Stats

Start: Backyard in Whitewater – Mile 210
End: Dispersed site – Mile 232
Elevation Max: 5,635
Elevation Min: 1,381
Elevation Change: 5,635 up & 3,138 down
Average Heart Rate: 138
Walking Time: 6 hrs 37 minutes

The Walk

The wind was ripping through the valley last night. One of the windiest places in the United States. The car port was sheltered from direct wind. But could feel it and hear it blowing by. I fell asleep around midnight.

At 7:30 I was back on trail. Miguel’s house was only .1 miles off trail. The morning was cool and the first few miles were windy.

But once I climbed up into the hills the wind died down. About 4 miles in I stopped at the wind farm office. It’s run by two hiker friendly employees. They gave free coffee to hikers. I chatted with the windmill project manager about the wind farm history.

During the past two years, they tore down 600 windmills from the 80s and planned to replace them with 16 new ones. The new windmills would generate the same amount of power. It’s wild how quickly technology moves on.

After the coffee I got back on trail and headed to the nature sanctuary. The trail slowly climbed out of the valley. The nature sanctuary was an oasis in the desert. A low spot filled with white sand, pebbles, and running water. The crew from the Airbnb was eating lunch at the nature preserve. I busted out the classic peanut butter and tortillas.

I relaxed for an hour then went back to trail. I wanted to get 20+ miles. This would set up an easy day into big bear two days from now.

I kept hiking to the next water source about 7 miles ahead. The trail continued climbing through the valleys and behind I could still see San Jacinto. I could also see the range we were about to climb to get into Big Bear. I relaxed by the water for 2 hours, waiting for the heat to pass. Hiker hunger was starting to hit. This was the hungriest I’ve been all hike. I had a few big elevation days and I think the calorie deficit is starting to catch up.

The last 6 miles of the day were through a river bed. The sound of water was nice, but the trail wasn’t well marked. It must have crossed the same river 10 times. A handful of times I had to check my map find the trail. The walk was slow going and rocky.

Jack rabbit and I were tired. We decided to call it a mile before our planned camp site. I cooked dinner straight away. And ate my bonus meal from the hiker box. After two pasta dinners I felt better and finished chores. The rest of the group walked up to the camp site and joined.

Only 35 more miles to big bear, but I am wiped out. Hopefully I can do 25 tomorrow. Even though it will be a tough, uphill day. A 10 mile day into Big Bear for breakfast and coffee sounds nice. Hoping for a good nights sleep and one more big push tomorrow!