May 15, 2008 Pacific Crest Trail

Destination: Slope of Onyx Summit
Miles: 16

Adrian: This was another big day even though the mileage doesn't show it.

We were camped near Mission Creek at an elevation of 3,120 feet and climbed up to 8,240 feet. That's a big day of hiking.

We left the San Gorgonio Wilderness and entered the San Bernadino National Forest. The area was badly burned in 2006 so it was sunny and hot. We got an earlier start than yesterday to help combat this issue. It was sad to see the charred remains of what was once a beautiful forest.

My legs started out feeling weak and it was another tough day with our largest climb to date. I hadn't had the time to fully recover from yesterday. Later in the day, I felt better, but by then I was pretty beat.

We saw two rattlers today, one of which actually rattled. Kirsten got some good pictures. Pretty scary. If you get bit, there's not much anyone can do for you if you are a few days away from help.

We topped out on the climb and found a cool little spring with cold, pure water. Because we are at 8,000 feet, the air is nice and crisp.

All in all, a hard but rewarding day.
Walk on...

Kirsten: We set up our last night within a few feet of the east fork of Mission Creek. The soft, deep sand and the low and constant babbling of the three-foot wide creek was the perfect sleeping pill. When I woke up today I could still feel the affect of the long, hot day before.

We started early though and it would be several hours before the sun and the heat touched us. We meandered slowly for hours up the Mission Creek drainage, crossing the creek every 15 to 30 minutes. Progress was slow on uphill, circuitous route. It seemed like an entire day had passed before we hit the 10-mile mark.

Lately, I've managed to push rattlesnakes and their venom to the back of my mind. This is of course when I usually see another one - the fear pulsing right back up to its high-octane level.

Today we saw two within about three miles of each other. Awesome. Clearly the mountains surrounding Big Bear are teeming with snakes prepared to bite me.

Adrian mentioned the vast burned area we hiked through today. It seems like we've hiked through dozens of miles of charred, mangled forest.

The Mission Creek drainage - with its amputated Joshua trees and blackened Pinon pine, cottonwood and scrub oak trees - was different. It was a mess like all the others. But the charcoal-hewn trees - their branches stripped down to polished blackened forms - and the thousands of lavender, dusted orange, yellow and lapis flowers dotting all of the spaces between was a tortured beauty only Mother Nature could accomplish.