C2C Trip Report 5/22/12

[BT]

My friend and I completed C2C for the first time on May 22nd, 2012. I met several people who mentioned this website when we spoke, so I thought I’d share our trip report. We recognized the dangers associated with hiking C2C in these high temperatures, but felt prepared given our training, start time, and knowledge gathered from this site. I’ll detail our times, the route/hike, water/gear used, training, and other thoughts below:

Times:
Begin hike at Art Museum – 3:15am
Arrive at Tram – 11:30am
Arrive at Summit – 2:45pm
Return to Tram – 5:45pm

We took several, long breaks throughout the hike including the tram and summit.

Route/Hike:
There appears to be multiple routes from the TH to the picnic tables, all of which I think led to the picnic tables. We followed the spray painted white dots that looked the easiest to follow and had no problems. Once you pass the picnic tables, we veered left, came to a pile of rocks and headed straight up to the trail. There were never any issues finding the trail throughout the hike.

Between miles 6.5-8, we encountered four snakes. Be careful and pay attention, I almost greeted a rattlesnake on the trail with my boot.

Between miles 7.5-9, it gets pretty steep and with the sun baking you, there is little relief.

Once we completed the first portion of the hike, we headed up to the tram station. After 10 miles of steep hiking, the “climb” up to the tram was rather tiring. I found out we could have just walked directly to the ranger station to fill out our permits to summit and refill our water. Hopefully you don’t make this mistake!

The 6 mile hike from the tram/ranger station to the summit was very easy (especially given the previous 10 miles) and for the most part shaded. There was very little snow on the trail and signs always pointed you to the correct route. The return hike to the tram was pleasant, cool, and shaded.

Water/Gear Used:
I brought 8 liters of water with me at TH, which I mixed with Gatorade powder. I used 6 liters from the TH to tram. From the tram/ranger station to summit, I brought 4 liters of water. I used about 2.5. I ate protein bars, almonds, peanut butter crackers and Gu Chomps throughout the hike. I carried everything in a Camelbak backpack.

I also brought a GPS watch which I found extremely useful for pacing, especially for the first 10 miles of the hike. For first timers, I would definitely recommend this so you know how far along you’ve gone. Of course, a headlamp is required until the sun rises.

Training:
We live in the Phoenix, AZ area. For the past three weeks we ramped up our conditioning. Our most difficult training was a 20 mile hike with approximately 5,000 ft. elevation gain. We completed this hike with the temperature reaching 100 degrees. I would recommend completing several hikes in heat conditions comparable to those you will experience during C2C to simulate how your body reacts.

Final Thoughts:
There are many risks associated with this hike one should weigh before attempting. The most important is the heat. The high temperature in Palm Springs on the 22nd was 107 with a low of 74. If I would have started this hike at 7am and brought only a gallon of water, I would either be dead or need to be rescued.

A 10,000+ ft. elevation gain day hike without downhill relief is quite the challenge. This was a great hike and something I’d do again, but not until the fall when the snakes go away and the temperatures become cooler.

[cynthia23]

Thank you for the careful and well-written trip report. There are a couple of things in it I'd urge people considering C2C now to consider. The first is the amount of time it took you to complete the Skyline portion of the trail--nearly eight hours. That's completely typical for a first timer. I have a concern that novices read TRs from experienced C2C's who complete the Skyline portion in under five hours, and mistakenly think that's what their own time will be. Underestimating your time on Skyline is a common error that often leads to rescues.

I'd also draw readers attention to the huge amount of fluids you consumed just during the Skyline portion--six liters. That's a significant weight burden and slows a hiker down considerably, in itself adding to the danger. Another reason not to do this hike in high temps.

I also noted that you had been training with hikes in hot conditions with distances of 20 miles and gain of 5 thousand feet. Again, people should consider whether their training has truly been intense enough for this trail.

I also appreciate you are honest about whether or not it was a good idea to try this hike on such a high temp day. IMHO--no. It was a terrible risk. But your thoughtful TR has added to the discussion, so thank you.

[Perry]

It was a terrible risk.

Really? They live in Phoenix and started at 3am.

[halhiker]

It was a terrible risk.

Really? They live in Phoenix and started at 3am.

Uh oh.

[bluerail]

Right there with ya Hal....

[cynthia23]

Oh relax, guys. I can't get too mad at Perry, since he's always been super kind and helpful to me, and he can't get too mad at me, since he's slept on my couch a few times

But hell yeah it was a terrible risk. Attempt, for THE VERY FIRST TIME, C2C on a day the temps were 107??? I don't care if you're Reinold Meissner or if you live in equatorial Africa, that's really risky. The OP's times were average/slow, so he was hitting 4500 at around 7.30. Had the hike been harder than they'd anticipated and they'd bonked, it would have been way too late for them to turn around. Calling for a rescue would have been their only option.

I'll leave it at that.

[fern]

That's when you take the shortcuts. JK..... :shock: :oops:

[zippetydude]

That's when you take the shortcuts. JK.....

z

[bluerail]

you mean the b trail ?

[Perry]

I'll just say it was a medium-low risk.

Maybe we should all get together for dinner and maybe some beers this summer. Just like old times. There's been a few arguments on the forum in the last several months, and I bet if we got together we would all get along just fine.

Thinking along the lines of this thread:
http://mtsanjacinto.info/viewtopic.php?t=3596
The fact that we even argue is because we care about issues.