Angelus Oaks to Idyllwild Death March - unsuccessful attempt, trip report and photos
Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2018 9:40 pm
[TLDR: Attempted to hike nonstop and self supported from Angelus Oaks over Gorgonio, south on PCT, up Jacinto to Idyllwild. Made it 70 miles out of 90 before having to bail due to leg pain, stats and gallery at bottom.]
Route and planning
This hike was done two weeks ago, but I'm just getting around to finishing and posting a report now. After completing the San Gabriel Death March back in November, I wanted to do something similar again. Since that trip went over Baldy, I liked the idea of doing something that included the other two of the three big summits in SoCal, San Gorgonio and San Jacinto. So after looking at the map for a while I decided I would attempt to hike nonstop from Angelus Oaks up the San Bernardino Peak Trail to the ridge, follow that east to the San Gorgonio summit, go down Sky High Trail to Fisk Creek and join the PCT, take that south to Snow Creek, hike up to Fuller Ridge, take that to the San Jacinto summit, then hike through Wellman Divide and Saddle Junction, finally down to Humber Park on the edge of Idyllwild. The two maps I looked at didn't quite match up in miles and such, but the total distance is a little over 90 miles and somewhere around 17,000 feet of elevation gain.
The distance is significantly longer than the 47.4 miles I did on the SGDM (and thus by far the longest I've ever attempted), but the overall elevation gain is actually pretty comparable. Unlike last time, this route would also be entirely on trail, so I wouldn't have to worry about any bushwhacking, scrambling, or route finding. I also decided to do this one entirely self supported, partially as a new challenge for myself, and partially to require less work from my lovely and supportive wife. The plan was to cache supplies for myself ahead of time in several locations, as well as filtering water along the way and traveling light. I would drive myself to Angelus Oaks on Wednesday afternoon and start, reach my first cache Thursday morning. From there I would make it up Fuller Ridge some time late that night with two more caches along the way, then summit Jacinto and reach Idyllwild late Friday morning or early Friday afternoon. My wife would be hanging out in Idyllwild starting Friday morning and able to see my progress via InReach updates then meet me at the finish point of Humber Park. Once she picked me up we would spend the night in Palm Springs (Idyllwild was too expensive!) and pick up the car at the starting point on Saturday after a long sleep and a big brunch.
Section 1: Angelus Oaks to San Gorgonio Summit
I started at 3pm on Wednesday afternoon with perfect weather and feeling good. The route starts with a moderate but steady climb right away, beginning just below 6k at the trailhead and reaching San Bernardino Peak at 10,649 feet in about 8 miles. I saw a group of hikers on their way down shortly after I began, and one solo hiker descending near Limber Pine Springs (which had a small but steady flow), but nobody else until I joined the PCT early the next morning. The hike up to the ridge was pleasant but uneventful, but the moment you finally get up to the ridge and have that huge view to the east with Gorgonio, Yucaipa Ridge, and Jacinto in the distance is always spectacular. It also did a good job of showing how far away my goal was! I was feeling strong and it was still light out, so I made the minor detours off the main trail to tag the San Bernardino, San Bernardino East, Anderson, and Shields Peak summits. With the sun rapidly setting on my way down from Shields, I stopped to put on my gloves and extra layers, as well as get out my headlamp. About halfway between Shields Peak and Dollar Saddle it became fully dark, with a fantastic waxing crescent moon rising behind me. I reached the summit of Gorgonio just after 10pm and as usual, it was very windy. On the plus side, they sky was clear and the stars were awesome. I only found a small piece of the summit sign, I don't know where the rest of it went but wasn't in the mood to take time looking around with the cold wind blowing.
