2 days has left me with a bad chafing issue. I should have gotten ahead of it more than I did. There is a chance that I will not be able to hike tomorrow. Will see in the morning. Fingers crossed.
April 25, 2026. Sunny and mid-40s going up to mid-50s.
Up at 6:00. Slept really well. Surprisingly so for the first night on the trail.
On the trail at 7:00. We had a tough climb out of Hauser Creek first thing. I struggled and had to make frequent stops. Still feeling that 11lb water carry in my hips.
What trail looks like
We reached Lake Maurena campground at 9:25. Brad beat me here by 15 minutes. I wasn’t as slow as I thought!
There was a big trail magic event at the campground! We stayed for an hour. I had coffee and bagels and chatted with folks. Everyone from camp last night plus many others were here.
Trail magic at Lake Maurena
Hiked out of Lake Maurena with a crew of six. We all met at CLEEF on Thursday evening.
Hiking with 6 from CLEEF
Stopped at 12:00 and 8.7 miles for a break. Found a nice shade tree. First shade in 3.5 miles. We are making good time as a group. Next stop is a campground in 2.3 miles for water and a decision as to how far to go today.
Brad and I took a break at 1:00 in the shade. We let the younger folks plow ahead. We are not in a hurry and they are on a mission.
We reached Boulder Oaks Campground at 1:15 and 11.1 miles. Lots of hikers here including the folks we were hiking with earlier. Toilets and water too.
Blooming Cactus on Trail
I reached our planned campsite at 13.8 miles at 3:15. Brad missed it and kept going. Took a break and pressed on trail to follow. Ugh.
Met up with Brad 1 mile down the trail. I was struggling badly at this point. We pressed onward hoping to find a pair of tenting spots not on the map. I found two spots while Brad took a side trail DOWN into Kitchen Creek for water. No way I could handle the climb back out of there. I’ll survive with the 2 liters I have with me tonight. Set up camp at 4:40.
The forecast for the night is bad. Rain, very cold, high winds. Worried about keeping my tent from collapsing in this high wind and sandy soil.
Got camp set up slowly. Almost fell asleep getting my air mattress and other gear settled into the tent. Dozed for 90 minutes and then forced myself to eat dinner. Rain and wind started around 6:00.
Wind pulled out 2 tent stakes and the tent collapsed at 6:30. Big winds have not even arrived yet. Trying the little rock, big rock trick instead of using tent stakes. Hopefully, that will hold through the night.
Ugh. I am almost broken. 15.6 miles today. The plan was 12, but we ran into issues and had to go further. 31.7 miles in 2 days. That was not the plan. I need to slow up. Water is proving very problematic and dictating where we need to stop. I’m okay, just need to slow up before I injure myself.
Friday, April 24, 2026. Mostly sunny and 36 going up to 67.
Up at 5:30. A bit chilly this morning, but the sun isn’t fully up yet. Slept fairly well last night. Coyotes woke me up at least once.
Had a nice breakfast provided by the staff, packed up, got my PCT hang tag, and headed to the Mexican border. The staff at CLEEF are really amazing. And it’s all volunteer.
Mile sign at CLEEF
It was an easy half-mile walk south to the border. I walked there with Aubrey, who is a fellow AT thru-hiker. That wall is much larger in person than it looks on TV.
Border WallBorder Wall
Brad was already at the PCT Southern Terminus Monument when we arrived. Me, Brad, and Aubrey took each other’s pictures on the monument.
Orange Man at PCT Southern MarkerOrange Man at PCT Southern Marker
We then walked to the actual border wall and touched Mexico before heading north to Canada. This is the official start of our 2,655-mile adventure!
Touching Mexico
Brad and I left together at 7:35. We took each other’s picture at the famous 3-mile marker.
Orange Man at the Famous PCT 3-Mile Sign
We planned to go 16 miles to camp. Both of us would have preferred a 13-mile day, but water will be dictating a lot of our plans. I started the day with 4 liters of water, which means a 32.5-lb pack. Ugh.
We stopped for water and a snack at 9:30 and 4.4 miles. Natalie was already there taking a break. We both refilled 1 liter of water and moved on after a 15-minute break. The next water is in 10 miles. As we were leaving, Aubrey, Brian, Hell Yeah, Britta, Nile, and John arrived, followed by Pebbles.
We started a long ascent into the desert. There were no clouds in the sky, and the sun was hot. I was not covering my face or arms with my sun hoodie. More on that later.
We stopped for a break and a snack in the only shade we had seen all day at 11:10 and 7.75 miles. We have been climbing since we hit water at mile 4.4 and have 1.6 more miles of climbing. Then it’s flat and downhill to camp.
