Mile 58 to 77.5

Unusual wind swept clouds over the Anza Borrego Desert.

Section A
The most northern access to the PCT along Sunrise Hwy to Scissors Crossing - Nobo
Miles: 19
Hikers: Dan & Gary

Lodging:  Mt. Laguna Lodge

Car Rental:  Hertz Car Rental – Imperial County Int’l Airport, El Centro, CA

Dining:  Subway in El Centro, CA 

Start:  From Mt. Laguna Lodge we drove north on the Sunrise Hwy parking where Deer Park Road (don’t be deceived by the term “Road” as it looks more like a dirt driveway that is gated) joins the Sunrise Hwy on the west.  To access the PCT you must cross the road (Hwy) which is at the edge of a drop off and scramble down a moderately steep rough path about 30’.

End:  The previous night we dropped of a car at Scissors Crossing which is at mile 77.5 on the PCT or where County Hwy 3 cuts across Hwy 78.  On the north side of Hwy 78 on County Hwy 2 there is a large shoulder where we parked our car.  While we were the only car there at night there were 3-5 cars parked during the day.

People along the trail:  The PCT sign is something every hiker looks for – it confirms you are on the right trail and means you won’t have to retrace your steps and add more miles to your already long hiking day.  One thing I have noticed that under the PCT signs they either have illustrations or spell out “no motorized vehicles, no mountain bikes”.  The PCT does allow horses – the horse world was very instrumental in passing the original PCT legislation through Congress.  So…we came across about 5 through hikers just cleaning camp at mile 64.  Of course we stopped and chatted with them for a few minutes and then we were on our way.  The trail continues up a jeep trail.  I’m a faster hiker than Gary so I motored on ahead.  About 0.125 miles up the hill I saw a faint trail split off the road with a sign but no PCT logo so I continued up the road another 100 yds to a flat spot to wait for Gary.  From this flat spot I could only see 10 yards down the trail/road as it curved and there were some bolders blocking the view.  After 5 minutes… no Gary.  I checked my GPS and found that the faint trail was the PCT.  I hiked back down and took the faint trail (PCT) and checked my GPS – yes this was the trail.  Still no Gary so I hiked back to see if Gary had made it up the hill yet.  When I got back… still no Gary so I wait another 5 minutes.  By this time I know Gary would have made it up the hill so I figured he either made the correct turn on to the faint trail (PCT) and I missed him or he missed the faint trail and continued up the road while I was on the faint trail (PCT).  Gary is an extremely logical and experienced hiker so I assumed he took the faint trail (PCT) so I started jogging to find him.  After about 0.5 miles I saw him up ahead and started walking to catch up to him.  I turned back to look where the trail split and the through hikers we passed 15 minutes ago missed the turn-off too.  I yelled to get their attention – no response.  They will eventually figure out they're were off the PCT.  After catching Gary I quizzed him why he took the unmarked trail he said "it didn't have the PCT logo but it said 'no mountain bikes' so I took it".  Very smart.  I learned an important lesson today… always wait at trail crossings for your whole party.

 Description:  As we drove to the trailhead there were spectacular wind swept clouds with the sun coming up – it was spectacular.  The trail drops off the Mt. Laguna rim into the Anza Borrego Desert.  After Rodriguez Canyon the desert really gets pretty.  I’m a desert expert having lived in Arizona for 25 years.  If you hike this section in mid-late April you will see unbelievable cactus blossoms (check out my photos below).  This is really the only true desert portion of the PCT between the Mexican Border and Big Bear (most people look at barren land and call it desert but it’s the plants/cactus that truly define a desert).

We finished about 5 pm, jumped into the car left the previous day and drove back to pick up the other car, dropped of the rental car in El Centro, ate at Subway, and cruised back to Phoenix.

PCT lined with desert flowers.

Indian Paint Brush.

Hedge Hog Cactus

Long Horn Cactus.  It is actually considered a green blossom.
I would call it YELLOW/green.  But technically it is the only plant with a green blossom. Hmmm....

A rare type of Prickley Pear Cactus.
Most are greener and have yellow blossoms.

A little PCT Graffiti/humor left by previous hikers I presume.

Water Cache left by a trail angel. 
This is in the middle of a 30 mile dry stretch of the PCT.
Day hikers should appreciate the trail magic but not partake.
Day hikers can carry enough water for the day.  Leave the Water Caches for the through hikers.

