5/14/14 - 5/15/14. From the top of Mt Baden Powell to crossing Hwy 2 seven times!

 Yesterday we drove with Francie, after her work,  up to Wrightwood to stay with her friends the Schmidt's who were to take us to the trailhead this morning.  We had a nice breakfast at 6am and were on the road at 7.  Once at the trailhead we saw the wind was still blowing hard. We got photos of the Schmidts.

Thank you for your warm hospitality, we also heartily thank Francie for carting us around and turning us free with your car for a day! We got many chores done as well as resting and feeling clean for more than one day! 

The last we saw of the Schmidts they had stopped to give hikers coming off the trail a ride back to Wrightwood.  They are now bonafide Trail Angels!

By 10:00am we made it to the trail going up Mt Baden Powell, named for the founder of the Boy Scouts. After a long laborious process of switchbacks, we reached the top at 1:00 and there were amazingly old trees that I think are bristle cone pines, very beautiful. 

This is one such tree with a sign saying it was 1500 yrs old!

The monument on top gives credit to the founder of Boy Scouts.

On the way down Baden Powell, Peggy stopped to look at how the wind sculpted the trees, this is a dead bristle cone pine. 

The trail down the back of Baden Powell was pretty, seeing the stark trali,  wind swept and sparse. 

We filtered water at Little Jimmy Spring just off trail where we each got a liter, we're now carrying 2 L each. Very footsore we reached Little Jimmy Campground where a number of hikers were camping. We had dinner at 7:30pm and were soon asleep. Our 14 miles today was challenged by the big climb up Baden Powell, I really struggled with altitude and ascent which is so discouraging, Peggy has to listen to me wheezing behind her and grousing about when I can get my breath!

Our tent site at Little Jimmy Campground, 7500 ft elevation but a warmish night.

The next morning we were up at 5, the trail went down to Hwy 2, which we'll cross multiple times before we're done. 

We immediately climbed 1200 feet up and 1150 down, just like a pyramid, the views were great but hard on our feet. There were many beautiful, red snow flowers. 

Long views from Hwy 2.  

We had an alternate route around an endangered frog but the alternate was in bad shape. We, along with a handful of others, decided to do a road walk of 2. 9 miles and pick up the trail by hiking to a campground and following a local trail that would intersect with the PCT.  Deploying the umbrellas for the roadwalk helped in the heat,  especially on the asphalt.  Once at Burkhart Campground we rested in shade, found a spigot working, (what  an amazing invention!) got our clothing wet, filled a water bottle & drank. 

We took off on the Burkhart Trail at 1:00pm  in full sun, hot and not expecting much.  It turned out to be a really pretty trail going down into a treed canyon with a lovely shaded creek. Too good to pass by we stopped, pulled out reading material and relaxed in shade to the sounds of water and watched tiny fish darting in and out of pools.  This is why we enjoy our  pace, we're not in such a hurry that we can't  stop & enjoy the surprises the trail presents.

Peggy's reading spot. 

2.6 miles out of our creek was Copper Canyon Campground where we pulled in for the night having hiked 13 miles including the road walk which is not on the PCT mile charts. 

We had a tiny stream nearby where we got water.  Another hiker named Seth came in and we all had dinner together. Later more hikers filtered in and sleep came as darkness fell. 

The next few days water is going to be a problem as well as Poodle Dog Bush (PDB).