PCT 2018 Day 4, April 26, Thursday.
Start mile 72, a few miles to a water cache
End Barrel Spring Campsites, mile 101
Miles walked: 29
A few miles from camp, the trail descends into a broad valley, and crosses two highways at narrow angles to each other, Scissor Junction. Underneath a highway bridge is a cache of water, and a rooster. 
The path goes back up a mountain on the other side of the valley, up at 3300 feet from 2200 feet, and stays up there most of the day. Cacti and yucca outnumber bushes on the south side. 
Another water cache is down a trail with shady vegetation, where many hikers hide from the heat. Finally coming down the mountain, we reach the 100 mile point. 
Nearby is a piped spring and campsites, where I get to chat with several hikers, including SmokeBreak, Julian, and a father-son team heading south because they were not able to get a permit. They tell us news of the stop ahead.
The trail will end up going over many of these peaks by end of day. The pathway uses a old roadbed for a while, level or slight grade descending, with views every step. A trail angel left oranges and grapefruit as a refreshing treat. 
I keep moving while others take a break from the sun. Water sources are becoming infrequent, so it seems better to press on and get closes to the next source. The mountains ahead suddenly look dry. 
Spoiler alert: they are.
Boulders thinning out, shrubs thick and thriving, and now in forest at the campground. In this area within the Laguna Mountain Recreation Area, camping must be in a campground. No sites are reserved for PCT, but groups of up to 8 people rent sites together. I ended walking just past 4PM because the next campground was a few miles away. I did try taking a break today around 1PM to escape the sun. Starting back again, my body had stiffened up.