Mile 41.5 to 58

Section A
Mt. Laguna to most northern access to the PCT along Sunrise Hwy - Nobo
Miles: 17
Hikers: Dan & Gary

Lodging:  Mt. Laguna Lodge

Car Rental:  Hertz Car Rental – Imperial County Int’l Airport, El Centro, CA

Dining:  We went to the trail town of Julian and ate at Romano’s Dodge House which was recommended by a local -- good advice.  It had great Italian food and was moderately priced.  We returned and ate here on our next trip to Julian.  Also a must do is Mom's Pies -- written up by the Food Network Shows. 

Start:  We drove back to the Burnt Rancheria Campground – last time we were here in early April it wasn’t open, this time it was.  We found the Campground Hosts, paid for a day use permit and parked the car about 30 ft. from the PCT where we started Sobo last time.  This time we are going Nobo.  If you’re wondering if the snow has melt on Mt. Laguna before you do your hike look at the USD webcam ontheir Observatory. 

End:  We drove the rental car north on the Sunrise Hwy.  My goal was to get as far north as possible to make the next day’s hike shorter.  We ended up parking where Deer Park Road (don’t be deceived by the term “Road” as it looks more like a dirt driveway that is gated) joins the Sunrise Hwy on the west.  To access the PCT you must cross the road (Hwy) which is at the edge of a drop off and scramble down a moderately steep rough path about 30’.  The PCT in this section is below the edge and below the road and you cannot see the road or your parked car!!!  Make notes of the surroundings and mark this spot on your GPS.  We would leave the car overnight and return to the Laguna Mtn Lodge for the night. 

People along the trail:  We encountered about 8 PCT through hikers as this is prime time for through hikers.  We also came across a trail crew working on the PCT.  These were older guys (I’m 52 and consider myself young).  Each one of these guys could have taken me down in a heartbeat.  One guy (I forgot his trail name) was an ex-marine, 68, and had done the PCT several times, AT (Appalachian Trail) & CDT (Continental Divide Trail) – last year on his PCT through hike he averaged 30 miles/day.  This guy was tough.  These trail veterans were giving back.  It seems like there is a close knit group of hikers that through hike – they all know each other, have heard stories of each other, and they help each other out – the PCT Family.  This was my first encounter with “Trail Angels”, someone helping others without any expectation of a “thanks”.

Description:  This trail follows the edge of the Plateau atop Mt. Laguna.  On the east the terrain drops down into the desert.  The cool breeze from the west was blowing strong but with the sun out it was a rather nice day.  This was a relatively “flat” hike with no big ups or downs but the trail continually was going up or down.  I should say more but it was basically great views into the Anza Borrego Desert all day. 

We finished about 5 pm, jumped into the car left the previous day and drove back to the Burnt Rancheria Campground to pick up the other car.  We then dropped a car at tomorrow’s trail end at Scissors Crossing (mile 77), drove to Julian – a very charming tourist town known for their apple pies, at dinner at Romano’s Dodge House which was recommended by a local.    It had great Italian food and was moderately priced.  We returned and ate here on our next trip to Julian too.  After dinner we returned to Mt. Laguna Lodge for the night.

USD Observatory -- check out it's webcam to see what the weather is like at Mt. Laguna.

Looking down into the Anza Borrego Desert.  Typical of the view all day long.

Sign along the PCT which goes on the Pioneer Mail Trail a short ways.

The wind was howling...
I thought we were going to get blown down to the desert.
A windy but beautiful day.

Mile 101 to 110

There were endless fields of flowers on this hike.

Section A
Warner Spring to Barrel Springs - Sobo
Miles: 9
Hikers: Dan, Chris & Gary

Lodging:  Historical House Lodging, Julian, CA – Try another B&B as this place had a bath tub, no shower.   

Car Rental:  Hertz Car Rental – Coachella, CA

Dining:  Julian, Ca at Romano’s Dodge House which was recommended by a local.   It had great Italian food and was moderately priced.  We also got a couple of apple pies to take home to the family from Mom’s Pies.  This is a must stop as it’s been featured on the TV Food Networks before. 

Start:  Mile 110 at Hwy 79 near Warner Spring Resort.  A PCT sign is posted alongside the road and the shoulder is extra wide to allow for cars to park alongside the road.  We were the only car when we parked early in the morning (sunrise) but when we picked up our car around 10 am there were 4 other cars parked there.

End:   Barrel Springs on the south side of County Hwy S22.  There is a lot of space to park next to the road.

People along the trail:  We saw only one group of 5 going Nobo.  We also crossed paths a couple of horseback riders on the trail.  The PCT is for hikers, pack animals and horses.

