138 hikes and 104 bike rides for the year. Rode a total of 2241 miles taking 145 hours. 27 less miles cycling this year than last.
Hike north Lykken from Ramon.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 35 minutes.
Hike Descanso trail with Kai.
Christmas day city loop taking 1 hour.
Hike Garstin lollipop.
Hike middle Lykken from Mesquite.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 52 minutes.
Hike Palm Canyon, Vandeventer trail, Dry Wash loop. Pretty day and the desert was nice and fresh after the rains. 7 miles taking 2 hours 50 minutes hiking time.
Hike south Lykken trail. Seems there's been a bit of fresh trail work.
Canyon loop taking 1 hour 3 minutes.
Up at 2a to see a few Geminids and my first look comet C/2014 Q2 Lovejoy. Comet was easy to see through binoculars down south in Puppis even with 3rd quarter moonlight.
City loop taking 1 hour 19 minutes.
Hike north Lykken from Ramon. Painted over the graffiti on the sign at the Skyline junction.
Hike Garstin lollipop.
Hike middle Lykken from Mesquite.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 49 minutes.
Hike Cahuilla canyon to the second stream crossing. Thought there might have been sign of water in the creek from recent rains but doesn't look like any flowed at all. There was some water in the stone pools however.
Short hike up Tahquitz Canyon to the falls. The creek is full of water from this week's rain. Was completely dry when i was here last month. What a difference a little rain makes! Made a couple of videos here and here.
Hike Cahuilla canyon with Kai.
Short city loop taking 45 minutes.
Hiked Thielemann trail south to what i call West Murray Hill. Peak 2085 on Palm Springs topo. I think this is actually the original Murray Hill. It's 2 miles directly east of Murray Canyon and makes sense that this would be its name. The peak that currently goes by the Murray Hill name isn't even visible from Murray Canyon. 7.45 miles per GPS taking 3 hours 35 minutes overall time.
Hike Garstin lollipop taking 1 hour 18 minutes.
City loop taking 58 minutes.
City loop taking 1 hour 9 minutes.
Hike Shannon trail to Smoketree mtn. Another pretty day.
Hike Palm Canyon West Fork to a bit above the Pelton trail junction. Nice day. 2 hours 10 minutes hiking time.
Hike Cahuilla canyon to the second stream crossing. Tried to clean up an area where someone had a campfire and left a mess. WTF is it with people?
Hike north Lykken from Ramon. Was an absolutely beautiful day except for some fresh graffiti. Fucking assholes.
City loop taking 48 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 29 minutes.
Hike Garstin lollipop.
Short city loop taking 40 minutes.
Hike Tahquitz Canyon. Creek dry with just a wet trickle down the falls and a stagnant pool at the bottom. Still nice in the canyon.
City loop taking 1 hour 1 minute.
Amtrak station + city/canyon loop taking 1 hour 45 minutes.
Hike Araby trail. 4 miles taking 1 hour 20 minutes.
Hike south Lykken trail. 2.5 miles taking 50 minutes.
Hike Shannon lollipop. 4.4 miles, 1 hour 36 minutes. Beautiful day.
City loop taking 1 hour 5 minutes.
c
City loop taking 1 hour 2 minutes.
Hike middle Lykken from Mesquite. Fresh bighorn sign about 2/3 of the way up trail. 4 miles, 1 hour 30 minutes.
Hike up Palo Verde canyon in the Anza-Borrego desert to the old prospect tunnel. Lots of fresh bighorn activity in the wash but no animals seen.
Depart house at 10:40a for a quick overnight to the AB. Gas pumps out of service at Red Earth. Gas $3.19 at Salton City AM/PM. Arrive Truckhaven site 12:20p. Sardines for lunch. Move over to next ridge west. Truckhaven site #2. 12:50p. Drive 67 miles today. Lovely afternoon. High temp around 88°. Cellphone works but data a bit temperamental. Sunset 5:46p, 86°. Black bean jalepeño soup for dinner. Nice evening. Moon only 5 days old but quite bright. In bed at 9p. Perfectly still night. Overnight low 71°. Sunrise 6:56a Wednesday. Depart camp 8a and hike to the prospect tunnel in Palo Verde canyon. (See above.) Stop at Calcite overlook on way out to freshen up a bit. Home at 12:45p. Drive 77 miles today, 144 miles trip total.
