[pct-l] Trip Report - PCT from I-10 to (almost) Highway 38 - Section C Through the Millard/Sawtooth Fire Area

[Mike Saenz]

My hiking partner and subsequent shuttle help both had to back out at
the last minute. So I didn't end up making it all the way to highway 38.
Close, but not all the way...

I ended up parking at the PCT/I-10 at the Heaugan-Leaman (probably
misspelled) exit, which used to be called the Verbainia off ramp. I
arrived around 7:30am, parked, placed a "PCT HIKER" sign on my dashboard
and headed out solo to the bridge over the PCT that the I-10 crosses. I
haven't been there since last May when I hiked down from Saddle
Junction/Fuller Ridge/Snow Creek. 

The morning was cold and windy. Very windy. The storm that blew through
on Thursday was breaking up exactly overhead. West of San J & San G, the
sky was heavy with dark clouds but as they passed through the Banning
Pass between the two mountain ranges and into the desert, the clouds
shredded and scattered into small puffy balls and wisps that disappeared
into the high pressure warmth over the desert. After ducking into a
house under construction to make some adjustments to my pack, pull out
my jacket and gloves, I stepped onto The Trail and began walking up
toward Gold Canyon. I watched the residents of the small community
starting their day heading out to work as well as the shredding clouds
flying fast just overhead. It's always a little odd (at least to me) to
be hiking alongside a residential area, roads and other areas of
"civilization", so I wanted to get into Gold Canyon as quickly as
possible. There was even a car at the last road before Gold Canyon, the
driver looked at me and I could just tell what his thoughts were: "what
the heck is that guy doing?!" and with that, I was in the canyon and
most all sights of "the world" were out of view. 

The wind turbines were whirling like crazy! The rush-roar of the wind
blowing through both the tower structure as well as the fans themselves
sounded weird in the barren canyon. About 2/3 up Gold Canyon, there's
some sort of facility (I assume it's a maintenance/collector station for
the wind farm). A sign is posted on the trail indicating shade and water
available and a friendly "Stop by and say Hi". I didn't need water and I
needed to make a lot of miles, so I didn't stop. But Through Hikers may
want to be aware of this. In fact, many hikers stop at the freeway- if
you don't want to walk to Cabazon and expect to keep going, I recommend
hiking a bit longer to this station. There's a small flat spot just
before you head up the small pass between Gold and Teutang canyon where
a few campsite can be had. 

The first ridgeline to climb is this small pass. No big deal, but just
below the top, the trail is really steep. Once at the top, you then drop
very quickly into Teutang canyon, loosing elevation which you need to
regain before you drop again into Whitewater Canyon. Once into
Whitewater, you can either take a small trail south to the trout farm,
or move toward the Whitewater ford. Don't try to cross Whitewater
directly across from the gate out of Teutang- the wash is a maze of
boulders and rocks, weeds with very sticky thorns (they grab at you like
fish hooks), and tertiary washouts before you get to the main wash and
flow of Whitewater. The trail parallels Whitewater northward for a few
miles to a point called "Red Dome", where large cairns show the best way
across the canyon and to the ford across the river. Though it was late
February, the flow was very strong and without a few boulders and large
branches that were there, it would have been a boots-off crossing. In
late spring, this must be a dangerous ford. The maps show a road up to
this point, but don't believe it! The road ends at the trout farm.

Once across Whitewater, the trail again climbs another ridge to get into
the west fork of Mission Creek. Once up and over this ridge and you
descend into west fork, the trail crosses a "road" that shows up on the
maps. Calling it a "road" is a stretch... it's more of a fire break. I
doubt ANY vehicle has been on this road since the fire. The trail
crosses this road and again heads up another rise before dropping into
East Mission Creek. This last ridgeline is really cool, as, from the
top, you get some really nice views out to the cities of the Coachella
Valley. I was on this ridge at sunset and the combination of the
twilight and dramatic silhouette of the high mountain ridgeline and the
sparkling lights of the desert below was stunning. If you're not trying
to do 20 miles from the 10, I would recommend camping on this ridge.
There are several flat spots along the two or three miles of this
ridgeline. But if you want to get to the water at East Mission Creek,
keep going and descend from this ridgeline down to the creek. I walked
on through the darkening evening to get down to the creek where I
pitched my tent on the first flat spot on the "road" that is East
Mission Creek Road (again, more of a trail than a road, but it was more
hard-packed and defined than West Fork Mission Creek Road).