Description:  We opted for this section of trail rather than hiking 20 miles south of Scissors Crossing because we were beat from doing the 24 mile section south of here from Barrel Springs to Scissors Crossing (it was a little hot too).  If we had more energy I would have started this hike at Barrel Springs and hiked 8 miles past Warner Springs.  The trail from Barrel Springs to Warner Springs is fairly exposed, and the 8 miles north of Warner Springs has occasional shade as well as nearby water most of the time.

This is a great section of trail with gentle rolling hills loaded with flowers and grasses.  Although we saw a lot of blossoms, it was probably greener about 2-4 weeks earlier in the year.  There is something magical about walking through large fields of flowers – it reminds me of Dorothy dancing through the poppy blossoms in the Wizard of Oz. 

Eagle Rock is a must-see 20 yard detour located in the middle of rolling grasses.  It is a rock outcropping (unusual for this trail) that looks like an eagle.  Hiking Sobo you couldn’t really see the eagle until you were looking at it from the Nobo direction.  There were chuckwallas and the black lizards all over the rocks.

Gary (L - father-in-law)
Chris (R - Gary's grandson & my son)
3 generations on the trail at once!!!

Chris riding Eagle Rock.

California Poppies.

Chris hiking on the flowered PCT.

Horses on the PCT.

Mile 77 to 101

Barrel Springs.

Section A
Barrel Springs to Scissors Crossing - Sobo
Miles: 24
Hikers: Dan, Chris & Gary

Lodging:  Historical House Lodging, Julian, CA – Try another B&B as this place had a bath tub, no shower.   

Car Rental:  Hertz Car Rental – Coachella, CA

Dining:  at Romano’s Dodge House which was recommended by a local.    It had great Italian food and was moderately priced.  We also got a couple of apple pies to take home to the family from Mom’s Pies.  This is a must stop as it’s been featured on the FoodNetwork before. 

Start:  Barrel Springs on the south side of County Hwy S22.  There is a lot of space to park next to the road. 

End:  As we drove from Julian to Barrel Springs we dropped our 2^nd car at Scissors Crossing.  We were the only car at the time, but when we finished there were 4 cars parked next to the road.

People along the trail:  This section was typical PCT trail.  The trail initially climbed up to 4,000’ and then stayed close to that level all day long as the trail wound in and out of canyons.  The trail appeared to stay on what seemed like a Topo Map contour line.  There wasn’t a spot that didn’t have a great view, but even a great view all day long gets old after a while.  Chris, my son who has done the Grand Canyon several times with me, commented “I’m not sure I like this long distance hiking.”  Hiking the Grand Canyon is hard but you’re out in 3-5 hours.  The PCT requires patience -- when you’re done with a long day you still have a long way to go.  We crossed paths with about 4 thru hikers.  One of them was John Duncan a solo hiker who I remembered because he was a nurse from Spokane where I frequently travel on business.  I followed his journal from time to time wondering if he would finish – he did!!!!  Congrats John.  The thru hikers always have interesting stories and show a lot of determination.  However, when you’re talking to them you always size them up and in your mind and wonder “can they make it?”  We also crossed paths with 3 gentlemen that turned me on to Semb’s Day Hikes on the PCT books.  You never know where you’ll pick up good info on the PCT.

Description:  There were no clouds in the sky and the sun was beating down – in the desert that means you’ll be hot.  It wasn’t too bad, as the high was in the 80s.  I would have preferred to do this hike on a cooler day.  In fact, we were going to do another 20 mile section (Sunrise Hwy to Scissors Crossing) the following day, and instead we opted to do a quick 10 miles to get out of the sun by 11am (Warner Spring to Barrel Springs). 

We spent the night in Julian, which is a great get-away town for San Diego.  It’s nestled in rolling hills and has apple orchards – hence Mom’s Pies.  This is a popular place for weddings too.  Make reservations ahead of time for lodging!!!

My son Chris "the Mule" and the mother of all water caches 1/2 way through the hike. 
Well planned trail angels!!!

Typical PCT trail cut in to the mountain side.

A view of the southern 1/4 of the mountain range traversed

Hmmm....  I don't like snakes!!!

Mile 20.5 to 42

A view east at the ocean fog creeping over the mountains to
the west.  The fog burned off before it got to us as we
 had no cloud cover all day long.

Section A
Mt. Laguna to Lake Moreno - Sobo
Miles: 21.5
Hikers: Dan & Gary

Lodging:  Mt. Laguna Lodge

Car Rental:  Hertz Car Rental – Imperial County Int’l Airport, El Centro, CA

Dining:  Campo Diner (on Hwy 94/Campo Rd just 50 yards east of Buckman Springs Rd.).  There seemed to be a few locals here. OK food, not great, not bad.  We should have done the El Paso Taco Shop again (see Mile 1 to 20.5 entry).