Hike north Lykken from Ramon. Didn't have to pick up much trash this time and no new daisy signs. Just an arrow that some asshole scratch into the rock along trail. 3.6 miles taking 1 hour 22 minutes.
City loop taking 1 hour 10 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 26 minutes.
Hike Palm Canyon, Dry Wash, Vandeventer loop. 16.9k steps, 7.75 miles, 2 hours 50 minutes, 92°. Warmer than i was expecting but always one of my favorite local desert hikes.
Hike Garstin lollipop. 9400 steps taking 1 hour 24 minutes.
Panamint Valley traverse taking 48 minutes.
Sunday:
Depart house 8:10a, 16058 odo. Stop at 7-11 for coffee. Hwy 395 junction at 9:50a. Raul's in Adelanto at 10:10a. Too early for lunch so just have one taco. Yummy. 395 is newly widened and very smooth north of Adelanto. Ridgecrest at 11:50a. Gas $3.45. Olancha at 1:10p. Arrive Panamint Springs Resort at 2:05p. 86°. Gas $5.98. Buy 4.17 gallons for $25. Check into hotel. Room #2. Drive 278 miles today. Nice afternoon. Temps just right. Sitting on porch drinking a Firestone IPA with 4 girls from Germany at next table. Hamburger and onion rings for dinner. Can't get internet to work in evening so went to bed at 8p.
Monday: Neighbors in room #3 were up at 3a and departed at 4:30a. They were quiet but with the walls so thin i could still hear everything. Got up early at 5a. Wifi works this morning so hang out on porch using laptop, drinking instant coffee, and watching sunrise. Depart at 7:50a. Saline Valley road at 8:15a. South Pass at 9a. Turn around at 27 miles in at 9:50a. Road just too washboarded and long to be enjoyable. I think i was only about half way to the hot springs when i turned around. But at least now i've seen Saline Valley. Stop at the Buckhorn Boxcar cabin on way out. Very clean road. Not a single can nor bottle in sight the entire way. Back on pavement at 11:40a. 54 miles on dirt. Sardine lunch back at Panamint Springs. Drive 84 miles today. Ride 12.3 miles across Panamint Valley and back. (See above.) Panamint Springs Resort really needs some renovations. The rooms restaurant are okay but the entire property is run down with crumbling walkways, holes in walls, dangling wires, leaky pipes, etc. Doing beer dance with server Anastasiya. She offers me samples and then they run out of what i was sampling. Settle on a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale 24 oz bottle with fish and chips for dinner. Good combo. Beautiful sunset cloud colors from porch. Back at porch later in evening. Have a Karl Strauss at Anastasiya's suggestion. Yes, yummy. The internet flat out does not work in evening. Laptops aren't very interesting without working internet connection.
Tuesday: Slept soundly. Coffee on porch. Sunrise 7:18a. Depart Panamint Springs 9:15a. Drive out to Aguereberry Point. Neat view and even has cell reception. A ranger arrives while i'm there and we have a nice chat. Stop at Aguereberry camp on way out and walk up tO the mine tunnel but find it's gated. Too bad. Looks like a neat tunnel to explore. Emigrant campground at 12 noon. Cheese and crackers for lunch. Arrive Furnace Creek at 1:05p, 90°. Drive bike/jeep into shade structure at visitor center. Crunch. Ruined bike saddle and cracked jeep roof. But otherwise fairly minor damage. Check into Furnace Creek Ranch a bit after 2p. Cabin #222. Nice cabin. Clean and cool. Drive 92 miles today. Go for swim in the big pool. Very nice. I like it here. Sunset at 5:38p. Have a Ranger IPA, a bowl of chili, and a Fat Tire 1554 at Corkscrew Saloon. Lot more people here than at Panamint Springs. But not really feeling crowded. Besides location Panamint Springs is maybe a 1 star motel. Cabin at FC is 4 star but lacks the view. Hard to say which i like better. Up late at cabin sitting in rocking chair outside and using wifi.
Wednesday: Long early morning walk before sunrise. 8000 steps. Sunrise 7:25a at visitor center. Depart around 10:10a. Gas $4.48 in Furnace Creek but did not buy any. Stop at Badwater and walk out on playa a ways. Shoshone at 12:10p. Gas $5.31. Arrive Baker 1:15p. Gyro for lunch at The Mad Greek. Gas $4.19. Depart Baker 2p. Amboy at 3:20p. 29 Palms at 4:15p. Considered staying at a motel in 29 or maybe camping in JT but decide to just drive home. Home at 5:30p. Drive 308 miles today, 762 miles total for trip.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 38 minutes.
