Big Bear Lake Section C half done

 150 miles?  These boots are demolished

 Beautiful wood statue in Idylwild

 We hiked through a wind Farm.  The guys that work there invited us in for cold water and to sign their trail register.

 I am so glad we did not hike this mountain!  But this monster sure is pretty

 Proof we are hiking in WILDERNESS

 Our trusty pooch and green tent.  Camp on the Whitewater River

 Crossing the Whitewater river

 Dirty Dog

 Redwoods

 Oh Baby check that eye candy

 Micro Spikes!

Wow what a hike.  We started this one in Cabazon Ca on I-10.  We got dropped off on this dusty dry desert trail in a suburban neighborhood at 4:30 PM.  We didn't have enough water so we asked a guy doing yardwork for some.  He was excited to meet two crazy hikers and went in to the house to get his Mom to meet us.  So we got on the trail about 5 PM walked a mile and camped in a dry wash next to a failed development.  Thru hiking-- you never know what to expect.

The next morning we got on the trail early.  We hiked above the highway and the town into a windy side canyon covered with wind power  hundreds of windmills on the trail was a sign saying PCT hikers welcome.  Wow, we headed into the shop and all the guys on shift were coming onto lunch break.  They seemed like a great crew, ethnically diverse and educationally diverse.  We drank some cold water with them then got back on the trail.  We climbed and climbedafter passing a saddle between two drainages we entered the San Gorgonio Wilderness.  Our first wilderness in a couple of weeks.  A bit afterlunch we ran into 3 golfers walking towar us in tennis shoes with no water or gear or anything.  We were 8 miles from Cabazon and thought what the heck.  It turns out they had made a wrong turn on a short day hike- they were 2 miles in the wrong direction.  We know that feeling.  They turned around and followed us to the Willands Conservancy trout farm on the White Water River.  They have some of the biggest trout I have ever laid eyes on.  It was a half mile from the PCT so we checked it out.  It was a cool place.  After a rest break of an hour or two we got back on the trail and camped in Whitewater Canyon.  This canyon was amazing the bottom was coveres in very white rocks and white water. The effect made the whole canyon looked blue. We camped in the canyon on a white sand beach.  It was beautiful.  The next morning we hiked up a canyon to a higher pass and then finally dropped into the Mission Creek Drainage.  We hiked up this river for 2 whole days, gaining 3000 feet on the way.  We camped on the river that night then a place called Creekside camp the next night.  From the camp we climbed another 2500 feet finally reaching a high ridge of 8, 500 feet.  It was amazing we were surrounded by snow capped peaks.  We camped on the end of a mountain and had a near 360 view from our camp.  We boiled snow for water and had an early dinner then to bed.  The next day we hit snow banks on the trail almost immediately we out on our microspikes and struggled through them for miles.  The snow was pretty soft.  we sometimes walked on top and other times busted through somtimes to your hips.  The scariest thing on the trip so far was when we had crossed most of the scary stuff We had taken our spikes off and were crossing short bits of snow with obvious trail, except this one.  I crossed first and once across heard a tiny Jay voice say "Mom, a little help here?"  He was hanging over a 30 ft slide onto rocks holding onto his hiking stick that was embedded in the snow.  Picture a porch flag with jay as the flag.  I dropped my pack slipped on my spikes and rescued him but OMG it scared us both half to death.  But intrepid adventurers we are we pushed on.  We got to coon creek jumpoff which is a shear drop off of 1000 feet or so.  From there we kept on hiking through some lovely and strange places.  As we zeroed in on getting to Big Bear a highway came into view(HWY 38) We wound up camping at a campsite on a jeep road wich seemed to do double duty as party spot and dump  site.  We slept well and got out of there early.  Today we hiked 14 mile before 2 PM and hitched a ride with a BIKER like real biker two hogs in his garage and works at the local harley shop.  He was really nice and drove us to the hostel.  We had an extra lunch, dinner, ice cream.  I am wasting away on this hike.  Jay is eating two to three times more than I packed for so I don't eat quite enough. So when we are in town we pig out.  I think I have already lost 10 pounds.  Jay seems like his same old lean mean energetic self.  Today after our 14 mile super fast hard hike he went to a climbing wall for 2 hours. indomitable!  That's all for now.  We are taking a zero day her in Big bear then it's off to I-15.  SoCal and highways inseparable!

I am still waiting for a trail name- Jay has earned heel dragger but we still call him Jayhawk.