Pacific Crest Trail : Big Bear City to Wrightwood

Miles this section : 90
Miles completed : 363

Bridge over Deep Creek.

I do indeed find a bar after a nice walk along the 'lake' - actually the eastern section has no water, still pleasant though.  I meet something of a character, a self made millionaire, prison administrator turned paramedic turned actor named Brad, he buys me a beer and I eat pizza, all is good.  Then an early start, back up to the trail and into a long day of walking, some twenty-five miles or so in fact, indeed I have four straight days of twenty-four miles or so each coming up, through the Mojave desert as well... The first day at least is easy enough, all downhill and I make camp in good time, and for the first time this trip, build a fire and boil water on it.

Deep Creek hot springs.

Next day I mostly follow Deep Creek, this may be the desert but for now water is plentiful - as indeed is beer, I get no less than four cans over the course of the day, thanks to various 'trail angels', as they are called, handing out cans or just leaving boxes of them by the trail.  Highlight of the day is the Deep Creek hot springs, sure are hot and it is very nice to take a soak, and I am sure the warnings of brain disease causing parasites in the water are overblown.  What with this and the beer it is past sunset when I get to camp, and dark when I collect some water from a nearby lake - next morning I find my bottle has... things... swimming about in it.

Horned Lizard.

Onwards, still mostly by water, now I follow the Mojave river upstream, through an otherwise dry landscape, the domain of odd cactuses and equally odd horned lizards.  I make good pace, up the river then along windswept ridges, drawn by the prospect of a real bed and more or less real food - for today, the route crosses Interstate 15, and there's a service area with a motel.  Shame it is a mile off route, including a hairy crossing over the highway on a bridge with no provision for pedestrians, but I make it, and also find beer and Mexican(ish) food, so all is good.  Apparently some of the walk to the motel is a short section of the old Route 66 - can't say it is terribly exciting.

From here, another twenty-five miles, pretty much all uphill, making for a bit of a slog in the desert heat, and much of it through a grim, lifeless, post-burn landscape of grey ash and charred stumps of trees.  I keep on, my body is working well enough, and at least as I climb the air grows cooler, and eventually I get into living pine forest - now of course it's time to take a side trail and plunge two thousand feet down to tonight's destination, Wrightwood.  The trail notes say that 'most hikers will want to walk on to where the trail crosses a road and hitch into town' - I am still confused.

A not very thrilling bit of Route 66.

Photos to go with this post can be found here.