We left late in the morning from the Bay Area trying to work around morning traffic and also get everything done that we needed before heading out. It was later than I wanted but I knew we’d persevere to the top no matter what. We reached the trail head around 1:30 and were on the trail by 2pm. The trail rises steeply at first with little to no shade to be had. Being there during the warmest part of the day was brutal. After about an hour, we reached a more shady section of trail. This also seemed to be where the bugs came out in full force. Mosquitoes and yellow biting flies were a bit relentless. We reached a couple beautiful water sources and traded out our warm water for the cold fresh streams. Then it was back up hill. There was a brutally steep section where I almost got sick but we pushed on. By the time we got to the short road section, the sun was on the other side of the ridge so we had some much needed reprieve from the heat. We walked along the road for a mile and a half before turning off and heading back on trail. At this point the end was in sight and we were nearly on the ridge. I was tired and needed to eat something but I wanted to make it to the top before sunset. we reached the side trail to the summit and left our bags there. we grabbed our cameras and our summit beers and headed up. It was gorgeous up at the top but the bugs were still out to get us. We stayed until the light was mostly fading before heading back down. We had another mile and a half to a camp spot where we’d be able to grab some water. It was dark by the time we got there and the first thing we did was fill up on water. The camp spot was less than ideal and we ended up sleeping on the slightly sloping and rocky ground. I started making dinner and we set up camp. While eating, we encountered a very brave mouse around the fire pit. We did our best to scare it off but I knew it would be a problem overnight, especially with my half pot of leftover mac and cheese in my tent. I woke up once to it touching one of my feet through my tent and again when I heard it running up my ground cloth. I was too exhausted to try and chase it away all night and decided to stick the pot outside my tent with a heavy rock on it. It worked and I slept like a baby. I woke up early, ready to get hiking but my hiking buddy wasn’t awake yet. I spent the morning taking pictures, exploring more of the area, and slowly packing up. We were on trail by 10 am that morning and almost immediately I wished I had trekking poles. My mind was holding me back since the leg break and I got extremely frustrated not being able to do what I was capable of before. And not for anything physical! It was purely in my mind and I struggled all day with it. The downhill was incredible steep and gravelly and after slipping a few times, my pace slowed to a crawl. I was embarrassed and sad with myself. When I finally was starting to say “fuck it” and moving faster, my friend slipped in a similar way to when I broke my leg and I froze. Luckily we were close to the road and he was able to make it out. We got to the road, a few miles up from our car so we started hitching. We were pretty unlucky and didn’t get a hitch till we had already walked down the side of the road a bit. We hopped in a van with a couple from Monterey and they got us back to our car super quick. We had our baby wipe “showers” and headed off into the traffic back home.
What I would do differently:
-arrive at the trail earlier
-bring bug spray
-bring trekking poles
Mileage: ~25 miles
Trailhead: Kirk Creek Campground
End Point: Limekiln State Park Campground