Section 2: Gorgonio Summit to Fish Creek/Pacific Crest Trail
I was a little concerned about the Sky High Trail section because the most recent info I had found said there was still snow across the trail in places. The report was over a week old so I was hoping most of it had melted, but I was carrying microspikes just in case. Luckily the snow had melted significantly. The one section I had to fully cross was only about 30 feet and in a nearly flat section, the others generally just came to the edge of the trail and could be skirted or easily crossed. I never needed my spikes and it would have been nice to save the weight, but bringing them was still the right call just in case. Shortly before Mine Shaft Saddle the trail passes the wreckage and plaque for a C-47 plane wreck, I haven't been on that section in a long time and forgot how large the wreckage was! Past the saddle the trail deteriorates a bit with some minor erosion, rock fall, and vegetation, but is still easy to follow. At the first crossing upstream from Fish Creek Meadow I stopped to filter water and was quite pleased with my new combo of a Sawyer filter and CNOC Vecto water bladder, which I had randomly stumbled upon shortly before the trip while looking at Hikin' Jim's blog. Continuing past the meadow I saw a couple dozen pairs of eyes watching me in the dark. It looked a little spooky, but I'm pretty sure it was just deer. I lost the damaged trail in the dark shortly before the Fish Creek Trailhead and road, luckily I was able to make up the difference with GPS. This would have been the ideal spot for cache number one as it was a little over 25 miles into the route, but the trailhead is still closed from the Lake Fire so I wouldn't have been able to drive there to stash supplies. From there it was a short walk on the dirt road to where it meets the PCT.
Section 3: PCT to Whitewater Preserve
As soon as I reached the PCT around 1:30am I saw my first person since Limber Pine Springs in the form of a tent right at the junction. I thought most people would have passed this area by now, but I guess it's more of a rolling start and I probably saw 100 PCT hikers over the rest of the day. This section is mostly long and gradual descent, I would occasionally pass groups of tents along the way and do my best to walk quietly. As morning sun came up I would pass rustling tents of hikers waking up, then people out and packing up, and eventually all the hikers going north as I continued south. The trail follows a stream with a healthy flow, so I was able to stop and filter a little more water along the way. I had been trying to stretch my food as long as possible in this section because my first supply cache wasn't until 47 miles into the route, eating the last of my food close to the 40 mile mark. It wasn't a problem, but it would have been nice to carry a little more because I was pretty hungry when I finally reached my first cache. At this point I was definitely feeling the miles and my lower legs were getting a little sore, but I felt ok overall. The first cache was buried uphill from the road into the Whitewater Preserve visitors center, this required a one mile detour from the trail, but was the closest place I could drive to when I dropped it off. Inside was 4.5L of water, clean socks and a shirt, and a variety of foods including Pop Tarts, Clif Bars, Shot Bloks, Cheese Its, and ginger snap cookies. I had taken short breaks along the way, but this was the first long one as I relaxed a little, changed clothes, ate a bunch of snacks, refilled water, and dropped off my no longer needed microspikes.
Section 4: Whitewater Preserve to Snow Creek
Once I started moving again I realized my lower legs were getting increasingly sore and things started to get tough. At this point I had passed the total mileage of the San Gabriel Death March, so everything past this would be the longest I'd ever hiked in one go. I still had roughly half the distance and elevation gain remaining, so while I wasn't feeling 100% I definitely felt determined and able to keep going. Shortly after rejoining the PCT from Whitewater the trail starts climbing again and I could feel myself slowing down, as well as some aching in my lower legs. At this point a high wind also started up. After descending the high point of this section and entering the wide open and flat valley, the wind got even stronger. If I wasn't in a stable position, some gusts threatened to blow me over! The trail passed a wind turbine farm, turns out they built all those things in this valley for a good reason. At a sheltered spot I called my wife to check in, putting a positive spin on how things were going and discussing plans for pickup the next day in Idyllwild. PCT hikers had thinned out significantly in this section, but as I passed under I-10 there were some trail angels with supplies and a few hikers hanging out there for shade and wind protection. The last few miles of this section were pretty painful for my lower legs and left knee, despite being pretty much flat. As I got closer to cache number two near Snow Creek I found myself half hoping that somebody had found and pilfered my supplies to give me an excuse to bail. My stash, buried next to a large cholla and disguised with some clean toilet paper to discourage others from digging there, was intact, so I took a fairly long break here to resupply and rest.
