Crossing the Infamous Desert

Day 32 – Mile 537 (518 to 537)

As part of the PCT journey, one must cross a section of the infamous Mojave Desert. It is problematic because of the typical high temperatures and the lack of shade. It is a distance of about 20 miles.

Fortunately for us, the temperature was supposed to be in the lower 70s with a wind of about 20 mph behind us.

We timed our leaving for 5:30 am. The terrain was very flat. The trail was a combination of road walking and walking on a covered aqueduct. The roads were all dirt.

At our lunch break we were lucky enough to find a Joshua tree to sit under for shade. It was really nice but with the wind and temperature the way it was it was almost too cool. We had to wear jackets.

As we progressed, we turned up into the desert foothills and a wind farm. After getting some water out of a faucet provided by the Los Angeles Water Authority, we worked our way through the wind farm until we found a place for our tent that was sheltered from the wind. Our early morning departure made it so we got to our campsite about 3:00. This gave time for a nice nap and a game of cards. The loud swooshing of the wind turbines nearby didn’t interfere with our sleep. It ended up being a very successful day.