I’m actually here… how crazy is that?! Standing at the southern-most point of the Pacific Crest Trail with my big backpack strapped on and my hiking poles at the ready, I took in my surroundings. Now all I have to do is walk 2650 miles back home to Canada… sounds easy, right? At 7am, the sun was already wide awake, casting a golden light on the granular sand at my feet, and illuminating the giant metal slats of the iconic border wall separating the United States from Mexico. The intimidating wall continued for as far as the eye could see down the horizon until it followed the curvature of the hills and fell out of sight. Border patrol cars constantly drove up and down the length of the wall, meanwhile PCT hikers were making their way to and from the terminus statue, getting ready to start their adventures.
I was itching to get going. So much preparation, so much anticipation, so much mental energy devoted to constantly thinking about doing this hike, and now I’m finally here, ready to go. I started marching my way north, every meter an incremental victory. It’s official, I’ve begun!
The trail was a distinctive sandy path meandering alongside brown grasses, sage, yucca plants, and small trees. In some areas there were driftwood-looking trees scattered among beautiful purple and yellow flowers. Although I’ve just begun, the trail already reached elevations that boasted expansive views of the surrounding landscape. I was surprised that there was already so much change in topography in the first few miles, I had naively thought the desert would be flat.
I had what I thought was a decent pace until about 10am. By then, the sun was already mercilessly beating down on me and the weight of my pack was becoming a real burden. After only 3 hours of hiking, I was already dreaming of all the things I wanted to take out of my backpack and leave at the Lake Morena campground, the first official campground along the PCT at mile 20. The hand cream, some spare clothes, the ice pack (ok, I know that’s excessive, but I was really worried about the heat!), and I needed to reassess how much food I had… there’s no way I’d be able to do 10-day food carries, it’s just way too heavy!
I found a decently flowing creek (thank goodness!) at mile 6.5. After I filled up on water, I decided to stay there for a couple hours to let the heat of the day pass. I wanted to give my body time to acclimatize to the high temperatures and not push myself too hard on the first day. The surrounding shrub foliage was disappointingly twig-like and didn’t provide adequate shade, but fortunately I had brought a small umbrella for this exact scenario. I sat under a shrub in the shade of my umbrella and sipped on water. As I hung out there, several other hikers came by. Accents from southern Georgia, Louisiana, Germany, and the UK all filled the air. It was so fun!
As time passed, hikers came and went. I met a hiker named Brightside* who hung out with me for most of the afternoon. She was optimistic and bubbly. We took turns putting our feet in the cold creek water as a means to cool down while chatting about what lured us to this trail.
At about 3pm I packed up my things and continued hiking. I walked along an exposed ridgeline, stopping frequently to sit on a rock in the shade. Although it had cooled down significantly since noon, the heat of the sun’s rays on my skin were still hot enough to make me sweat. As I continued on the path, I came across two snakes with horizontal black and beige stripes sunbathing on the sand. They quickly slithered away as soon as they noticed me. I’m glad they weren’t rattlesnakes! I also came across what appeared to be a flattened pinecone, but upon closer inspection, realized it was actually a lizard with many spikes. He stood motionless as I looked at him with bewildered curiosity. It’s exciting encountering new and unique animals in their natural habitat.
I was aiming for a tent site at mile 11.2 but by the time I hit mile 8 I was already exhausted and decided to call it quits for the day. It was 4:30pm. Luckily, I found a great tent site with a marvelous view of rolling hills. I called out to Brightside when I saw her walk by and told her there’s room for one more if she felt like stopping. She took me up on the offer and set up her tent near mine. I really liked her enthusiasm and vibe.
Another hiker came by and joined us as well. As we ate our dinners, we excitedly recounted our first day on trail while also marveling at the shifting scenery before us. The setting sun cast all kinds of different shadows which dramatically changed the landscape with every passing minute.
As the sun sank into the horizon and the stars of the desert night sky started making an appearance, we retreated to our respective tents, pleased with our first day of adventure. The air was rich with the smell of sage and hints of sweet-smelling flowers. I’ve only just begun and yet I’m already so impressed with the biodiversity and variability of the landscape. It’s starting to finally sink in that I’m here. I feel so lucky, grateful, happy, excited, and free!
*Note: It’s tradition for PCT hikers to have a “trail” name. Regular names are rarely used on the PCT, except for people who haven’t yet had a trail name bestowed upon them. Typically another hiker will come up with a personalized trail name for you. It’s usually based on a characteristic you might have or on a shared experience. Sometimes people choose their own trail name, but that’s no fun! In this blog I will only refer to people using their trail names (even though a lot of us got our trail names later on in the hike) for privacy purposes, and because it’s more fun that way.
Can’t wait to read about day 2, 3, etc! Such an amazing adventure. Thanks for sharing!!
Glad to hear! I’ll be coming out with more content soon!
You brought an ice pack! Also, I wonder what kind of snake you saw. This is fun to read, bringing me back to my early days in the desert
Glad you enjoy it! I think it was a type of whip snake. I know eh?… such a rookie move ahaha
Hi Isabel. I am Linda Kjarsgaard your auntie DeannaTwin. Uli sent me your blog on the Pct. I have to first two days but I am not get a , next post. Hoping my email address helps. Love the adventure you are on.
Have done lot of backpacking into the mountains here but for only 5 or 6 days at a time.
Would love to see more of your adventure. Thanks
Hi Linda, thanks for reaching out! The subscribe button on my blog currently doesn’t work, but fortunately with your email, I can manually add you to my list of subscribers 🙂 Thanks so much for taking an interest in my adventure! More content will be coming out soon.
I am an original resident of Ancaster, Hamilton, Brantford and recently moved to Paris, ON and was intrigued running across your story / blog and quite fascinated reading your blog including “first day”. I am keen to follow/read more of your experiences on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT)…and other. Congratulations on your accomplishments at a young age…the sky is the limit. Wishing you all the best with your future endeavours.
Thank you for sharing!!🙏🏻
Brian
Thanks so much Brian!
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