I did Vivian Creek (up and down) yesterday. It was my second San Gorgonio summit for this season- my eleventh all together. Yay!
My hike buddy couldn’t hike with me, so my hubby came along. He’ll be the first to admit he had not been training for a hike like this one. For me, it was the last of many training hikes for c2c. I was super charged and ready, so we agreed to hike uphill separately.
What a fantastic day on the mountain! I could not have asked for better weather. Also, with the Santa Barbara fire contained, the air was clearer than it was last weekend.
Along the switchbacks above Halfway Camp I met a nice hiker named Marco. It was his first time doing that trail, and it would be his first time on the summit. We decided to hike together, as we had a similar pace. We took one break at High Creek (flowing very well) and then pushed on…and up!
About a mile-ish from the summit we ran into a bunch of hikers from the San Gorgonio board and San Jacinto boards! It was cool to see Zippetydude (again) and also to meet Ellen, Bluerail, and a couple other ladies whos names I did not learn. (I hope to see you all out on the trail again! I’m sure I will!)
The weather was great at the summit- warm with a slight breeze. Oh, and my new friend Marco made it to the top just fine! I got comfortable and settled in to wait for my hubby. It was almost a party-like atmosphere! Plenty of people, all talking happily and enthusiastically. I think we were all happy to really be kicking off a new hiking season!
It was odd…someone had left a bunch of balloons on the summit, which Ranger Ron popped and packed out. By the way, I got to chat with Ranger Ron for a while, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Incidentally, the trail was mostly snow free, and Ranger Ron cleared away what little remained. Yay! After nearly 2 hours on the summit (time got away from me), I went back down to find my hubby. He’d hit an altitude-induced wall and decided to stop at about 10,800 feet. He enjoyed a nice nap, and I don’t blame him. After all, it was MY training hike, not his. (I’ll get his butt into tough trail, high altitude shape soon! It’s still early in the season.) We hiked down together, and had a very nice rest of the day.
I’ll likely be back in then San Gorgonio Wilderness in 2 weeks!
Pics are here: www.flickr.com/photos/33777171@N06/sets ... 663286357/