We were going to try for the PCT Desert View to Kwaaymii again, and yet again another storm caused us to do a different trail. The Santa Ysabel hike was very pretty. The first mile had a bit of a killer climb out the gate followed by a bit of a reprieve before another 1.3mi climb. At this point, we have the bulk of the elevation gain behind us with the rest realized by rolling hills. Thankful for the long stretches through meadows to elongate our strides. Like the previous week, the trail had quite a bit of mud to deal with in parts. The hike was 12.3mi with 2303ft of elevation gain. 

This was an out & back, and our first training hike on the PCT during this training!  It was a really nice trail – no ruts or rocks to worry about which made for a fast hike. The climb was gradual, and because this was an out and back, we did the 1300ft gain in two parts. It was a nice day for this hike, later the storm came in and we wondered how the PCT hikers we saw fared. We also saw turkeys on the trail.