06     Warner Springs - Idyllwild    70 miles

Warner Springs

Agua Caliente                           5.5 miles

Tule Canyon Road                    21.0 miles

Paradise Valley Cafe                 16.0 miles

Devils Slide Trail

Fobes Saddle                          13.0 miles

Idyllwild                                 14.5 miles

In Warner Springs I packed food for the stretch until Idyllwild. To be able to have an early start the next morning we hiked for a couple of miles in the evening. The next day the guides showed a water source slightly off the PCT. A friendly local offered water from his water tank. The day before was "Cinco de Mayo" (5th. of May) a national holiday in Mexico. The owner was Mexican and had had a party. Plenty of food and drinks were left over. So we hikers could work on finishing the remains. A thunderstorm came up in the afternoon. Having left in time I only caught a couple of drops. This was the second day with any precipitation at all. Having reached the road to Paradise Valley Cafe two of us looked for a hitch to Idyllwild. We were lucky very soon.

Following a day of resting or in hiker parlance a Zero Day the PCT was reached via the Devils Slide Trail. Not to miss a bit of PCT we walked south. This was a bit weird. The next two days we met a lot of known hikers. Only they all came in the opposite direction. And here in the San Jacinto Mountains I saw the first snow. Here the trail is at up to 9,000 feet elevation. Even so this is geographically at the latitude of Africa there is still snow on north facing slopes and under trees. The second time it took quite a bit longer to get a lift back to Idyllwild. Besides showering and doing laundry I picked up my food package at the post office.

Sign announcing that Gail Hanna is responsible for a section of PCT

Cowboy Camping next to PCT

PCT in Anza Borega Desert State Park

San Jacinto Mountains

PCT along rock face in San Jacinto Mountains

First bits of snow in San Jacinto Mountains

Idyllwild

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