TRAIL JOURNAL
/ June 14, 2022
It was an awesome feeling to cross Bird Spring Pass and head into the Kiavah Wilderness. It’s the last part of Section F, and the last part of what I think of as the desert section of the PCT. There was just a simple sign, but it marks the beginning of a very big change in landscape. We’re changing over from the Mojave Desert to the Sierra Nevadas, where some of the highest peaks in the United States sit. I can’t wait.
It must have been much riskier to do the PCT without all the technology that PCT hikers use, like smartphones, satellite tracking (we had a Garmin device), trail and terrain software (we used the FarOut app and PeakFinder). But technology doesn’t necessarily supply water, and I think water has to be everyone’s concern in Section F. So, maybe even more important than the technology are all the trail angels that supply water caches and leave helpful signs.
We got water from some cow ponds, and it was pretty gross, but we had new filters and they did the job. Many other hikers got sick in this section (they think from the water), and we didn’t, so I would recommend new filters before starting Section F.
The great thing about going north through the Kiavah is that it just keeps getting more and more beautiful. The temperature cools a little and trees are starting to grow. In general, there seems to be more greenery. Hopefully the little trees will give us some protection from the wind, which seems to always be blowing. It blows all night, and even though the sunsets and sunrises are beautiful, we always seem to wake up with a face full of windblown debris. Dad says it’s all just part of the hike and we’re not getting put off by it!
Our daily routine has been to get up before dawn and put in 10 miles before breakfast… our “ten before ten”. Then we try to find some shade and just sleep through the middle of the day, snack, and then get moving in the late afternoon. We hiked most nights after sundown, often hiking until 10pm. The moon has been so bright that we can still see the trail and the view – perfect moon timing for us!
After four hot hot days and long water carries, we made it to Walker Pass. Yay!! And, waiting at the Walker Pass campground was a trail angel, Paul Hacker aka “Nohawk”. We needed a new fuel cannister, so we rode in with Nohawk and a few other hikers to Mojave (town) and came back all within three hours. Thanks, Nohawk!
84 miles on from being dropped off on Mars outside Tehachapi, we are at the end of Section F!
- Magnus!