Hike south Lykken trail and Cahuilla Canyon to first stream crossing. 7170 steps, 2.86 miles, 1 hour 5 minutes.
Ride S22 in Anza-Borrego taking 1 hour 17 minutes.
Depart house around 11a for a quick overnight AB trip. Lunch along Font's Wash. Drive west Truckhaven back to Ella Wash. Arrive Ella Wash site 1:30p, 95°. Drive 80 miles today. Beautiful afternoon. Calm and clear. Sunset 6p, 85°. Cellphone and data work from hill. Turkey black bean soup for dinner. Sterno campfire. Sunrise Wednesday 6:50a, 76°. Breezy morning with some high clouds. Ride 20.6 miles on S22. (See above.) Also pick up some trash along S22. Gas $3.34 at Red Earth. Home at 12:30p. 79 miles today, 159 miles trip total.
City loop taking 1 hour.
Ride up Bluff Street in Banning then down on Sunset Ave. Bluff was steep but a neat place to ride. Then looped through Beaumont and back to Banning for the Banning Train Fest!
Day trip up Toro Peak. Nice day. Temp 72° at the top.
Hike Shannon lollipop. 10.5k steps, 4.5 miles, 1 hour 40 minutes.
Hike middle Lykken from Mesquite. 9600 steps, 4 miles, 1 hour 25 minutes.
Hike Palm Canyon, Vandeventer, Wentworth loop. 14k steps, 6.2 miles, 2 hours 15 minutes.
Windy Point out-and-back taking 1 hour 34 minutes.
City loop taking 1 hour 11 minutes.
Hike Victor trail loop. 3 miles, 6900 steps. Short hike but nice to be in the canyon again after the summer.
Hike Garstin lollipop. 8700 steps.
Hike Museum trail and north Lykken from Ramon.
City loop taking 56 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 32 minutes.
Hike Descanso trail to Tahquitz overlook. Warm and humid. 12.4k steps.
Hike south Lykken.
Monday: Depart house about 11a. Cold pizza for lunch on mesa east of microwave tower. Ocotillos in north park are lush and green from rain a couple weeks ago but everything is dry and brown in south park. Arrive Carrizo Valley site 2:30pm, 100°, 132 miles. Quiet warmish afternoon with light intermittent breeze. About perfect. Sunset 5:30p over ridge north of gorge, 97°. Equinox at 7:29p. Macaroni and cheese for dinner. Very little traffic on S2 and no border patrol vehicles at all. In bed at 9p.
Tuesday: Calm still night. Canopus visible before sunrise. 78° overnight low. Sunrise 6:32a. Short walk around camp. The dust experiment is still there. Depart camp about 9a. Drive through Bow Willow (vacant) and take break on top of Egg Mtn. Lunch in shade along Montezuma hwy at PCT crossing. Temp 88° at noon. Stop at BS library to use wifi and then go to market. Arrive Coyote Canyon site 2pm, 104°, 80 miles. Cellphone won't connect to data even with 4 bars 3G. Voice works. Talk with ranger Heidi. Warm afternoon but not too bad in shade. Sunset 6:08p. Sardines and canned beans for dinner. Seems a bit humid this evening and some gnats. Go to bed early.
Wednesday: Breezy night. 84° overnight low. Sunrise 7:20a. Depart camp 7:40a. Drive up North Fork Palm Wash and walk to the (dry) tinaja. Lots of bighorn droppings and one decomposing carcass near the tinaja. Drive out via Palm Wash to hwy 86. Gas $3.45 at Red Earth. Home 11:30a. 91 miles today, 303 trip total.
City loop taking 59 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 36 minutes. Finally some nicer temps.
Hike south Lykken. 5800 steps.
Hike Shannon trail to Smoketree mtn. 10.5k hot muggy steps.
111/Golf Club/city/canyon loop taking 1 hour 38 minutes. Hot.
City loop taking 1 hour 2 minutes.
Hike Araby trail. 10.2k steps.
Hike Garstin lollipop. 9000 steps.
Hike north Lykken. 8350 steps. First hike in over two weeks.
City/111 loop taking 1 hour 27 minutes.
City loop taking 47 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 36 minutes.
Hike Garstin trail lollipop. Beautiful morning with pretty clouds. 8700 steps.
