Miles hiked: 23.5.
Yesterday was all about going uphill, today was all about going down. From mile 186, at about 8,800 feet, it was 20 miles and 6,300 feet down to the next water source, a faucet along Snow Creek provided by the local water company.
I was up at 5 but stayed in bed awhile finishing yesterday's journal since I fell asleep part way through it last night. Finally got walking about 6:15, drinking cold coffee since my stove fuel has run out. The trail soon descended to Fuller Ridge, which is a narrow saw of granite teeth that the trail follows for a few miles, now traversing just below the ridge line on one side, now switching over to the other. The views were spectacular! Down to the west the valley had filled with fog/smog, and as the sun rose the shadow of Mt. San Jacinto was projected out onto this low screen of vapor. To the east, the valley spread out below, getting closer with each turn of the trail. And over my right shoulder the sheer face of San Jacinto grew higher and higher above me. This steep-sided ridge is apparently quite scary when still snow-covered, but for me there were just a few patches off to the side of the trail.
Eventually switchbacking off the northeast side of Fuller, the trail dropped down from sugar pines, firs (white?), chinquapin, chickadees and Fox Sparrows, into Jeffrey Pine, occasional cedar, sage, Ash-throated Flycatchers and Black-chinned Sparrows. I watched a pair of Blue-gray Gnatcatchers building their nest in a scrubby oak (pretty sure both were building), and heard the first Olive-sided Flycatcher of the trip.
Out in to manzanita and scrub, the trail began what seemed like an endless series of switchbacks, down what seemed like an endless hill. The air was so clear that the scale of the mountain we were descending was deceiving. It really didn't look as big as it was. I ran into Taz, who I had actually camped next to and had told about my little fuel issue. He was having a snack now with his pack unpacked a bit, and gave me an extra can be had. Second time he's bailed me out (see day 2).
The trail zigged farther down, into steep boulders terrain that became more and more arid. I could see where the faucet probably was, but then the trail would turn and zag way back around a ridge the other way. It was a good day for reptiles: saw the first Horned Lizards of the trip, beautiful Banded Rock Lizards in a couple different shades, and what I think might have been a Chuckwalla (any herp. people out there who can comment on the likelihood of this?).
After what seemed like 15 or 16 days, we reached the bottom. There a former hiker turned trail angel had erected an shade campy over the faucet, and had buckets of oranges and avocados from his and his friend's trees. It was about 2 by the time I got there, and I was ready for some big time siesta. I had an orange and about 6 avocados (they were small, and quickly going bad in the heat), and laid around joking with a half dozen or so other hikers there. Around 3 people started tying shoes and showering backpacks for the final 5 or so miles across the flat valley floor to Ziggy and the Bear's. I finally did the same around 5:30, pushing in to the strong wind blowing across the dry, cracked, sparsely shrubbed plain. Just as I left I saw a pair of really cool birds: Black-throated Sparrows! I had been hearing something I couldn't ID during siesta, but was a bit too preoccupied with avocados and not being in the sun to go investigate. This is what it turned out to be! Such a sharp-looking bird.
The wind whistled through power lines and wind turbines and cholla-type cactus and around me. A Loggerhead Shrike perched in a bare branch, seemingly unwilling to take wing to do battle with this wind. A train groaned up the gentle pass, trailing about a mile of auto carrying cars, double-stacked intermodals, and a few tanker cars. All afternoon I had watched trains go by on this busy set of tracks.
Around 7 or so Zack and I finally made it under the foreign and busy Interstate 10, and another mile up to the house of a wonderful couple who take in hikers as they pass through. Their back yard is fully set up for this, with an enclosed/covered area with seats and picnic tables, a separate outbuilding for showers, hiker boxes, a hot water dispenser, and carpets nailed down to the ground in the yard so we all can just lay out our pads and go to sleep. They even brought out a big tub of rocky road just before lights out. The wind continued to howl all night long, shaking canopies in the yard and blowing dust here and there. The moon is nearing full and shone into the yard with a pale yellow glow.
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