Start Time

[kellie]

Hi!

We are planning on doing C2C over Memorial Day Weekend and am a little concerned about heat. How hot has it been on the trail lately? What time would you recommend starting in the morning? We are all good, steady hikers, but aren't fast by any means...

When we did C2C earlier in the year we left at 4am and that seemed to be okay...but it was also a few months ago and the temps were a bit cooler.

Thanks - hope everyone is doing well!

[AlanK]

It is hard to recommend a starting time for someone else because it depends on the temperatures the day you hike, your pace, and how high a temperature you are willing to tolerate.

We went last Saturday (May 19), starting at 4:40 AM. It was about 70 at the start and temperatures were between 65 and 75 all the way. Our high temperature came around sunrise, about an hour into the hike. We were at least a couple of thousand feet up by then and we hit Long Valley at 9:10. Also, it was not a terribly hot day -- under 100 when we got back to the car, which is mild for Palm Springs.

We have done C2C in late June and encountered temperatures as high as the mid 90s on the way to Long Valley (and 115 back at the car). That is not hot enough to make me start before 4:30 AM, but we do manage a pace that keeps us rising fast enough to beat the heat.

I'm sure that I will be willing to consider earlier starts in a few years because it is inevitable that I won't be moving as quickly as I can move today. I liky Cy's approach of moving start times earlier for that obvious reason. The other approach would be to not go. I certainly don't want that to happen any time soon!

[Cy Kaicener]

If you want to escape most of the heat, 3am might be a good time to start.
You also have to consider getting enough sleep. This would get you almost half way before the sun comes out.

[KathyW]

It just depends on the how hot the day is going to be and how well you handle the heat. I'm no good once it gets hot out, so I'd need to start no later than 2:30 am on the days that it's going to be 100+degrees in Palm Springs. If you're conditioned for the heat then you might be able to start later.

[zippetydude]

I went last July when it was extremely hot (119 in Palm Springs), but I brought one of those little personal mist things with me. I wore sun block, shorts, and shoes and a hip pack - that's it. It was 85 when I started at about 5:00 a.m. but with the constant misting, I was cool to cold the whole time. One caveat: you have to carry enough water to keep that mister going the whole time. Still, it worked great, even with a hot day and sun for most of the time.

I've done it largely in the dark, but part of the reason I go is to see the natural surroundings, so I don't do it that way very often.

z