[pct-l] SoCal closures

[chiefcowboy at verizon.net]

Dan,

You are correct about the Highway 74 portion being an easy stretch.   I 
assure you that from Hurkey Creek to Mountain Center where you intersect 
with Highway 243 is extremely dangerous.  And, Highway 243 is also narrow, 
winding and has very narrow shoulders.  Having lived in the area and hiked 
those mountains most of my life, I DO NOT recommend a road walk to 
Idyllwild.  There are some secondary trails and I hope to find out if it's 
reasonable to use them to get to Idyllwild.

Ron Burning Daylight Dye

-----Original Message----- 
From: Dan Welch
Sent: Thursday, March 06, 2014 5:44 PM
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Subject: Re: [pct-l] SoCal closures

I don't have any updates from the Forest Service on the Mountain Fire 
Closure and don't expect any.  My last communication with them was pretty 
definitive.  They said the trail will be closed beyond the Cedar Springs 
trail for 2014.

As far as alternates, since I am thru hiking I plan to walk around it rather 
than hitchhike.  The path along Highway 74 as far as Lake Hemet looks quite 
easy.  There are dirt roads and/or ATV tracks on the Southwest side of 74 
all the way to within 1/3 mile of the lake.  From there the road walk looks 
safe to the lake - flat and unobstructed.    At the lake is a campground 
with water for re-supply.

The road beyond Lake Hemet is reported to be very dangerous, particularly 
the section of Highway 243.  I can't remember the source but what I heard 
was "many high speed vehicles, zero shoulder, windy mountainous turns, and 
large drop offs."  Not for me...

I'll take my chances orienteering with the track Hikin' Jim laid out.  That 
looks like the best route to me.  I printed up a few sheets of maps for that 
section and see how it turns out!

Timberline

-----Original Message-----
From: pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net [mailto:pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net] 
On Behalf Of Kevin Taylor
Sent: Thursday, March 06, 2014 7:51 PM
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Subject: [pct-l] SoCal closures

Below is an update from Feb. 19, along with possible alternate routes to 
Idyllwild.  Maybe Timberline and Hikin' Jim will have another update soon.

Dan Welch welchenergy at gmail.com
Wed Feb 19 16:52:56 CST 2014
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<< I've been chatting with a friend in Idylwild and she thinks there might 
be a way to bypass some road walking by cutting off of 74 at Hurkey Creek 
and taking a trail north from there to May Road which one could either walk 
till you get to Idylwild or possibly take the South Ridge trail to the PCT 
and over to Saddle Junction and down to Hummer Park. Or take May Valley road 
to the southern part of the South Ridge trail and hop off at the South Ridge 
trailhead and then hike neighborhood roads into Idylwild. Anyone else have 
knowledge of these options or if the FS map we are looking at is way off 
base?>>


I have been in touch with Andrew Smith who is the lead person at the USFS 
for figuring this out.  He has been working in coordination with PCTA to 
evaluate alternate routes.  His last email to me on Feb 4th (copied below) 
was pretty clear that May Valley Road would not be open this season for thru 
hiking.

Hikin' Jim has posted what I consider to be the best alternate at:
http://caltopo.com/map?id=7S5F

This Caltopo map is interactive so you can change the zoom, change from 
satellite to topo view, etc.  Note that the red routes are closed.  Also, 
the yellow route along 74 is almost entirely off to the side of 74, not on 
the roadway.

If other folks have other ideas, please jump in!

Timberline

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