But then Coronageddon happened, and now I have even less reason to leave the house. I'm in such bad shape that the common cold might kill me.
Nevertheless the itch to hike returned after I finished the latest writing project, and Cecelia finally convinced me to join her on Sunday. We decided to check out the high desert.
Coming from Los Angeles, it took us about an hour to reach Hesperia in the morning. We had brought fruit and snacks from home, but stopped at a gas station to pick up some beef jerky. We bought a new brand called Smokehouse Jerky Company, smoky bar-b flavor. In the parking lot someone had abandoned a motorcycle glove, so we left with that too.
Our first destination was Deep Creek. We didn't really know anything about the area, but Cecelia thought some pictures of it looked nice. On the drive there we stopped to document the great view of the Gabes that Hesperians have this time of year.
Deep Creek Road turns into dirt about a mile before the trailhead. Cecelia parked her low-clearance chick car off the road, and we walked the final mile. Next to us flowed the Mojave River just beyond an off-roading site. Some people were enjoying their dirt bikes and buggies on this clear and cool day.
The road ends at the Mojave River Forks Reservoir.
We took a path up and over the dam. At the top is the trailhead to the hot springs, though we weren't aware of that at the time. The trail looked beautifully cut into the rocky cliffs. It's part of the PCT, but the few people we encountered around the dam appeared to be dayhikers. We dropped down to the creek and sat on the sandy bank under a tree. Mission accomplished.
I was satisfied with strolling along the bank for a hundred yards, until we ran out of bank. We could have removed our shoes and socks and easily crossed the stream, but we also wanted to see the pinnacles, so we decided to return to the car. On the way back Cecelia was happy to find a cactus bloom.
We took the long, scenic route to the Pinnacles Trail. Apparently there is a much shorter route from Hesperia via SR 173 East, but the sign said "Road Closed," so we didn't bother testing that theory. Instead we drove the 173 West to the 138 and rounded the high, forested lakes in order to drop down again to the desert side of the range.
The Pinnacles Trail is about four miles roundtrip. We fueled up before starting. In addition to an avocado, the beef jerky was very tasty. I also brought a lemon and cut up pieces to turn our water into lemonade.
The trail started off easy, running next to a thin creek and the occasional group of pines.
A nearby rifle range produced infrequent noises, and a fellow hiker found it necessary to blast Beatles music on the trail. Other than that, the excursion was a very serene experience. The route soon brought us to enticing rock formations.
As the trail climbs up the drainage to the ridge, it becomes steep and harder to follow. We lost the main path at one point and followed a scrambler's/boulderer's route through an area with small poodle dog bushes.
After regaining the trail we continued toward the pinnacles. We wove through and climbed over boulders. Sometimes we'd pass other hikers and have to put on our Coronamasks.
After a couple miles of this my back was killing me. I found a nice shady spot among a family of huge rocks and sat down for an extended visit. It actually felt like a perfect place to die.
Another hiker had informed us that the next ridge offered a great view of the pinnacles. We could see the next ridge from our vantage point, so I told Cecelia I would watch her while she went and checked it out. Here is her photo of the famous formation.
We learned later that the peak at the end of the trail is a Sierra Club summit. But Cecelia didn't climb up it because that's not necessary to see the pinnacles. So the question is: Does this adventure qualify Cecelia for the NHPS club, even though she wasn't aware of the HPS peak at the time?
