Although the morning was not quite as warm as yesterday, I managed to make it out of camp before 7 am, a new record for this hike. This proved to be quite necessary, as it was warmer today than yesterday (or at least seemed so), and my hiking quickly grew to be quite sluggish once the sun made its way above the mountains. I got in a good 45 minutes of hiking before the first direct rays from the sun hit me.
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Thanks to the warm temperatures, I was actually able to get up before sunrise, and after the half-mile walk from the Whitewater Preserve to the PCT, I was back on the trail by 7:30.
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It was warm overnight, the first actually warm evening on the trail, which made it a little easier to get moving faster. From the water faucet, the downhill from San Jacinto continued, as the trail followed an access road for the water agency, before turning into a sandy trail that passed through more sub-desert landscape as it headed across the valley towards the Mesa Wind Farm.
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Somehow, my tent survived the night. Though, if more stakes had pulled out, I’m not entirely sure I’d have gone outside to fix them. It was a bit cool in the morning, but the skies had cleared and the humidity dropped significantly. It was looking to be a much better day for hiking (and views) than yesterday.
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Today started much like yesterday, only earlier. I had another round of French toast at the Red Kettle, and then returned to my room to finish packing my pack and wait outside for the shuttle to the trailhead to resume my hike.
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