November 9

Distance: 28.3 miles | Ascent: 2980′ | Descent: 3820′

Mile marker: 2559.3

Lunch: J – Indian curry (A), A – chicken casserole (A+)

Dinner: J – potato leek soup (B-), A – Indian curry (B)

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Siesta style hiking is a strategy for avoiding the worst of the desert heat. You start early, take a big break mid-day, and hike late. Since we had not used the tent, the bright moonlight made it easy to wake up early.

As the sun rose, we descended down from our relative coolness up high on the ridge. It was shrubbery and exposed. Jason tore his other shirt sleeve. Both have torn in less than 24 hours.

Once down from the ridge, we crossed over some windy cattle cow pasture. No cows in sight, though. Then we followed a dry creek toward the town of Warner Springs. At the lower elevation, the fall colors of the trees dominated. We have been chasing autumn south for months.

By noon we made it to the Warner Springs Community Resource Center. It is very welcoming to hikers.  We ate lunch in the shade and laid our weary heads down for a few hours. The center also had outlets to recharge our electronics and showers to recharge our wearily dirty selves.

A member of the community came to say that they usually have a lot more to offer during the spring when the northbound hikers go through. He even apologized for the center not being open. We said it was quite alright; the shade from the tree and the seat at the picnic table was enough. We left a donation so places like this stay open and accommodating to hikers, especially the late southbound crowd.

During our rest, Jason stitched up his shirt. It’s not pretty and likely won’t last long, but it’s even more important to have some sun protection now on the exposed trail.

After the heat of the day left, we carried our cleaner selves back to the trail. This is when we passed Eagle Rock – the gem of the SoCal PCT section.

We also crossed over meadows and cow pastures in the failing daylight. This time there were cows!

After crossing pleasantly flat meadows, we got to the spring – conveniently piped into a tub –  and were greeted with some trail friends who had passed us while we waited at the community center. We chatted about our plans and finishing timelines. They were camping at the spring, but we were racing to get to the post office before closing tomorrow, so we kept hiking up the hill in the dark and cooler night air. Along the way, our remaining distance dropped into the double digits.