Section 5: Snow Creek to bailout
The aching in my legs had been getting increasingly sharp and painful, I found it a little difficult to even stand back up to get moving again, but wasn't ready to give up. Despite slowing down and hurting over the last few hours, I was still not that far off my original goal pace, so I figured I had plenty of time if I just went slow and steady. The next section was the big climb, from 1,200ft to 7,600ft at the Fuller Ridge trailhead. The first section from where the PCT hits Snow Creek is actually the paved Falls Creek Road, which is surprisingly steep for a paved road! After passing a gate and continuing up the road a little bit the actual PCT starts up again at a spot with some large boulders and a water fountain for hikers. It was now 5:30PM and there were several people here already settled in for the night, so I tried to go by without limping or looking like I was about to die. Unfortunately the pain in my legs was noticeably worse at this point and the climbing wasn't helping. When I sat down for a break it was even more painful and difficult to get back up than the last time. The high winds weren't helping either, with high gusts requiring me to brace and tighten my muscles, causing even more pain.
After two miles of this I realized I had to bail at about 7PM. My legs hurt enough that I wasn't sure I could make it ten more miles to the trailhead and next road access, not to mention the 5,000 feet of elevation gain required. I clearly wasn't going to make it all the way to Idyllwild and the next best case would have been a very painful and difficult climb that would get me to the Fuller Ridge well after midnight with my current pace, then have to just huddle under a bush until morning when my wife could pick me up. I turned around and messaged my wife via InReach, then realized that the section of trail I was on actually had cell reception, so I was eventually able to talk to her on the phone instead of the slow and clunky texting via InReach. Luckily she was able to start driving my way and we would meet at the Snow Creek junction. I painfully continued my slow and limping descent, which took three hours to go less than four miles of gradual downhill, all while the wind kept blowing. At this point it also got fully dark for the start of my second night out. The one nice part about it was that I saw two snakes and a gecko! I made it back to my cache location at 9:30PM, then waited on the side of the road about 20 minutes before my wife pulled up, the timing ended up being pretty lucky. We drove into Palm Springs and made a new hotel reservation since the one for the next night wasn't able to be moved or cancelled. On the way there we got some food in addition to the snacks my wife brought in the car. Real food, a shower, and a bed all felt great after a long trip. I was very disappointed I wasn't able to finish and was hurting quite a bit, but at least I know I put in a good effort and had the sense to bail before getting in a bad situation or causing myself serious injury.
Afterwards
So what happened? I'm not 100% sure, but I have what seems to be a pretty good theory and evidence. My energy level had been fine, my body above the knees actually still felt pretty good when I made the decision to bail. The left knee pain has happened to me before on long hikes and wasn't the deciding factor. My heart rate and breathing, as well as inputs and outputs (ahem) were all normal for the duration. The real issue was the lower leg pain on both legs, primarily the lateral side from my ankles up towards the knees. I hadn't felt this pain on previous hikes, including my last big death march. Additionally, the pain came on gradually and basically identically on both sides, rather than the unequal issues that usually come up (like my left knee). When I got to the hotel and undressed for the shower, I think I identified the cause. I was wearing new gaiters for the first time to keep dirt and rocks out of my new low ankle trail runners, and when I took everything off I could see a distinct line of swelling below the top cuff of the gaiters. I purchased the recommended size, but they were definitely not a loose fit, and my socks were fairly thick. What I think happened was that as I got further into the route, things naturally swelled up a little, but between the thick socks and snug gaiters, there wasn't enough give, causing constriction that led to more swelling and pain. The pain quickly faded over the next day, though my feet and ankles actually became more swollen, taking almost a week to fully return to normal. There was a lot of laying around and icing over the next several days.
I'm still pretty bummed I wasn't able to finish, especially if it was indeed due to a preventable equipment issue. I suppose some pain and failure once in a while do help build character! I didn't notice any swelling when I changed socks at the first cache, though I wasn't really looking for it and it may have been too early to spot anyway. Past that point when it got increasingly painful I never considered the gaiters may have been part of it because it came on gradually and seemed like just part of the fatigue and soreness of doing such a long distance. On the plus side, the first 40 miles of the route were great, I still beat my previous mileage record by a lot, my cache system worked well, my other new gear (shoes, pack, filter, running tights) all met my expectations. Plus the snakes and gecko I saw on the way back down to get bailed out were all new to me, and my big diner breakfast the next morning in Palm Springs was quite tasty!
