Today was a steady climb from Fred’s canyon at 4500 ft to Mt Laguna at 6000 ft. With the increase in elevation we noticed a progression of vegetation from low scrubby bushes to tall pines. The fragrance of the forest was a nice contrast to the hot dry air of the desert.

We noticed a few trees with small holes in the bark all the way up. Some busy little squirrels had been at work because every hole had a little acorn in it!

Just about every PCT hiker stops in at the Mt Laguna general store for a snack or needed supplies so we followed the trend.

Hiking on in the heat of the early afternoon was a drudge but after about an hour we came to the edge of the escarpment and were greeted by the most incredible view of the desert below us.