Tag: San Jacintos

Eight thirty am, not really early, but it’s only forty-six degrees (Fº) at the Humber Park trailhead in the quaint alpine village of Idyllwild, when today’s ramble begins, climbing through a thick pine forest on the eastern flank of the San Jacinto mountains. Nine hours later, when I get off the aerial tram in the desert oasis of Palm Springs, it’s in the upper eighties, and I’m surrounded by palm trees and mid-century architecture. A study in contrast, like the long shadows signaling the changing season. Soon snow will blanket the peaks of Mt San Jacinto, Newton Drury, Jean and Marion, and the fire danger will drop from extreme to moderate.

Walking Project 039_fall shadows – Mt San Jacinto from chris worland on Vimeo.

When I reached the summit of Mount San Jacinto, I’d reached phase seven. I was so tired, I lunched and dozed off almost immediately under a thick, twisted old pine. Voices from other hikers engaged in lively conversation a mere twenty yards away, drifting into my slumbered imagination. But first, let me explain the phase thing.

Every strenuous hike I’ve done can be broken up into six phases:

1. Oh, Hey! Let’s GO!–start.
2. Why am I doing this?–about a mile in, especially if there is substantial elevation gain.
3. Oh. Hey! Let’s continue–two and half/three miles already? This isn’t too bad.
4. I can see the summit/the halfway mark. Nothing is going to keep me from reaching it, not even my burning quads, sore knees and ankles or begging lungs.
5. Oh YEAH! Top of the world Ma!–summit.
6. The return–basking in glory but can’t wait to get back.

Next thing you know, I was imagining, or just dreaming, a short story that can be summarized as:

The parallel tale of :

1. a hiker who takes a nap in the shade of a limber pine, at the summit of Mount san Jacinto, and dreams of arguing with the President who wants to develop a resort on the spot, and chop down a lot of trees in the process.
2. A German immigrant lumberjack working in the San Jacinto wilderness in the 1880’s who falls asleep leaning against a ponderosa pine he jut felled. In his dreams, he runs into a bear who scares him to death.

It’s a work in progress.

Walking Project 020_pine cycle – Mt San Jacinto from chris worland on Vimeo.