May 11, 2022 Dirt road at mile 324.8 to Swarthout Canyon at mile 347.2 22.4 miles I wake up with the start of the sunrise. My quilt is frosted over on the outside, but on the inside, I’m still toasty warm. No one is moving yet, so I think I can get away with a …
May 12, 2022 Swarthout Canyon at mile 347.2 to Inspiration Point parking lot on Highway 2, mile 369.3 to Wrightwood 22.1 miles My alarm rings at 4:40 but I ignore it. I know Andy is heading out early, but I’m not sure I have it in me today. I hear him go from awake to …
May 10, 2022 Deep Creek Hot Springs at mile 307.9 to dirt road at mile 324.8 16.9 miles It’s another slow morning. When I sit up, Andy is coming back from an early dip in the springs. I go get water upstream, then slowly start to pack up. I can’t decide whether to have my …
May 9, 2022 Little Bear Springs Camp at mile 285.6 to Deep Creek Hot Springs at mile 307.9 22.3 miles When I asked Andy last night what time he thought we should leave this morning, he shrugged and said, “It’s a wake up whenever you want kind of morning.” Knowing him, I thought this meant …
May 8, 2022 Big Bear Lake to Highway 18 at mile 266.1 to Little Bear Springs Camp at mile 285.6 19.5 miles I’m the first one up in my room. Despite sleeping in a bed, I didn’t sleep well. Curse this pattern of falling asleep and then waking up! Oh, well. It was still nice …
May 6, 2022 Campsite at mile 245.3 to Highway 18 and Big Bear Lake at mile 266.1 20.8 miles I do not want to get up. My alarm rings and I smack it into snooze. I’m cold. I don’t want to hike at 5:30. We’re at a high elevation, so why do we have to …
May 5, 2022 Mission Creek at mile 226.2 to campsite at mile 245.3 19.1 miles My alarm jolts me awake at 3:55. Finally, a complete night of sleep! Turns out, cowboy camping on a warm night next to a gurgling frog-filled stream with a blanket of stars overhead is great for relaxation. I sit up …
May 4, 2022 I-10 underpass to Mission Creek at mile 226.2 16.7 miles Freight trains woke me up at a few points last night. They blared their horns and rumbled past like huge strange animals. Other than those few times, though, I slept surprisingly well through the night. I wake up ready to hike. We …
May 3, 2022 Campsite at mile 190.5 to I-10 near Cabazon 19 miles It’s not as cold this morning as it was last night, and it seems like my packing routine might be turning a corner: I’m ready in close to half an hour. Andy still isn’t moving by the time I’m nearly ready, though, …
April 30, 2022 Campsite at mile 170.9 to Saddle Junction, then Devil’s Slide Trail to Idyllwild 8.5 PCT miles +2.5 miles on Devil’s Slide Trail 179.4 total PCT miles Today it’s light when we wake up. We didn’t set an early alarm because we decided we aren’t going to hike San Jacinto today—we’re going to …
Sarahmarie Specht-Bird 