Catcus-to-Clouds (C2C) Hike October 2017

Ever since June and I have been going to Palm Springs, San Jacinto (Ha-sin-to) mountain has beckoned me, rising up out of the desert floor at 500 ft above sea level, to 10,834 ft.

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This is a picture from our first trip there in 2010

I read several websites and learned that this hike, nicknamed 'C2C', is among the hardest day hikes in the USA. This website has the best details about the hike. The trailhead is behind the Palm Springs Art Museum and goes to the Tram Station. A lot of people end their hike there, but the hardcore hikers then continue another 5.5 miles to San Jacinto Peak, then back to the Tram Station. Almost everyone then rides down to the desert floor. You must get a ride back to the trailhead, where you probably left your car, about 6 miles away.

In our 2011 trip, June and I hiked up the Skyline trail (the official name of the trail up to the tram) about 3 miles, just enough to get a taste of it. The trail starts out with a tough climb and is not well marked, so it's easy to get lost. But after the first mile or so, it becomes quite pleasant.

Then, in our 2013 trip, we took the tram up and hiked around San Jacinto State Park at the top of the mountains. While there, we found where the Skyline trail breached the rim (near the tram station). I walked down about 100 feet, got pretty creeped out, and I lost interest in doing the hike.

In the summer of 2017, enough time had passed since the creepy experience, and I started thinking about the hike again. I learned that October is the best time to do the hike, so I sent out an email to Brett and some friends who may be interested. In the end, it would be Bruce, Brett, and myself, the same party who did the Mt. Whitney day hike in August 2011. So we picked a weekend and I started doing some training hikes. Bruce and Brett seem to always be in shape for this sort of thing. Maryanne's cousin had a place there where we could stay (for a small cleaning fee) about a mile from the trailhead. I volunteered to sell Lindsey and Wes's Prius, so we used that for transportation. Brett liked the car so much (and the deal they gave him) that he bought it when we returned. We drove down on Friday the 20th, walked on Saturday, and drove back on Sunday.

We started the drive at 5 am on Friday and took the scenic route through the desert, dropping into Palm Springs through the Yucca valley. There were 30 mph winds on our ride through the desert, but luckily it was a tail wind. We all agreed that we would NOT do the hike if it were windy on Saturday. That evening we went grocery shopping for breakfast and trail snacks. Then we had a nice meal at Lulu's in downtown.

Saturday morning we awoke at 4:15, planning to hit the trail at 5:00 am. The coffee pot didn't work, but a new one was sitting there still in the box. We got it out, but didn't have filters, so I made one with paper towels. It worked but made a bit of a mess. The knob on the toaster broke off, and when I finally got it back on, the toast burned and set off the smoke alarm. We cooked and ate our egg sandwiches and hit the trail by 5:30 am.

In the weeks leading up to the hike, I had decided that I would be fine just hiking to the tram station, and not going the extra 5 miles to San Jacinto Peak and back. Just before the brutal 2 miles climbing up to the rim, I was feeling pretty good, but after the final 2-mile climb, I was VERY tired and sore. While sitting at the Ranger Station for 20 minutes, I realized it would take them about 5 more hours to do the last 10 miles, so rather than wait, I agreed to join them as far as I could go - I could turn around at any time. As it turns out, I hiked another 3.2 miles passed the tram station and turned around just beyond Wellman's Divide and got back to the tram station at about 5 pm. I walked a total of about 16.4 miles in 11.5 hours.

While waiting the two hours for their return, I visited a restaurant at the tram station. They had a deal going, the 'ride and dine' special. I wondered if I would qualify, so I asked the greeter behind the buffet. She asked if I purchased the option when I bought my tram ticket. I said I didn't buy a tram ticket. She stared at me blankly for a few seconds, then a guy next to her said, 'He hiked up here'. From the look on her face you would have thought that he said I was dropped there by an alien spaceship.

Here's another: It is well-documented that day hikers MUST BUY a return tram ticket. However, when entering the holding area for the tram ride going down, no one showed the gate keeper their tickets. Seeing a potential loop hole, I asked him how they prevent day hikers from getting a free ride down. He answered, 'Oh, we can tell the day hikers by how they look and smell.' 

Bruce and Brett, and a young lady named Sharon who we met on the hike, continued on to the summit.  They returned in the dark at about 7 pm for a total of about 21 miles, about 10,300 ft of elevation gain, and about 13.5 hours. We were all very happy with our accomplishments.

On Sunday, we had a long and (fortunately) uneventful ride home.