Idyllwild Camping Trip

On August 28-29, a group of us went on a one day/one night camping trip in Idyllwild, California. Idyllwild is located in the San Jacinto Mountains which is the home of quite a few well-known hiking trails. Hardly any of us are "hikers," but we were all up to the idea of spending a day up in the mountains and going on a hike.

We left after church on a Sunday afternoon. Once we arrived, we barbequed some carne asada and torillas and kept warm by the camp fire.




The "Talking Rocks." Where do I begin? Well, the girls found 'em first. After dinner, they told us about these rocks so we decided to check 'em out. It was about a five minute walk from our campsite. When we arrived, we saw a cluster of very large rocks with an opening in the trees right above them. The sky was amazing. You could actually see a lot of stars. It's not everyday in Southern California that you can actually sit in the quiet and look at more than two stars.

It was a very relaxing night. We stayed on this cluster of rocks for quite some time... just relaxing and talking. It was a great way to decompress.

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The next morning we went into town. We went into a "jerky store" which had every kind of jerky you could imagine... buffalo jerky, ostrich and emu jerky, venison jerky... the list goes on and on. I bought some buffalo jerky. It was kinda expensive, but it was good. We then headed down the road to start our hike on the South Ridge Trail!!!

The South Ridge Trail

So here it is!!! The moment we were all waiting for!!! We were ready to embark on an eight mile round trip hike to "Tahquitz Peak"... or so we thought. I guess I should say that we were ill-prepared for this hike. We had plenty of food and wore the right kind of shoes, but we all forgot to bring plenty of H2O!!!! Yes, we had water, but we didn't bring enough.

This hike truly was amazing though! I never knew you could see such awesome views in Southern California. The South Ridge Trail follows the side of Tahquitz Peak and you pretty much have a nice view of the mountain valleys the whole way to the top. Our first stop was at a view overlooking the valley. We were standing on a HUGE rock that was very level... almost like a platform. We sat down, caught our breath, enjoyed the view for a brief moment, and then continued up the mountain.



Our next stop was "Window Rock." This stop was probably the most fun. The view from this rock was incredible. Window Rock got its name because of a rock formation that allows you to see through a "window" (so to speak) and see the view from the other side of the rock.



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After much boulder climbing, picture taking, and goofing off, we continued on our journey. It seriously seemed like we had already walked 13 miles on this four mile one-way hike. It was hot, the air was thin, and our water supply was running low. Even Alex's dog was lookin' like she had enough. We stopped somewhere on this trail, took a break, ate our sandwiches and granola bars, rested, and then continued. We got to a point on the trail where the incline became steadily steep. I think we had about one mile left to walk and we were just about out of water and energy. We started out with nine people on this hike, and five of us continued to the top. To be completely honest with you, it was more difficult than I would probably like to admit, but I knew that I would not be happy with myself if I backed down. I have never in my life hiked to the top of a mountain peak and I was determined to do so. So I did and let me tell you... the peak was well worth it.

There stands at the top of Tahquitz Peak an old fire lookout station that has a 360 degree deck that overlooks every angle of the peak. What makes Tahquitz such a nice peak is that it is much like a pyramid. You can just about stand in one place and literally see everything all around. We hung out at the top for a little while and then started back down the trail.

Once we arrived back at the bottom, we packed up camp and went home. But the night was not quite over yet. We decided to come to my place and grill some hot dogs and hamburgers... and we each topped off the night with a big bowl of Moose Tracks ice-cream. (If you have never had Moose Tracks, go to your local grocery store and buy a gallon or two. Believe me, you'll like it).

If asked if I would do something like this again, I would definately say "Yes," but next time... I will bring three times the amount of water!!!