City loop taking 59 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 33 minutes.
Hike south Lykken. 5900 steps.
Hike north Lykken. 8100 steps and only 4 plastic bottles. Much better than last time.
Hot steamy hike up the Araby trail. 9100 steps.
Hike Garstin trail to Smoketree mtn. Kinda warm. 8200 steps.
City loop taking 1 hour.
1000 Palms, Ramon, Washington, Country Club, Bob Hope loop taking 1 hour 12 minutes. Forgot my Garmin so no track to share.
Hike middle Lykken trail from Mesquite. Picked up 4 plastic bottles and 2 cans. 8700 steps.
Hike Shannon trail to Smoketree mtn. Bit of water flowing in the wash so parked along Araby Drive and not on Barona. Picked up a pile of 8 beer cans. 10k steps.
Made a little day trip to northern AB to check out the washes after yesterday's heavy rains. Warm and muggy but not bad just driving around. S22 is now open but evidence lots of water had crossed the road. Drove the Truckhaven Trail from near the microwave tower over to Arroyo Salado and then south down Ella Wash. Palo Verde wash was still wet and muddy so turned around and went back up Ella Wash to S22. I do not like mud. Font's Wash looks like it had had water flowing edge to edge where it crosses S22! Wasn't flowing today but mud was still shiny and wet. There is also water in Clark Lake. Drove up the Rockhouse Canyon road but stopped south of the gravel quarry as road was still under water and muddy. Did i mention i don't like mud? Also looks like the structures and conveyor belts have been removed from the quarry. When did that happen? Nice to be out on the desert for a bit.
Yet another city/canyon loop taking 1 hour 38 minutes.
Muggy city/canyon loop taking 1 hour 47 minutes.
Hermosa Beach to Palos Verdes out-and-back taking 2 hours.
Hermosa Beach to Santa Monica pier out-and-back taking 2 hours 26 minutes.
Hike south Lykken trail. Muggy. 5750 steps.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 45 minutes.
City loop taking 51 minutes.
My annual visit to Mini Cache One and Mini Cache Two. Nice day in the mtns. 14k steps.
Hike up the Garstin and down the Thielemann. 8850 steps.
Hike north Lykken. 8000 steps, 5 plastic bottles, 4 aluminum cans, 2 Capri Sun pouches, misc scraps and detritus.
City loop taking 42 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 29 minutes.
Hike Shannon trail to Smoketree mtn. 9400 steps.
Hike Devil's Slide trail from Humber Park to the Skunk Cabbage meadow junction with Wen and Eddie. Nice hike. Eddie hasn't been on a long hike for a while but he did great.
City loop taking 1 hour 19 minutes.
City loop taking 1 hour 26 minutes.
Hike tramway high trail loop with Wen. 12k steps.
Hike south Lykken trail. 6200 steps.
Hike Garstin lollipop. 8300 steps.
Hike north Lykken. 7400 steps. Pick up 3 bottles, 1 can, and a plastic bag.
Hike tramway to Wellman Divide via main trail. Nice quiet day. 14k steps.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 36 minutes. Hot ride.
City loop taking 1 hour.
City loop taking 1 hour 8 minutes.
Hike tramway high trail loop. 9800 steps.
Hike Shannon trail to Smoketree mtn.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 16 minutes.
City loop taking 55 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 20 minutes.
Start near Sunrise Point and hike the loop CCW to Fairyland Point then back on Rim trail. Great hike! 9.5 miles taking 3 hours 20 minutes. Later in the day hike a quick Navajo trail loop going down east side and up west. Tons of people but fun to do.
Hike from Grand Canyon north rim lodge to top of North Kaibab trail with Wen. Wen walks back by herself and i hike down to the Coconino overlook and back. Don't care much for the North Kaibab. Trail is very dusty and stinky from the mule traffic. Much worse than south rim trails for some reason. Walked back to the lodge on the Transept trail which was nice. 5.3 miles taking 2 hours 14 minutes. The next morning Wen and i hiked the Queen's Garden trail.
7 day (6 night) vacation trip with Wen to Grand Canyon north rim, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef national parks, Torrey, St. George. A couple of hikes (see above), perfect weather, relaxing, refreshing. Beautiful country. Already planning another trip for next year.
Hike tramway to Round Valley with Wen. Back via high trail. 11.1k steps.
Hike Palm Canyon, Vandeventer, Wentworth trail loop. 12.9k steps taking 2 hours 12 minutes. Temp only about 80° and breezy so was quite nice.
