Stagecoach 400 - Day 1 - Idyllwild and the San Jacinto Mountains
Date: March 12, 2022
75.28 Miles
Idyllwild, CA to Lake Henshaw Resort
After winter's cold had sat on my bones for months, I ached for some desert heat and escape. Spring Break 2022 was fast approaching, and I had yet to finalize plans. I started pouring over Bikepacking.com maps and realized the Stagecoach 400 would be perfect. The nearly 400 mile route spans an array of biomes in southwester California. It begins in Idyllwild high up in the San Jacinto Mountains above Palm Springs before tumbling down to San Diego, rides along the coast, turns inland to cross Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, and then climbs back up to Idyllwild, CA. A trip through deserts, along the Pacific Coast, and up mountains was exactly what I wanted. More-so, I was somewhat familiar with the locale due to our Sierra Cascades Bike Tour the previous summer - I was looking forward to seeing some of these places again. The organizers of the Stagecoach 400 had made a deal with the Idyllwild Inn to let bikepackers stay for a discount at their smallest cabin. I put in reservations and looked forward to Spring Break.
Janna would be flying to Ohio, so this would be a solo trip. The day we left the Canyon for Phoenix, a massive snowstorm hit. We barely skidded along out of the high country before the highways were closed behind us. I dropped Janna at the airport and drove to California. I reached Idyllwild in the evening, checked in, put my car in some long-term parking, and then set around to preparing for tomorrow.
I awoke early and pushed my bike out into the early dawn frost. Sequoias stood dark as light crept over Idyllwild and its lingering winter snow drifts. I started up some side roads before disembarking down dirt, but I did not make it far before I ran into an immediate reroute. A recent burn had resulted in a mandatory closure for all users of the dirt decent off of Idyllwild. I turned my bike around and proceeded to drop down the dirt highway to Lake Hemet. This all felt familiar because Janna and I had ridden this direction in reverse the previous summer on the Sierra Cascades bike tour. I sped past the general store and turned right onto a dirt road that began a beautiful climb up through pines and oak via Thomas Mountain. I turned around constantly to take in the opposing views of spring-touched San Jacinto. On curves, I spied distant San Gorgonio peaked in snow.
I crested the range and sped down the other, more arid side. Chapparal habitat appeared as the road turned dusty and hot. The dirt road vividly crossed the landscape, etching descents in the scrub before turning me out into downtown Anza. I rode over to the gazebo in the local park where Janna and I had relaxed last summer. I refilled my water, ran into the small grocery, and then pushed off to the other side of town.
The pavement ended as I head directly south, slowly climbing up and over the Beauty Mountains along the narrow non-wilderness road. The dirt was severely eroded from winter rains. I more or less paralleled the Pacific Crest Trail that ran atop an adjoining peak while I sailed the valleys. I was in firm desert scrub now. Large granite boulders dotted the hillsides as flashy beige cacti sprouted around me. I rolled up and down dirt 4WD roads across Pine Mountain through gorgeous white granite spires and jumbled mash before grabbing pavement and sailing downwards into Warner Springs.
I was back again in another location from the Sierra Cascades. I stopped at the small gas station for some Gatorades after the hot day, talked to a PCT hiker, and then pedaled hard along the shoulder of the highway to Lake Henshaw. I realized that Lake Henshaw Resort (where I planned on camping) had a business office that closed soon. I sped along in the evening hour and reached the campground with minutes to go. There was literally almost no one tent camping in their vast campground so I picked a spot under a large live oak tucked back in. Wild turkeys called in the twilight while I called Janna on the phone. Darkness came on strong, so climbed into my shelter and slept hard.