Stats: 30.5 hours, 69.5 miles, 10,650ft gain, 15,250ft loss
Route and planning
This hike was done two weeks ago, but I'm just getting around to finishing and posting a report now. After completing the San Gabriel Death March back in November, I wanted to do something similar again. Since that trip went over Baldy, I liked the idea of doing something that included the other two of the three big summits in SoCal, San Gorgonio and San Jacinto. So after looking at the map for a while I decided I would attempt to hike nonstop from Angelus Oaks up the San Bernardino Peak Trail to the ridge, follow that east to the San Gorgonio summit, go down Sky High Trail to Fisk Creek and join the PCT, take that south to Snow Creek, hike up to Fuller Ridge, take that to the San Jacinto summit, then hike through Wellman Divide and Saddle Junction, finally down to Humber Park on the edge of Idyllwild. The two maps I looked at didn't quite match up in miles and such, but the total distance is a little over 90 miles and somewhere around 17,000 feet of elevation gain.
The distance is significantly longer than the 47.4 miles I did on the SGDM (and thus by far the longest I've ever attempted), but the overall elevation gain is actually pretty comparable. Unlike last time, this route would also be entirely on trail, so I wouldn't have to worry about any bushwhacking, scrambling, or route finding. I also decided to do this one entirely self supported, partially as a new challenge for myself, and partially to require less work from my lovely and supportive wife. The plan was to cache supplies for myself ahead of time in several locations, as well as filtering water along the way and traveling light. I would drive myself to Angelus Oaks on Wednesday afternoon and start, reach my first cache Thursday morning. From there I would make it up Fuller Ridge some time late that night with two more caches along the way, then summit Jacinto and reach Idyllwild late Friday morning or early Friday afternoon. My wife would be hanging out in Idyllwild starting Friday morning and able to see my progress via InReach updates then meet me at the finish point of Humber Park. Once she picked me up we would spend the night in Palm Springs (Idyllwild was too expensive!) and pick up the car at the starting point on Saturday after a long sleep and a big brunch.
Section 1: Angelus Oaks to San Gorgonio Summit
I started at 3pm on Wednesday afternoon with perfect weather and feeling good. The route starts with a moderate but steady climb right away, beginning just below 6k at the trailhead and reaching San Bernardino Peak at 10,649 feet in about 8 miles. I saw a group of hikers on their way down shortly after I began, and one solo hiker descending near Limber Pine Springs (which had a small but steady flow), but nobody else until I joined the PCT early the next morning. The hike up to the ridge was pleasant but uneventful, but the moment you finally get up to the ridge and have that huge view to the east with Gorgonio, Yucaipa Ridge, and Jacinto in the distance is always spectacular. It also did a good job of showing how far away my goal was! I was feeling strong and it was still light out, so I made the minor detours off the main trail to tag the San Bernardino, San Bernardino East, Anderson, and Shields Peak summits. With the sun rapidly setting on my way down from Shields, I stopped to put on my gloves and extra layers, as well as get out my headlamp. About halfway between Shields Peak and Dollar Saddle it became fully dark, with a fantastic waxing crescent moon rising behind me. I reached the summit of Gorgonio just after 10pm and as usual, it was very windy. On the plus side, they sky was clear and the stars were awesome. I only found a small piece of the summit sign, I don't know where the rest of it went but wasn't in the mood to take time looking around with the cold wind blowing.