City/canyon loop taking 2 hours 16 minutes.
City loop taking 1 hour 6 minutes.
Hike tramway to Wellman Divide via high trail. A bit breezy with temp around 60°. Low flow of water at Round Valley pipe. Here is a video. 15.8k steps.
Hike Shannon trail. 10k steps.
Hike tramway to Tamarack Valley via the High trail then back on the Davis trail.
Short city loop taking 50 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 35 minutes.
Hike north Lykken. Some assholes left the remains of a campfire and lots of trash at the picnic tables. 8200 steps.
Hike Garstin trail.
Hike tramway to San Jacinto peak. Up on the 8a car and down on the 1p car. 24.8k steps.
Hike tramway to Wellman Divide via main trail. Back on the the high trail. 15k steps.
Windy Point out-and-back taking 1 hour 30 minutes.
City loop taking 1 hour 13 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 37 minutes.
Hike West Fork of Palm Canyon to the Pelton trail stream crossing. Big thunderhead building over San Jacinto but no rain where i was hiking. 5.4 miles, 13.1k steps, taking 2 hours 20 minutes.
Hike south Lykken trail. 5900 steps.
Belle campground to Ryan Mtn trailhead and back taking 1 hour 50 minutes.
Hike middle Lykken trail from Mesquite. Saw the tail-end of a rattlesnake about halfway up the trail.
City loop taking 1 hour 4 minutes.
Rat Rock and canyon loop taking 1 hour 39 minutes.
Hike tramway High Trail to Round Valley loop. First tramway hike this season. Creek has a few pools but is mostly dry and no water at the crossing near Sid Davis trail junction.
Hike Garstin trail. 6900 steps.
Christmas Circle to Borrego Springs Road (Texas Dip) out-and-back taking 2 hours.
Anza-Borrego overnight trip. Depart home at 9a. Ella Wash site at 10:40a for a quick break. Drive west Truckhaven trail. One camper in Rockhouse Canyon area. None at Pegleg monument. Arrive Coyote Canyon site 11:45a, 88°. Spring rolls for lunch. Intermittently breezy with Borrego Spring and southern mtns obscured by dust. Dust settled and clear skies by 4p. Fresh snake track crossing road but was UTL the snake. Sunset 7:10p, 84°. Wind calm. Moonrise over Coyote mtn at 7:22p. Lesser Nighthawk flyover and another purring in the distance. (Nice recording of the purring call here.) Sardines for dinner. Four naked eye planets visible after sunset: Mercury, Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn plus a full moon! Very nice calm still evening. Sunrise 6:36a Wednesday, 65°. Depart camp 8:20a. Park at Christmas Circle and ride Borrego Springs Road out-and-back. (See above.) Campachana and Pacifico at San Miguel on way home. Home about 1:45p.
Hike north Lykken to 1850'. 9800 steps taking 1 hour 40 minutes.
Hike Skyline trail to Wrong Way Rock and back. Sergio started up trail just before me. He's a fast hiker. Didn't see anyone else above the picnic tables. Picked up a bit of trash and found a nice wool sweater that i'm gonna keep. 1 hour 54 minutes to WWR. 21.8k steps taking 3 hours 46 minutes total time.
Hike Shannon lollipop. 11.7k steps taking 1 hour 38 minutes.
Hike south Lykken and then Cahuilla Canyon to first stream crossing. The bee colony near the vista point is again inactive. 7400 steps.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 25 minutes.
Hiked the Bright Angel, Phantom Ranch, South Kaibab loop at the Grand Canyon. Really good hike with pretty much ideal conditions. I've been to Grand Canyon a couple of times but never actually hiked to the river before. I would liked to have spent more time at the river but forecast was for 90° at Phantom Ranch and i was worried about temps getting too warm on the climb out so didn't dally. Completed the hike in 7 hours 52 minutes total time. 17.6 miles, 40.2k steps, 2 tired feet. Kai came with me and we spent 2 nights at Maswik Lodge. Kai wasn't up for the full hike so he just did a shorter hike on his own.
Hermit's Rest and Visitor Center loop at Grand Canyon. Hermit's Rest road is nice ride as it's closed to vehicles and only open to shuttle bus.
Hike middle Lykken trail from Mesquite to my Tahquitz Overlook (GC2569) geocache.
Hike Garstin trail to my Flag Over Palm Springs (GC2165) geocache.