Day 1 View
The temperature was only about 70, but the constant sun and long, steady climb made it quite warm. We stopped for a break at 1:30 and 11.5 miles in the shade. We started the day at 3 miles per hour but slowed to about 2 miles per hour. I was really feeling those 32 lbs on my hips.
We took another break at mile 13 in the shade. My feet and hips were really feeling the weight plus the first day blues.
We reached the water cache at 3:00 and 14.6 miles. This cache is maintained by the staff at CLEEF. This day would be brutal without the cache.
Day 1 Mile 14 Water Cache
The sun finally started to get to me. My arms were okay, but I think I burned my lips and my face a bit. Not terrible, but still. I started hiking with the hood of the sun hoodie up from here on.
Hot and Sun Burned on Day 1
There is no water at camp, and we have 5 miles uphill in the morning before we reach water. I carried 5 liters or 11 lbs of water the next 1.2 miles to camp. That made for a 37 lb pack on day 1. Let me tell you how much that sucked!
The last mile was steep downhill with slippery, loose sand and a huge weight on my back and hips. Just a bit sketchy.
We got to Hauser Creek at 3:50 and set up camp. We beat all but 2 hikers here and basically got the best camp spots in the shade of a grove of trees. Awesome!
As expected, I needed that 5 liters of water. Between rehydrating and making dinner I went through almost 3 liters leaving me with 2 liters for the first 5 miles tomorrow.
My hips were SCREAMING by the time I dropped my pack. I had to rest for a bit before setting up camp. That is very unusual for me. Walking was very challenging at this point.
Brad and I set up camp by 4:30. Really nice camp spot! Just after we set up, Aubrey, Niall, Natalie, and Jacob arrived. Natalie took a spot in our area, and the rest camped another 50 yards onward. Another much longer, Wyoming pitched her tent with us. She is celebrating her 50th birth year by hiking 5000 miles, including the PCT.
Brad and I made dinner about 6:30. I was pleasantly surprised to have a good appetite. I usually don’t the first week on the trail.
Hips were still pretty bad. I decided that sitting was not helping, so I walked around camp for the next hour, which helped a lot.
Britta, from Germany, arrived around 7:00 and made camp with us. She was not feeling well and had all the signs of altitude sickness. We were worried about her, but she started feeling better and managed to eat eventually.
Brian and Hell Yeah showed up at some point and took the lady 2 spots in our camp area. Brian is a ski instructor from Salt Lake City, and Hell Yeah is an Aussie miner.
Day 1 Camp
We all hung out and chatted until 8:30. It turns out Hell Yeah is carrying a 50-lb pack. He is a big young guy, but still, that’s insane. We had a lot of fun poking fun at his gear, including the largest cooking pot I have ever seen on the trail. All in good fun.
Crawled into my tent at 8:30 and worked on blogs until 9:15. Read for a bit and tried to get to sleep at 10:00.
Overall, it was a good first day. I’m not sure if Brad and I will hike together long-term, but we should be good for at least the next week. The mileage was difficult due to the heavy water carry. I should not have to do that again for at least 2 weeks! I plan to send my camp shoes home in a couple of days. I’ll probably just stick with my trail shoes for now and think about camp shoes much later on. That will save me about 12 ounces and some bulk in my pack.
Good nights’ sleep at the Best Western. And a very nice breakfast buffet. I chilled in the room until I checked out at noon. Put on my pack and walked about 1.4 miles to a UPS store to ship my duffle bag and travel clothes home. Got to the Old Town Transfer Station about 12:45 to wait for my 2:00 shuttle to Camp Lockett Event & Equestrian and Facility (CLEEF) campground.
Southern Terminus Shuttle
There were two other hikers there waiting. Both from Canada. Brad from British Columbia and roughly my age. Titus from Montreal. We chatted until the shuttle arrived. Four other hikers joined us and we left right at 2:00. We stopped at REI and I bought my fuel canister. From there we drove about 45 minutes to the general store near camp and picked up sandwiches for dinner. Checked into camp about 3:30 and pitched my tent.
Tents at CLEEF
The group of 7 from that shuttle hung out and socialized most of the evening. Hoping to build a trail family out of this group, but time will tell.
Shuttle crew at CLEEF
The camp volunteers gave a 60-minute lecture on things like safety, water, hitchhiking, etc. Good info. Of the 25 of us here, only 5 have prior long-distance hiking experience.
CLEEF pavilion
Everyone signed the 2026 hiker banner.
My name on CLEEF banner2026 CLEEF Banner
Hiker midnight is 9:00 and everyone is in their tents and lights out by 9:15. I worked on today’s blog and read until midnight.
