Water has become more sparse in this section of trail. With hikers sometimes having to carry all the water they would need for 15 mile stretches (or more). Hikers sometimes need to “Dry Camp” or set up camp in a place that has no water. We usually carry 1L of water for every 3 miles plus one emergency liter. 1L of water is 2.2 LBS, it is not uncommon for us to carry 4L or almost 9 LBS in water in addition to our other gear!
There are trail angels in the desert that provide water to hikers, one such location is “Mikes Place” where hikers grab water from his large water tanks. We have also filtered water from wells where you need to use a bucket and rope to get water and abandoned cisterns with GREEN ALGAE WATER (which thankfully filtered clear).
Most hikers purify their water with the Sawyer Squeeze filter, we prefer the Platypus filter, and have also seen the Be Free Filter on trail.
We did have to get off trail earlier than expected down a side trail into Idyllwild due to wind advisories where wind speeds of 30-40 MPH with gusts into the 70s! Special thanks to “Grumpy”, a trail angel, who helped us get safely into Idyllwild!
Next stop Big Bear Lake!
