Clouds hike in 1991, after marking, with yellow metal tags, the final miles of the faint Skyline Trail as it terminated at Long Valley near the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway Mountain Station. The following year, starting on the North Lykken Trail, they hiked the Skyline Trail and the San Jacinto Peak Trail to the summit of San Jacinto Peak, a 10,300-foot gain. They decided to offer the hike through the Coachella Valley Hiking Club and subsequently led the first Cactus to Clouds Challenge in 1993, along with 4 other club members. Roger Keezer, a Coachella Valley Hiking Club hike leader and one of the original Cactus to Clouds Challenge hikers, created the phrase “Cactus to Clouds” when the group was considering names for the event. Route The trail begins at around elevation near the Palm Springs Art Museum. The first part of the trail is maintained by government agencies, and consists of the Museum and North Lykken Trails. After reaching a set of picnic tables 0.8 miles in, the trail turns into an informal path maintained by hikers and volunteers. One may find two rescue boxes along this section. Although the route is generally obvious, there are number of shortcuts and spurs which may confuse hikers and thus pose a danger to the uninitiated. Continuing out of the hills above Palm Springs, the trail ascends the east side of Mount San Jacinto along a ridge between Chino Canyon and Tahquitz Creek, going roughly westward along the ridgeline. There is a short northward turn at , a difficult part for winter ascents known as "The Traverse". In Long Valley, hikers usually take a break at the tramway facilities at . Many descend via the tramway at this point. The remainder of the route follows a well-maintained state park trail to the summit of San Jacinto Peak, passing a popular trail junction known as Wellman Divide along the way. From the peak, the vast majority of hikers walk down to the tram station and take the tram down. Many, though only a tiny minority of C2C hikers, decide to walk down all the way back to the Museum. Hazards The primary hazard of Cactus to Clouds is the weather, in particular, the extreme variance between the desert start and the subalpine end. Temperatures in the lower portions of the trail can reach up to , while temperatures of are not uncommon at