City loop taking 1 hour 23 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 39 minutes.
Hike Palm Canyon, Wentworth, Vandeventer loop. 12.5k steps.
Hike north Lykken from Ramon. 7900 steps taking 1 hour 20 minutes.
Hike Araby trail to my Araby Hope (GC9FD) geocache.
Hike Cahuilla Canyon to second stream crossing and to my Cahuilla (GC3D4) geocache.
Windy Point + city loop taking 1 hour 36 minutes.
Hike Shannon lollipop. 11.3k steps taking 1 hour 45 minutes. Some relatively fresh bighorn droppings on the trail.
Borrego Springs S22 out-and-back with Janice Sheufelt taking 2 hours 5 minutes.
Hike Palm Canyon, Vandeventer, Dry Wash loop. Starting to get a bit warm. 15.5k steps, 7.18 miles taking 2 hours 45 minutes.
Hike south Lykken and then Cahuilla Canyon to first stream crossing. The bee colony near the vista point is active again but the bees do not seem to be aggressive at all. 7850 steps.
City loop taking 1 hour 7 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 40 minutes.
Hike Garstin lollipop.
Hike middle Lykken from Mesquite.
Monday: Depart house 9:15a. 12050 odo. Sardines for lunch along Fonts Wash. Drive through Borrego Springs then Texas Dip to hwy 78. Arrive Carrizo Valley site 1:30p 88°. Drive 144 miles today. Bright clear day with light breeze. Perfect afternoon at my favorite place. Sunset 6:08p 86°. Salad and mac and cheese for dinner. Forgot to look for Canopus. Even walked down road but was too late. In bed at 9:30p.
Tuesday: Still quiet night. No traffic on S2. Sunrise 6:22a 62°. Watching a ground squirrel climb an ocotillo to eat the flowers. Leave tent set up and depart camp 8:30a. Drive up south fork and walk around the sensitive area a bit. Mid-morning break on Egg Mtn. One site occupied at Bow Willow. Sardine lunch at Carrizo overlook. Drive to Aqua Caliente and Butterfield stores for ice but both are closed. Still have a little ice left so should be okay. Warm beer is better than no beer. Back to camp at 1:10p 94°. Drive 69 miles today. Nice afternoon with some high wispy clouds. Two Marines "huey" type helicopters fly over in late afternoon and a third makes some flights up the gorge and flies multiple loops over S2. I want a helicopter. Sunset 6:09p 91°. Canned beans for dinner. In bed at 9p.
Wednesday: Sunrise 6:22a 70°. Some high clouds today. Morning walk around camp. Some weird dust experiment bowls on poles SW of camp. Odd. They seem rather abandoned. Depart camp 8:30a. Lots of Ride Across California bike riders reading west along S2. Drive EC085 north from Plaster City. Very soft silt in some places. About 25 miles pavement to pavement. Climb up to WHIT 1941 benchmark. Home at 1:40p 100°. Drive 148 miles today, 361 miles trip total.
Thousand Palms out-and-back taking 1 hour 54 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 40 minutes.
Hike north Lykken trail from Ramon. Thanks to whomever has been covering up some of the graffiti and tags on the lower section of the trail. 7300 steps taking 1 hour 10 minutes.
Hike Palm Canyon, Wentworth, Vandeventer, Victor loop. Nice clear bright day. 6.5 miles taking 2 hours 40 minutes. 14k steps.
Hike Shannon lollipop. Pretty day. 10.6k steps taking 1 hour 35 minutes.
A windy city/canyon loop taking 1 hour 46 minutes.
Hike Garstin lollipop. 7200 steps.
Hike south Lykken and then Cahuilla Canyon to first stream crossing. 6300 steps.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 14 minutes.
Hike Pinto Mtn with Cameron Robbins. 4.72 miles to summit, 9.46 mile round trip. 4 hours 37 minutes hiking time. 24.5k steps.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 51 minutes.
Ride S22 taking 1 hour 17 minutes.