Start:  We drove a car to down the road from Mt. Laguna Lodge to the Burnt Rancheria Campground.  Evidently many moons ago the Indians were mad at the Ranchers for overgrazing and put a match to the ranch house that used to be here.  There was a locked gate at the campground entrance – it wasn’t open for the season yet.  This time of year Mt. Laguna is pretty empty.  Even though you’re supposed to have a “recreation pass” we didn’t.  We parked in front of the gate – no problems.

End:  Lake Morena St. Park.   I made online reservations and picked a campsite on the east side where the PCT passes.  No camping as the spot was only used to park our car.  There is also a designated tent camping area for PCT hikers in the NE corner of the park if you’re a thru hiker.  The park was about 50% full.  I can see where this would be a nice quick get-away for San Diego residences – supposedly good fishing in the lake.  We had left a car here the night before.

People along the trail:  We passed 6 through hikers & 2 section hikers (father & son).  Just north of I-8 there is a side trail that goes down to a river and some water falls.  About 6 people were on the trail going to this spot.  I also passed a guy trail running – he was training for an ultra-marathon (50 miles) and was doing 36 miles that day.

Description:  Leaving about 6 am it was cold with a few patches of snow but not so windy. Mt. Laguna is at 6,000’ and we would drop down to 3,000’ at Lake Morena.  Mt. Laguna slants downward to the west, but to the east it is a steep drop-off down to the Anza Borrego Desert. The trail is a typical PCT hike -- you follow a ridgeline or you’re just below the ridgeline following a contour line going in and out of canyons with unbelievable views. It was cold at first, but once we dropped out of the high pine forest, the sun it warmed up nicely. The trail ran down a canyon overlooking a swift stream. Eventually we went under I-8 and through a grove of huge oak trees, forded a couple streams, and finally climbed up a small ridge to fantastic views of Lake Morena as the sun set. I wish I was a better photographer to convey the beautiful views on this hike – but you’ll just have to do it yourself. The surprise on this hike was that for a hike that was supposed to be all downhill there was a lot of uphill.



We finished about 8 pm at dusk, jumped in our car at Lake Morena, ate at the local Campo Diner (OK), drove back to Mt. Laguna to get the rental car, dropped the rental off at the El Centro, CA Int’l airport, and cruised back to Phoenix. Now that’s a long day!!!

Alternate Shuttle Plan:  As a Tri guy I had originally planned on doing solo day hikes.  I would drop my bike off at the trail’s end (chain it up or hide it in some bushes) then drive to the trailhead, park the car and start hiking.  At the trail’s end I would jump on my bike and ride back to the car.  Figuring it would be easier to hike uphill rather than bike uphill I would hike either Sobo or Nobo depending upon the terrain.   I used www.mapmyride.com to map out a return road bike route from Mt. Laguna to the Lake Morena.  This hike is over 20 miles and the bike ride would be about the same and 100% downhill – this would have been a fun ride!!!  I would stash my bike at the Burnt Rancheria Campground, drive down to Lake Morena St. Park, hike uphill to the bike, and coast back to the car.  This plan was ditched as I had Gary hiking with me, so we shuttled cars instead. 

Looking east you can see I-8.

Gary walking through Boulder Oaks Campground. 
HUGE OAKS.

Dan close to Mt. Laguna, CA

OK -- I love signs and this is pretty wacky -- for the wilderness!!!

A view from the trail looking south towards Campo. 
Lake Moreno is SW from here.  I-8 is right before the building.

A view of Lake Moreno from the PCT. 
Everything was green and in bloom.

The PCT going under I-8.

Mile 1 - 20.5

Section A
Campo to Lake Moreno - Nobo
Miles: 19
Hiking with: Gary Driggs

A sign along the trail. I think this says --

"a job doing yard work in the USA isn't worth risking your life."

Lodging:  Mt. Laguna Lodge

Car Rental:  Hertz Car Rental – Imperial County Int’l Airport, El Centro, CA

Dining:  El Paso Taco Shop (on Hwy 94/Campo Rd just 100 yards west of Buckman Springs Rd.).  This place had just changed owners but we tried it anyway – it was fantastic food!!!

Start:  Parked a car to the side of the Campo Trading Post.  We stopped in the previous night and asked if it was OK to park in their lot.  The employee said he didn’t care but wasn’t working the next day.  OK – it seemed as though they didn’t care, but it’s always polite to ask.