Section 2: Gorgonio Summit to Fish Creek/Pacific Crest Trail
I was a little concerned about the Sky High Trail section because the most recent info I had found said there was still snow across the trail in places. The report was over a week old so I was hoping most of it had melted, but I was carrying microspikes just in case. Luckily the snow had melted significantly. The one section I had to fully cross was only about 30 feet and in a nearly flat section, the others generally just came to the edge of the trail and could be skirted or easily crossed. I never needed my spikes and it would have been nice to save the weight, but bringing them was still the right call just in case. Shortly before Mine Shaft Saddle the trail passes the wreckage and plaque for a C-47 plane wreck, I haven't been on that section in a long time and forgot how large the wreckage was! Past the saddle the trail deteriorates a bit with some minor erosion, rock fall, and vegetation, but is still easy to follow. At the first crossing upstream from Fish Creek Meadow I stopped to filter water and was quite pleased with my new combo of a Sawyer filter and CNOC Vecto water bladder, which I had randomly stumbled upon shortly before the trip while looking at Hikin' Jim's blog. Continuing past the meadow I saw a couple dozen pairs of eyes watching me in the dark. It looked a little spooky, but I'm pretty sure it was just deer. I lost the damaged trail in the dark shortly before the Fish Creek Trailhead and road, luckily I was able to make up the difference with GPS. This would have been the ideal spot for cache number one as it was a little over 25 miles into the route, but the trailhead is still closed from the Lake Fire so I wouldn't have been able to drive there to stash supplies. From there it was a short walk on the dirt road to where it meets the PCT.
Section 3: PCT to Whitewater Preserve
As soon as I reached the PCT around 1:30am I saw my first person since Limber Pine Springs in the form of a tent right at the junction. I thought most people would have passed this area by now, but I guess it's more of a rolling start and I probably saw 100 PCT hikers over the rest of the day. This section is mostly long and gradual descent, I would occasionally pass groups of tents along the way and do my best to walk quietly. As morning sun came up I would pass rustling tents of hikers waking up, then people out and packing up, and eventually all the hikers going north as I continued south. The trail follows a stream with a healthy flow, so I was able to stop and filter a little more water along the way. I had been trying to stretch my food as long as possible in this section because my first supply cache wasn't until 47 miles into the route, eating the last of my food close to the 40 mile mark. It wasn't a problem, but it would have been nice to carry a little more because I was pretty hungry when I finally reached my first cache. At this point I was definitely feeling the miles and my lower legs were getting a little sore, but I felt ok overall. The first cache was buried uphill from the road into the Whitewater Preserve visitors center, this required a one mile detour from the trail, but was the closest place I could drive to when I dropped it off. Inside was 4.5L of water, clean socks and a shirt, and a variety of foods including Pop Tarts, Clif Bars, Shot Bloks, Cheese Its, and ginger snap cookies. I had taken short breaks along the way, but this was the first long one as I relaxed a little, changed clothes, ate a bunch of snacks, refilled water, and dropped off my no longer needed microspikes.
Section 4: Whitewater Preserve to Snow Creek
Once I started moving again I realized my lower legs were getting increasingly sore and things started to get tough. At this point I had passed the total mileage of the San Gabriel Death March, so everything past this would be the longest I'd ever hiked in one go. I still had roughly half the distance and elevation gain remaining, so while I wasn't feeling 100% I definitely felt determined and able to keep going. Shortly after rejoining the PCT from Whitewater the trail starts climbing again and I could feel myself slowing down, as well as some aching in my lower legs. At this point a high wind also started up. After descending the high point of this section and entering the wide open and flat valley, the wind got even stronger. If I wasn't in a stable position, some gusts threatened to blow me over! The trail passed a wind turbine farm, turns out they built all those things in this valley for a good reason. At a sheltered spot I called my wife to check in, putting a positive spin on how things were going and discussing plans for pickup the next day in Idyllwild. PCT hikers had thinned out significantly in this section, but as I passed under I-10 there were some trail angels with supplies and a few hikers hanging out there for shade and wind protection. The last few miles of this section were pretty painful for my lower legs and left knee, despite being pretty much flat. As I got closer to cache number two near Snow Creek I found myself half hoping that somebody had found and pilfered my supplies to give me an excuse to bail. My stash, buried next to a large cholla and disguised with some clean toilet paper to discourage others from digging there, was intact, so I took a fairly long break here to resupply and rest.