>From the top of the ridge at sunset, I could see East Mission Creek
flowing in the canyon below. I didn't need water (I had lunch and
filtered out of Whitewater), so I didn't attempt trying to step through
the rush and boulders in the dark. But I could hear the water flowing
from about 100 yards away. Since climbing out of Gold Canyon, the sky
was clear and blue. Friday night was COLD. I didn't go UL, opting for my
"comfort kit", so I was fine as long as I was inside my bag and tent,
but I didn't sleep well (which is strange). I attribute that to the
cold. Throughout the night, I kept having to keep my head wrap on. My
head and hands kept getting cold.

The next morning, my goal was to make my way as far up the trail as I
could before I had to turn around. I left my tent up and packed a day
pack and started up the trail. Just north of where I camped, the "road"
ended and the trail continued. This is at a location closer to the
creek, so I had first visual indication as to how well it was flowing:
and it was flowing very well. I had heard that the trail crosses and
re-crosses the creek as it goes up the canyon. This is true, but I found
most the crossings occur between 4 and 5 thousand feet. These were where
the canyon necks in on itself and there were dense thickets of trees and
brush in these locations. All the crossings were boulder hops across,
but in the spring, I could see these as being just as dangerous as a
full flowing Whitewater! To make things worse, at just about all these
crossings, the creek washed out the trail and cairns are needed to see
the most direct way to where the trail picks up again. On my way up, I
lost the trail just about each time- bushwhacking until I got out of the
thickets to where I could see the trail again. Only once did I end up on
the wrong side of the canyon and had to re-cross the creek and scramble
up a loose rocky slope to get onto the trail again.

Here's really the only thing of value to report: Though there aren't
many large blow-downs, there are TONS of small brush and dropped limbs
across the trail. But once out of these necked-in canyon thickets, the
trail is well defined and well signed. I uprighted a few fallen PCT
posts and placed a few needed cairns, but generally, the trail is in
very good condition. I expected erosion damage, but I found none. I
suspect the trail looks very much like it did when the Thrus went
through last spring. The fire did ravage the canyons. All the trees and
bushes are burned out. Very little plant life survived the fire. I think
the animals are slowly rehabitating the canyons, but I didn't see much.
I found a severed mule deer leg, gnawed bare on one side and just thin
fur and a hoof on the other. This wasn't burned or decomposed much, so
guess it was fairly fresh. So there must be deer and predators (most
likely coyotes) about. I saw a mature male big horn sheep Sunday around
noon as I was hiking back to my car! It was in Whitewater and fairly
close to me. Just as I pulled my camera, it dashed off and was up one of
the canyon sides in a flash!

I made it as far as the "creekside camp" at 6k and mile 235 in the data
book before I had to turn around and head back to camp. I was pushing my
time and decided getting as far as possible was worth hiking in the dark
on the return trip- and that's exactly what happened. I was at the first
thicket crossing north of East Mission Creek Road when all twilight
faded and it was a moonless dark. I couldn't see the cairns to guide me
across the wash, but I knew the general location of the trail, so I just
bulled my way through the wash boulders and up the slope until I found
the trail. Again, I was walking in the dark to camp.

I'm satisfied with my progress. At least I don't have to re-hike the
trail from the I-10. I can get to where I stopped from above. So the
next hike will be from the 38, back to Mission Creek Camp, down 2k to
"the creekside camp" and backtrack. This would be a more enjoyable hike
from what I just did- I had made it ALMOST to the boundary of the burn.
I could see the trees up at 8k just a few miles ahead of me.

HARD BETA:
Water is available 2/3 up Gold Canyon at the wind farm facility
Whitewater is flowing well
Mission Creek is flowing
The trail is in good condition
Light brush needs to be cleared from the trail (there is a lot of it-
sometimes obscuring the trail)
No fire or erosion damage was seen from the freeway to 6k. I suspect the
same good trail condition up past the burn boundary
I'm not sure if the trail is "officially" open. I did not contact the
USFS about me being on the trail. 

I have photos available at:
http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/557878436CdHcDO

Unfortunately, I do not have time to label each photo. I also have video
and many other photos which I didn't upload. If you have a specific
location you want info or photos of, I'll be happy to try and provide
it.

________________________________________
Michael Saenz 
Associate Partner

MVE & Partners, Inc. | Architecture + Planning + Interiors 
Irvine + Oakland + Honolulu 

1900 Main Street, Suite 800 | Irvine, California 92614-7318 | T
949.809.3388 | www.mve-architects.com