Day 29-32: Wrightwood to Agua Dulce
Mile 363.4-454.5
This post may as well be a Super Feet insoles appreciation post. I got a pair in Wrightwood and while it could’ve been the switch to Aleve for pain relief, I am fairly certain that it is the insoles that have done wonders for my ankle over this last stretch.
The first day out of Wrightwood was actually very interesting. It started out with a warm up climb straight up the acorn trail, followed by some scenic ridge walking along the PCT itself. There was actually a little dusting of snow the night before, which made the views even better.
A bit over halfway through the day, I reached the start of the Bobcat Fire closure, so would have to walk the road around. Luckily the road was closed to cars for a section of the walk, so it was actually nowhere near as miserable as I had expected. That night I camped in a saddle with a few other hikers, and was absolutely pummeled by the wind. As expected, I did not sleep too well as my tent was basically folded in half from midnight until I woke up.
The next day I finished off the road walk. Despite it not being too bad, it was still nice to get back on the trail. Nothing of note really happened during the hike, but I camped at Pacifico Mountain campground, which was a cool spot. It was about a half mile (straight up) off the trail, so I had the place to myself. I made sure my tent spot was extra sheltered from the wind, and caught my nicest sunset in a while.
The next day it was back to the desert. As the trail dropped down to around 5000 feet, followed by some climbing and then a steep descent to camp at just over 4000 feet. It seemed as if trail crews had forgot about this section. It was completely overgrown, and the trail was very eroded in sections. This was the worst possible thing for my ankle, as the trail erosion caused the need for major ankle mobility. That said, it was still in far better shape than before I got the Super Feet in Wrightwood. There were some views, and camp was fun that night.
It seemed that every PCT hiker within 10 miles was camped at North Fork ranger station. This was a nice change from the solitude on Pacifico Mountain, and it was nice to catch up with the other hikers, some of whom I hadn’t seen in a decent while.
The next day was back in the real desert, and it was hot. Really hot. My ankle was the worst it had been since before Wrightwood in the morning, which I attribute to the rough trail the day before. I finished the 8 mile downhill to Acton KOA, where most were staying the night. I still had 10 miles to Agua Dulce, where my cousin Jonas was picking me up. The first 6 miles were completely free of shade, but I powered through the 90 degree heat. While still boiling hot, the next section had some cool rock formations, which was a nice change of pace from boring brown hills.
As I was walking into Agua Dulce, Jonas drove right by me and pulled over to pick me up. Talk about timing. It was then time for some nice beach relaxation in L.A and of course, lots of caloric intake.
