[pct-l] went from Campo to Pioneer Mail Trailhead last week (long)

[Joseph S. Park]

Hi,
After vicariously hiking with the class of 06, esp. Elevator and Rolling 
Thunder, I decided this year to start at least some section hiking, and also 
to join this group. My first message is actually a mini-report of my walk 
from Campo to Pioneer Mail Trailhead (about 1/2 of section A). I had a cheap 
REI Roadster tent, blue foam mat, and Polar Pod 0deg.  sleeping bag ((79.83 
on clearance, I hope I can get 1/2 credited come Feb 9 superclearance; they 
only had long size).
First day--Campo. I arrived at 4 p.m., and the border patrol guys looked at 
me like I was crazy. I asked them if I could park my car next to their 
hummers (I guess those belonged to the National Guard troops who were also 
there) and they said no. They referred me to the sheriff's station (who 
needs a sheriff with 10,000 bp and ng troops?); his car was there and lights 
were on, but no one answering. So I left my car in the Sheriff's driveway 
and left a note, "Dear Sheriff, I'm sorry I parked the car here, but . . . 
.)
I didn't want to camp in Campo itself, so I walked about two hours, to about 
the middle of the ascent of Hauser Mountain, and camped right on the side of 
the trail. No one disturbed me, not even a mouse (turns out it was one of 
the coldest days of the year, Sunday 1/14). It was cold, but not dangerously 
cold--just waking up often cold.
Second day: the descent to Lake Morena was frustrating: I missed the left 
turn downward, and had to turn around and take a jeep trail down. I really 
don't think there was a pct marker.

I arrived at the store and campground area around sundown, completely 
deserted. I got the 4.50 milkshake as is custom (cf. John Travolta in Pulp 
Fiction). Again I hiked a bit more into the hills to sleep. Very very windy, 
but tent didn't fly away. Couldn't boil water with my alcohol stove (nearly 
burned down the tent), so just chewed dry ramen, promising myself that 
tomorrow I'll have restaurant food. This time, I tied about 4 inches of the 
sleeping bag off with rubber bands, and used handwarmers (the chemical thing 
for arthritis sufferers) and also kept my pants and sweatshirt on. This made 
a big difference from the previous night.
By this time, my mantra was: balaclava and gloves! Those two items would 
have made me much more comfortable at night and in the morning hours.

The climb up to Laguna Mt. tested my limits, as I've never gone multi-day 
hiking before. I was quite depressed until I finally saw the sign for Desert 
View, 2.5 miles. Of course there was a few inches of old snow all afternoon. 
Nothing dangerous, though. Up at the Mt. Laguna Lodge, I was heartbroken to 
find the restaurant open only on weekends. So dinner was a pack of hot dogs, 
a loaf of bread, and 20 oz. budweiser. I sure am glad the lodge was open.

The final day was a short 10 miles to Pioneer Mail Trailhead. I ran into 
some nice guys maintaining the trail, including Doddy, whom I have heard of 
before.
My friend picked me up and we were looking for a decent place to eat. If you 
know the area, you know you're lucky to find even a hole in the wall to eat 
at. Jackpot: the Viejas Casino buffet, about 20 min. north on Interstate 8! 
It's surprisingly good.
After that, I returned to Campo, pleasantly surprised that my car was still 
there. No wheel clamps or anything.

So, some conclusions:

1. Benefits of hiking in the Winter
    a. less water needed: I found I was drinking only about two or three of 
the gatorade quart bottles per day.
    b. places are less crowded; therefore people are more friendly
    c. cooler, more pleasant to walk; never actually cold when walking
    d. so one can walk faster
    e. rangers seem to care less about permits and stuff
    f. more water available (although some places the faucets are frozen), 
including the possibility of melting snow

2. Costs of hiking in the Winter
    a. it is cold--unpleasant
    b. cold requires more heavy equipment
    c. shorter days (balances with 1d), light from 7 am to 5 pm
    d. trail hidden under snow at times
    e. less facilities, including running pipes, restaurants, etc. open
    f. seen to be crazy by others

3. Equipment:
    a. balaclava
    b. thin gloves
    c. "cotton kills" proven to me firsthand: I could actually feel the 
sweat evaporating off my polyester clothing; if cotten, I would have been 
drenched all day.
    d. wish I had $400 bucks for a Helium sleeping bag; My polar pod 0 deg. 
made my Gust pack almost as tall as I was.
    e. I have a La Fuma 600 very light down sleeping bag, and perhaps I'll 
use that next time, since the Anza Borrego part of the section is probably 
warmer. Anyone have details of a warm/light/cheap sleeping bag liner?
    e. good to strap gatorade quart bottles to the backpack strap with 
stretch cord
    f. need a camera pocket to attach to backpack strap
    g. need to modify my cheap REI trek pole to take a camera tripod bolt. 
Tired of taking pics of myself with my hand outstretched, holding camera. 
(can I drill my cork handles and insert a bolt? anyone tried it?)
    h. The whole time I wore t he REI long-sleeve undershirt, and a 
windproof light jacket (given me by a hiker in-law from Korea). The material 
is a bit  like a wetsuit, and the thing is perfect for temperature control. 
Never once was I cold while walking, and just a bit of zipper down was I 
needed to cool down during uphill battles.
    i. I used a cheap pair of trail runners, I think Salomon or something. 
All fine and good, but I wish the bottoms were a bit stiffer for the rocks. 
Any suggestions?

Sorry for the long post. I thing different parts of it touch on different 
topics previously posted this month. I welcome your comments.

J. S. Park