Anza-Borrego overnight trip. Depart house 9:30a Thursday. 11618 odo. Equinox at 9:57a. Gas $3.79 at Red Earth. Drive out to Fonts Point. The film crew was very tidy. Visit PAINT (1940) benchmark. Kippers for lunch along Fonts Wash. Visit LUTE (1940) benchmark. I was second to sign new logbook. Arrive Truckhaven site 2:20p. Drive 94 miles Thursday. High overcast with light breeze. Walk over to next ridge west to clean up some orange paper trash. Sunset 6:42p 76°. Salad and canned soup for dinner. Canopus after sunset. In bed at 9:30p. Calm night. Friday sunrise 6:46a. 65° overnight low. Nice quiet morning. Depart camp 8:45a. Ride 21.5 miles along S22. (See above.) Take a break midday along west Truckhaven deciding if i want to spend another night. Can't really think of a good reason to "not" stay. Two airplanes landed in Inspiration Wash. Interesting. Ice and beer at Center Market. Arrive Fonts Wash campsite about 1:50p. Nice afternoon but bit breezy at times. Winds up to 15 MPH by 5p and seem to be increasing so decide to drive home. Drive 111 miles Friday, 205 miles trip total.
Hike middle Lykken from Mesquite. 8500 steps.
Hike north Lykken trail from Ramon (7600 steps) and then Tahquitz Canyon (5200 steps). Haven't been up Tahquitz in 30 years.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 35 minutes.
Hike Murray Hill via Thielemann trail. Pretty day. Had the trails to myself. 1 hour 15 minutes to summit, 2 hours 20 minutes total hiking. 15.6k steps.
Hike Araby/Garstin/Berns loop. 12.3k steps taking 1 hour 45 minutes.
Hike Shannon lollipop. Overcast day. 11.3k steps taking 1 hour 40 minutes.
Hike south Lykken trail. 5250 steps.
City loop taking 1 hour 10 minutes.
Hike Garstin lollipop. 7840 steps.
Hike Palm Canyon, Dry Wash, Vandeventer trail loop. 7.1 miles taking 2 hours 50 minutes total time. 15.6k steps.
Hike Cahuilla Canyon to the waterfall. Nice flow of water. First time i've climbed above the waterfall. 9500 steps.
Hike middle Lykken trail from Mesquite. 8500 steps.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 35 minutes.
City loop taking 1 hour 7 minutes.
Climb Coyote mtn from Rockhouse canyon rock quarry. Clouds moved over keeping temps nice for hiking. Took a shortcut on way down. Very steep. Not sure was the best idea but i made it okay. 2.6 miles to the summit, 5.15 miles round trip, 17k steps taking 3 hours 40 minutes total time.
Anza-Borrego camping trip depart house about 9a. 11290 odo. Buy ice at Red Earth casino. Short break at Truckhaven. That regular truck camper is at his usual spot. Sardines for lunch along west Truckhaven. A bunch of film crew vehicles parked in Fonts Wash. (Found out later the movie is "Last Days in the Desert" with Ewan McGregor.) Drive up and back Beckman Wash. Back to Ella Wash arriving about 1p. Temp 80°. Drive 90 miles today. Controlled burn in Cuyamaca putting up smoke plume. Clean up a campfire mess near my campsite. Jerks. Ranger drives through and we chat a bit. Nice partly cloudy afternoon with light breeze. Sunset 5:28p. Temp 74°. Spicy noodles for dinner. Nice ISS pass high in the south. Calm evening. Someone drives by at 9a and is camping about a half mile south. They're very quiet. Calm night. Slept well. Sunrise 5:20a. Overnight low 56°. Beautiful morning. Depart camp 7:45a. After climbing Coyote mtn (see above) stop at Calcite overlook before driving home. Home about 3p, drive 92 miles today, 182 miles trip total.
Hike north Lykken trail from Ramon. Lots of people on the trail. 8100 steps.
Dinah Shore, Date Palm, Gerald Ford, Da Vall, Frank Sinatra, Monterey, Country Club, Portola, Ramon loop taking 1 hour 36 minutes. Nice ride except Ramon west of Date Palm still sucks.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 21 minutes.
Hike up and down the Shannon trail. 12.1k steps.
Hike Guadalupe trail to Cowboy Camp and back with Cameron Robbins. Started out a bit warm but then some overcast kept temps cooler. 14.3 miles, 36.6k steps, taking about 7 hours total time.
Hike PCT Desert Divide from Hwy 74 to Morris Ranch road with Jorg. Leave my Jeep at Morris Ranch trailhead and drive over to hwy 74 trealhead in Jorg's car. Nice day with a bit chilly breeze at times. We both hike at a fairly fast pace which i like. Didn't see anyone else on the trail all day. 13.1 miles, 28200 steps, taking 5 hours 25 minutes total time.
