[pct-l] Start thru in March. -- Fuller Ridge + SoCal section sequence

[Eric Martinot]

The two problems with Fuller Ridge in snow in my opinion are the local
wind patterns and sun exposure that seem to create ice easily, plus the
fact that there are rocky outcrops on the ridge top.  So the trail
doesn't just go along the ridge top the whole way, but has to drop down
significantly a few times on the south-west side and then climb back up
to the ridge top, which makes for steep trail along rocky terrain, not
just forest.  (The slide exposure on the north-east side of the ridge is
mostly forest that would likely prevent long slides, and presented much
less icy conditions, but the exposure on the south-west side was much
more rocky and icy.)

I hiked Fuller Ridge northbound at the end of October this year, the day
after a major early-season storm dumped 4-8 inches of snow on Mt. San
Jacinto. I wasn't expecting ice, just snow, and didn't bring traction
devices.  The PCT south of Fuller Ridge just had snow, 4-8 inches worth
(coming up from Idyllwild).  But on Fuller Ridge itself there was lots
of ice already, just the day after the storm.  It wasn't warm during the
day, in the 30s, but the wind and sun had already created icy
conditions. 

Just before the northbound PCT attains Fuller Ridge, it drops down the
west flank of Mt. San Jacinto, then climbs back up to the start of the
ridge.  Exactly upon attaining the flat top of Fuller Ridge, the very
first thing that happened was that I slipped and fell on my back on the
flat icy ground.  Then there were a few places where the trail had
become an ice chute that required care, and one place with rock walls on
both sides where I had no choice but to sit down and slide down the ice
for 20 ft., although with no exposure.  The crux was a 20-ft section of
ascending trail well below the ridge top that traversed a steep
rock-dirt slope where the trail had become narrow and eroded, and
covered with mixed ice and snow, with a severe rocky exposure to the
south-west.  Very careful cutting of steps and foot plants and glad I
was going uphill rather than down across it.

The point is that even after just one storm, and just one day of sun and
wind, the trail was already challenging.  I suppose March-April
conditions can be very different from October conditions, but still, it
seems Fuller Ridge is particularly ice-prone, which  combined with
rugged terrain, not just a ridge-top forest walk, makes it an
exceptional portion of PCT, albeit a very short one.

If I were to hike the PCT starting in March 2014, and being a person who
likes to avoid the May desert heat at all costs, I would start with
Sections E and D from Hwy 58 to Acton in mid-March, which can be done
easily with public transit (south-bound hike only, a bus can drop you
off at Hwy 58/PCT by special request, but wouldn't rely on a pick-up
there, then Metrolink from Acton to get to San Diego), then start at
Campo.  Then on the way north skip Fuller Ridge via Black Mountain Road
if there was still late-season snow, as hopefully the only main SoCal
snow issue faced with an early start, if San Bernardinos are OK, and
allowing extra time to sit out any late-season storms during April. 
(Then northbound later, you skip from Acton to Hwy 58 via Metrolink to
Lancaster and bus to Hwy 58/PCT.)  (I say all this because I did hike
Section E in late March and it was very pleasant, and because I hiked
Section D in May and wished I had been hiking the northern half past
Agua Dulce earlier than that.)

I might also consider whether the currently closed San Jacinto segment
of PCT from Hwy 74 to Idyllwild might be re-opened by later in the 2014
season, and then initially skip the entire San Jacinto segment from Hwy
74 to I-10, and come back for a few days later in the season and do it
then, if I really wanted to hike the whole San Jacinto trail including
Fuller Ridge.  (Amtrak California can take you from NorCal to Hemet,
hitch/taxi/angel from there to Hwy 74/PCT, and then take Amtrak bus from
Cabazon, 3 miles from PCT at I-10, and go back up to NorCal.)