End:  Lake Morena St. Park.  I made online reservation for a campsite on the east side where the PCT passes.  We didn't camp as the spot was only used to park our car.  There is also a designated tent camping area for PCT hikers in the NE corner of the park if you’re a through hiker.  The park was about 50% full.  I can see where this would be a nice quick get-away for San Diego residences – supposedly good fishing in the lake.

People along the trail:  About 7 miles into the trail we came across 4 guys hiking south.  I asked them if they were section hiking, they responded they were thru hiking.  Puzzled by this response as all thru hikers go Nobo, I quizzed them more.  When did you start?  “Yesterday evening.”  Where are you going?  “Canada.”  Why are you going south?  “We’re not, we’re going north.”  After breaking out my GPS and showing them on my map I convinced them they were heading south.  The previous evening they started from the southern terminus and hiked into the dark and camped next to the trail unaware of their surroundings and any landmarks.  When they woke up the next day they pulled out a compass and said this way is north and off they went (Sobo).  The PCT snakes in every direction without any rhyme or reason, and they happened to stop on a short section that headed south.  Fortunately they had only gone a couple miles.  If we hadn’t crossed paths with them they would have been very surprised to see the Border Fence again.

Description: We got up early in Mt. Laguna at about 6,000 ft.. The wind was blowing about 30 mph and it was in the 30s. We drove down to the Campo Trading Post, parked the car and started on the trail across from the Border Patrol by 7am. This area is "high desert". Having lived in the desert for over 25 years -- I know what the desert looks like 95% of the time. I also know the unsurpassed beauty of the desert the other 5% of the time. Most of the accounts of this section were by hikers from the east coast that just call it "Desert". Don't believe them!!! OK -- it rained hard the previous weekend and the desert was in full spring color with everything green and blooming. We crossed about 5 streams that normally don't flow -- what a treat!!! Although the temperatures weren't extreme, the sun was still beating down on us which slowly took its toll. We went a little slow but arrived at Lake Moreno about 7pm, got in our car, ate at a local Taco Shop (which was great!), picked up the other car at the Campo Trading Post, dropped off a car again at Lake Moreno (where tomorrows hike will end), and drove back to the Mt. Laguna Lodge.

Alternate Shuttle Plan:  As a Tri guy, I had originally planned on doing solo day hikes.  I would drop my bike off at the trail’s end (chain it up or hide it in some bushes) then drive to the trail head, park the car and start hiking.  At the trail’s end I would jump on my bike and ride back to the car.  Figuring it would be easier to hike uphill rather than bike uphill I would hike either Sobo or Nobo depending upon the terrain.   I used www.mapmyride.com to map out a return road bike route from Lake Morena to the Campo Trading Post.  Although this hike is almost 20 miles the bike ride from Lake Morena to the Campo Trading Post is only 8 miles and 90% downhill.  The day before my first hike/bike attempt of the PCT my father-in-law decided he wanted to come along – friends always improve a hike, so the bike plan was swapped for the car rental/shuttle plan.  Perhaps when I’m done with the PCT I’ll come back and do the hike/bike plan.

The Desert in full bloom -- spectacular!!!

The trail crosses the Railroad Tracks. 
A crossing of two modes of transportation.

A desert stream -- rarer than rattlesnakes.

A view north. Lake Morena can be seen in the distance.

Mile 0 - 1

Me in front of the S. Terminus of the PCT.
The Border Fence is behind me.

Section A
Border to Border Patrol - Nobo
Miles: 1
Hiking with: Gary Driggs

Lodging:  Mt. Laguna Lodge

Car Rental:  Hertz Car Rental – Imperial County Int’l Airport, El Centro, CA

Dining:  Subway, El Centro, CA

Start:  Parked a car about 100’ from the PCT Monument.

End:  Border Patrol parking lot.

Description:  Gary & I left Phoenix Friday afternoon, stopped in El Centro, CA to rent a second car, and arrived at the southern terminus of the PCT at sunset. About a mile to the north is a small grocery store (like a Circle K) and a large office for the Border Patrol where we parked one car. The PCT comes to the edge of the road next to the Border Patrol offices. We drove the other car to the monument. It was exciting to see the Border Fence and the PCT Monument. We wasted about 30 minutes taking pictures, looking at the border fence and watching border patrol SUVs cruise by every 5 minutes. We hiked the PCT back to the Border Patrol, jumped in car 1, drove to car 2, shuttled one car to Lake Moreno, paid for a camping spot for 2 days so we had a place to park our car, and drove up to Mt. Laguna where we spent the night.

People along the trail:  We saw no other hikers, although a Border Patrol vehicle would drive by about every 5 minutes.

Campo Border Patrol Office.

Hiking companion and father-in-law scrambling up a bolder.