Section 5: Snow Creek to bailout
The aching in my legs had been getting increasingly sharp and painful, I found it a little difficult to even stand back up to get moving again, but wasn't ready to give up. Despite slowing down and hurting over the last few hours, I was still not that far off my original goal pace, so I figured I had plenty of time if I just went slow and steady. The next section was the big climb, from 1,200ft to 7,600ft at the Fuller Ridge trailhead. The first section from where the PCT hits Snow Creek is actually the paved Falls Creek Road, which is surprisingly steep for a paved road! After passing a gate and continuing up the road a little bit the actual PCT starts up again at a spot with some large boulders and a water fountain for hikers. It was now 5:30PM and there were several people here already settled in for the night, so I tried to go by without limping or looking like I was about to die. Unfortunately the pain in my legs was noticeably worse at this point and the climbing wasn't helping. When I sat down for a break it was even more painful and difficult to get back up than the last time. The high winds weren't helping either, with high gusts requiring me to brace and tighten my muscles, causing even more pain.
After two miles of this I realized I had to bail at about 7PM. My legs hurt enough that I wasn't sure I could make it ten more miles to the trailhead and next road access, not to mention the 5,000 feet of elevation gain required. I clearly wasn't going to make it all the way to Idyllwild and the next best case would have been a very painful and difficult climb that would get me to the Fuller Ridge well after midnight with my current pace, then have to just huddle under a bush until morning when my wife could pick me up. I turned around and messaged my wife via InReach, then realized that the section of trail I was on actually had cell reception, so I was eventually able to talk to her on the phone instead of the slow and clunky texting via InReach. Luckily she was able to start driving my way and we would meet at the Snow Creek junction. I painfully continued my slow and limping descent, which took three hours to go less than four miles of gradual downhill, all while the wind kept blowing. At this point it also got fully dark for the start of my second night out. The one nice part about it was that I saw two snakes and a gecko! I made it back to my cache location at 9:30PM, then waited on the side of the road about 20 minutes before my wife pulled up, the timing ended up being pretty lucky. We drove into Palm Springs and made a new hotel reservation since the one for the next night wasn't able to be moved or cancelled. On the way there we got some food in addition to the snacks my wife brought in the car. Real food, a shower, and a bed all felt great after a long trip. I was very disappointed I wasn't able to finish and was hurting quite a bit, but at least I know I put in a good effort and had the sense to bail before getting in a bad situation or causing myself serious injury.
Afterwards
So what happened? I'm not 100% sure, but I have what seems to be a pretty good theory and evidence. My energy level had been fine, my body above the knees actually still felt pretty good when I made the decision to bail. The left knee pain has happened to me before on long hikes and wasn't the deciding factor. My heart rate and breathing, as well as inputs and outputs (ahem) were all normal for the duration. The real issue was the lower leg pain on both legs, primarily the lateral side from my ankles up towards the knees. I hadn't felt this pain on previous hikes, including my last big death march. Additionally, the pain came on gradually and basically identically on both sides, rather than the unequal issues that usually come up (like my left knee). When I got to the hotel and undressed for the shower, I think I identified the cause. I was wearing new gaiters for the first time to keep dirt and rocks out of my new low ankle trail runners, and when I took everything off I could see a distinct line of swelling below the top cuff of the gaiters. I purchased the recommended size, but they were definitely not a loose fit, and my socks were fairly thick. What I think happened was that as I got further into the route, things naturally swelled up a little, but between the thick socks and snug gaiters, there wasn't enough give, causing constriction that led to more swelling and pain. The pain quickly faded over the next day, though my feet and ankles actually became more swollen, taking almost a week to fully return to normal. There was a lot of laying around and icing over the next several days.
I'm still pretty bummed I wasn't able to finish, especially if it was indeed due to a preventable equipment issue. I suppose some pain and failure once in a while do help build character! I didn't notice any swelling when I changed socks at the first cache, though I wasn't really looking for it and it may have been too early to spot anyway. Past that point when it got increasingly painful I never considered the gaiters may have been part of it because it came on gradually and seemed like just part of the fatigue and soreness of doing such a long distance. On the plus side, the first 40 miles of the route were great, I still beat my previous mileage record by a lot, my cache system worked well, my other new gear (shoes, pack, filter, running tights) all met my expectations. Plus the snakes and gecko I saw on the way back down to get bailed out were all new to me, and my big diner breakfast the next morning in Palm Springs was quite tasty!
Stats: 30.5 hours, 69.5 miles, 10,650ft gain, 15,250ft loss
