The winds did blow through the night, but unlike San Gorgonio, the tent held firm. I awoke just before dawn and enjoyed the colors over Palm Springs as I ate my oatmeal and had a cup of coffee. I gathered more water, being more careful not to kick up the silt. My filter was partially clogged, so it took some time to ensure I had enough water to reach Tahquiz Creek, the next water source.
Once packed up, I began the climb back to the junction. Sara had messaged me that she had just hit the trail herself. I said hello to some thru-hikers finishing packing up from their night up top. Apache Peak was right next to the trail, so I dropped my pack and followed the cairns to the summit. I found a sign and the register, but nothing to sign in. The views were something, but I had a lot of miles to cover, and this section was almost all in the sun.
Since my filter was working so slowly, I hung the CNOC bag from my pack, and my mini M!GO bottle was attached. Unfortunately, a brushy section knocked the bottle free. I found it with most of the water still inside, thankfully. It was worth a shot. I had my sun umbrella with me, but hadn’t attached the straps to fix it to my pack, and I was not about to just hold it through this section of the trail.
As I neared Spitler Peak, I opted to skip it as I just did not have the legs for the steep climb to the summit. If you have ever watched some videos of hikers doing this section in the winter, you realize how dangerous this portion of the trail is. However, the views to my east were breathtaking.
I came to a small saddle, spied two packs just off the trail, and then I saw a man coming down from the nearby slope. I shouted “hi,” and he returned the greeting by crossing his arms and giving me an almost death-like stare. My “spidey-sense” went off the charts—there was something very wrong with this dude. I gave him a thumbs up and kicked it up a notch to hike away from him. I glanced back to see if he might be following me, but thankfully, he did not seem to be. Soon, I caught up with Sara. Turns out she, too, had an odd encounter with him, as did some other hikers. We hiked together for a bit, filling each other in about our evening and the day so far. Sara still hadn’t found her climbing legs yet, so she suggested I just find my groove and meet at the creek. Since I had skipped Spitler, I knew I was going to be skipping Red Tahquitz. I crested the saddle and knew the rest of the hike was all downhill with some shade.
I leapfrogged another hiker, who asked me about how my side quests were going. Hum, I might have just gotten a trail name…”Side Quest”. About 8 hikers were relaxing by the creek when I arrived. I filled my CNOC and slowly filtered my water while eating my lunch. About 30 minutes later, Sara rolled in. We all collectively chatted about the odd hiker, and I said that since I was headed down to Idyllwild, I would let the rangers know.
After a nice break under the shade of the pines, Sara and I headed off along the blue blaze toward Saddle Junction. Once there, a volunteer ranger was checking permits. Poor Sara didn’t have a tag yet, so she had to dig her paper one out of the middle of her pack. I had an updated email for mine, so I was good to go. Two other hikers were relaxing before they made their way down to town. Since Sara had just been in town, she was going to keep pushing north. We said goodbye for now, and I, along with the other two hikers, headed down the Devil’s Slide trail. Hopefully, my good friends Rick and Andrea had shuttled my car up to Humber Park. Partway down, a text came through that they had indeed parked the car for me. Not sure who was happier—me, not having to wait for my car, or the two ladies, who now had a ride into town.
We met a few folks heading up the trail on a day hike and one thru-hiker heading back. Soon, the parking lot came into view, and this epic adventure had come to a close. I dropped the ladies off at the post office and let Rick and Andrea know I had picked up my car. They agreed to meet for an early dinner at the Idyllwild Brewpub, and I filed them in on my trip. They were tackling San Jacinto from Devil’s Slide the next day, so an early dinner worked well for them, as they had a long day ahead.
The final stats for the two days were:
| Day 1 | 19.0 miles | 4,667 feet | 13:03 |
| Day 2 | 13.2 miles | 2,343 feet | 8:57 |
I am an avid peak bagger, sometimes backpacker, and former sea kayaker living in San Diego. I am the co-author of Urban Trails: San Diego, available now!
In 2019, I became the third person to complete the San Diego 100 Peak Challenge. Not stopping with that accomplishment, I set my sights on the harder San Diego Sierra Club 100 Peak list, which I completed in 2021. In addition, I have conquered several Six-Pack of Peaks challenges (SoCal, San Diego, Central Coast, and both the Arizona-Winter and Arizona-Summer).
I am looking forward to exploring new summits and new adventures across the southwest.