After we returned from our adventures in Death Valley, The LovedOne threw herself into preparing for the library’s big used book clearance sale – the first one in almost two years (Yeah! 😃). Lots of books have piled up in those two years, so getting ready has (temporarily) taken her out of action for hiking (Sigh 😥). But it’s for a good cause – people get affordable books to read and the library gets some additional funds. That said, today was forecast as a day between storms, so I decided to make use of it for a hike. Porcupine Mountain, which sits just north of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), offers an easy hike with big views. It seemed like a good choice for a morning’s hike.

I left home in a dense fog which simply disappeared well before I started climbing toward the Siskiyou Pass. You can approach Porcupine from either the Boccard Point Trailhead to the east or from the west, near Pilot Rock. I started along the PCT from the west. It was sunny but cold with a good, stiff breeze. All the wildflowers are history but it hasn’t snowed much up here (yet) so a few mushrooms are still around. The skies were clear and the big views were good – with Mount Shasta to the south and Mount McLoughlin to the north.

Overall, this was an invigoratingly brisk exercise hike – 7.3 miles (11.7 km) round-trip, with a cumulative 1,400 feet (426 m)) of gain – on a nice cold morning. I did, however, miss The LovedOne. 😘 As I was driving home, the sky filled with clouds ahead of the rain we’re expected to get over the next few days. ☂😀

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