City loop taking 1 hour 22 minutes.
City/canyon loop plus Air Force One at airport taking 2 hours 3 minutes.
Hike Garstin lollipop. 10500 steps.
Hike Palm Canyon West Fork to ~3400'. First time i've gone above the Pelton junction since the fire. No footprints at all on the trail above the Pelton. 82° temp at the end felt warm. 8.8 miles, 20025 steps, taking 3 hours 48 minutes hiking time.
Hike south Lykken trail and then Cahuilla Canyon to the first stream crossing. 7050 steps taking about an hour.
City loop taking 1 hour 28 minutes.
Check out the Tour de Palm Springs vendor booths then ride a canyon loop. (Did not ride the tour myself.)
Hike Garstin lollipop. 7840 steps taking 1 hour 9 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 40 minutes.
Hike from Rimrocks to the top of Araby and back. Picked up a bunch of empty water bottles. Assholes. Some people shouldn't be allowed out of their homes. 13860 steps taking 1 hour 54 minutes.
Hike Cahuilla Canyon to a bit above the second stream crossing. Need to go up to the waterfall next time. 7260 steps taking 1 hour 8 minutes.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 27 minutes.
City short loop taking 40 minutes.
Hike the Palm Canyon, Vandeventer, Dry Wash loop. Cool and breezy at times. No fresh footprints on the Vandeventer except for a coyote i was following for a while. 14925 steps, 7.2 miles taking 2 hours 36 minutes.
Hike North Lykken trail from Ramon. 7850 steps taking 1 hour 15 minutes.
Middle Lykken trail from Mesquite. 7750 steps taking 1 hour 10 minutes.
City short loop taking 1 hour.
Supernova 2014j (PSN J09554214+6940260) in M82 just visible tonight in TV76 at 68x.
Mecca Box Canyon out-and-back with Martín Caniza taking 3 hours. Headed up the Cottonwood road a couple of miles but i wasn't up to it today on my single speed. Always fun to ride with Martín.
Hike up the Garstin, over Smoketree mtn, and down the Thielemann. 3800 steps Garstin to peak, 9900 steps total taking 1 hour 24 minutes.
Hike up and down the Shannon. 10000 steps taking 1 hour 26 mintues.
City short loop taking 54 minutes.
Snow Creek out-and-back taking 2 hours 13 minutes. Good ride. No wind.
City loop taking 1 hour 8 minutes.
Hike the Palm Canyon, Dry Wash, East Fork loop. Pretty day with temp around 85°. 13450 steps, 6.22 miles taking 2 hours 22 minutes.
Quick hike up and down Araby trail. 7400 steps.
Hike south Lykken trail to Descanso trail and back along Palm Canyon Drive. 8100 steps taking 1 hour 12 mintues.
Depart house 8a, 10590 odo. Stop at TA truckstop for coffee. Drive through Cottonwood. Both loops open but only about 12 sites occupied. No tents. Walk the bajada loop trail. Very windy. Maniobra Valley and Red Canyon Trail to Salt Creek. Take a break at the trestle and walk across it. Sardines for lunch. The road out southward is smoother than last time but the exit via the aqueduct is still confusing. Back on pavement at corner of Leeward Drive and 72nd Ave. Home 2p, 140 miles.
Hike up Cahuilla Canyon to second stream crossing. Removed a bunch of cairns someone had put up along the trail. 5750 steps taking 50 minutes.
City/111 loop taking 1 hour 14 minutes. Was planning to ride to Snow Creek but turned around about half way out because of strong head wind.
City/canyon loop taking 1 hour 26 minutes.
Hike Palm Canyon to Indian Potrero and back along the main trail. Both stream crossings completely dry. Saw no one on trail once i left main grove. 18500 steps, 8.7 miles taking 3 hours 11 minutes.
Hike north Lykken trail from Ramon. 7150 steps taking 1 hour 8 minutes.
Hike middle Lykken trail from Mesquite. 8600 steps taking 1 hour 14 minutes.
Whitewater Preserve out-and-back taking 2 hours 53 minutes. Glad there wasn't much wind. Not too thrilled about the Whitewater road. Too rough. The perserve was nice although i do miss the old trout hatchery.
City loop taking 1 hour 2 minutes.
Hike Garstin lollipop. 8300 steps taking 1 hour 10 minutes.
Amtrak station plus city/canyon loop taking 1 hour 46 minutes.
© Florian Boyd