Last weekend, my friends and I hiked a 12-mile portion of the Pacific Crest Trail in the San Bernardino Wilderness, on a section that was not touched by the Lake Fire. It was my first time hiking that segment of the PCT, so I was excited when my friend Paul began this series. We are doing a total of 12 hikes and accomplishing this feat by way of a car shuttle with each segment.

We started out at Onyx Summit at an elevation of 8,443 ft. On the drive up the winding road to the summit, we were a little surprised to see the temperature dipping below 40 degrees in the middle of summer. By the time we made it to the saddle, the outside temperature gauge on my friend’s SUV read a mere 37 degrees.

Before I left home that morning, I wondered if it was a good idea to use this outing as an opportunity to test a new piece of gear, the new Base Camp Hoodie from WoolX. I loved the hoodie the instant I removed it from the packaging, from the look and feel of the lightweight 100% merino wool fabric, to the Pomegranate Pop color, which happens to be one of my favorite. I tried it on immediately and did the mirror check and was pleased to see that the fitted design and color block made my waist appear smaller. That’s an important thing for us plus-sized women who venture into the outdoors. (The Base Camp Hoodie goes up to size XXL.)

Since the Base Camp Hoodie is intended to be worn in warmer temps, I thought this would be a good time to try it out. I didn’t check the weather before leaving, but figured it would be a warm day, even in the higher elevations. Nothing prepared us for 37 degrees, though, but when I got out of the car at Onyx Summit, I was grateful to be wearing a long sleeved top with a hood. I slipped my thumbs into the thumb holes and pulled the hood over my head as I made my way to a sunny spot as we waited for our friends to return from leaving a couple of cars at our destination for the shuttle back.

37 degrees is a little cool for the Base Camp Hoodie, unless you’re exercising. For sitting or standing around, you might want to try something a little thicker, and WoolX also makes a midweight and a heavyweight base layer to keep you insulated in those conditions.

When we started hiking uphill, I began to warm up, but I never felt like I was overheating. There was lots of shade on this trail and much of the incline was gradual. For the most part, this section of the PCT was mainly downhill for us as we traveled in a northerly direction heading toward the desert. We even saw a care station for thru-hikers on the PCT, as well as a sofa and what appeared to be another care station perhaps filled with “trail magic” or supplies. We didn’t open it, so we weren’t sure. And then there were multiple water sightings as we traversed through a shaded canyon.

The trees were gigantic and healthy, a very welcome sight after witnessing some of the devastation from the Lake Fire on the drive up Highway 38. As we approached increasingly exposed areas, we took the opportunity to stop and take shade breaks. It didn’t take long for the temperature to climb to a balmy 75 degrees. When I got too warm, I just lowered the 1/2 zip of the hoodie for a little more ventilation. Whenever the breeze picked up, I could feel it blowing through the superior wicking fabric and it kept me cool.

As we made our way closer to the end of our trail, we noticed several Joshua Trees, an indicator of where the forest ends and the desert begins. It was quite a strange and beautiful sight. With Big Bear Lake and Lake Baldwin to our left in the west, the expansive high desert plateau to our north and rolling hills and mountains in the east, we enjoyed quite a palette of views.

The icing on the cake, so to speak, was “The Eye of God,” a little side trip we took at the end of our hike to a giant quartz rock that we could see glistening from the road. Of course, we seized the opportunity to do a little photo shoot and I took the opportunity to expand my rock collection.

All in all, this was a great, peaceful journey on segment of the PCT that I probably would never have ventured to had I not been introduced to it. And my new piece of gear, the WoolX Base Camp Hoodie, is one that I will keep and wear over and over again. It’s lightweight, no itching or chafing and no “wooly” smell. It’s just a soft, yet durable, high quality product that rivals some of the other top brands of 100% merino wool on the market. It’s also very stylish and cute. I might just wear it again on the next segment of the PCT.